Estoy preparándome

Okay, so here it is. The lists of things that I will miss in Madrid and the list of things that I cannot wait to have again in the U.S. Most of them are really silly little things, but they are things that I still think about and are important on some level or just things that I take for granted. So let's start with the list of things I will miss in Spain (in no particular order).

Things I'll Miss about Spain:

Public transportation: Although the monthly transportation pass was pretty pricey, it was so worth it. The public transportation in Madrid has it's ups and downs, but it definitely is convenient. I was able to get anywhere I wanted to easily and it was awesome!

Prices being what they say: I love this! It was like this when I went to Perú, too! I love picking up something that is 1 euro and I pay 1 euro, not 1.06 or whatever. Dumb U.S. sales tax.

My students and co-teachers: I have some amazing students at the school! Some of them drive me crazy and some of them I want to bring home with me, but either way, they all have a special place in my heart and I won't forget them. I won't forget how much I care about them, how much I taught them, and how much they taught me. And that goes for my private lesson students as well. As for my co-teachers, I have learned a lot from them and our relationships have grown, especially mine and Esther's. I can wait to talk to her throughout the years and hopefully we will see each other again someday soon.

My Spanish class: I have absolutely loved my Spanish class. My professor, Quique, is amazing and I have learned so much throughout the year. He just started this Spanish school this year and I hope he has a lot of success in the future. Plus, he has given me so many ideas and resources and he will forever be a resource for me, when I become a Spanish teacher.

Traveling: I think that's pretty self-explanatory. I have been to 15 cities in Spain and 6 other countries (7, if you count Spain). Unfortunately, I do not have a passport stamp for most of those countries, but what I do have are pictures and incredible memories. I've heard that traveling is addicting and I can see why. It's so amazing to see so many different things and just be free. I plan to continue traveling in the future and it will be wonderful.

Being in a Spanish-speaking environment: I just personally love exoticness of knowing another language and being able to survive in a different society. Although the amount of Spanish that I spoke did not meet my expectations, I still love being in a Spanish-speaking country and I learned a lot of new things because Spain Spanish is different from other countries' Spanish. Plus, I hated the accent when I first got here and now somehow I have picked it up.

Crossing the street: At unmarked intersections with a crosswalk, cars stop for pedestrians..maybe they do in the U.S., too, but not on the same level they do here. Although I will miss it, it also is pretty annoying sometimes. It's one of those things where a car is going really fast so you stop at the road so they don't hit you and then they slow down really fast and then you think in your head "Well great, now I have to rush across the street, because I just interrupted their driving..they should have just kept going." This is a daily occurrence. It is pretty annoying now that I think about it and I won't miss that, but I will miss how cautious drivers are with pedestrians.

Madrid Río: Karin and I discovered this park in our first week of apartment hunting and I will never forget how happy we were when we found it. Let's look back at a quote from my blog when I talked about first going to it: " When we got to the park, we both fell in love." Anyway, long story short..it's a beautiful park and I love going there on sunny days. 

Breakfast at school: Getting free breakfast at school every morning is AMAZING! Enough said...this needs to happen in U.S. schools.

Wearing normal clothes at school: This needs to be another thing that happens at school on a daily basis in the U.S. I love wear jeans, shorts, tank tops, flip flops, etc. It makes me more comfortable in the classroom and it's awesome! But..I do understand why we have to dress professionally and covered up in the U.S.

Simply job: As I am hoping to enter my first year of teaching this next school year, I know that it is going to be 57398469034 times more difficult and stressful than my job this year. My job this year has been super simple and I'm not gonna lie I have super enjoyed the small schedule, good pay, and time to travel, but I am also super excited to have my own classroom..here's to hoping!


Things I Can't Wait to Have in the U.S.:

Convenient banking: This is really isn't a huge deal, but it was when I was trying to close my bank account. I got done at 4:30 from school and banks close at around 2:15 p.m...enough said. Oh, and while we are talking about convenience in banking. Most Spaniards think its weird/awesome that we have drive-thru windows at the bank. Ha, guess I never thought of it as being out of the ordinary.

Free water at restaurants: Although this is usually available in Spain, you have to specifically ask for it. Otherwise, they bring you bottled water that costs..you know me, I don't want to have to pay for a drink.

