Meg Nadeau Week 1: This week has been scary and wonderfully exciting all at the same time. It has pushed me completely out of my comfort zone and has made me question myself more than once. There were times I doubted my decision to intern in Spain. I mean, how could I, a small town girl from Maine who knows very minimal Spanish, be able to survive in a big city in Spain. Not to mention, I would living with a family who only speaks Spanish. On top of that, I would be half way across the world for the longest period of time I have ever been away from my family. With all of these thoughts and doubts going through my head, I boarded the plane with two of my closest friends from Saint Joe's. Knowing I was going to share this experience with them definitely calmed my fears some, but I still couldn't help but feel nervous. However, the fear and nerves were no match for the excitement and anticipation I had for what laid ahead of me in the next five weeks. Traveling and exploring new places is a passion of mine and I knew Granada was going to be a fantastic place to explore. I was told there were mountains surrounding the city that were accessible for hiking, there were beaches close by to relax, old palaces with beautiful details to admire, and so much more. Even though I couldn't be exactly sure what to expect, I knew I would have the time of my life. My friends and I arrived in Madrid in the early hours of the day. Of course, this would be no problem in America since many stores open around 6:00am anyways, but we quickly learned that the Spanish people have a different way of life. As we walked down the streets all of the stores were closed, even the breakfast shops! It wasn't until about 8:30 that we were able to sit down and grab something to eat. It also didn't take long for me to realize that trying to navigate in a foreign city without data was going to be very difficult. After some wrong turns, confusion, and frustration, we decided to take a taxi to a nearby park in Madrid called Casa de Campo. There, we fed ducks, watched the swimming portion of the Madrid triathlon, and relaxed for a while. We discovered that jet lag was starting to get the best of us though, when we were all falling asleep on the picnic tables, so we turned back for the airport early to grab some food and some rest before our next flight. Looking back on it, it might have been worth the extra money to get a sooner flight, but I really enjoyed experiencing the largest city in Spain, as well.
The one hour plane ride was not bad, but I was getting anxious to meet the family I would be living with for the month. My anxiety was almost immediately calmed, though when I met my family. My host mom and dad are both extremely kind and selfless. They have two young boys who are very intelligent with amazing little personalities. Although the language barrier has been hard at times, with the help of google translate, we have been able to make it work. I have noticed that I am a lot better at understanding the language than speaking it. For the most part, when someone asked me a question or tells me something I have some sort of understanding about what they are saying. The difficult part has been me replying. However, I have been learning new words every day and at the end of the first week I am feeing a lot more comfortable and confident living with my family and in Granada, even though the language barrier still exists. The first day, we visited the Cathedral de Granada. This has been our meeting point since the beginning of the trip, and being able to go inside and listen to the audio describe in detail all of the different parts of the Cathedral was very intriguing. It is huge and beautifully designed. My favorite part was the organ that has been in the Cathedral since it was built in 1561, and all of the gold details that were incorporated in the design.
We then took a walk up to the Albaicin Quarter of Granada to catch a wonderful view of the Alhambra. On our way back, I noticed graffiti that took my breath away. It was entitled "Evolution of a Goddess" and it made me realize that even Goddesses evolve from something smaller. For some reason, this painting has been my reassurance ever since. It is impossible to grow if you only stay in the same routine and never push out side of your comfort zone. Relating to my life, I will never be able to evolve in to the person I want to be if I am always comfortable where I am. We grow and evolve when we break down the barriers we thought were once impossible and prove to ourselves that anything is possible through hard work and determination. Whenever a little doubt creeps in to my mind, I go back and reflect on this painting. I feel like I was meant to see this painting on the first day, and I am so happy I did!
On Tuesday we went to Caritas and I was overwhelmed by the passion that the people have there. It was apparent, even though I couldn't understand their words, by their expressions and gestures how strongly they believed in their work and the power of God. The work they do for the community of Granada is impossible to measure, and I hope to find work one day that I can be as passionate about and feel as good about, as well. I'm so excited that my internship is through Caritas. I couldn't think of a better place in the world that I could be spending my time. We then walked over to where we will be eating lunch during the week and got a tour of the college from Father Ildefonso. This is the campus that Saint Joseph's students will be studying at in the future, and it is absolutely beautiful! It is very modern, with natural lighting everywhere and a sustainable design. I would highly suggest this campus to anyone, and the food there was also very good (and cheap)!
