Today was an early morning…aka…a typical U.S. morning. Haha. I got up about 6:30am so I could make sure my paperwork was in order, do the dishes and get ready to go to Jaén with Inés. I met Inés on El Paseo at 8am. I was surprised at how many people were awake, and the café on the corner was open. I guess I shouldn’t really be surprised by this, but it was still dark so it seemed earlier than it was. In 2008 when I studied in Murcia it was spring and summer, so it was light most of the time. I haven’t really been in Spain when it stays dark this much.
It took 2 ½ hours to get to Jaén from Siles. Inés and I passed the time talking about medicine, politics, the environment, culture, music, traveling, etc, etc. We had been warned that it would be hard to find parking in Jaén but it was a lot worse than we expected. We drove around in circles trying to find the extranjería (where I needed to do my paperwork) and a parking space. We finally found what we thought was the extranjería so Inés dropped me off and continued her parking search. When I went in they told me that I was actually in the wrong spot. For being a boring, bureaucratic office they were actually quite nice and helpful. They gave me directions to where I really needed to go. I walked in that general direction until I asked the next person for further directions, and then another person to help me finish the trip. I got there and the line wasn’t too bad. I looked around the lobby and saw a group of American-looking people all holding the same green folder that I had been given. There were about half a dozen other Cultural Ambassadors there waiting to do the same paperwork. Only 2 of those appeared to be a couple, so when I got my number I went over to see if they were Ava and Ben. Sure enough, it was them. They were surprised that I was able to pick them out so quickly having not ever met them. Poor Ava and Ben had been there all morning and still hadn’t been seen. None of us were told that we had actual appointment times. Their appointment time wasn’t until 1pm. Luckily mine was 10:30 and since it was already 11:05 I was seen almost immediately. Not quite fair for them, but I was thankful for it! I went in and there was some initial confusion over my paperwork and appointment time. One guy said my appointment wasn’t until the next day, but the other guy had me on the list for today (This problem was because initially my appointment was supposed to be tomorrow but Victor changed it so I could be here the same time as Ava and Ben). Then I had been given the wrong application. He sent me back out to the lobby to fill out the new application (which was almost identical to the one I had already filled out). Luckily again for me I didn’t have to wait once I filled out the new application. They saw me right away and we were able to proceed with the rest of my NIE paperwork without problems.
I have to go back to Jaén again on November 9th to get my fingerprints taken. Then, 40 days after THAT I have to go back AGAIN just to pick up my residency card. Blaaaaaaah. So many unnecessary trips! Inés was really hoping that we could do the fingerprints as well today, and that they would mail me the card, but we had no such luck. Considering it takes so long to go there and back, it’s a general consensus amongst Inés, me, Victor and the other auxiliares that this process is a pain in the rear end. 5 hours of traveling for a 10 minute appointment? No thank you. The one nice thing is that they gave me the actual NIE number today. Supposedly that means I can open my bank account and such now and not have to wait until the actual card gets here. I’ll believe it when I see it, but I really hope that’s true. If not I could be waiting until the middle of December to get paid.
Ava and Ben were seen about the same time as me, so when we were all done we went to the café across the street for coffee and a snack. Thank goodness because we were all hungry and thirsty. One of our topics of conversation was my Washington accent. Yes, apparently I have an accent. When I talked to Ava on the phone yesterday she thought I had a bit of a southern accent. Then today when I mentioned that my mom’s side of the family was from Minnesota they said that’s what it was. I’m not sure if it’s really a Washington accent then or just Minnesota family influence. When I studied in Murcia my friends Brittany and Grace said I had a Washington accent too. The only times I’ve ever been told that I have an accent are by Americans while I’ve been in Spain.
After our snack we headed over to Movistar so I could get my Spanish phone working again. I had been told I had to change the sim card in my phone because I hadn’t added any money to my phone in more than 6 months. I went in and asked to do just that, but as part of the process they just gave me a new phone…no extra charge. Ok, whatever, do what you want. So, at the end of it all I had ANOTHER new functioning Spanish phone. This is the 3rd Spanish phone I’ve owned in 2 ½ years.
After that we headed back to the car for another 2 ½ hour car ride. I felt so bad for Inés. She doesn’t drive that far very often. This ride was especially hard because she’s pregnant and was so uncomfortable sitting that long. She said someone else (maybe from Ava and Ben’s school) will have to drive us next time because she just can’t.
We stopped for gas during our ride back. It was 1.11 euro/liter. There are 3.79 liters in a gallon. That makes gas 4.20 euro/gallon…about $5.84 a gallon. Yikes. I think I’ll stick with my $2.85 in the U.S.
