Tolosa Wednesday

Chris and I went to the town of Tolosa this week for our Wednesday entertainment. Tolosa is to the south and slightly east of Zarautz, about 30 minutes by car, about an hour by public transportation, which is how we went.

When we rolled in on a chilly, grey morning, Tolosa looked a bit grim. It didn’t help that everything was closed except for a few bakeries. We couldn’t get into either of the main churches or visit the nuns at the Santa Clara convent. Even the tourist office was shut tight at 10 AM. We roamed the old quarter of the town reading the plaques on the buildings, had a cafe con leche and some sweet rolls and waited for the tourist office to open at 11 to see what else we should see in town.

While the gentleman at the tourist office, who spoke English with a Scottish Spanish accent (which was wacky to listen to), was very excited to show off his city, it turned out we had seen just about everything already, at least what is available on a grey Wednesday morning in the winter.

The pride of Tolosa is the location of their old town in a narrow valley on what was once an island in the Oria river. Peaks surround the town on two sides, mountains from which we were told the Duke of Wellington rained cannon shot down on the city during the Napoleonic wars. At this point, the Tolosans recognized that the city walls weren’t really going to help them and tore them down, completely buried one branch of the river in an underground canal, and got on with expanding their town. Being at a crossroads connecting several main roads of the Iberian peninsula to France allowed the town to grow, and the buildings from the 14th to 18th centuries show the money that must have flowed into the town. They were even the capital of the province where we live, Gipuzkoa, briefly in the mid-1800s.

However, that was the highwater mark. As our Scottish-speaking friend told us, “some Spanish queen was staying here, and her doctor told her she should go to the sea because bathing in the waters was healthy, so she moved the capital to San Sebastian, which was just a bunch of pirates and smelly sardine fisherman at the time.” And that was that. Tolosa’s time was done.

To be fair, there was a little more to San Sebastian in the middle of the 1800s than pirates and sardine fisherman, but it did blossom into the Belle Epoque beauty that it is and a stop for the 19th-century jet-set about the same time the capital moved. Sour grapes may be justified in this case for Tolosa.

In addition to this history, we also learned about a famous sweet shop we should visit and the Tolosa International Puppet Centre.

We took the tourist office up on the sweet shop, that of Rafa Gorratxategi, where we were helped by a kind young woman who had done a semester abroad at Boise State University in Idaho. Apparently there is a thriving Basque community in Idaho, and they teach the Basque language at the university. Who knew? We bought some of Mr. Gorratxategi’s cookies to take home to the children, and our helper gave us some of his homemade chocolate and cheese turron to sample as we roamed Tolosa. Only after tasting the cookies later this weekend did we realize we should have bought a few pounds of that turron.

Chris and I are not really puppet people, but the tourist guy was so excited about this puppet center/museum that we walked by it given that there wasn’t much else to do. One word: creeeeeppeee! We’re not talking about Oscar the Grouch here; we’re talking about realistic-looking puppets and marionettes that I can only imagine cackling and dragging a cleaver in one hand. Even worse, he specifically said, “You won’t believe it; it’s like they come to life.” Umm, we’ll pass.

On the nothing-to-do front, the tourist guy suggested we come back on Saturday when they have their market of local produce and goods and apparently the town comes to life like the puppets. Since that wasn’t going to happen, we instead opted to hike up one of the looming nearby mountains to the Ermita de Nuestra Señora de Izaskun, because who doesn’t love a good hermitage? We had some lovely views on our walk to the hermitage, which was a small chapel and was open, unlike the churches in town. Across from the church was a small restaurant where we stopped to have caldo (a hot broth served with bread) and a Spanish tortilla (not the flatbread like a Mexican tortilla, but the Spanish omelet), both made for us in a kitchen we could see by someone’s grandma.

Since the place was mostly empty, I was able to engage the proprietor in Spanish conversation that consisted of more than, “the check please.” We learned that many Basque left Spain to go fishing in the Americas during the Spanish Civil War and many of them never moved back. He had relatives in the US and in Argentina and had visited both. He even has a friend who moved with his wife to North Dakota two years ago to work in the wind farms, and now they have a child who was born there. I said, “El es un Americano ahora (he’s an American now),” and he said, “Quizas (maybe).”

