-I think my expectations of my Spanish ability after my experience at ICA were too high (but that doesn't really surprise me). Three weeks isn't very long when it comes to learning a language. Many students at ICA are staying for at least 6-8 weeks.
-Nearly every student at ICA is involved in education in some way. Either they are current students or they work at a school or university.
-When I came to Xela, I could understand Spanish better than I could speak it, and it's still true now. Although my speaking has definitely improved, I don't think it's great. And even when I hear Spanish, sometimes I totally do not understand. Most of the time I understand what mi maestro, Pedro, is saying, even when he speaks quickly. (That might be because he is very used to speaking clearly, though.) With my host family, however, sometimes I have absolutely no idea what is going on. If I don't have any context, and they are speaking quickly, I usually can't figure it out.
-I've been surprised at how exhausting it is to learn another language. And I've become frustrated with my limited vocabulary in Spanish. I'm a fairly intelligent girl, but in Spanish, I'm limited to the vocabulary that I know and learn every day. Ive been averaging around 40-50 new words every day, and I'm trying to study enough to really remember them.
-It's hard for a perfectionist to constantly make mistakes. I get frustrated with myself quickly, even though I know I should be more patient.
-I don't understand why the radios in Guatemala play music in English. Pedro told me that it is out of the ordinary for a Guatemalan to speak English, and I know there are Guatemalan music groups. Why do they play music in English? This morning (at 6:00am, by the way!) my family was listening to the radio and I heard the Justin Timberlake and Madonna song. Immediately after that the same radio station played Leona Lewis' new song (Keep bleeding love...).
-I still cant roll an ¨rr¨ in Spanish...
-I have a nickname! And I like it! Its Meguita (pronounced Mee-gita)
-People don't use cinturones de suguridad (seat belts) in Xela. Yesterday afternoon Pedro and I walked downtown and we counted the number of people wearing seat belts - there were two. All the time I see families and children riding in the back of pick-up trucks (just standing or sitting back there). Last night I saw a mother, father, toddler, and infant all riding a motorcycle together. None were wearing helmets. Pedro said there is a law about wearing seat belts, but its simply not observed in Xela. He said that often the laws in Guatemala are viewed more as sugerencias (suggestions) than laws.
-Etiquette and good manners are important in Xela. Most people are very polite and they greet me when I walk by. Pedro told me that students are required to take an etiquette class in school when they are eight years old. He said he often receives compliments about how "educated" he is because he is so polite. I found that interesting because as far as I know, there are no classes in public school in the US like that. We simply learn (or don't learn) from our family and friends. And we wouldn't call a polite person "well-educated," but rather "polite" or "well-mannered" or something similar.
-Learning a language includes a fair share of opportunities to embarrass yourself. On Tuesday Pedro bought me a some bread from Xela Pan, the most popular bread and pastry store in the city. It was a dense cinnamon flavored roll with chocolate frosting. He told me they call it a piedra, which means rock or stone. After I had eaten it (and yes, it was really good!), I thanked Pedro for the pierna, which means leg. When he figured out what I was trying to say, we both had a good laugh. I guess it could have been worse!
-I'm not the only person saying things wrong, though. Last night during class Pedro was trying to say ¨knuckles¨in English, but he kept saying ¨kneckles.¨It took me awhile to figure out what ¨kneckles¨were. :)
-Last night I went to the movies, which was interesting. We saw Las Reyes de la Calle or Street Kings because I refused to see Kung Fu Panda and Pedro had already seen Hancock. The movie was in English, but had subtitles in Spanish. I noticed that the subtitles frequently didn't say what the characters were actually saying. Sometimes an entire connotation was changed. I found that intriguing . However, the power went out about halfway through the movie and it didn't come back on for several hours. Needless to say, I didn't get to finish the movie. The power keeps flickering this morning, so I'm trying to get this typed and posted before it goes out again.
-It hasn't rained here for two days in a row, and I've actually seen the moon for four nights in a row! (Usually it's way too cloudy.)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
First off, Kung Fu Panda was pretty darn funny. Next, Miss perfectionist, making mistakes are good things. That is how you learn. If you did everything perfect you'd have nothing to learn. Become like me, a recovering perfectionist. Finally, does your host family use a lot of slang? Maybe that is why you can't understand them.
Post a Comment