FYI

I published a blog yesterday that I have been working on for quite some time. If you want to check it out it's title is "ADIML" and it's date is Feb. 8, 2008 because that's the day I started it on. In that blog I walk you through a typical day for me here in Spain with the use of pictures. I had fun taking the pictures, but posting them on here was a drag (which is why it took three weeks to post). Enjoy.

Bad Interview?

It seems like everyone can tell you a story about a bad interview experience they have had. I have several friends who freak out and get super anxious when faced with a job interview. I am not an anxious person and I haven't had any horrible interviews, but today's interview will live on in infamy.

Last week I posted an advertisment on a local online bulletin board. I offered my english skills to those wishing to improve their conversation skills. I got several responses, but most of them aren't going to work out because of time conflicts. As much as I would like to make extra money while here, I don't want to give up my weekends. One of the responses I recieved was from a small language school that wanted to meet with me about "joining their team." It sounded like a great opportunity to find local students who could study when I was available. I emailed with the woman several times, sent my resume, and made an appointment to meet this afternoon at 11:30.

I got out the door a little later then I would have liked, but I got on a bus and headed toward the neighborhood the office was at. Since I wasn't really sure where the place was I got off the bus as soon as I saw the first sign that mentioned the name of the area I wanted to be in. I asked a lady who was walking by if she knew where the street I was looking for was. She said something about this part of town being very confusing and that it could be anywhere in the area. But mostly she pointed to my right. So I went right and looked for numbers to help me out. I had about ten minutes to wander before I was late. I ended up walking all the way through the whole neighborhood and ended up on the street I needed to be on. Incidentally I was in the exact opposite place the lady had told me to go. She had pointed down and to the right, but I should have gone up and to the left. Oh well.

I wandered a bit more and found the office at exactly 11:30! The lady in the office was waiting for me and had me sit down. She started speaking in spanish and told her I really didn't understand her. She tried to keep it simple and I think I pretty much got the jist of what she was telling me, but my responses seemed to confuse her. After about ten minutes of her saying something, me not understanding, me saying something and her not understanding she told me she would email me and I could have a friend help me respond. Heh. That was it. Then I left.

Why would a ten minute interview live on in infamy? Well the way I figure is that if I can get a job, in Spain, with a woman who doesn't even speak the same language as me, then any other job interview I have will be a snap. I am pretty sure that most every other job interview I will ever go to will be in English. So I'm already ahead! And if I don't get the job, eh, I didn't know what she was talking about anyway. =)

Finding My Groove

This week was very low key and relaxed. After spending last weekend in Candanchu I needed a break. On Monday and Thursday I met with Pilar for spanish classes. They are going very slowly. I'm starting to think I won't be able to speak as much when I leave as I would like. I'm kicking myself for not being a better student in spanish class in high school. Speaking of Pilar, she should have been here a while ago for today's lesson. I wonder where she is.

On Wednesday I met with my CS friend, Alanna. We went to Museo del Prado with her friend, an art history major. It was neat. The museum itself is huge and maze-like. Luckily Alanna's friend had been there several times before and took us aroudn to all the master pieces. I just followed where ever they went and tried to find paintings I had seen before. I particularly like looking at religious paintings. Because of the Images of God in Art class I took in high school, I feel like I understand the paintings and their symbolism more then in other paintings. We spent a couple hours at the musem, then Alanna and I went off to find lunch.















In front of the Retiro is this famous monument. I believe it is called Puerta de Alcala.







I heart Spanish food. There is no doubt about it. We found a great little shop and picked out a selection of mini-sandwiches and a couple desserts. Then we walked over to Parque del Retiro to eat. We found a quiet spot at the Monumento a Alfonso XII by the lake and ate. It was a little chilly out but not bad. It was a great afternoon.

After we ate it was time for me to head back to Tres Cantos. I didn't want to be late to tutor and I'm still not a pro and scheduling my transporation. When I got to the bus station I went to my usual bus bay and waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. All the buses that came through were not my bus. In fact, they weren't even buses that usualy came through that bay. I was thoroughly confused by this point. There were a couple signs that had my bus and routes on them, but that is all I could understand. I knew that something was going on with them, but I didn't know what. Erg. So I finally asked a young guy working for the buses. Actually I didn't really ask. I just said, "Tres Cantos?" He started pointing and talking. Then I asked if he spoke english, he didn't. So he walked me to the edge of the bus bay and pointed to an area across the street. Apparently that's where my bus is now.








How was I supposed to my bus got moved way across the street?