In the afternoon on the way home, Chris and I were standing at a train station halfway between San Sebastian and Zarautz where we often find ourselves standing, when we were mistaken for locals, and a man and woman asked us which train would take them to Orio, a tiny town just to the east of Zarautz. We were pleased to know the answer, shared it, and this lead to another extended Spanish conversation as we all waited for the same train. They were as surprised to learn that we were Americans living in Zarautz as we were to learn that he was Egyptian and she was Chilean and they lived in San Sebastian.

So two things came of this outing: 1) I may have spoken more Spanish on Wednesday than I’ve spoken the entire time we’ve been here, and 2) when you start moving around the world and talking to people, you really start to realize just how much people do move around the world and how most of them are quite nice. And then I have to wonder, why is it that the not-nice ones seem to be in charge in so many countries at the moment? Sometimes it seems as random as towns rising and falling because some queen wants to go bathe in the sea.

Food, music, and stuff

The food here and in the U.S. is very different. In the U.S. it’s manly burgers, pizza, ice cream, fried chicken, and all that good stuff. In the BASQUE country, they eat those foods, but it doesn’t really taste the same. They also have a croquette which is like fried cheese and potatoes. and it’s good. They also eat a lot of traditional food like tortilla (which is Spanish), fish and meats, and soups.

On the candy side its mostly just sugar, which I don’t really like, as I prefer chocolates over just sugar. They don’t have Reese’s peanut butter cups, which is a sin. What is not to like about peanut butter and chocolate? They mostly just eat plain sugar which I don’t approve of. They do eat these weird cookies that are dry and shaped like doughnuts, and of course, don’t beat a good doughnut. They do have off-brand twinkies that are good, but the only chocolate bars are Twix, Snickers, and some European brands.

On the music side of things, they listen to rock-pop singers that sing in Basque about how Spain sucks and that they want independence, which is a common theme here. They also listen to bad Spanish rap which is really, really, autotuned and bad. The BASQUE don’t really have good music taste, but they probably don’t like my music either.

Spanish TV is just a bunch of American shows with weird voice actors over the movie or show, and it really sucks. They always are way too high or just plain weird. I watched Spongebob one day, and SpongeBob sounded like a grown man that had a child’s voice. It was a bit scary. The Disney empire has reached here. I see Marvel and other big-name Disney stuff. Also some of the kids like anime. The worst thing from the U.S. that has infected the Spanish population is Fortnite or Fort-neet-e as they call it. Most of the kids in my grade play it on there “Play” which is Basque I guess for PS4. Sony really owns Spain in that department. I was at a department store called Corte Ingles because Frankie wanted to look inside, and where the video games were they didn’t even have a sign for Xbox One. It was just sitting behind the last section of other companies like the WiiU… eww.

The worst things from the U.S. and some decent things have infected the BASQUE, and probably most of Spain so I don’t really feel culture shocked.

100 days in Zarautz

Today is the official day that we’ve been in Zarautz for 100 days, including the day we got here! It’s kind of crazy to think about! So to commemorate, I thought I might do sort of a photo diary of this time, with pictures from about every 10 days here.

Also, it’s a little hard to believe that we’re actually, y’know, living here, and we’re going home, and I have a home in Minnesota. It just seems so far away. But I know the time will fly; it already has. I am happy to inform that I’m picking up a little bit of Basque, so that’s good ’cause if I know Basque, it’ll make life a lot easier. We have tomorrow and then four days next week because we are skipping Friday and Monday ’cause we’re going to Germany and Austria!! Plus, according to one of my friends, Monday is Santo Tomas Day, which means people wear Basque clothing and we do a scavenger hunt and basically play games all day. So…I only have three days of school next week which is kind of exciting and no tests!

Speaking of not having school, it’s almost Christmas! That’s really exciting because Christmas is awesome. But, I’m a little sad ’cause I’ll miss some things like a Christmas tree and cookies. At the same time, at least we get to have a white Christmas at a ski resort in the mountains of Austria. Yesterday, my mom and I made paper lights to hang up everywhere, and they honestly look really cool. We’ll finish tonight and maybe make some other decorations.

