Viajes (Trips)

March 17th-24th I was really lucky to have participated in an 'exchange within my exchange' to Venice, Italy; an exchange trip offered by my school. I had the most incredible time living with my Italian host sister and her family that one week! Everyday the group of exchange students from my school in Spain and the Italian class would go and see a different part of Venice, typical sightseeing, and experience a little bit more of the culture. I was able to take so so so many beautiful photos of Venice and also of Verona where I went with my host sister and friends for a fun day trip. Getting to see another part of Europe was really nice! I was able to compare and contrast a little of the differences between Spain and Italy. When it was time to go back home and we were in the airport I started bawling because of the amazing week I had with all my new friends in Italy! I didn't want to leave! Fortunately, on May 5th the Italians come to stay with us in Madrid and I will get to see everyone again for the second half of our exchange.

It hadn't been much time since I had unpacked my suitcase from Italy when I had to repack again for my class trip. The two classes that make up my grade (1º bachillerato) took a five day trip to the city of Santander in northern Spain (we left April 27th). This was also such a fun experience for me. I got to see how beautiful northern Spain is and also build some new friendships with other students on the trip. We were really lucky to have had such nice weather on our trip too because the week we came home was absolutely awful, raining all the time... One of the days we went to the northern Spain beaches, another day to the mountains! Lot's of typical sight seeing and just being with our class was really great. The two classes really united and had lots of fun. I will try and post some photos on my photobucket account for everyone to check them out. My favorite part was probably when we took the gondola up the mountains. It was stunning! We all had such a great time taking photos climbing around and of course throwing some snowballs. We were all really sad when the trip was over, but since we returned to school the next day all together it wasn't so bad.

Apart from the two trips, I have been recently spending more time at the library and studding. Exams are coming up this week and it's my goal to pass the ones that are still troubling me and I really think that it's a more possible goal, especially because I'm able to do so much better in class now with the language and all.

I just wanted to post up a little THANK YOU on my blog to everyone who wished me a happy 17th birthday on April 21st! I really appreciated all the messages and everything! I had a really nice birthday. I would have normally had to go to school, but I had a field trip instead with my Latin class to see two theater productions and some old Roman ruins. It was a beautiful day out and we had a great time!

The following Saturday, I spent the weekend in Madrid and got to meet up with some of my classmates from Camden who were on the school Spain trip! It was so great seeing my friends, even though it was for only a few hours. Since I haven't seen anyone that I knew before my exchange since I got here, it was a little strange, but I am so glad that they called me and that we were able to meet up. I hope you all had a great time in Spain and I will see you all back home soon!

So today is my 50 days left point! It's a lot, but it's also very little at the same time. I'm trying to remember to just keep living my exchange in the moment and take advantage of every little opportunity until the end (and to take more photos)!

Un beso muy grande a todos!

Xoxo, Hana

February's Flying

Buenas! February's been flying by so quickly! Where has the time gone? I've been really busy and I can hardly believe that I already have my return date. We're pretty set on the date being, June 22nd right now, mark your calendars!

Whenever I talk to anyone back home they always ask me how my Spanish is doing and I'm really happy to say that It's going really well. On a daily basis I don't speak English (and haven't for months), other than when I'm in English class or helping out at the language academy. I have also been seriously neglecting my Spanish- English dictionary which feels so good to not need it. I really enjoy having normal conversations about absolutely anything without any pauses or misunderstandings. I still wouldn't call myself fluent, but I would say bilingual for sure.

With the language going so well, it certainly makes school a lot easier and entertaining because i can actually get something out of the classes. My teachers have noticed my improvements and let me tell you, they definitely don't cut me much slack anymore. Sometimes I get really frustrated with all the extra work they give me, but I just have to keep reminding myself that the teachers that are challenging me now are the ones I will be thanking in the end for pushing me to improve.

The classes at the English centre are with he little ones are going so well I can really see how their knowledge of the language had grown and how much they've improved in their exams and it makes me so happy to help and be apart of that.