And low and behold there it was. I got on my bus right away and was headed for home. Lucky for me Javier would prefer if we didn't have classes at all. But what 13 year old boy would. He didn't mind that I was 15min late getting home.

On Saturday, Jenny and Carlos (from CS) met me at the train station at 11am. 11 is early by Madrid standards and the city was pretty quiet as I made my way there. From the station we caught a train to Alca la de Henares. Alcala is a fun, small, college town not too far from Madrid. It's biggest claim to fame is that it is the birth place of Cervantes. The three of us wandered around the city, taking pictures, telling stories, and laughing a lot. I had a great time. We then made our way to a great tapas bar for lunch. We had three little sandwiches each. The first was smoked salmon on (basically) a cream cheese bagel. That one is my favorite. The second was large calamari rings on bread. And the last was ham and egg on bread. They were all delicious. Like I said, I heart spanish food. After lunch we made our way back to Madrid and I took the train back to Tres Cantos. I made it home just as the sun was setting. It was nice. That evening I went with the family to dinner at a Chinese restaraunt. It was very tastey and surprisingly similar to Chinese food in the States. Whooray for consistancy! Though I have never had fried ice cream at a Chinese restaraunt in the States.









Pics from Alca la de Henares. I am a fan of self portraits, even when I have friends there to take the photos for me. We tried to join this tour group, but they weren't very interesting.












On Sunday, I made an attempt to go to a Baptist church in Madrid. I left the house a few minutes later then I had wanted to and ended up just missing my bus. I waited a half hour for the next to come and then made my way into Madrid. I caught the metro made a transfer and arrived in the neighborhood the church was at in no time. Unfortunately the late start meant that I would only be able to make it to the second half of the service if I found it right away. But I didn't find it right away, in fact, I didn't find it at all. I will have to copy down the directions better and try again next week. So instead of going to church I ended up walking, for what felt like forever, and listening to Christian music on my iPod.

When I got back to the house it was all set up for lunch. Natalia and Fernando were coming to lunch with their son, Alex. They are pretty much family and have been good friends with Carlos and Consuelo for a long time. Natalia and Fernando were also bringing their guests from Argentina (parents and three kids). Lunch was fun and lively as usual. I usually sit quietly listen as best I can and watch their facial expressions. Every now and then someone will lean towards me and explain the conversation but generally I just sit and smile if someone looks at me. I pick up words here and there and I can generally follow the gist of the conversation, but I'm pretty far from being able to participate myself. I was able to participate in a basketball game with the kids though. I just realized their hoop is only about 7ft tall. I can almost dunk. It was fun and it felt good to get up and move after listening and eating.

So that was my weekend. It was good for sure. This week I don't have anything too special planned. I'll probably go sightseeing on Tuesday with Jenny's friend from the States and I may got to intercambio (language exchange) on Wednesday to meet some new people and learn/practice my spanish. Then this Saturday Jenny and I will probably take her friend on another day trip. It should be fun. throw in some running and I've got myself an excellent week planned.






This is my view from the train. It is much more scenic then the bus. I may have to take the train more often.








Oh, I've also recently posted an ad offering english lessons. I've had several people interested and may begin some of those next week. Yep... I'm finding my groove and it feels pretty good.

Candanchu Pictures.

This is the livingroom/dining room of the apartment the family owns in Candanchu, Spain. The apartment is a two bedroom, one bath apartment with a small kitchen and a laundry/mud room.

This is one of the bedrooms. Obviously this is the kids room. Two bunk beds for the four kids. But since I was there, Jorge got bumped to the couch. He didn't seem to mind.

Silvia and Jorge are ready to go!

Carlos had boots and a snowboard that fit me perfectly!

This is the view from the apartment. No Joke. We basically walked out of the apartment building on to the ski lift. It was great!

This is the view up the Reina Sophia lift. Lucky for me the Reina Sophia is the one closest to the apartment and Sophia happens to be the name of my awesome sister. So if I ever got lost I could always remember where I needed to go.

This is the view down the mountain from the ski lift. Neat town isn't it?

This is the view to the right from the ski lift. As you can see there is lots and lots of snow to be played on.

This is me and a whole bunch of ridiculously amazingly beautifully breath taking moutains. How lucky am I?

More amazing mountains.

I don't think the kids appreciated how gorgeous it was there.

Or maybe the altitude just made me deliriuosly happy.

I just finished my last run down the hill and now it is time to hang up the snow board and get ready for the five hour drive back to Madrid. All in all I think I spent about 10 hours snow boarding in a day and a half. So great!