We went to Pamplona last weekend, and it was really fun! The streets were crazy at night though. We were staying in a hostel over a bar, and we could barely get in at night there were sooo many people. But, we visited some cool sights, and I think we did a very good job at seeing a lot of things in a short amount of time. Also, we had some amazing pastries that we waited in line for, but it was so worth it because they were really good and I want to eat a million right now. My favorites were these still warm sort of mini chocolate croissants that were super buttery and rich and gooey. Yeah, sorry for making your mouth water.

Finally, there was a Renaissance sort of fair in Zarautz last weekend that I went to on Thursday night, and it was pretty cool. It was a little funny because they hung up middle ages banners where the Christmas lights were hung as well. But, it was very festive, for sure.

Anyways, my week has been pretty good, and a little easy. Oh, one last thing, on Monday we watched a mime performance about alcoholism. I know it sounds strange, but the mime, who talks, was from Scotland, and it was REALLY weird to hear his accent when he spoke to my brother in English because the mime had asked him a question in Basque and then everyone was like he’s English or something. It was actually really interesting and some of his jokes were really funny. AND he talked in Spanish most of the time! I think that if you have to learn about the dangers of alcohol, it’s a very entertaining way to do so.

Hello

And welcome to the BASQUE COUNTRY. Tourists, remember, you are neither in France nor in Spain. You are IN…THE BASQUE COUNTRY. Kaixo, ni Frankie naiz, eta zu? Zer moduz? Ondo. Bai, eskarri kasko. Agur! Something like that. I’m learning! YAyyy.

In my free time these days (Haha. Free time, what’s that?) I usually spend my time doing homework, chores, and looking at my phone. But, I am also working on my watercolor skills, and it seems to me I’ve found my hidden talent which is really fun! Also, these paintings are copies of someone else’s work, but as my dad likes to remind me, that is how many famous painters started.

As for other creative endeavors, Henry and I will be joining a community band in a matter of a couple of weeks after they have their next concert and begin new music. This is really exciting for me because that means I’ll get new music! Most of the kids in the band are older, including my friend’s older sister, but since we can’t be in the music school…it’s the next best option.

You’ve probably heard that we went to Ordesa Valley and it was really cool! It was nice to be away from Zarautz, and I LOVE hostels. You might be surprised since according to my parents, that wasn’t really a hostel. But, if I like a not-really hostel then I’ll probably like a more-real hostel. The hikes were pretty cool. A little wet and a little cold, but…technically it was just getting us ready for winter because it’s been raining for almost a whole week and there was an awesome thunderstorm the other day. I actually don’t think it’s raining as I’m writing this. Surprisingly!

Being in Zarautz has actually given me a chance to not be that quiet, teacher’s pet girl. Now, I’m not saying I talk in class constantly and never listen to the teachers, but I also am not really quiet and not the annoying one who always tells people to be quiet. Not that I did that at Sanford. What I’m trying to say is that I am friends with multiple groups, and even if they see me as that one girl who can’t speak Basque, it’s still a fact. And that’s good.

In the end, life is tiring and boring, and some days are better than others. But, it’s all good, and I’ll try to enjoy it! Also, in case anyone is wondering, my grades aren’t even that bad considering I’m doing basically everything in my second language!

Ez dut euskaraz hitz egiten

Are you wondering what that says? Curious about the pronunciation of the words? Welcome to my world. “Ez dut euskaraz hitz egiten” translates to “I do not speak Basque” which is true, and try as I might to pronounce my student’s names correctly, I have not been very successful – but I haven’t given up yet either.

We are living Zarautz because I accepted a teaching position as an English language assistant through a program sponsored by the Spanish government. I was assigned to Orokieta Herri Eskola, a primary school in Zarautz which serves about 600 students in levels one through six. I assist three English teachers at the school, and my primary responsibilities include planning and teaching English language speaking lessons to small groups of students. I work with ten different classes every week, in grades equivalent to US grades four, five and six, and I teach roughly 260 children with varying levels of English speaking skills.

