¡Estoy Aqui!

[Alan]

Hello,

Well I arrived. Left the house at 6am and got to London at 8.30am. Waited until the flight at 17.25 and arrived in Valencia at about 8.30pm. 12 hours of sitting around doing nothing. Anyway, I´m here in a wee hostel and settled. I´m having a beer and typing away on the internet. Youth hostels have come a long way.

I actually forgot where I was going. I had it memorised at home and when I arrived it completely escaped my mind. Idiot. Here I was in Valencia, all the airport shops were shut and I had to just jump on a bus and hope for the best. I struggled to make myself understood to the bus driver (my Spanish isn´t that bad, is it?) and luckily found some English speakers there. A Valenciana lady gave me a map. How lovely.

I found the place no bother. The lady at the reception seemed very surprised that I had booked in for a week. Wow :)

I looked into my room. I am sharing with another 12 people, who all seem to be Chinese. Cool. But they don´t say much. I´m going to have a wander about tomorrow, but for tonight I think I´ll relax with a couple of beers. You can´t argue with €1.50 a bottle. Is that the Scot coming out in me?

I know it´s early, but I´m shattered, so I´m going to sign off. Byeeeeeee!

[rob]

Well congratulations on making it to Spain, and I wish you luck in getting yourself settled.

Just out of curiousity how much did the hostel cost for 7 nights?

[gary]

well done Alan - I fly tomorrow to the costas - Benalmadena to be precise - we land in the resort at 10pm (your time!) so I'll raise a glass to you then and we'll have a drink together in Spain!!

[Ben]

Great news to hear that you have arrived. Really look forward to hearing how things go from now on, I know the first few days can be pretty daunting!

[Alan]

Erm, the hostal was €100 for 7 nights, which works out at less than €15 per night. I´m right in the middle of Valencia - can´t complain!

gary, let´s meet up if possible :)

Thanks for all the congratulations, but I haven´t done anything yet :) First on the list is to buy a toothbrush ...

Bye :)

[Marina]

¡¡¡Bienvenido a España Alan!!!
We hope to read all your progresses in here.
¡Good luck!

[Alan]

I´ve been here for a few days now. Things are not going well. It is almost impossible to find somewhere to stay. And to find a job, I need somewhere to stay. I´m meeting a girl later and I´ll hopefully be able to rent a room from her, but it is a problem for everyone if I am only staying for 3 months...

Anyway, I´m feeling very lonely. I don´t know anyone here and I don´t have a place to call home. I don´t even really have my own space. I´m finding it a bit difficult. Valencia is a nice city, but I don´t think it is for me. Maybe if I went to somewhere a little more commercial or touristy, I´d be able to find work.

Bueno, no sé lo que voy a hacer. Y mi novia ha comprado unos billetes para venir aquí. No sé si tengo que restar aquí o si es posible a ir a un otra parte del país. Escribo mis piensas, pero aquí no tengo amigos. No tengo nadie. No me siento bien.

Pero, ayer, he ido a unos bares y a un discoteca. Estaba hablando con un chileano y dos franceses para la mayoridad de la noche. Puedo hablar francés pero ayer, no prodría hacerlo! No sé cómo, pero he olvidado todo de mi francés :) Pero estoy aquí, y aquí hablo español.

He realizado que España no es todo que creaba. Es muy diferente. Pero Glasgow no me gusta tampoco. Si vivió en una villa o ciudad mas pequeña, seria mejor :) Pero la cosa lo mas importante para mi es necesito mi novia. Sin ella, lo encuentro muy difícil a . . . a vivir. Es increíble, pero he tenido a venir aquí a saberlo. :)

Vale, 4 días de soledad ;)

[Marina]

¡¡¡Animo Alan!!!
Things come along little by little. First thing you need is a flat so you can feel that you have your own space and from then on you'll need to move into the next thing.
For finding a flat, other thing you could do is go to the university and check the notice boards in there.

Workwise there are some agencies for private teaching (one-to-one at the student house) which will hire you for English classes (just say that you have expirience in teaching and a degree). My sister works in Madrid for one call educabita (http://www.educabitat.com) and she told me that they have a branch in Valencia, so maybe you can try you luck there. She told me that she filled the form in the net, but if you take you cv there yourself things might come along quicker.