I feel so completely immersed in the Spanish culture and way of life. I remember little things that I used to think were weird or didn't understand are now the little quirks that I enjoy and know I will miss. One of my favorite things about Spain is for sure the food. Sorry America, but I would pick Spanish food over American in a heartbeat. My host mother cooks really really well. I used to find it really different that everyone in the family that can comes home for the biggest meal of the day (lunch) everyday, but now I think, why wouldn't you? It's a great time for us to all share how school and work is going while eating really well. After lunch is siesta (rest period) which also is the best. Why didn't I ever take naps back home? Today I took a little longer siesta then normal of two hours, and the other day I slept through dinner I was so tired! I've really come to enjoy the way that Spaniards lay out their day. The days are longer here, but with the siesta in the late afternoon, you still sleep well.

I'm very excited to share that in one month I will be in Venice, Italy! I am really excited! I'm doing a one week exchange program with my school, where I live with an Italian host family. Then, about a month after that my Italian "sister" comes to Torrejon de Ardoz and I get to show her around! I'll be sure to blog about my experience. After that we have school vacations for Easter, and then in April my school is doing a one week trip to Santander, which is in the north of Spain! Almost my entire class is going, and they do it every year and everyone tells me that it's a lot of fun! I'm really looking forward to the trips, but I know that the time is going by really quick now without any signs of slowing down and soon enough school will be over and I will have to return to the states!

Well I hope that all is well with everyone back home. Shout out to C-HILLS boys varsity basketball: GOOD LUCK AT STATES! RECLAIM THAT TITLE! #1! I wish I could be there and I know you guys will rock it, AGAIN, love you boys! Thinking of you all from Spain...

Xoxo Hana

2010!

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a nice vacation and happy holidays! I most certainly have, and this new year has started off quite well for me. Yesterday (Tuesday, January 3rd) was my first day back at school from a three week, plus one snow day, vacation which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Right before vacation started, my school had two days of "fiesta" where it wasn't obligatory to go, but if you did you could play games all day and be with your friends. My class set up some fundraising games in our class room to help us earn money for our end of the year class trip to Santander. We sold cookies and had karaoke competitions, almost all the students from the younger grades rushed into our classroom. It was jam-packed and really fun!

I started my break by going to one of my families villages a little over an hour away from Madrid. We stayed there with my host grandparents, played lots of board games, and ate lots of typical Spanish Christmas candies. On Christmas Eve I went to a beautiful old church with my host family. I really enjoyed the service, and hope that I can go again the next time we are in the village. Christmas was really different this year for me. It was a nice day and I had a great big dinner with my host family, but it didn't seem to me like anything really different from the normal vacation day. I did however watch a lot of "Little House on the Prairie" (in Spanish, of course).

The day after Christmas my host family drove me to the airport and I left on a very special trip to Zurich, Switzerland to visit some cousins of mine until the 3rd of January. I had such an amazing time! (Thank you Jill, Gilad, Gerald, and Yasmine! Miss you guys!) While there I went to the movies (in English) which I really liked and also to a museum! My cousins and I cooked, and played, hung out together, and spent lots of time in their new hot tub jacuzzi.

We also had a really great time on New Years Eve. We all went out to a delicious Chinese restaurant with some of their friends and had a full ten course meal, plus dessert and fortune cookies (in Swiss-German). After eating my cousins and I went downstairs and did some bowling. Then we went back to their house, changed into some warm comfortable clothes, and went to the center of Horgen to see the fireworks!

On the morning of the 3rd I got up nice and early and my cousins and I took the train to the airport, we say goodbyes and I returned back to Madrid. The rest of my vacation I was back at my host house in Torrejon with my family. Wednesday, January 6th was like what I think of an American Christmas. It the "Dia de los reyes" or in other words "The Kings Day". 'The kings' are just like 'Santa' they come and bring the kids presents and on the day of the 6th you wake up with presents under the Christmas tree to open. It was such a nice day for me! I got some gifts from my host family and gave them some things from Maine! Later on in the day I went to Madrid to have a sleepover with my friend, another American exchange student. We had lots of fun, and when I came back the next day I got to help my family make some American pancakes from the mix and Maine maple syrup I got them. I think they really liked it!

We were supposed to start school this Monday, but instead... MIRALE! We had a snow day! I was so happy I wouldn't stop grinning all day. The night before on my walk home with my friends from a futbol game the snow "storm" started and we had a snow ball fight. Everyone attacked me, underestimating my skills, but I got everyone back in the end. I guess they forgot that I'm from Maine, and anything dealing with snow is my expertise!

Well, now I'm back in school getting into the groove of things again. All is well here, and I hope that everyone has had a nice vacation and a happy new year.

Wishing you a year of health and happiness..

