"But how will you learn math?!"

Portugal, Lisboa

Pictures from Portugal with my Counselors 

Trams in the street

Elevator in the middle of nothing <3

This is the best Fanta, ever. Passion fruit<3

Eating snails with Piedad. Best snails we had all trip, we ate a ton

Next to the Mouth of Hell, a giant cliff of rocks with huge crators

The fish vendor who has been there 50 years

Portuguese sunset

Snails with the family

Breakfasting with Piedad and Carlos. They all eat sweets

Good morning, Princess

The streets, going to buy kitchen ware

Hand painted pottery

Amazing trip. Portugal is so interesting. Its new and old and beautiful and ugly and uughh

Lo que he estado haciendo (7/14/11)

Right now I´m in Colmenar Viejo, a town in the north of Madrid with my counselor Carlos and his wife Piedad. I was going to go out, but the plans all died, SO!
I firgured I should catch up on my tumblr.

I went to Portugal, which I think I wrote about, and then to Cantabria with my host family. It´s in northern Spain and we were right on the coast in a small town called Comillas, where they just shot a movie called Primos. It is so green there! They still don´t have grass haha but lots of stuff that´s liiiiike grass.

Last month my brother and I went to Italy for vacation and it was amazing :) . We were in Rome the whole time, so now I know my way around the city and everything. We met such amazing people, and went to all the places I wanted to go! When I get home I´ll load on some pictures.

Recently I´ve been seeing all my friends at least one more time, having going away dinners, and doing my bucket list of things I wanted to do before I left. Right now there are only two things I need to do, that weren´t tourist-y things because I´ve finished with all that: print pictures of Italy for my aunts here, and pick up the drawing I had framed for Tony. Then I leave!

I have 8 days left here, and I´m a little meloncholy. I´m not sad to leave I guess but I would love to stay. I have a lott waiting for me back home, so it´s like I´m leaving one world to find a whole new one waiting for me. A world full of working two jobs, studying, and helping my new exchange student Merry from Thailand!

¿Qué haces este viernes? (19-5-11)

So, today is Thursday. Yesterday I decided to go see my Rotary counselor, who I haven´t seen in forever.

Well actually we´ll start before that. I had my school picture yesterday in the morning! And my graduation apparently, but I guess I missed it since we did nothing. (It´s a joke Mom, we actually do nothing for graduation). There was the picture at around 9:30 and then later there was a big talk about the Selectividad which is basically the SAT´s but with more subjects, and with more weight in terms of college acceptance. Anyway. That was it. After that we got our grades, and I ended up passing all of my classes (besides two…)! Spanish, which I have a four (soooooooooo clooooooooooose) and math, which I have a 3 (on that one there is an excuse but still. It´s math…). 

Almost all of my friends were soo so excited because they passed all their classes, graduated, and now can go take the Selectividad and go to the university. Everyone was calling their mom, their dad, their friends, grandparents, anyone who would listen really.

I ended up talking with my counselor (who is also my math teacher) and the principal about grade validation and how it would all work and they are both eager to help me with whatever needs to be done.

Anyway! Back to the original story.  So I had to navigate the real train system to get to where my counselor lives. I´m really good with the metro now but trains… eh. But I did it! Even though the trip was an hour and a half, and I was dead tired since I woke up around 7 that day, with going to bed at 4 the night before.
But I digress..

I had the most interesting trip to Colmenar Viejo. When I got there, Piedad (my counselors wife) and Carlos (my counselor) didn´t have time to eat, since they just opened their restaurant and obviously everyone else is eating. So I ended up eating with the group of men who had come to sell those Quick Energy drinks. It was funny, it was a group of five of them: two who spoke fluent English, one two tried, one who doesn´t speak any, and then one from Detroit who doesn´t speak any Spanish. I´m so awkward speaking English now, it´s pathetic. Writing it doesn´t come off so much, or at least I hope.

After they left, I went in to help Piedad and the waiter Jose clean up a little. When we had finished, I ended up going with Jose and a few of his friends out for drinks. They were all so nice! I had a great time talking with all of them. They are all waiters, so I could easily understand the problems in their work when it came up in the conversation. (I work as a waitress in a nursing home.) 