Lots of luck!!!!!!
And don't forget that you have some Spanish friends here in the forum.

Marina

[Pepino]

I can totally relate to the "stranger in a strange town" feeling that you're having. All the old sayings about square pegs and round holes seem to apply to me at the moment too, and I say that from my lucky position as someone with a job and a secure roof over my head. God knows how much worse it must be to be without those basics, so you have all my respect.

I'm not big on getting "deep" (shallow is fine for me ;)) but one thing I do believe in is that things that are worth having are worth a struggle, and when you get them (which you will) you'll appreciate them all the more.

Unless you're litterally at your last penny, and the only thing you have is a flight ticket, I'd say do try to stay longer. Don't tell people that you're only here for 3 months, tell them your here for a year or so, as it might help get a flat. Follow Marina's advice about doing some teaching if at all possible. If you really have to leave Valencia, then go for the option you mentioned about trying somewhere more touristy where you're more likely to be snapped up for a bar job or something similar. I often feel like crap when I get home in the evenings at the moment (this week especially, hence my lack of updates) but I know that the last thing on my list right now is to go home.

I really hope things pick up. If you're putting yourself about in the bars etc, then you never know who the next person you talk to will be, and things could change very rapidly.

Best of luck!

[Ben]

Alan, Pepino said it all. Wise words.

On my first day in Madrid I hardly spoke to a soul and nearly went mad, so I know how you feel. Intercambios would really help right now, I reckon, give Loquo a try, keep going with the job hunting and persevere with the flats, and in a month you'll be looking back at this time and laughing.

[Janeybee]

Stick with it! Remember how excited you were. And I assume you managed to buy your toothbrush.....so you are accomplishing things!

Just think, you've already benefited from your experience, even if it's just to realise how much you're in love!

Take it a day at a time and I promise things will get easier. Don't forget that you're suffering a bit from homesickness which makes everything seem worse.

My advice? When I'm feeling a bit wierd about travelling on my own, I take a book to a bar, sit outside with a glass of wine and alternate between reading and watching the world go by. It makes me realise why I'm doing it and that being alone is actually no bad thing.

Keep talking to us too...it might help to know you have virtual company with you! :)

Here's to you.
Jane

[Steve W]

I agree with everyone. One thing at a time. Like Janeybee said, take some time to just sit and watch, and try not to fret every hour of each day. I've been here 6 or 7 weeks now, still unemployed, but everything else is moving along bit by bit.

Get on Loquo and meet a couple of intercambios pronto. At the very least it will give you someone new to chat with. My very first intercambio has ended up being one of my best friends and has indirectly led me to being in Barcelona, so you never know what things will lead to.

Accept that the first few days/weeks will be about small accomplishments. Sometimes I had to have a lie down after just buying a kilo of tomatos. It's exhausting being foreign.

And last bit of advice, stop checking this website for advice and have a walk around. Have you been up the Migalet yet? Only €2 for a view of the whole city. The Mercado Central? Take the train to Gandia and explore. La Plaza de la Virgen is a great spot for a beer on the terrace. My favourite bar was the one with the tables between the fountain and the fenced garden. They have newspapers inside too, so you can people watch and study at the same time.

[Ben]

Olé Steve, more very sage advice. I just wanted to add one thing, find a very typical Spanish bar you like and have breakfast in there every morning or one caña there every night. It helps you feel like you are more in Spain, you'll feel like a bit of a regular, and I promise that you will remember it fondly for the rest of your life. Right, off with you down to the Mercado central... or hop on that train to Gandia! Benicassim too, up the coast about 1 hour, has a gorgeous beach much nicer than Valencia's for a day out... La Costa is your oyster!

[Alan]

Thanks everyone! I´m feeling much better now. I had a brief chat with Ben earlier and he gave me a good pep talk. I was really feeling like shit and now things are okay.

I met with a girl here. She´s a friend of a friend who I have met previously en Escocia and I hope to see her more often (purely platonic - I have a girlfriend at home :) ). I will have somewhere to stay from next Monday for a few weeks, so I´ll feel like I have my own place at any rate. I´ll still have to find a place but at least I´ll be away from this hostal.