Orokieta Herri Eskola

For the most part, I am enjoying my stint as a language assistant. The majority of children are curious learners and put effort into trying to improve their English speaking skills. It should be noted that English is taught as a third language, behind Euskara (or Basque) and Castilian Spanish, which seems like a lot of language learning to me. And for a handful of students, English is their fourth language; these students speak Brazilian Portuguese, Polish, or Mandarin at home. I have a lot of respect for people who learn how to communicate in multiple languages, and I recognize that learning a second (or third or fourth) language isn’t easy for everyone. 

All that to say, I don’t mind making a fool of myself trying to correctly pronounce my student’s names. In doing so, I hope that they will be more willing to take risks when they speak in English. Names that were the most challenging for me include Ekhiñe, Ixone, Uxue, Arantxa, Hegoi, Xubam, Iraitze, and Saioa. Easy? Maybe for you; now try again with these clues:   x = sh     tz = atso     tx = ch     ai = ī     e = ā

Sure, the correct pronunciation can be learned, but it’s tricky! Never mind the whole word order bit, but I’ll save that for another post. 

The differences

School in the U.S. and school here are very different. In the U.S. everything is in ENGLISH. In Zarautz, almost everything is in BASQUE, and I don’t know Basque. One of the differences in school that isn’t the language is that instead of us going to the teachers, the teachers come to us. So whenever the class changes, we wait in the class for a different teacher. The only time we move is for the elective, gym, and recess. Otherwise, we stay in the class. I prefer moving classes, like at Sanford, because then I get to see new people, and I just get to move around. I also prefer classes in ENGLISH because it is my native language.

It is pretty hard here because I don’t know how to speak Basque. Lots of the kids don’t really like speaking in Spanish, which kind of makes sense because Basque is their main language so they want to speak it. It is still really annoying because I don’t know the language.

I mentioned earlier that we had electives. For my elective, I chose Video Games. In Video Games we code on Scratch. I made a game on Scratch on days when my teacher just lets us mess around. If you want to play it, a link is here: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/337909388/

For after-school we have lunch, and then after-school stuff like at most schools. There are three courses. First we have soup, noodles, and that kind of stuff. Then we have some sort of meat, and finally some sort of fruit. The lunch is usually not that good, but sometimes it is. I prefer the food at Sanford because it is usually fried or anything unhealthy. Some of the meals here a better then some of the meals at Sanford, but Sanfords best meals are better than Lizardi’s best meals. After-school is an hour, and you choose a class for each day you go to after-school. I go on Tuesdays and Thursdays because I have basketball on Mondays and Wednesdays. I chose Spanish and Spanish Writing which helps me a lot because I am under the same standards as the Basque kids.

For some things the Basque people are a lot stricter, and at other things they are a lot more relaxed. For all the notes that we take, we have to turn them into the teacher. You might be thinking that that’s okay. Buuuuuut… we have to put them in a plastic folder. A plastic FOLDER! We have to write it perfectly or we will get a bad grade. That’s really stupid, but for other things they are less strict. I hurt my knee at basketball practice on Wednesday, so I didn’t go on Friday. I told my coach, and he said, “Okay just relax.” I think that some of the rules are stupidly strict, but some people are less strict, so it’s okay.

Another big difference is that there are no school sports. All the sports are for a club, not a school. The basketball team I am on is called ZAST, and it is part of the Zarautz athletic club. The teams are set by age and a little by talent.

There are a lot of differences here from Minneapolis. I’m not going to lie. I prefer Minneapolis and Sanford, but I guess living in the Basque Country will be a good experience so that is good. I also get to go to Germany and Austria for Christmas so that’s pretty nice. The Basque country is really pretty, and it’s fun going on hikes in the mountains. It is very different, but most things aren’t better . . . at least in my opinion.

Life

So, I know I have had a post due for awhile but as you can tell, I’m very good at procrastinating. But, it’s the weekend once again, and I have some time so I’ll give y’all an update.