The dribe back was pretty amazing too.

That is some view. Beautiful. That's all I can say.

I've come to appreciate the beauty in rolling hills and fields. However, this does not mean I will be moving to Eastern Washington any time soon.

Several years ago road side bill boards were banded in order to make Spain look prettier. The large bull used to be a bill board for a certain beverage. But not it is blacked out and stands proudly in the fields of Spain.

So that wa Candanchu. I'm so glad I didn't pass up on the chance to go. It's been the highlight of the journey thus far. Man! Am I blessed. I just can't get over it.

Skiing in Spain

I've had the most marvelous day. I am exhausted, sore, and thrilled. I never imagined having a day like this.

Yesterday, the family packed up the car and headed north from Madrid. It took us five hours to get here to Candanchu. If you have a second to check it out on Google Earth, do. It is a very small town, but the skiing is sublime. Anyways, we got here to the apartment at 10pm. We watched three movies in the car and when we got here, my head was pounding. The kids' heads weren't pounding, so they turned on the TV, loud. It was irritating, but I was just happy to be out of the car. Also, I was able to pop online real quick to say hello to Allison and Flynn.

The apartment is small but comforable and has everything we need. It has two bedrooms, one bath, a small kitchen with laundry room, and a living room with a dining area. One bedroom is for the parents. The other room has two bunk beds for the kids. Jorge got bumped to the couch for the evening and I got his bed. He didn't seem to mind. I will post pics next week.

We went to bed early 11:30p (I've been going to bed at 1a) and woke up at about 8:30a. It was great! I slept very well. It wasn't until I woke up and could see outside that I realized where we were. The apartment is just yards away from the Reina Sophia chair lift. I can literally see up the mountain from the dining room window. I'll have pics of the view. Carlos had boots and a snowboard that were a perfect fit so I didn't have to rent. They also had sunglasses, gloves, pants for me to wear. It worked out very well. We had a quick breakfast, geared up and hit the mountain.

I was nervous because the family skis very often and it was pretty obvious they knew what they were doing. They led me up a maze of chair lifts all the while being very patient with me as I waddled and skidded around the snowboard. I think skis are much more mobile the snowboards, but I managed. I was also nervous because I haven't been snowboarding in about three years. It's been a REALLY long time. What if I forgot everything?! Well it turns out I remembered how to stand and that's about it. I moved my way down the mountain as the kids and parents skied circles around me. They were patient though and didn't seem to mind. I had a blast.

The views on the mountain were incredible. I can't wait to take pictures tomorrow. I'm just blown away by how beautiful it is here. At one point Carlos turned to me and said, "See that mountain there? That's France." How neat is that? The sky was clear and blue. There wasn't much wind and the snow was the best I've ever been on. It was an amazing day to be on the mountain. I can only pray that I will have the means to take my family skiing when I have one.

Now the children are doing their homework and the mountain is closed for the night. I am trying to drink plenty of water and stay awake. I haven't pushed my body so hard in... ages. I can't remember the las time I worked so hard. I think I am going to wrap this up and do some stretches. If I am going to snowboard tomorrow I am going to be able to walk. And if today is any indication to how sore I will be... it is going to be rough. I took a couple bad spills and really racked my body. Yes... stretching sounds good. Hmm... A hot bath sounds better, but I will settle for a shower.

Tomorrow we will hit the mountain for three or four hours (compared to todays 6 for me, 7 for the others) then drive home. My goal for monday is to muster the energy to go for a long walk. This past week I ran mon, tue, fri and would like to continue that schedule. But I think I'll need a rest after this weekend.

I thank God for this amazing opportunity to be here in this amazing place. I truly am blessed. I am so glad I did not pass up on the chance to come here and see this. Wow. It is sooo cool.

I just hope my pics can do it justice. Until I can take some. I hope these that I found online will give you an idea of what I'm looking at.

I'm glad they knew where they were going, because I didn't have a clue. And how could I? Look at this mess of chair lifts! Flagstaff only has four or five! I have no idea how many are here, but there is plenty of room on this mountian for everyone.

This isn't me. However, it does give you an idea of just what I'm working with here.

ADIML

I took these pictures and wrote this stuff for livejournal. They have a group called A Day In My Life (ADIML) where users take pictures of everything they do in a day and then post them for the world to see. Seeing other people's days is really interesting, in my opinion. So here is my day.

At 7:45am the alarm clock on my cell phone goes off. It feels too early to be getting up, but I do. I go to the bathroom then crawl back into bed.