So, we met, had a couple of beers (en la Plaza de la Virgen), chased away the buskers (does that work come from buscar?) and then went for some dinner at 10pm. ¡Comen muy tarde! We had a few dishes that I have never heard of, and haven´t taken any photos ;). But it was a good night and we´ll meet up again at the weekend, with her friends. But, she said, "the only problem is that they are all girls". Que problema.

Anyway, tengo una amiga, y un habitación para unas semanas. Mi español ha mejorado mucho. My mind sometimes operates in castellano instead of English which is a very good sign. I dreamt in Spanish last night. La chica habla inglés, pero no ha querido harcerlo hoy... hablamos castellano.

Thanks for all the advice. I haven´t done the touristy things, Steve, but I have seen a few of the things you mention. I could go to Gandia and might because I´ll soon tire of being in the city. Pepino, Ben said the same thing to me earlier - I should LIE! So I will. I´m not going to say how long I´ll stay to anyone but I will be home for Christmas even if only to come back again.

Thanks again everyone. I´m fine.

[ValenciaSon]

Hey Alan,

Anxiety over a new environment is a natural reaction. I have no doubt you will get passed this and adapt to your new surroundings. If you can play with Jacobian kinematic formulas, you can adapt to Valencia, Spain. OK, so maybe Valencia has a few mlore variables;), but you catch my drift, right?

My money is on El Listo Escoces!

Have fun in my Dad's stomping grounds!

[Edith]

Hi Alan,

Ánimo, you're going to be allright! The first time I went abroad on my own I felt exactly the same way, but in the end I didn't want to return home... it's just normal to feel lonely and abandoned in the beginning!

Yesterday I saw a program about a Dutch couple who wanted to start an ice cream parlor in the south of Spain. It took them six months and lots of desperate moments to get things going!

[Alan]

I posted an ad to loquo at 4am and have a response already. And it´s very close to here, so I hope to see it and hopefully move in.

Anyway, just thought I´d mention it.

[Ben]

Great! Knew it would all start coming together soon! Did you post an intercambio ad yet?!

[Pepino]

I should LIE! So I will

Ah, it's not a real lie if the need is great! ;D ;D

[Alan]

I posted an ad for an intercambio at the same time, yeah. I just received a call from an argentinian and we´re going to meet at five. Is it sensible to meet with him? The Spanish spoken in South America is very different but I don´t know if there´s any harm to that.

[Ben]

No harm at all. He might say the same about the English spoken in Glasgow ;) (Only joking!!) Honestly, the more intercambios the better.

[guapo]

wow, looks like things are coming together for you Alan. All I can say is keep riding that roller-coaster and thanks for letting us come along for a free ride - it's thrilling stuff!!!

Best of luck.

[Steve W]

Meet that Argentinian. My regular intercambio is from there, and it's no problem at all, especially when we're just learning basic stuff. Plus, they're a foreigner too, and may have advice on dealing with official stuff that has to be done, especially if they have dual nationality with Italy or another European country.

[Marina]

Argentinian accent is sweet. Also it is good to know different accents.
Ben always says the he speaks three languages, English, Spanish and Andaluz:D:D:D

[Brian]

Hang in there, Alan. It sounds like you have some very sound advice here, so take it day by day. Something will open up for you very shortly, and you'll be fine.

[richardksa]

When I have a bad day I say to myself, "If tomorrow is just as bad I'm going to quit and go home". But I make myself do this for three days. By the third day, whatever is was that was bugging me has gone. As everyone says, you must give it time. Already I can see things are starting to come together for you - and you never know - your girlfriend might get bitten by the Spanish bug too. I really wish you the best of luck. Remember, I was you 33 years ago, a stranger in a strange land, (and it was a far stranger land than Spain), and I've never regretted it, even the bad times.

[Alan]

I met with a guy today about a room. It´s a small, but very nice and tidy flat. I´d be very happy about living there. But he´s charging a bit more than I had hoped. I think I´m still going to go for it. I asked for him to lower the price a little and then pulled out the big guns.

"Puedo enseñarte inglés. ¿Necesitas inglés?"
"Claro. Lo necesito para mi trabajo."

And I left it at that... so hopefully that will have sold it. But I left him saying that he should call me and we can talk.