Life isn’t really amazing right now, but nor is it really horrible. I guess you could say, it’s normal. (Looking back on this, weekends are way better.) My normal consists of getting up, biking to school rain or shine, stressing about not having a watch and hoping my friend will come in time on the corner so we’re not late to school or hoping she doesn’t leave before I get there, being surrounded by Basque ALL day and a lot of the time not having any idea of what’s happening, trying to make friends, trying to do okay on all my tests, doing whatever afte- school or sport I have, homework, phone, sleep. Again.

My life is honestly really boring right now, but you might enjoy some art I have done in after-school.

Volleyball is pretty fun and I’m actually getting better! Although, I do wish we had practice more often than only two days a week. Oh well. This weekend, there’s a “Youth Day” that I’ll check out with my friends in the afternoon, hopefully I’ll go surfing, I’ll do homework, and I’ll watch YouTube or look at Instagram.

I’m pretty interested in photography right now, I’m hoping to get a camera for Christmas, but we’ll see. The downside of not having a camera right now is when I see really cool things like this morning there was a crescent moon and an airplane path going right through it which was pretty cool. Also, today there were a ton of either airplane paths or clouds that looked like said object on a bright blue sky that looked pretty cool.

The language barrier is greater than anyone would suspect. First of all, there’s like one or two teachers that when I ask “What?” in Castellano after they’ve said something, feel the need to tell it to me in English when they could just say it again in Spanish. It makes me want to pretend like I don’t understand English so they feel bad about talking to me in English, but I mean, I am AMERICAN. Second of all, when people around me speak Basque, no me entero de nada (“I don’t get it”), I don’t understand anything, no jokes, why someone’s sad, nothing. And it honestly sucks. Speaking of annoying things, having to translate homework or something from Basque to Spanish using Google Translate is definitely one.

So…it’s the next day now. Haha. Yesterday, I hung out with my friends and practiced eating sunflower seeds and playing basketball. This morning, I will be doing homework in preparation for partying the night away. I’m pretty excited because I’ve found it’s easier to be with my friends outside of school.

I’ll include some pictures down below of interesting things for your personal enjoyment. And now I bid thee adieu.

Eskola

This past week, I started school in Zarautz! Overall, it went pretty well, and I’m excited to go back on Monday! Some highlights were making new friends, having a helpful Basque teacher, and just experiencing new things. There were downfalls as well, not understanding the teachers when they spoke in Basque and friend groups. But, I am ready for Monday, and I think this year will be AMAZING!

On the 11th of September (a quick remembrance of all the loved ones that were lost 19 years ago), I wrote this to put in the blog.

“My first day of school was honestly pretty great! The only downfall was not knowing what the teacher was saying for the most of two hours, as well as not being able to read my schedule. But, the kids were really nice, and it was definitely a positive experience. My advisory teacher was out on parental leave, and they hadn’t gotten a substitute yet, so the very nice school counselor was our teacher. He took the time to repeat the most important things to us in Castellano. Now, all the kids can speak Spanish, but it’s a Basque school, so you talk to the teachers in Basque and vice versa. Finally, the other students were kind enough to talk to Henry and me in Castellano.

This morning we biked to our school where we were greeted by lots of children and lots of noise. We locked our bikes and walked around the patio, looking at the class lists and such, until the principal found us and directed us to another school counselor of sorts. She showed us our classroom while all the other students were in the yard and introduced us to the English teacher. We made our way back outside and were confused by who went in the doors when. But, we made it to class without other difficulty.

Schools in Spain are similar to the U.S. as in they are LOUD. Kids my age like to talk, a lot. The teacher didn’t care that much because they would quiet down when asked. At the end of class [the two hour school day], I was talked to and questioned by many of the girls in my class. That morning, I had been approached by a group of older girls asking where we were from.

Thankfully, we were able to translate our schedules with our teacher’s help, and we went outside. I wasn’t sure why no one was leaving or why the gate was still mostly closed, so we stayed. Henry played basketball, and I talked with some girls from my class and some others from different classes. I biked home with Henry and a very nice girl from class who showed us a different way back. It was a pretty good end to a pretty good day! In the end, I’m excited to move forward with school and make friends with these seemingly nice girls and enjoy it. Also, we might get to go on a French Alps skiing trip! This’ll be a FUN year!!”