I get online and immediatly start the rounds. Hotmail, webmail, myspace, facebook, livejournal, fauxsheezy, and craigslist.

As an au pair for a family in Spain it is my job to wake three of the four children in the morning. Raquel here is the slowest to wake up. She didn't even realize that I had turned on the light AND took a picture with a flash until later in the evening.

Consuelo, the mom of the family, is finishing her breakfast before taking Javier to school and then heading to work.

Warm milk with hot chocolate mix. This is the kids' basic breakfast. They are supposed to eat more, like bread or something, but they usually don't have time.

After making sure everyone is awake and getting ready I get back online. Flynn, my boyfriend, is home and online. He lives in Seattle so there is a 9 hour time difference. It's about 8:40am for me. I sit in bed and "talk" with Flynn. Actually today was the very first time since I got to Spain (three weeks ago) that we did talk! We used our mics and AIM to actually talk. It was AMAZING to hear his voice.

Once everyone is off to work and school I hang out online for a bit longer.

I put in my contacts. Someday I'll have lasik surgery and perhaps on that day I'll do another ADIML. But for now, it's just contacts. Flynn and I chat until a bit after 10am. Then at 10:20am, Flynn has gone to bed, and it is time for me to get going with my day.

Somehwere in this mess of cords is my iPod...

Time to go for a run. I have all the essentials: warm cloths, warn in shoes, my iPod (fully charged), my house keys, and my camera. I don't usually run with my camera... but I've been wanting pictures of where I run, so today seems like a good a day as any.

Before I go I grab a few slices of yummy chorizo.

Since I have only just gotten back into running I am taking it slow. I walk for one song then run for one song. I alternate running and walking for about an hour or so. It works out pretty well. So each time I stopped to walk, I took a picture.

This dog was just chillin on the sidewalk.

Through this is Castillo de Vinuelos. I haven't been to it yet though.

The hazy morning hills.

It is so nice and quiet out here on the road all alone. I think only two cars drove by the whole time I was out here.

On my way back home. I love the rock wall on my left.

A look out onto the Spanish country side. I'm feel very blessed to get to see this any time I want.
I'm almost back home now. I like this road. I'm in the city, but I can see the hills and mountains.

I'm not sure what the purpose of such a narrow sidewalk is. Especially since they put poles right in the middle of it.

After my run I feel victorious! I love the feeling I get after a good workout.

Don't forget to stretch.

This is Lola. Obviously she is a fierce gaurd dog. Look how she jumps into action to protect the family from evil intruders.

Back from my run and stretch. It's time to start getting ready for the day.


The shower is small, but the water is hot and that's all I need.

This is one of my PE teacher outfits. I had to buy "work appropriate" clothes when I did my student teaching last semester. It may not be the cutest outfit, but it's comfy.

Breakfast of champions. I don't usually have breakfast so late, but I was talking to Flynn when I usually eat.


Today I need to clean my room. Luckily it is small and I don't own very much stuff, so cleaning is pretty easy.


Tada! Much better.

Now it's time to get back online and see who's on. Try not to be too jealous of my awesome Candycorn socks.


It's time to try and learn some Espanol. I have been here three weeks. I wish I knew what people were saying to me!


My hair was still wet from my shower so I brushed it out and put on a hoody. The rooms lighting makes my hair look super bright.

This is my hairs normal color. Also, spanish is confusing.


Javier the eldest kid in the family and clearly he is thrilled to see me. Sara, the family's very pregnant housekeeper, is making lunch.

Hmm. Fried fish and rice. It's tasty, except the fish has too many tiny bones.


My only other official au pair duty is one hour of tutoring per kid each night. Javier is up first. It is 4pm.

5pm. Next up is Raquel. We are studying the nervous systems. Health degree finally comes in handy!

Silvia is up next at 6pm.

At 7pm Jorge wanted a more formal picture. He sent a copy to his American penpals.

Spinich puree. It doesn't look good, but is actualy quite tasty. This is one of the many things I am going to need to learn before I go back to the states.

This is dinner with the family! There is a lot going on.. but what do you expect when there three adults and four kids at a table?

It is 9:30pm and I've retired to my room for the evening. Flynn and my best friend Allison are both at their jobs and email/IM me. I heart the net.

I take a break from IMing and emailing to put on my super comfy pajamas.

It is 1am. Whooray for bedtime! Immediately after I take this picture I turn out the light. I'm asleep within a minute or two. I heart sleep!