Ever since I decided to study abroad in Spain, I've been on a roller coaster ride of emotions, usually ranging somewhere between anxious-excited and anxious-nervous. Of course, I'm really excited to study abroad, especially in southern Spain. Ever since we learned about El Cid, la Alhambra, and la Mezquita in high school, I've wanted to visit the region. At the same time, I'm nervous that my speaking skills won't be good enough and that my nerves and tendency to be embarrassed speaking a different language to native speakers will hinder me in increasing my fluency. I was thinking about this the other day, and I realized that I don't know how to say "speak slower" in Spanish. I can say "habla más rápido," but that's asking people to speak faster, not slower. All these years of Spanish, and the word for "slower" has never been burned into my mind. You'd think I would be able to remember it as it would be handy in trying to overcome language and accent barriers. After further musing on this matter, I thought of it as either a really good thing or a really bad thing. Obviously, it is a bad thing because native speakers speak Spanish faster than I can process it, so I should be able to ask them to slow down. On the other hand, I have to listen carefully and try and get over my fears of making mistakes. I can't rely on the crutch of asking people to speak slower if I can't remember the word. So, maybe it'll be a benefit. I don't know. I'll let you know in about a month.
Thanks for listening to/reading my ramblings.
¡Hasta luego!
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
HOME!
I finally made it home. I left campus around 12:30 EST and didn't actually set foot into my house until about 11:20ish PST. That means, I was traveling for about 14 hours just to go from the East Coast to the Best Coast (for those who don't know, the West Coast is the Best Coast). It is glorious to be home. Now, I shall fill you in on my crazy day of traveling.
First of all, when I went to check my bags in, I discovered that Virgin America has indeed spoiled me with their 70 lb. bag limit. Unlike Virgin America, Southwest has a 50 lb. limit (but 2 free checked bags). My bag weighed 75 lbs. I had to find 25 lbs. to remove from my bag and fit into my already stuffed duffel bag and my two carry-ons. The skycap gave me a plastic bag and tied one of my carry-ons plus a random assortment of things into a big plastic bag. So, that was the beginning of my crazy day.
I was afraid I wouldn't be allowed to carry the plastic bag on with me, and would have to come to terms with the $50 overweight bag fee. Luckily, that was not the case. It was more or less smooth sailing from there, until I got to Chicago.
I checked the monitor and saw that my new gate was in Concourse B, and I had landed in Concourse A. I decided at that point to cave in and invest in a SmarteCarte to drag my awkward plastic bag across the airport. Well, that idea turned out to be a very smart plan because the plastic bag ripped right before I got to the SmarteCarte. When I got to my gate, I got creative and somehow managed to fit everything into my two carry-on bags. (Annie, your bag is fabulous...it held everything in wonderfully and I will now be referring to it as my Mary Poppins bag)
Finally, picking up my bags at the end of the road was the cherry on top of my crazy day. Apparently, a lot of flights landed around the same time, so the airport was slower than it usually is. My flight's bags didn't start coming out until about half an hour after we landed. Yay for flying near the holidays! This was probably the craziest experience I've ever had flying.
I've also learned that I should rethink the types of bags I use when I fly. I think I'll invest in a backpack and a second checked bag that's bigger than a duffel. At least I'm home now.
First of all, when I went to check my bags in, I discovered that Virgin America has indeed spoiled me with their 70 lb. bag limit. Unlike Virgin America, Southwest has a 50 lb. limit (but 2 free checked bags). My bag weighed 75 lbs. I had to find 25 lbs. to remove from my bag and fit into my already stuffed duffel bag and my two carry-ons. The skycap gave me a plastic bag and tied one of my carry-ons plus a random assortment of things into a big plastic bag. So, that was the beginning of my crazy day.
I was afraid I wouldn't be allowed to carry the plastic bag on with me, and would have to come to terms with the $50 overweight bag fee. Luckily, that was not the case. It was more or less smooth sailing from there, until I got to Chicago.
I checked the monitor and saw that my new gate was in Concourse B, and I had landed in Concourse A. I decided at that point to cave in and invest in a SmarteCarte to drag my awkward plastic bag across the airport. Well, that idea turned out to be a very smart plan because the plastic bag ripped right before I got to the SmarteCarte. When I got to my gate, I got creative and somehow managed to fit everything into my two carry-on bags. (Annie, your bag is fabulous...it held everything in wonderfully and I will now be referring to it as my Mary Poppins bag)
Finally, picking up my bags at the end of the road was the cherry on top of my crazy day. Apparently, a lot of flights landed around the same time, so the airport was slower than it usually is. My flight's bags didn't start coming out until about half an hour after we landed. Yay for flying near the holidays! This was probably the craziest experience I've ever had flying.
I've also learned that I should rethink the types of bags I use when I fly. I think I'll invest in a backpack and a second checked bag that's bigger than a duffel. At least I'm home now.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
I HAVE A BLOG!
**DISCLAIMER: I HAVE A STRANGE SENSE OF HUMOR AND I AM OFTEN A LITTLE SARCASTIC, SO PROCEED WITH CAUTION. PEOPLE WHO HAVE BACK PROBLEMS, HEART PROBLEMS, MOTION SICKNESS, OR ARE PREGNANT SHOULDN'T RIDE THIS RIDE** :-P
Wow, I have a blog. Yay for me! I have now joined the legions of people around the globe who share their ideas and anecdotes with, sometimes, complete and total strangers. I can force you all (well, not really) to read/listen to the ramblings of my disorganized mind.
What to write about? It's my first post, so I should make it something good. Something deep and pithy with a soupçon of wit and whimsy?
Well, while I muse on what to write in my blog, which will later be used to keep everyone au courant (oh, Thesaurus.com, how do I love thee?) of my adventures in the far off and exotic land of Spain (well, not that exotic...I don't need any additional shots), I'm going to get back to that pesky research paper.
I do hope that you all find this as humerus (haha, play on words) as I do. Even if you don't enjoy my blog, I will enjoy writing it, and really, isn't that what really matters?
Ok, enough of this random stringing of words together and back to my paper! For real this time. Until we meet again!
Wow, I have a blog. Yay for me! I have now joined the legions of people around the globe who share their ideas and anecdotes with, sometimes, complete and total strangers. I can force you all (well, not really) to read/listen to the ramblings of my disorganized mind.
What to write about? It's my first post, so I should make it something good. Something deep and pithy with a soupçon of wit and whimsy?
Well, while I muse on what to write in my blog, which will later be used to keep everyone au courant (oh, Thesaurus.com, how do I love thee?) of my adventures in the far off and exotic land of Spain (well, not that exotic...I don't need any additional shots), I'm going to get back to that pesky research paper.
I do hope that you all find this as humerus (haha, play on words) as I do. Even if you don't enjoy my blog, I will enjoy writing it, and really, isn't that what really matters?
Ok, enough of this random stringing of words together and back to my paper! For real this time. Until we meet again!
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