[Brian]

I met with a guy today about a room. It´s a small, but very nice and tidy flat. I´d be very happy about living there. But he´s charging a bit more than I had hoped. I think I´m still going to go for it. I asked for him to lower the price a little and then pulled out the big guns.

"Puedo enseñarte inglés. ¿Necesitas inglés?"
"Claro. Lo necesito para mi trabajo."

And I left it at that... so hopefully that will have sold it. But I left him saying that he should call me and we can talk.

Hey, you're getting it! Nicely done!

[Alan]

I had my first intercambio last night. A forty-something year old guy named Oscar. He was very familiar with Scotland and said that was why he called me: he didn´t normally answer the adverts on loquo. Maybe that´s what everyone says :)

Anyway, in my advert (here (http://valencia.loquo.com/spanish/post/100292)) I said that I had only been here for four days and he felt very sorry for me and that he had to help me. I´ve actually had many offers, but two of them have stood me up, which I felt was a bit rude.

Oscar was great though. I thought that it might be a bit weird talking to a complete stranger all night:
"Terrible weather we´re having eh?"
"Yeah, terrible"
"tum de dum..."
"yeeeup . . . do you want another beer?"
But it wasn´t like that at all. The most important thing was the conversation and not the interchange of languages. Yes, we flowed from Spanish to English and back depending on what took our fancy, but overall, we were just talking about our relative experiences in Scotland and Spain. Maybe it would have been different with someone who wasn´t so familiar with Scots.

I´m still not used to staying up so late. We met at 7pm and had a few beers before going for something to eat. After that we went for a few more drinks and ended up in a "cool" pub. We couldn´t hear each other any more and went back outside where it was (a little) quieter. The Carmen area of the city is very loud, however, and full of young people. Valencia, it seems, is a very young city with its universities and high student population. Soon though, the terraza closed and we were forced back inside to finish our drinks. It was no better than the last place and we called it a night. But, I reckon from 7pm to 2am is not bad. I came back, relaxed with another caña and went to bed, my head spinning.

Ben y Marina, it was MUCH harder to understand this valenciano than you two. I don´t know exactly what that means, but hey. Ben, with your English accent, you pronounce most of the words in a very similar way to me so that I can understand. Marina, although you talk very rapidly, you generally keep to the official rules of castellano. This guy, though, was full of "coños" and "hombres" which were so rapid that I could hardly follow him at all. But, I´m sure that on some level, I have learnt a lot.

Tomorrow I´m going to start looking for a room with a vengeance. I almost booked flights home, but if I have a room then I´ll always have to give that four weeks notice. I know in my heart of hearts that I don´t want to leave, and that I´m just a little fed up with being here alone without a place to call my own. I know that things will change as soon as that changes.

I have a bit of a confession to make. I completely forgot that everything closes on Sundays and forgot to buy provisions. I was okay for breakfast (had a bocadillo con tortilla de patatas con gambas y salchicha - was very nice) but I don´t know if I´ll last the night. If you don´t hear from me, please assume that I´ve starved to death and inform my relatives ;)

Bye :)

[Marina]

I'm very glad that you enjoyed your intercambio. Did you survive Sunday without food? If that happens again you can always try to find a 7-11 or an open-cor (El corte ingles late opening shops)

[gary]

Four days and no news - hope all's well......

[Brian]

This guy, though, was full of "coños" and "hombres" which were so rapid that I could hardly follow him at all. But, I´m sure that on some level, I have learnt a lot.

Perhaps he was saying, "Hombre, comprame otra caña," instead of the other. ;)

[gary]

Perhaps he was saying, "Hombre, comprame otra caña," instead of the other. ;)

Yes, and buying an ice cream cornet is full of pitfalls too!!

[Alan]

Guys, I´m still here and I´m fine... just haven´t had great access to a computer. I´ve found one especially after receiving a txt from Ben.

Anyway, it seems that I´ve fallen foul of Ben´s rule number 7 (http://www.notesfromspain.com/574/). While I´ve been out here, I just feel that while everything is a great experience and the place is great, it all means nothing without my girlfriend. So I don´t plan to stay for much longer. In a couple of weeks, she´ll come out meet me here and although I haven´t bought any tickets yet, I´ll probably just go home with her. After the month or so, I think I need to get serious and make some proper plans.