On the 12th of September, I wrote the following.

“I had my first real day of school yesterday, and it went really well! The kids weren’t any less nice, and the teachers were very nice as well. I struggled with French because everyone had a year under their belts, so from now on I will be taking inventing class! I couldn’t understand a lot of what the teachers were saying in Basque, but the actual Basque language teacher had someone help me write some stuff down! I also memorized numbers 1-10! Bat, bi, huna [hiru], lau, bost, sei zatzpi [zazpi], zortzi, begarenak [bederatzi], & hamar. The ninth one I think is a little off, but I’ll look it up. It’s…bederatzi. We had two patio times when I sat and talked to some of my classmates, who like to call each other crazy, and ate my “lunch”. Philosophy was the only English class that day, which I understood, but I’m not sure how many of my classmates did.

At the end of the day, I learned one of my classmates plays flute like me and takes lessons, so I’ll look into the place to see if I can take lessons there. We biked home and a a little while later ate La Comida, a traditional rice & pork meal. We walked to Eroski, like a Super Target in the U.S., and I got some more school supplies, and then we walked back, laden by food and supplies. Then, we went out for ice cream and good beers for my parents. The sun was really pretty on the beach, and I took some photos. All in all, my first day of real school was a grand success and I’m excited to go back!”

Friday was a pretty good day as well. The only bad thing was, under the circumstances, I’m going to try and be friends with all the girls in my class and not just some.

Tomorrow, we are leaving very early to go to San Sebastian to get our TIE cards. Also, I think Spanish class is going to be quite challenging since I haven’t been studying Spanish very much for awhile. English class might be a little boring, since it’ll be sort of easy. I started doing lettering, like calligraphy, because we still don’t have an advisory teacher. Finally, I like graph paper notebooks, which is mostly all they have here!

Monday is tomorrow and I’m ready.

Wheels, showers, and living 1 1/2 blocks away from the beach

Zarautz from the hill

As I write this, we’ve been in Zarautz for three whole days, and it’s wonderful. My parents and sometimes me and/or Henry have been to the Hiper Market several times. We have done some exploring and figuring out our lifestyle for the most part. As I write this, my mom is cooking our lunch or La Comida, my dad is on the terrace porch looking at what seems to be the ocean, and my brother is playing Minecraft on his beloved XBox while American music plays from a portable speaker. Paints quite a picture, huh?

The rocks I climbed on closer to the shore

There are a few things that are very prominent in this town of ours that we will call home for ten months. First of all, it seems to me that to be a proper younger resident you need wheels. Second of all, we visited our school and sadly, very sadly, I learned I have to take a communal shower after gym most likely twice a week. This is very different from American culture. Third of all, the beach is an active place, and constantly has someone hanging out or riding the waves. Fourth of all, as the principal and counselor of my new school put it, this is a very active, sporty town.

If you think about it, wheels are a great invention. I mean, they keep the world going a lot of the time and they’re the foundation of civilization. In this town, where you’re practically required to have a form of wheels, there are many to choose from. You have the normal bicycles, the hipster skateboards, the rising roller blades, and the popular scooters. These wheels are everywhere, big ones, small ones, medium ones, for littles, mediums, and larges. My brother and I have just obtained second-hand bicycles that are actually quite nice. Mine is black and a city bike with the low frame and a basket on the front. I’m also considering getting a skateboard sometime, whether it be for Christmas or with my own money. It seems like a splendid idea.

My new school, Lizardi

Our school, Lizardi, is a very nice school. It has three floors and stairs coming up the middle, I recall orange coloring as well. The classrooms are average size, smaller than the ones in the US, and have old-fashioned desks with the chairs attached in lines, but that will change. There is also a computer cart, a chalkboard, an online board, hooks for backpacks, and cubbies filled with a stack of books you’ll use during the year. My classes include ethics once a week, science, math, Basque, French, Castellano, shop, and gym. Overall, my new Basque school is pretty good besides communal showers and not knowing any Basque.

