Okay… I’ll admit it. I knew my diet of Red bull and popcorn this year wasn’t doing my body a lot of good, but it wasn’t until this week that I realized just how much bad it was doing. I am exhausted! I’m not sure if its from chasing eight year olds around all week (boy they’re fast), staying out late for tapas (a necessity) or going on our hike today. All I know is that my body is in need of an ice cold shower and a long siesta. I guess we truly got a taste of what it like to live in Granada!
Not only did this week mark the first day of my internship, it also marked the first time that my endurance was tested since high school. I’m sure we can all agree that the morning was a bit overwhelming. First, we had to meet much earlier than usual (8:30 might not be early in America, but it certainly is here) and race up to our Spanish school for a 9 am appointment. And when I say race, I mean RACE. We missed the bus, which meant we had to walk. The path was beautiful, but also a half mile of strictly cobblestone stairs. At each corner I thought we had reached the top, and was disappointed to see another left turn. I focused on two things the whole way up, 1) not slipping on the stones and 2) not dying. I’m still not sure how I got that out of breath. I mean… yeah it might be because I am unathletic … but I had only been awake for around 15 minutes… and I have short legs… and it was kind of hot…. When we got to the top, we took some pictures and then hurried into the school for our interviews.
Even when the instructor spoke slowly and helped us through the questions, I struggled to find the words, let alone form them into sentences. (He didn’t even need to make notes about us) I think it’s fair to say any confidence we had was shattered in those 45 minutes. Running a little late, we hopped on the bus towards each of our internships. Though we joked the whole way there, each of us was terrified about the next four hours. Luckily, (most of) my fears were erased the minute that I got into my classroom. It was one that we had visited earlier in the week. These children (whom range from 8-13 years old) had difficulty speaking, so they used sign language and pictures to communicate. It would certainly take a little bit of time to learn what everything meant, it would certainly be easier than google translating everything they said. That being said, the first day was still difficult. The main teacher, Conchi, is incredibly nice, but speaks very little English. I was afraid of messing up their routine, so I spent most of the morning silently observing. I felt like such a burden! But, after meeting up with everyone at 11:30, I was inspired to make the most of it. Not being able to help them speak didn’t mean I had nothing to offer them, they were just kids who wanted to play, and I can definitely do that.
It took about three days to fall into the rhythm. I had figured out who spoke English, and I was finally able to greet the teachers who didn’t. I was even able to help the kids with their daily activities. Each part of the day contains some kind “secret learning”. So, while our schedule says work is only from 10:30-11, it truly begins when they walked thru the door. From what I can tell, they don’t love the idea of work, so by disguising parts of their lesson, Conchi can get them to stay focused for longer. The overall structure of the day is the same, so the first thing they must do is transfer their schedule to the correct day. Specifically, they have to figure out what day of the week it is, remember the order of their activities, find a card with a correlating picture, and then place this picture into the correct Velcro slot in a large calendar. They then practiced repeating these words over and over. Most of the time they are able to fly through this portion of the day, but sometimes they need some extra encouragement. It’s not that they are unintelligent. They know what we want from them more often then not, and they have a lot to say, they just struggle to say it out loud.
The first week at San Rafael school has been full of little life lessons but I’ll just mush them all together (1). No matter the mental or physical deficit, these kids are just that, kids. They don’t care if you mispronounce a word or look silly when you play with them. They just want to play! Don’t worry about what they think of you, they’re eight! That being said, remember that they are little kids, so be patient with them. When they yell your name 15 times in a row, or snatch a toy out of your hand, don’t get angry with them. It’s just their special way of telling you what they need.
This week also marked the start of Spanish classes! Even after making a disastrous first impression, I was still pretty excited about our first class. Though I have survived so far using strictly English, my life (and I’m sure everyone’s around me) would be much easier if I knew a few phrases. I was certainly scared at the start, but I kept reminding myself that I couldn’t get any worse, so I had nothing to lose! Usually I need to write everything down if I want to remember it, but somehow, the way Miguel taught just clicked! Two hours flew by and we all walked out inspired to practice. Miguel might not realize how excited we were to return, though, because we were very, very late for the next class. Not because we were protesting, just because we aren’t the most observant group and might have taken the wrong bus. The doors on the correct bus then stopped working once we started heading in the right direction, but hey! What can you do? Lesson #2, figure out your bus route before the day you go. 30 minutes early sounds like plenty of time, but expect your trip to be over an hour if you get on a bus going in the opposite direction!
After class on Thursday, our host families took Austin, Caleb, Jillian and me out to dinner. We walked for a while, but it was so worth it when we got there. It was an American themed restaurant with some of the best burgers I’ve ever had. It was topped with something similar to Cheez-wiz, which made me a little nervous at first, but it ended up being so good. I could have devoured at least three more. After that, we stopped and got ice cream before heading to one of Rafaela’s favorite places. It was this beautiful park just down the street! It was hard to see everything in detail because it was dark by this point, but it was still beautiful. We had so much fun chatting as we walked, and we all agreed to come back for pictures later in the week (plans still yet to be made, but we are working on it!) I really enjoy coming back to Rafaela, Herika and Daniel at the end of the night. They have truly welcomed us into their community and really care about how we are doing. I’m sure they don’t care about 90% of the stuff we talk about (We did have an hour plus debate last night about the best Disney movies), but they still make us feel like they care, which is great when I’m feeling homesick. Sitting down for dinner with them is honestly one of the highlights of my day. Lesson #3 spend time with your host family. You’ll have plenty of time to wander during the day, so don’t freak out about dinner running late and be present!!
On Friday, Sarah made breakfast (Lesson #4 if someone says they’re willing to make you French toast, take them up on it… it will be delicious) for all of us and we just hung around for most of the day. At 5 we met in the plaza and headed up to the place I was most excited to see, The Alhambra. No wonder everyone says you have to go! It was insanely beautiful. There was so much detail! The walls are covered in ceramic patterns and colorful tiles. My brains still has trouble thinking about all the work that went into building and designing it. Pictures don’t do any of it justice. Especially when it comes to the gardens. I feel like I took hundreds of photos yet none of them show just how beautiful it was. Not only was it filled with flowers and amazing water features, it also had an incredible view of the palace!
Overall this week has been exhausting but in the best ways! I’ve learned so many new things (including a few life lessons) and made so many new friends at the San Rafael School. Though some of the days are harder than others, I really enjoy what we are doing at my internship and I can’t wait to get more and more involved each week. Hopefully I’ll even be able to have real conversations with the teachers by the end of the month!