Xoxo Hana

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Wow! I can hardly believe it! Another month down and my exchange is practically one-third over, and guess what... It snowed this morning in Madrid!

This past month of November and been both really fun and challenging for me and as the holiday season draws nearer I'm experiencing some real homesickness. Throughout it all, I'm learning so much though, and not just about Spain, the language, or culture, but also about life and myself.

This past month I have continued with my dance class three days a week and also with teaching the little ones English at the academy. Dance has been going really well, and we have recently learned two new routines. I also found out that in June right before I return home, there's going to be a showcase performance, which I'm really excited for as well.

Teaching English at the center has been going really well too. Unfortunately the original teacher of the little one's class got injured in an accident, so for this past month I've been working with the new substitute. It felt so great to be able to help her with everything because I know the class routine, games for them to play, and everything. It's been going really well and the class, as always has been so much fun for me.

Other than my normal activities I've had another excursion with Rotary the Sunday before Thanksgiving week. All of the exchangers living in the Madrid area took a bus to Soria in northern Spain. Soria is one of the ancient Spanish towns famous for it's history and museums. It was really beautiful and I had such a great time. We went to one of the museums and got to see and learn about some real Spanish art history.

On the Thursday of the next week was Thanksgiving, and to be a little honest I was a little nervous for my Thanksgiving this year. It's always been one of my favorite holidays because of the meaning and the fun ways that my family celebrates it, so I didn't know if I was going to feel homesick this year or what anything would be like. I once heard a quote that said "The thing about traditions is that you can make new ones", and after my Thanksgiving this year this exact quote held a new and special meaning to me. My Thanksgiving day was just like any normal Spanish school day for me, but for dinner I went to Madrid with all the exchange students living in the area and we had a huge Rotary dinner and also celebrated Tommaso Virdia's (Chairman of RYE in Spain) birthday! It was a fabulous night, and I even ended up having turkey!

Other than that November has been a great month of new experiences and plenty of learning. One more good piece of news is... I PASSED MY FIRST EXAM (that wasn't English!) It was my science class and I got one of the better grades in all my class! I just found out today. I was so happy and rushed home after school to tell my whole family about it. I can now definitely say that my Spanish has come a long long way.

I hope that all is well back home in the states and that everyone is enjoying the holiday season. Best wishes to everyone for a Happy Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year!

Xoxo Hana

Photos

Hola! I just wanted to let everyone know that I finally figured out a way that I can share photos with all my blog readers. It's on a photo sharing website called photobucket and the link to my album is: http://s935.photobucket.com/albums/ad197/hanasinspain/

These are just some various photos from my exchange so far, in no particular order. I haven't figured out how to really organize them yet, but the main thing is that I can share them with you! Enjoy! Best wishes!

Xoxo Hana

Carpe Diem

Today is just a few days after my two month mark in Spain, and it already feels like I've been here so much longer even though I left Camden, Maine, on August 25th, 2009 and arrived in Madrid on the 26th.
So far I've had one amazing experience! I've been to Toledo one of the most beautiful towns I've ever seen, filled with so much Spanish history and legendary architecture; I've been shopping at Bvlgari in Madrid; hiking in the Spanish mountains north of Madrid; and lived for two months as a 'normal Spanish teenager'.
Everything here is starting to feel really routine to me especially school. I really love my school here. It's so different from America in every way possible, but really great. A major difference from American high-school is that you stay in one class room for all you classes, and your with the same students for every class all year. This year I'm majoring in languages: Latin and Greek, and I absolutely love it. Having two years of Latin first definitely helped me to understand more. I'm also managing pretty well in Greek, and have really grown to love the class. Apart from my majoring classes, I'm also taking lenuga (language arts), historia (history), filosofia (philosophy), ciencia (science: neuro science), application Ingles, and English... All of the mandatory classes for students in my grade.

My Spanish has come so far already, and I'm constantly amazing myself with words (in Spanish) that just pop out of my mouth. My friends, family, and teachers, have been telling me how much I'm improving and I'm so glad. My previous two years of Latin really helped me alot along with my Rosetta Stone, but I know I would have been so much better off if I had completely applied myself to learning Spanish 100% last year. Although it is what it is, and you never can really imagine how much more difficult it will be until you're in the situation yourself.

I've built some really great relationships with people here now. Not only with my family but also with many different people from school and outside of school. My participation in activities after school has really helped me a whole lot during my exchange.