The "permanent" move to Spain is not off the cards, but I need to sell it to her before we can do it. And I need to get some proper work experience beforehand.

As for here, I´ve had a few intercambios now and have had no bad experiences yet. I met a guy the other night and when he left me I went to get my bus. An druggy stole an old man´s wallet and a bunch of us ran after her. Safety in numbers I suppose. We got it back, but the old guy nearly had a heart attack. Don´t take drugs. That´s what it does to you.

I moved in with my friend here although I won´t be staying for long. I asked to use her computer to find something and what did I find in the bookmarks? Notesfromspain.com. Fame.

[greytop]

Alan - good to hear from you again. You've certainly had some experiences and they'll make the next set of decisions easier, or at least better informed!
Buena suerte

[Brian]

Glad you're doing well, Alan. Chalk it up to an excellent experience. Now you know what to expect! :)

[ValenciaSon]

Alan, you won't regret making this trip and I think only in the future will realize the full benefit of this trip.

[richardksa]

.........it all means nothing without my girlfriend. So I don´t plan to stay for much longer.

Who was it that said "A wife was a hostage to fortune"?

[Alan]

Absolutely! I don´t regret it at all. If I didn´t come, it would still be eating away at me. I love the place, I am really enjoying myself and the truth is that I do see a life in Spain, if not in Valencia. I would always, however, have a foot in Scotland in much the same way that Ben and Marina have a foot in England. That won´t change. It has also brought home how much my girlfriend means to me (I don´t name her because I don´t know how she´d like having her name on the internet :) ). A final thing that the trip has done is told me that Spain does not have all the answers, and I need to find them for myself.

The issue is not Spain. The issue is who I want to be with and it is the people of the world that make it what it is. Quality of life can´t make up for that. Anyway, I may well come back. I probably will. I don´t think I can tear myself away forever :)

Last night, we went to a tapas bar that was jam packed. It was great. of the 10 tapas we ordered, 3 of them weren´t meat. That can´t be good for you. But talk about an intercambio. I was with 7 Spanish girls all night who were all very keen on talking to me. Why doesn´t that happen at home? :)

[Alan]

After two weeks here and with a place to stay, I feel a lot more settled than I have been. I would be very happy to stay if I had a decent job and my girlfriend was to come too. I fell for the same thing yesterday though, forgetting that everything shuts on Sundays. I forgot to put credit on my phone and half my friends think I´ve either died or fallen out with them. I didn´t even have enough to send a text.

On Saturday, my friend made a tortilla de patata and yesterday I was forced to cook. Now I´m no cook, but I managed to rustle up something. If I were to name it, I´d say it was Pasta a la Scozzese. I don´t think I embarrassed myself, but if I were asked to cook again, I don´t know what I´d make... I usually use jars of sauces. That´s prohibited here.

There are loads of cars here. If I were to guess I´d say that there was a car for each person in the city. Most of them live underground during the day in the huge car parks that are dug out to give the impression that there is less traffic than there actually is, but you soon realise how much traffic there is when you try to get home during the rush hour. My friend was telling me how bad a driver she was yesterday - I had never seen her drive so I couldn´t comment - but they wanted to go to the beach for a drink. We grabbed our things, left the flat and went down to find the car. As we waited for her to drive it to a place where we could possibly enter, she plowed the front of it into a parked car. It was all in slow motion, arms waving, but there was nothing we could do. Well I´ve seen her drive now.

There are so many cars that there are soon no spaces to put them in. They line the streets, dual carriageways and junctions. If there is no space left for cars, a second line of parking can be started. How do they get the cars from the first line out? They leave the handbrake off. If you want your car out from the first line, you push the car in front out of the way. Incredible.

The bar at the beach was great, with a four piece jazz band too. It was completely empty and I can´t see how they could possibly make any money. We had two drinks each, and if that was the same for everyone, they couldn´t be making much. My life is a constant intercambio, without the English bit. I can´t see a better way to learn.

[Marina]

It is very good to read that you are enjoying the life in Valencia:D:D

I have to say that I wouldn't be very happy to know that Ben is having intercambios with Valencian girls that take him to beach bars:rolleyes: Your girlfriend is a Saint!!!

