My Chargers lost last night... bad.
In the AFC Championship game... worse.
To the Patriots... worst.
I was there, rockin the old school jersey and rooting on my boys. If you didn´t watch, the game was closer than I imagined it would be and ultimately I´m very proud of them for making it so far. But the Patriots? Really??? It wasn´t enough that they kicked us out of the playoffs last year during a phenomenal season? I swear right here and now I will hate the Patriots for the rest of my time here (in life, not in Spain). Damn you, Tom Brady, damn you! (This was a recurrent shout not only in the pub last night but also in my dreams nightly but with worse profanity)
So, I was sitting in class today and thinking about Spain. I was supposed to be thinking about verb tenses but after this last weekend, my mind was wandering through all the sweet activities in which I engaged. I will compile a list right now of random Spanish considerations:
1) First thought about Madrid is how clean it is. This is by far the cleanest city I have ever seen. Every night there are teams of people in their little uniforms who scrub the city down top to bottom. We pass them at night washing the streets and the sidewalks. They also employ people to go through public trash all day and pick out the recyclables. This would not be a fun job, but I give props to the city for doing this. Also, the Metro is super clean. From what everyone else says (I have yet to travel around this continent like the year-long students) this is the cleanest Metro/city they´ve seen yet.
2) There are no fast food places open all night like at home. This makes me feel kinda like I´m back in Tahoe (but only in this sense). No matter how much I enjoy some nice chicken soft tacos (but they don´t have Del Taco in the daytime, either) in the middle of the night in Reno, I don´t think this is a bad thing. This is merely an observation.
3) The power converter that my dad and I bought before I left scares the crap out of me. When I plug things into it (so far just my flat-iron and camera charger) these items buzz and don´t need to be turned on. They are just on when I plug them in, even if the switch is turned to off. This makes me very nervous. I didn´t do my hair for the first week because I was so scared. Now I just try to do it really fast and away from my face in case it explodes. I would then have no hair to straighten. I hope that does not happen.
4) Blackout blinds are the best invention I have encountered in a long time. I really can´t think of too many things I want more on a lazy afternoon lounging in my bed (besides maybe some Del Taco chicken softs).
5) I am missing TV/movies more than I had anticipated. I never realized how much TV/movies I actually watched until I arrived here and I couldn´t anymore. This makes me embarrassed/sad.
6) My host mom has made me 2 foods that I have absolutely detested my entire life (peppers and lentils) and I really liked/loved them. She is a great cook.
7) Hot Spanish guys are 10x more intimidating to talk to than hot American guys. This is because you have to talk to them in a language you don´t speak well and try and sound smart. This is hard enough for most people in their first language. Give them another and forget about it!
8) The cafeteria at my school serves beer and wine. This is also not a bad thing, merely another observation. I know this would be a horrible idea at home because I have already witnessed some boys from my class chugging cheap beer during our 15 minute break from Spanish class. I have not consumed on campus, but maybe I will shortly just to say that I did :)
9) I learned that murciélago (you know, like the Lamborghini) means bat (you know, like the nocturnal mammal) in Spanish (and presumably Italian).
10) I also learned that Gabriela and Susan´s advice not to look Spanish guys in the eye if we weren´t interested in them is completely valid. We learned this the hard way. Also don´t walk in front of/behind/near them or be in their line of vision ever. It would also be advisable to wear a burkha, too, if you wish to get through an evening without bother.
There have been many things I have thought about Spain since I landed at Barajas about a week and a half ago. These are 10 of them that I was thinking in class this morning. Maybe I´ll write more after my Metro ride when I contemplate this place some more.
In the AFC Championship game... worse.
To the Patriots... worst.
I was there, rockin the old school jersey and rooting on my boys. If you didn´t watch, the game was closer than I imagined it would be and ultimately I´m very proud of them for making it so far. But the Patriots? Really??? It wasn´t enough that they kicked us out of the playoffs last year during a phenomenal season? I swear right here and now I will hate the Patriots for the rest of my time here (in life, not in Spain). Damn you, Tom Brady, damn you! (This was a recurrent shout not only in the pub last night but also in my dreams nightly but with worse profanity)
So, I was sitting in class today and thinking about Spain. I was supposed to be thinking about verb tenses but after this last weekend, my mind was wandering through all the sweet activities in which I engaged. I will compile a list right now of random Spanish considerations:
1) First thought about Madrid is how clean it is. This is by far the cleanest city I have ever seen. Every night there are teams of people in their little uniforms who scrub the city down top to bottom. We pass them at night washing the streets and the sidewalks. They also employ people to go through public trash all day and pick out the recyclables. This would not be a fun job, but I give props to the city for doing this. Also, the Metro is super clean. From what everyone else says (I have yet to travel around this continent like the year-long students) this is the cleanest Metro/city they´ve seen yet.
2) There are no fast food places open all night like at home. This makes me feel kinda like I´m back in Tahoe (but only in this sense). No matter how much I enjoy some nice chicken soft tacos (but they don´t have Del Taco in the daytime, either) in the middle of the night in Reno, I don´t think this is a bad thing. This is merely an observation.
3) The power converter that my dad and I bought before I left scares the crap out of me. When I plug things into it (so far just my flat-iron and camera charger) these items buzz and don´t need to be turned on. They are just on when I plug them in, even if the switch is turned to off. This makes me very nervous. I didn´t do my hair for the first week because I was so scared. Now I just try to do it really fast and away from my face in case it explodes. I would then have no hair to straighten. I hope that does not happen.
4) Blackout blinds are the best invention I have encountered in a long time. I really can´t think of too many things I want more on a lazy afternoon lounging in my bed (besides maybe some Del Taco chicken softs).
5) I am missing TV/movies more than I had anticipated. I never realized how much TV/movies I actually watched until I arrived here and I couldn´t anymore. This makes me embarrassed/sad.
6) My host mom has made me 2 foods that I have absolutely detested my entire life (peppers and lentils) and I really liked/loved them. She is a great cook.
7) Hot Spanish guys are 10x more intimidating to talk to than hot American guys. This is because you have to talk to them in a language you don´t speak well and try and sound smart. This is hard enough for most people in their first language. Give them another and forget about it!
8) The cafeteria at my school serves beer and wine. This is also not a bad thing, merely another observation. I know this would be a horrible idea at home because I have already witnessed some boys from my class chugging cheap beer during our 15 minute break from Spanish class. I have not consumed on campus, but maybe I will shortly just to say that I did :)
9) I learned that murciélago (you know, like the Lamborghini) means bat (you know, like the nocturnal mammal) in Spanish (and presumably Italian).
10) I also learned that Gabriela and Susan´s advice not to look Spanish guys in the eye if we weren´t interested in them is completely valid. We learned this the hard way. Also don´t walk in front of/behind/near them or be in their line of vision ever. It would also be advisable to wear a burkha, too, if you wish to get through an evening without bother.
There have been many things I have thought about Spain since I landed at Barajas about a week and a half ago. These are 10 of them that I was thinking in class this morning. Maybe I´ll write more after my Metro ride when I contemplate this place some more.
No comments:
Post a Comment