Right now, I have a very busy schedule. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I take dance classes for one hour. It's so fun and I absolutely love my instructor. Having danced practically my whole life, I am so happy to be taking up this opportunity to continue one of my favorite pastimes from America but in a new Spanish way. The nice thing is when I'm dancing in the studio with all the other dancers, and we're moving in sync, (in those moments, for that hour) I just forget about the language barrier, the cultural differences, the daily confusions, and I can just focus on me and the music. I love it! My other school activity teaching English at Daniel's Centre, an academy for learning English. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I teach and co-teach classes for the little ones (about 6-9 years old) for four hours. I stumbled upon this wonderful opportunity one day when I was talking to my Rotary counselor. I had told her that I was considering one day being a language teacher myself because I love teaching and languages both. After learning this about me, my counselor offered me the opportunity to work with the little one's whenever I wanted! After my first class with the little ones I completely fell in love with the students and made going to Daniel's Centre part of my regular schedule. I've also made so many friends from Daniel's Centre (and not just the other teachers). Sometimes after the classes with the little kids I'll go visit the classes of the older kids and help them out too which is also fun. Today they were all dressed up in their scary Halloween outfits and we carved pumpkins! It was a blast, and the perfect example of why I love going there!

I can't believe how the time is beginning to fly, and I know my exchange will be up before I know it. For now I can just be present in all the great moments I'm living, carpe diem, take pictures, and write in my journal. I'm also going to make an effort to be much better with my blog, although it's been difficult since the internet here is very inconsistent, but no excuses... You'll be hearing from me more often. A special thanks to everyone for reading my blog! Un besito de España!

Xoxo Hana

Isaac Peral: Day One

Hey Everyone! Just wanted to send out a quick little e-mail to you guys and let you know about my first day of school... It was great!

School was from 8:30- 2:00. I drove there with my mom, host brother (Miguel), host sister (Blanca), and my friend and neighbor (Susana). When I got there my host mom introduced me to the secretary and a few teachers and we quickly settled a few of my scheduling conflicts. I was really happy because so many friends that I had met this summer greeted me at school and they remembered me! I went into my class with my friends and saw many familiar faces from my orientation of the class. I also met a new girl today who is in almost all of my classes! The only other exchange in my school from Belgium. She's 17, but I think she came to Spain more on her free will than with a program. Her Spanish is a little bit better than mine, but when we buddy-up we understand a lot more together.

All my classes are about 50 minutes, and I have six classes with a half hour "recess" in the middle. "Recess" is where we can walk around the campus and eat snacks or something. My first class of the day was Economia (Economy) I understood basically nothing in this class. Next was Infomatica (Technology). It was in a separate building with many computers. I'm not really sure what this class is supposed to teach but I won't be having it again. Luckily after a pleasant conversation with my favorite teacher (THE ENGLISH TEACHER, OF COURSE) I am now switched into a second English class instead of Informatica. Thank goodness! After Informatica, my last class before recess was Science. I understood hardly anything in this class, except that we are learning neuroscience and that it's really difficult. Then I had recess and got some snacks with my friends. Everyone was introducing me to people and talking to me and I had a really great time!

After the break I had a really great line up of classes. Starting with 50 minutes of Latin y Griego (Latin and Greek). I loved this class with the two languages in one. I already knew all the Latin that he mentioned and the teacher said I had the best Latin pronunciation and for once I felt really smart! After a great class of Latin and Greek was the best class of the day... ENGLISH! I LOVED IT! My teachers name is Susana and we get along great! She's the teacher who helped me switch out of Informatica and into more English in the morning. Susana told the whole class that she wants everyone to talk to me and that I can help them with whatever they need. She also said if I do their homework for them she'll kill me! Ha-ha! I reassured her that I will ONLY HELP. I have a review exam in English tomorrow and I can't wait! After the best class of my life was Lengua. Lengua is like "English" or "Language Arts" in America. I'm slightly concerned about this class because my Spanish comprehension skills are pretty sub par and until they get better I'm sure I won't pass. The teacher seemed pretty nice and I think he understands my situation being a foreign exchange and all so I'm not overly concerned. Well that pretty much rapped up my first day of school. Afterwards I walked home with some friends, had lunch, and here I am writing to tell about it!

I hope everyone keeps in touch! I miss you all! Love from Spain!

Xoxo, Hana