[Brian]

There are so many cars that there are soon no spaces to put them in. They line the streets, dual carriageways and junctions. If there is no space left for cars, a second line of parking can be started. How do they get the cars from the first line out? They leave the handbrake off. If you want your car out from the first line, you push the car in front out of the way. Incredible.


The first time I saw that done, it blew my mind. Having an unscratched/undented car in Val. is a rare thing, indeed.

[gary]

The first time I saw that done, it blew my mind. Having an unscratched/undented car in Val. is a rare thing, indeed.

I have a 10 year old Ford Escort that is almost ready to take to Spain on a road trip - just a few more scrapes and we'll be off!!

[richardksa]

It is very good to read that you are enjoying the life in Valencia:D:D

I have to say that I wouldn't be very happy to know that Ben is having intercambios with Valencian girls that take him to beach bars:rolleyes: Your girlfriend is a Saint!!!

And he's very brave writing about it where she can read it. However, just because you have found the love of your dreams doesn't mean that from then on you have to ignore fifty per cent of the world's populaton.

[Pepino]

Great update Alan. It's reassuring to know it's not just me who's struggling with the "sauce jar mentality" of us English/Scots. I have a feeling the Home Economics classes must be pretty good in Spain. Either that or there are a lot of patient mothers teaching their sons how to cook out here!! :)

Barcelona has a similar car problem. Outside the window of my flat is one of the millions of crossroad junctions in the city, and it's like the Wacky Races when they get going :eek: . I've not come across the hand-brake issue yet, but I suppose it's only a matter of time and, afterall... necessity is the mother of invention! hehe. I've got my car sat patiently in storage back in the UK, but I'm frightened to death of bringing it out here for fear that I'd wrap it around a lampost on the first day!

Glad that things have settled down more after your rocky start. Hope that you continue to enjoy your Spanish adventure a while longer yet. :)

[richardksa]

I was walking from the Plaza de España to the Plaza Santo Domingo up Leganitos, which is a steep climb. Cars were parked all along one side. Trying to cross the road at one point my way was blocked as one car had rolled into another. I moved up a car - it was the same. Infact seven cars in a row were all shoved, and tightly wedged, into one another. Several bumpers were dented in and one rear light was smashed. Any of the owners of the five cars in the middle would have to wait for the end cars to be removed. I'd have loved to have been there when they tried to extrcate themsleves. I'm sure I would have learned a few Spanish idiomas.

[Alan]

Marina, I can be trusted... I think ;) The lovely Spanish girls aren´t interested in giris anyway, are they? :P

I had the fortune to be invited to a house party. I was quite surprised after Ben telling about how that was never done. I thought that people always met in bars, and until now, that has always been the case. Maybe it was because they were a Spanish-Finnish couple (can´t be too many of them) and the Finnish side overruled. Anyway, it was great. Everyone took a tapa and the table soon filled with food. Drink flowed, and there was enough food to last the night. I am still surprised by how much Spanish folk drink - I was under the impression that it was us who were the drunkards, but it seems not to be the case. Everyone bar a couple of drivers seemed to be well drunk.

It was quite an international affair to be honest, with another Scot, a Pole and two Finns. But the majority of people were Spanish and those who weren´t couldn´t speak English. With the exception of the Scot. So, I am still getting plenty of practice with my Spanish. I´m beginning to understand conversations as I overhear them (i.e. understanding before translating in my head) and am able to watch some TV programs with very few problems. The subtitles always help right enough.

I´ve found that people are quite open to Scots everywhere. I can´t say why this is - probably something to do with the colonial image of England mixed with its football hooligans. At least, this is the impression that comes across when I´m speaking to people. Everyone talks about the great weather that Scotland has. Yes, great weather. It seems that the grass is always greener on the other side. To be honest, the humidity here is quite overwhelming and I suppose it´s worse in the summer. Even now, at 7pm, the streets are sitting at a humid 26 degrees. Remember when I was talking about the heatwave in Scotland? :) But I think Scotland is loved the world over because it is known as the smaller brother of England. The underdog you support because otherwise you have no affiliation.