Around 10 I went back to Carlos and Piedad´s house to have dinner and prepare it and whatnot, and when I comment about their refrigerator magnet (the rooster from Portugal) they ask me if I want to go. Claro que sí, I say.

So Piedad looks at me and says, okay well let´s go Friday then. Hahah surprise trip to Lisbon Portugal!  
I ended up staying the night at their house, and in the morning Piedad and I went to the spa :).  Later we went back to the restaurant and were cleaning and hanging things and whatnot. I just got home now, and I still can´t believe it. in 17 hours I´ll be leaving for Portugal until Monday. So cool :D

Side note : just cuz I hate to post without pictures, last week were las Fiestas de San Isidro, and there were huge parties in my town and all through Madrid. Friday and Saturday I went to the ones in my town, and Sunday we went to Madrid. We were going to see the fire works in Madrid, but apparently this year there weren´t any… but we did see David Bustamante! (He´s a popular Spanish artist, and was playing a free concert ! :D )

Anyway. Pictures! (in the next post)… hopefully

Que Calor Que Calor Tengo

Leigh! I loved that song when I was in Chi Chi Chi Le Le Le!

Hope you are loving life!

Señorita

Quuuuuue calor por favorr (14/4/11)

Que calor que calor que teeengo.

It’s really hot. And it’s April. In America it’s not this hot haha. One of the girls in my class almost passed out yesterday, but it makes sense since she was wearing leggings, boots, and a sweater. (It’s really cold in the mornings and then it gets mad hott at like, noon.) 

This is gonna be random->

Things Spanish kids like:

American rap music

gum

NIKE and ADIDAS
 *There is soo much nike and adidas here it’s ridiculous. it’s really popular to wear the adidas track suits with the lines up the sides

Piercings
 *anywhere from their ears, to beside their eye brows, the the Marylin Monroe one above your lip, etc. The most unique one I’ve seen is in that little flap of skin inside your mouth right below the top lip. I don’t think I’m explaining it well… but still.

Sitting outside
 *it doesn’t matter what time of year it is, Spanish kids are like.. always outside. This is why they are really aware of the weather, and what they wear, because they know that usually for a long part of the day they’re gonna be outside with their friends, usually in a park somewhere, or a bar.

Adding English words to sentences

Talking
 *this is obvious, but still. They talk soo much more than we do. so much more. Always.

Which brings me to my next point.

Today in my psychology class, my teacher looks at me and says “Today we’re going to talk to Cameron”.  Very cool. It turns out that we spent the whole class doing a question and answer thing with me about the differences between the Spanish and American school system, which I preferred, and later questions about differences in society. It was funny because we’ve done this before, but never for the whole class period, and not in the way that everyone can raise their hand and just ask me whatever they want. 

All my friends after were surprised by some of the things I said, like how we don’t really touch each other. I don’t know, maybe it’s wrong but to me is seems that Americans don’t touch, unless in certain circumstances. Spanish people touch alll the time, obviously, they kiss each other when they meet knew people. In America you touch your friends… if that. They were shocked that when we meet people, we just say “nice to meet you” and mayyybe a handshake, but that’s kind of formal for teenagers. 

I also explained that we talk a lot less, and are more comfortable with silence. In Spain, in general, silence is considered uncomfortable. This is a huge part of why everyone is talking. Partly because they are really open people and are willing to tell about how their son is sick and in the hospital to someone they met two minutes before, partly because they just really like sharing things and knowledge. 

Complete subject change:

My parents are coming this week! YAY! I’m actually so excited. I’ve been telling everyone who will listen, which is everyone haha. My friends are coming to visit too with the Spanish class, but I’m not sure how it will work since my family will be here at the same time, and they’re obviously priority. 

Anyway. I have to go make lunch. peaccee 

staybeautiful- asked: ahhh leigh!!! thanks so much, i miss you! i hope you're having a great time in espana :)

:]]

Love the “ARCHIVE” section!

Another nice post, Leigh. Plus, this new format makes it easier to find your older posts. The Archive section is nicely laid out so you can see posts all the way back to January of 2010 — when you first started to think about being an exchange student. Fun to read the older posts!!! Love, Mom