View from down on the rocks

I am VERY excited to start surfing!!! I know it’s much harder than it looks, but still, it’s going to be amazing!! The beach being right there is awesome. There’s a ton of room on the beach when the tide is out, and it’s all sand which is really nice. There are a ton of surfers in wet suits trying to ride the crazy waves and some boogie boarders sprinkled in. We walked up one of the hills on the side of the town, and we went down to the rocks next to the water, and it was awesome! I climbed on the rocks until I was pretty close to the angry waves that were coming closer and hitting rocks with force. That definitely won’t be my last time on those rocks. There are actually remnants from a pulley system on the rocks to load ships with iron from land to offshore a little bit.

Surfer heading out at medium tide

As an example of living in a sporty town, I plan on learning how to surf, row, and I may be on the volleyball team. I also may start running on the beach in the mornings and riding my bike around the town. I will also take flute lessons somewhere or be in the community band, since I’m lucky to have a small instrument that I could bring to Spain. I will be a very active person this year, which is honestly very exciting.

The Basque Festival is currently happening with food and dance and music. Monday is actually a holiday here, that’s why school doesn’t start until Wednesday; everyone recovers on Tuesday! As we were leaving a cell service place and heading to the post office, we briefly saw dancers on a stage in, I believe, Musika Plaza. They were doing a sort of ballet looking dance in traditional Basque clothing, one person at a time to music with a flute in it and drums. It was quite impressive, and one guy I saw did some 360 spins in the air. It was sort of hypnotizing.

Me and the hippie bus mural

In the end, living in Zarautz has been a great experience so far and very different from Minneapolis. I still miss my friends and family, but it’s not always front and center which is a good thing for me. I’m excited for school to start so I can make friends and start having a normality and a schedule. Zarautz is exciting, and it’s fun that you all are on the road with us!

Random notes on a random week

Not to be outdone by crazy weather happenings in Minnesota (the video of the ice attacking the houses on Mille Lacs even made the news over here), the weather here has taken a turn for the worse with multiple hail storms passing through and temperatures getting back down to 40F with gusting winds. All that stuff about “sunny Spain” is a bunch of PR. Don’t believe it. It’s just as wet and nasty here as anywhere else.

And the weather has changed just in time for a visit from our great friend MK, who is in the air even as I write. He’ll be here for 10 days, and those of you who know him will know what a trial that will be. I’m heading to Madrid tomorrow to pick him up at the airport and whisk him back to beautiful Siles. His life will never be the same.

Speaking of lives not being the same, when I first contemplated this trip, I thought it might refresh my view of education or give me new ideas to bring home. It hasn’t done that in a specific classroom way, though it has certainly done it in the sense of putting me in the position of English language learners at my own school. I can quite easily put myself in the place of people trying to get through life and move forward while surrounded by a strange culture and a strange language.

Instead of learning about education, I have mostly learned about my relationship to education: things like, boy did I ever make the right choice to work with adults! I could not hack it on a day-to-day basis in the world of pre-K-12. Well, maybe I could in a different environment that was more familiar to me, but I definitely couldn’t in the school culture here in Siles. I have no patience for children who are in a learning environment but don’t want to learn and so spend their time interfering with other people’s learning, and there is more of that here than I am used to.

In the spirit of loosely related random thoughts, I can offer another entry in the “Gill’s Spanish dictionary” series:

maleducado— (adjective) teachers use this word a good bit at school when they are describing student behavior, and it is not a compliment. Looking it up, the usual definition is rude or ill-mannered, but to understand the real depth of the word, it is important to look up the related verb maleducar. Maleducar gets you to the concept of to spoil. Thus, calling a child maleducado is not just a commentary on the child, but a commentary on his/her parents as well. It suggests that the parents have raised the child, educated the child, poorly. It is not just a condemnation of the child; it connects his or her behavior directly to the family environment. If the child has developed a conscience, he or she will recognize it as a particularly biting appraisal. A less family-oriented approach is to use the word descarado, which is more like the sassy or impudent side of rude, but where I live maleducado is more common.

Along these lines, I am fascinated to get back to volunteering at the kids’ bilingual school in Minneapolis to see how all of this translates, literally and figuratively, there.

Done with random notes for tonight.