Or, "Los ingléses ... putamadres" as a drunk told me in a bar. Lovely. I don´t think that by the way :)

When it was fashionably late enough to go out - at about 2am, we decided to go to a club. It´s called La Claca, if you know Valencia enough, and there are a lot of giris who go there. That´s because there are pub crawls that pass through there (only 12€ for a tapa, two shots, a drink and entry to a nightclub, other than La Claca - sounds like hell to me). But one of the pub crawls left from the hostel I stayed in, and thus I knew a lot of the people on it: both staff and punters. Well, didn´t I look popular going in there? I shook hands with four different people in different areas of the club. My Spanish friends didn´t know what to say. Sheer coincidence, I´m afraid. :)

Last night, I met with a French friend whose Spanish is worse than mine. I don´t know how that´s possible. French is so similar to Spanish in so many ways. He came along with his Spanish flatmate, who is passionate about Valenciano. Of course, I love playing the devils advocate, and I told her that Valenciano was the same as Castellano anyway. After all, I can understand a good proportion of it and my Spanish isn´t even that good! The French guy was worse - he said, "We learn 2 foreign languages at school. Why don´t you? I know you learn English and Valenciano, but what´s the point in Valenciano?" You can imagine the response :)

I got a message from my dad this morning: "Have ye fund a joab yit?". Yes, I did tell him on the phone that I was going home in three weeks. I told him that I wasn´t going to look for a job. I told him all of the above. Yet he still asks the same question. It made me feel like I haven´t achieved what I wanted to achieve out here. But I have - by coming, I know what I want. And she´s not here.

I was forced to cook again today. I wanted to cook something a bit different. Maybe some noodly asian dish or something that you rarely find here, but I couldn´t find the ingredients in the supermarket. In my local supermarket you can take your pick of the noodles and spices. So, instead, it was another pasta affair. Tomato sauce, mushrooms, onion, garlic, pepper. You know the one. I´m dreading cooking again. I don´t trust myself with the fish in case I do it wrong. I can just about manage meat.

I´ve been studying a lot during the day, since I don´t have a job. I´m making good use of my time by learning the theory behind the things I say in Spanish. It´s something I´ve never bothered to do: I´ve never taken a class, never learned grammar or anything and I think it´s a big mistake. So, I got myself a big book of grammar and started working my way through it. At the end of each unit is a large paragraph for translation, and I´m able to get my friends to correct them for me. It´s very useful. And then, when night comes, I put everything I´ve learned into practice. I´ve got this far without the preiterit tense... well, I used it before without really understanding it. Anyway, I don´t know what my point it. Learn your grammar I suppose.

I feel like a quiet night tonight. I´ll finish off the pasta in the fridge and have a couple of beers in front of the TV.

Bye :)

P.S. Sorry for the length of this post - I didn´t realise!

[Ben]

Well, even after 8 years in Madrid I don't think I would know anyone if I walked into a nightclub!

Sounds like you are having an amazing time! How about cooking them something Spanish before you go?

[gary]

I´m beginning to understand conversations as I overhear them (i.e. understanding before translating in my head) and am able to watch some TV programs with very few problems.


I know exactly what you mean - I got over the translating in my head thing a good while ago. I find it actually helps when you stop trying to translate. I am at the stage where I can get the intermediate podcast without the transcript and more or less without a dictionary so I feel very pleased.

The Advanced one is more of a struggle but i actually do find that lby istening a few times I get more and more of it. Its as if you dont need to reprocess the stuff youve already sorted and can get to the next conundrum with more mental facility available.

In live conversations, as on the road, its speed that kills. We have a mum at a school I work at that is Spanish and speaks NO English. Wednesday and Thursday mornings are translation days so I get to read the school newsletters et al to her. Of course Ive had half an hour with a coffee planning it all out and the reading goes well. She presumes I am a great deal more fluent than I am and launches into a tirade of questions which we later have to repeat at a more leisurely pace, much to the amusement of her (delightful) children.

I have to say, though, its getting better - like Alan I could understand snippets of conversations overheard in bars when I was on hol in the Costa del Sol last week. Accents are still tricky but we're getting there, a fact which I attribute to the fact that I can hear spanish at conversational speeds in the NIS podcasts.