Checking out of a grocery store: I actually think I have somewhat mastered this in Spain now, but seriously it's still a hassle and I know I have mentioned the stress of it before. If you get a basket full of groceries, you better be prepared to bag it yourself (by the way, you have to pay for bags) and quickly if you don't want to hold up the line. It's hard to bag and search through your wallet for money at the same time. So, I guess I want to say thank you to all the bag ladies and bag boys in the U.S. Thanks! You make our lives easier. :)

Driving: I actually don't know exactly where I stand on the issue of driving. I miss driving, but I also just love public transportation so much. It's less stress, less money, just less worrying, in general. However, I am excited to at least get behind the wheel once again. Maybe I should take the car around the parking lot a few times before hitting the road just to get accustomed to driving again.

Food: Do you know what an Andrea does when she lives alone and is frugal..she lives off of pasta and rice dishes with barely any meat. Do you know how sick I am of feeding myself with that food...I'm not gonna lie, I will still gorge on pasta and rice dishes when I get home, but it will be 500 times better than just pasta with a little tomato sauce. I want home-cooked meals with flavor. That's all.

Family and boyfriend and friends: I don't think I need to explain this. I have been gone from my family, boyfriend, and friends for 9 months and I am ready to see everyone again. I obviously made friends here, but nothing compares to family.

Space: I have grown to love Madrid in all it's dirtiness (ha) and I enjoy that I live by a park that has space and that I work at a school that is in the suburbs of Madrid, but I can't wait for open space! I want to see the sun set behind corn fields, not buildings. I want to see more green. I want to see the stars. I want space.

Soon's sushi: I don't like all types of sushi. I honestly would say I only like a few kinds..and those few kinds that I do like are at Soon's sushi in Kenosha, Wisconsin. I will be going there as soon as I can when I get back and it will be delicious. Plus, the white rice is to die for.

Bed: My mattress in Madrid sucks. That's all I have to say. I honestly think it has gotten worse as the year has gone by. I am just excited to lay on a good mattress. That's all.

Dryers: This actually isn't a big issue, but people rarely have dryers here. I never once had a problem with my clothes not drying on time or anything, but dryers are a nice little commodity to have.

Pencils with erasers: I didn't really notice this until recently, but Spain's popular kind of pencil a.k.a. the Ticonderoga of Spain doesn't have an eraser at the end of the pencil. I don't know if Spaniards just don't make mistakes or if they don't care if they do, but always making sure you have an actual eraser around if you need it is annoying...especially at school when a whole table of students is sharing one eraser and it gets lost, breaks, students aren't sharing, etc.


Lastly, I have a few more topics to discuss..one is an in-between-y meaning that it isn't really something that I will miss or that I miss in either countries, but it is a definite culture difference. The second is something that I will NOT miss from Spain or any other society that has the same culture surrounding this topic.

Let's start with the lighter topic...

Meal times: Meal times (and portion sizes) are definitely different in Spain. Spaniards eat lunch at 2 or even later and dinner after 9 p.m. This was really different at first and I continued eating at U.S. meal times, but I am now accustom to the different meal times. I have to admit that I have eaten dinner at midnight before, I feel like that is super unhealthy, but oh well. I will be back in the U.S. in one day so it won't matter..I will readjust to eating dinner and lunch earlier.

Okay, now for the heavier topic...

Stupid guys: I realize that stupid is a strong and non-cultural sensitive word, but I must say I would like to use a stronger word than stupid and I can without a doubt say that I will NEVER ever be able to accept this in any culture. I got it in Peru, also. The looks, the cat calls, the phrases like "Qué guapo (how pretty)"... I just can't do it. The rage that surges through my body when I get this is indescribable. I want to physically hurt every guy that does any one of those things. And I feel like a horrible person for wanting to do that to a grey haired old man, but at the same time, I just don't care. I will never accept it or be okay with it. I will never understand why guys (in any culture) feel the need to objectify women. I've definitely given guys dirty looks before, but it just doesn't seem like enough. I never know if this will change in some cultures, but I hope it does someday.

Well, I feel like that's a horrible way to end this blog post, but that's all I have for you. If you wanna read something happier I guess go back up and read about the good things that I have enjoyed about Spain. :)