Wednesday was a great day for me because I was able to see where I will be spending a majority of my internship! We toured the church which is in the middle of a neighborhood on the outskirts of Granada. It is apparently one of the rougher neighborhoods in Granada and that is why they brought an after school sports program to the area that allows kids to get off the streets and come together to learn important life lessons and skills through sport. Not only does the church offer this sports program, it also offers many other programs for people of all ages to come together to learn how to make a safer community. I can not wait to start this internship! I have the opportunity to play sports with the children in this community. I am excited to teach them skills that pertain to life and sports, as well as learn all I can from the kids. This program is especially exciting for me because I have thought about starting my own program like this in the future with my Business and Sports Management degree. My initial image of the program I would like to start is an all girls sports program in an underprivileged neighborhood. I would like to use sport to empower girls and to show them that they are strong and capable of anything they set their minds to. Many times, girls are told they aren't strong or smart enough to compete with boys, and unfortunately, aren't offered the same kind of opportunities as their male counterparts. I would like to provide a place that breaks down these barriers and allows girls to feel the same kind of strength that boys do. I feel like the Caritas program will be a great learning opportunity for me to see how it is organized and to give me ideas on how I might like to run my program one day. Thursday was a beautiful day filled with nature. We visited the Alhambra Gardens and I was not disappointed. Being outside in nature is where I feel the best. There is no place I would rather be than outside on a beautiful day, with the sun on my face and the sounds of the wild engulfing me. Nature is beautiful in the way that not one forrest or garden is exactly like another, and even the same forest or garden is different every time you visit. There is always something different or new to see and explore that wasn't there before, or that maybe you didn't realize the first time you were there. In any case, the Alhambra gardens were no different. It is hard to describe so I'll leave you with a few pictures:
We then went to the church by the Alhambra where we got the special privilege to view a painting that not many people get the chance to see. It was a masterpiece in which one glance caused me to immediately feel emotional. I could feel the artist's emotions that he had while painting it. A perfect portrait of the human soul being tugged between evil and good, darkness and light. Although the painting was done in the 1960's and included many of the world conflicts that were prevalent in that time, it was unbelievably relevant to the times the world is facing now. It is sad and surprising that over fifty years in to the future, the world still faces many of the same struggles. I am a firm believer that peace is possible, but if this portrait showed me anything, it is that the good and the bad will always be there, and the path to peace is long and not easily solved. Friday was another day filled with amazing gardens that surrounded the Alhambra, so I won't focus too much on that. What I want to focus on is the experience of touring the inside of the Alhambra, itself. Wow! It was incredible. What really impressed me was the monstrosity of the building itself, but then how it incorporated the most minute details every direction I turned. Not to mention, it was completed in 14th century and it is still standing as mesmerizing as ever. There is nothing that is built nowadays with this sort of precision and attention to detail. People are much too concerned now with getting things done efficiently than they are with creating something with this much detail. Modern times call for sleek lines, minimal details, and small bursts of color. The Alhambra was created in the exact opposite manner. There were detailed carvings in the walls, doors, and ceilings. Although the colors have been dulled over time, it was not far from the imagination to be able to see how the colored tiles on the walls would pop and the paint on the carved ceilings would create a seemingly endless roof. Now we hang up art on our walls instead of making the walls the art itself. Every room I walked in to I would have to stifle a "oh... my... gosh..." or "I can't believe this is real!" And it went on like that throughout every room. I could have spent hours on end studying and appreciating the detail work in the palace. It is truly something you have to see with your own eyes in order to believe and I am so glad I got the opportunity to witness it in my lifetime.
To finish out my incredible first week in Granada, I went on a hike on Saturday morning. The weather wasn't too hot and the views were amazing, and so was the company. We talked about many important topics, but the mood was light. We took our time going up the mountain and took in the views. I love hiking and this was the perfect way to start my day.
That evening we watched Real Madrid win the championship. We all went to Mike and Cassie's house and ate our fair share of nachos, burgers, and ice cream. Although Mike's team lost, I was excited that a team from Spain won while I was here. Walking home was probably the highlight though, because Megan and I joined in on some dancing in the streets to a live band and then cheered with Real Madrid fans as they made their way in to the streets. It was awesome to experience the atmosphere and energy Granada has at night, especially after a big win for one of their favorite futbol teams! As week one comes to an end, I can say that everything I was told Granada has to offer sure wasn't a lie. I got to experience the towering mountains that line the city, the beautiful churches, cathedrals, and palaces, and I have eaten plenty of tapas, already. The people of Granada are welcoming, genuine, and humble. They want to do good for their community and help each other out as much as possible. The weather is hot and I don't think it has rained since the plane landed, but I suppose I'm okay with that. I can not wait to see what the next four weeks have in store for me. I will be starting my internship at the hospital tomorrow, and really starting to immerse myself in the every day culture. I can already tell I'm becoming a more independent, mature, conscientious, and curious person through this experience and if the next weeks are anything like this one, I might fly back to the United States with many more passions than I left with.