[Edith]

It was quite an international affair to be honest, with another Scot, a Pole and two Finns. But the majority of people were Spanish and those who weren´t couldn´t speak English.

Including the Finns? I thought they were all fluent in English! :eek:

But I think Scotland is loved the world over because it is known as the smaller brother of England. The underdog you support because otherwise you have no affiliation.

The accent may be another reason. Personally, I love those Scottish accents! :) Not the climate though, sorry... ;-)

[Marina]

I had the fortune to be invited to a house party. I was quite surprised after Ben telling about how that was never done. I thought that people always met in bars, and until now, that has always been the case. Maybe it was because they were a Spanish-Finnish couple (can´t be too many of them) and the Finnish side overruled. Anyway, it was great. Everyone took a tapa and the table soon filled with food. Drink flowed, and there was enough food to last the night. I am still surprised by how much Spanish folk drink - I was under the impression that it was us who were the drunkards, but it seems not to be the case. Everyone bar a couple of drivers seemed to be well drunk.

People in Spain do parties in their houses as well every now and again. But as bars are affordable it is more common to go out often than in other places in Europ.

[Alan]

On Tuesday we went to see a play. I was a bit worried, because I wasn´t sure I would be able to follow it. It was in a smallish bar - 4€ entry with a free drink - and these things tend to use local dialects or even Valenciano. So, I sat myself down on the floor, foolishly in the front row, and prepared my ears for the barrage of unknown expressions.

I needn´t have worried. It was a comedy duo consisting mostly of mime. Some people say that mime is the lowest form of comedy, but it was very welcome to me. There was some dialogue which I was able to follow mas o menos. And in some of the acts, they even spoke English for effect.

One of the acts was a wrestling match. One of the actors was the referee and the other was a sexually frustrated wrestler in a rubber suit. He was very funny. But where was his opponent? My blood ran cold as I realised they were going to choose someone from the audience and I was sitting in the front row! And sure enough, the referee came to me and told me to get on my feet. "No!" I shouted, "I can´t speak the language!". I was completely vulnerable to whatever cruel tricks they like to play on giris. But still, I had to get up. After the third "no", I realised that my attempts to avoid the audience participation were futile. I got up. The wrestler saw my size and ran away petrified. Phew. It was part of the act, and I got to sit back down and drink my beer. He chose a girl, which played into the hands of the sexually frustrated wrestler...

So, we´re going back next week, but I´m going to arrive a bit earlier and hopefully get a seat a bit further back :)

[Alan]

It is a good idea to make friends with waiters. I got five beers plus my dinner last night for nothing. But, after his shift, we went to a bar, had 3 more beers, 2 tequilas and a whisky. Then we went out. I´ve never been so drunk in my life and I don´t want to repeat it. I woke up fully dressed, including shoes, with a splitting headache. With hindsight, it was probably not a good idea to go out, but it´s good to see this aspect of Spanish life even if I don´t want to see it again. For the people in the club we went to, alcohol and drug abuse was the norm. I´ve never been offered so many different things, although I never take drugs.

I don´t think I´ll go out with him again...

[Ben]

No hay nada como la marcha española ;)

[Paco]

I dont know if you guys continue posting here but I have something to say.
Things I learned going to "no man went before"
1. Going to a city in a new country, go close to a University, or around a University, things are easier in there. You may find a room for a week or for three months, no one really care.
2. Find the Market Or in Spain they should have a Mercado or Plaza somewhere, the regular people shop in places like that. things are cheaper there and if you have a "market day" lets say Monday, go on Monday real late before they close things them are cheaper, or you are going to be more sucessful barganing with the guy. You dont relly need language to bargain just the basic. Then the day after the market day, go really early in the morning
to glean, is amazing how many things are just placed in the garbage, mainly fruit and take as much as you want, or can.
3. Go to the University or college, where the student meet, they always have boards with signs looking for renters or somebody to share their flat.
also they know where to eat cheap, and even sometimes free.
That what I do when I go to another city in the States and Spain shouldnt be that different, when I was in Madrid I took some fruit from the market the day after the market day , free no one really cared, and I made a meal out of that. Hey one meal or two wont kill you if the fruit is clean and washed.