Coffee

I have a confession: I now drink coffee. And I love it.

I know, it’s shocking. I successfully was able to avoid getting into the habit during my four years of college, and even when living in Spain for four months the first time. But sadly I could not stand strong forever. I started shortly after arriving in Spain, when I had my orientation for my job in October.

It was early in the morning, and I was herded into a lecture hall with hundreds of other language assistants like myself. It was going to be a long day of just hearing a panel of Spaniards talk about what is expected of us in our jobs, what we need to know, etc. It was exhausting straining my ears to hear them well enough, and my mind to understand everything they were saying.

Needless to say, I fell asleep after the first two hours.

Thankfully, there was a break at midday where they offered us coffee and pastries. Since there was nothing else to drink, I reluctantly took a cup of coffee. No cream was available, but there was a packet of sugar sitting in my saucer. I poured it in, stirred it around, and thirstily gulped the coffee down.

From that point on I was WIRED. I was so wide awake I couldn’t even close my eyes long enough to BLINK. The rest of the day I was sitting on the edge of my seat, taking notes and listening with rapt attention. I was jittery, and as I was told by other people there, talking faster than I normally do!

Who knew that one cup of near-black coffee could keep me awake and energized for an entire day? I was quickly hooked on the feeling, and knew that from that day on, I could no longer evade the deliciousness that is coffee.

I don’t drink it every day; in fact I can probably count how many times I’ve had coffee on two hands. But it is becoming more frequent, both here and when I was at home during Christmas. I feel older now, a little more refined and sophisticated. It’s a new me.

Christmastime

This is going to be long. Brace yourself.

I can’t believe it’s been over a month since I last posted. So much has happened in this last month. I’ll start with what’s freshest in my memory, then work backwards in future posts.

For those of you that don’t know, I went home for Christmas!!! In November I was frantically searching for the cheapest airfare I could find, then finally, with the help of Adam and his parents, I was able to purchase a ticket home for the holidays! It was so difficult, but I was able to keep it a secret for an entire month from my whole family. There were many times when I almost slipped and told one of them, but thankfully I was able to keep my mouth shut.

I left in the middle of December to go home. It was a long journey – I had to take the train from Sevilla to Madrid, then another train in Madrid to the metro, then the metro to the airport. Whew. Next came a flight from Madrid to Philadelphia, then another flight to Chicago! It was such a long day, and I was too excited to sleep on the plane, or the night before.

On the flight to Philadelphia, I had the fun experience of sitting next to a very kind woman, Cati, who didn’t speak any English. She was on her way to visit her daughter in Virginia who she hadn’t seen in three years! We had long talks, and throughout the flight she needed me to interpret for her to the flight attendants for meals, drinks, movie malfunctions, etc. It turned out the two people in front of us also didn’t speak any English, so I helped them fill out their paperwork for entering the States. It was such a wonderful feeling being able to help all of them, and I think I have finally narrowed down my choice of careers to just two options: Spanish teacher or Spanish interpreter.

Adam met me in Chicago and it was incredible to see him again. I am so glad he was able to pick me up so we could spend some time together in Chicago. We roamed around looking at all of the Christmas decorations and lights before heading home. It was a little odd being back and hearing English all around me. I’ve gotten used to hearing English only sporadically (aside from when I’m teaching of course) on the street when I’m walking around, and feeling like I know some secret language. It was good to be back though, with all of the snow and cold (and in my new coat!), friends and family, and Christmassy things!

When I went home I had Adam call to “drop a book off” to my parents to make sure they were there. He walked in first, and 20 seconds later I popped through the door, yelling “Merry Christmas!” I wish I had gotten a picture of my parents’ faces.

We stayed up late talking, my parents, brother, Adam and I, and it was so good to just be in my familiar and comfortable home again. The next day I saw the rest of my family, who were all sick. Kind of messed up my whole entrance, but oh well. :)

I was home for just over two weeks, getting to experience all of the American and family holiday traditions I’m used to. Adam had already decorated his whole house (which looked wonderful!), and we put up a tree together. I ate my weight in Christmas cookies and other goodies, and loved hearing Christmas music, seeing snow, and watching Christmas movies.

I also got to spend some time with friends. I loved seeing everyone again, and can’t wait to see more friends in the summer when I return. For those of you I couldn’t see, I apologize. It was a hectic two weeks that were as full as possible!

Adam and I drove to Pennsylvania to visit his parents before Christmas for a few days, and it was so good to see them again too. We went to dinner, watched movies, did puzzles, played a lot of Wii, and just had a great time. Adam and his dad got to go to a Steelers game too!

New Years was spent downtown watching Good Charlotte and some of the other bands at Rosa Parks, then to the symphony for the Rat Pack (a surprise from Adam!)! Afterwards we met up with some friends at the Windchester and rang in the New Year with good champagne, good food, and good friends.

I also had a sort of job interview at an interpreting company in GR. It went really well and they want me to come back in the summer for another interview. They said I could shadow an interpreter also, just to make sure it’s something I want to go into. They interpret for physical and mental health, and court. It was so interesting learning about everything, and I’m eager to see if this is could be a future career path.

Eventually, my time was up in Michigan and I had to return back to Europe. But not without making a pit-stop in Paris to visit Sarah first! After being separated for a whole 5 months (the longest we have ever gone without seeing each other), our reunion was wonderful. The only hindrance in our time together was her having the flu (as well as her roommate, Anita). Due to them being sick, we spent most of our time in her cute apartment watching movies, doing crossword puzzles, reading, talking, and just enjoying being together again. One day I went to school with her to help teach a class, and got to see her neighborhood, school, students, and other fun things around her area. Finally, on the day before I left (Saturday), we explored more of Paris. This was my fourth time there, so I didn’t really need to do all of the tourist things again. We walked up and down the Champs-Elysées, went to the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower, went into some shops along the way, and best of all, went to an amazing art exhibit in the Louis Vuitton art gallery. It was a showcase of seven or eight artists displaying some form of art about Peter Pan and never growing up. It was SO COOL to see all of these very original and imaginative art pieces. We also went to Pere Lachaise, a beautiful cemetery near Sarah’s apartment. Some famous people are buried there, and it’s crowded full of tombs, but it was the prettiest cemetery I’ve ever been to. Sarah and I both could have spent the entire day walking through it.

Alas, my time there quickly flew by and I had to return to Sevilla. As excited as I was to start my life back up here, I was so sad to have to say goodbye to Sarah again. I hadn’t had a chance to be sad about leaving everyone in Michigan either, since I went straight to Sarah, so after returning to my apartment yesterday, I spent the majority of the day being alone and missing everyone. Sad day.

Now I’m back in my normal routine, teaching classes and speaking in Spanish, with only one hitch – I am now sick too! I blame it all on Sarah and Anita. I was sick TWICE in Michigan, and now again here. Who gets sick three times in one month?! All I know is I will never skip another flu shot. Ugh.

It was fun going back to school today. I was greeted with many “Feliz año!” (Happy New Year) and warm hugs and kisses by other teachers and students. It was everyone’s first day back to school (they celebrate Christmas on January 6), so all the students were excited to tell about what they got for Christmas.

Here are some pictures of Chicago, Michigan, and Paris. The rest are all posted on facebook if you would like to view all of them. :)

 The Christmas tree in the Walnut Room in Macy's (Chicago)

Decorating the tree at Adam's house

Our finished tree!

My niece and nephew Jacob and Lauren  on Christmas Eve

Happy New Year!

The cemetery in Paris

 I loved being with Sarah again