I slept a little bit on the way back to Siles to make time go by faster. I woke up to Ava and Inés taking pictures of Ben and I sleeping in the backseat. We dropped Ben and Ava off in La Puerta and then Inés took me to my apartment in Siles. When I got there I had some lunch and debated taking a nap. I really wanted a nap, but at the same time wanted to be able to sleep tonight.
Taking a nap won.
The rest of the evening I chilled in the apartment and just made a pizza for dinner.
Tomorrow is my long day of work. I have 4 classes; 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 6th grade. All the normal Spanish teachers from surrounding towns also meet here in Siles on Wednesdays and Thursdays to learn English from 4:30-7:45. I will be working with this group at least 1 hour and 45 minutes each week. We haven’t figured out how we’re going to divide that time yet. Part of me would like to do it all on Wednesday. I don’t have any classes with the school on Thursday afternoon or Friday. This would give me a little extra free time on my long weekend to travel if I want. However, Javi and Inés were thinking maybe I should just do 50 minutes each day. Plus, it would make Wednesday really long if I did it all that day. We’ll see how that goes. I’m not too worried about it. I don’t think there are many buses that leave Siles on Thursday afternoon anyways.
I’ve seen comments about snow on Facebook lately, at least in the pass. I am SO glad that the snow hasn’t quite arrived here yet. I am looking forward to seeing how pretty it is here in the snow but I’m also in NO rush.
Buenas noches todos! I’m going back to bed.
Showing posts with label paperwork. Show all posts
Showing posts with label paperwork. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Conversation, culture and café con leche
The rest of today was pretty relaxed. Number one priority was going to the grocery store. I forgot that the grocery store isn’t open on Sundays, so food options yesterday were really limited. While shopping Rocio (Pepe’s daughter) came into the grocery store and asked if I wanted to get coffee with her and Pepe. I paid for my things and then headed over to La Mezquita. We sat and chatted a bit about this, that and the other thing. Juan also showed up. Rocio asked me to go trick or treating with her this Sunday. I was really surprised she was going. Halloween is gaining popularity here in Spain, but I was surprised in a small town that kids dress up and go out. I asked her if everyone participated or if sometimes they got the door slammed in their face by people that don’t celebrate that crazy American holiday. She said, no, everyone gives out candy. My costume options are quite limited so I’ll probably be throwing a white sheet over myself, cutting out eye holes and calling myself a ghost. I believe we are also going to be doing some sort of small celebration at the school. Monday we don’t have school because of Halloween on Sunday. The vacation day is called ‘puente.’ Don’t we all wish we didn’t have to go to school the day after staying out late for Halloween!
Pepe and Rocio are going to look at a car in Murcia on Sunday. They asked if I wanted to come along so I could see my friends there, but because of puente it doesn’t seem like many people are going to be available. I think I’ll probably just hold off and try to find another time to go. Getting to Murcia is a bigger challenge than I anticipated. Bus options out of Siles are very limited and there are only a couple buses that leave Siles each day. So far the best option seems to be going from Siles to Hellín, then Hellín to Murcia. It’s the cheapest and fastest way I’ve found so far. The only problem is that the return trip involves a 5 hours layover in Hellín waiting for the Siles bus. Blah. Hopefully I’ll find people making trips to Murcia often enough that it won’t be a problem. Pepe is going to Murcia at least once. Inés is going to Ikea in Murcia at least once and hopefully I can find others.
After coffee, Pepe, Rocio and the guy from the general store helped show me how to make international calls on the payphone. After that lesson Pepe and Rocio insisted they drive me back up to my apartment. I really, REALLY only live a few minutes away (walking!) but am frequently being offered rides so I don’t have to walk up the hill. I’m thankful for the generosity, but I also like the walk…both for the fresh air and exercise. Oh well…I’m sure when it’s starts snowing I’ll really be thankful.
The rest of the day I lounged around the apartment and went to bed early. I have to be up early the next day to go to Jaén and deal with all the residency paperwork.
Pepe and Rocio are going to look at a car in Murcia on Sunday. They asked if I wanted to come along so I could see my friends there, but because of puente it doesn’t seem like many people are going to be available. I think I’ll probably just hold off and try to find another time to go. Getting to Murcia is a bigger challenge than I anticipated. Bus options out of Siles are very limited and there are only a couple buses that leave Siles each day. So far the best option seems to be going from Siles to Hellín, then Hellín to Murcia. It’s the cheapest and fastest way I’ve found so far. The only problem is that the return trip involves a 5 hours layover in Hellín waiting for the Siles bus. Blah. Hopefully I’ll find people making trips to Murcia often enough that it won’t be a problem. Pepe is going to Murcia at least once. Inés is going to Ikea in Murcia at least once and hopefully I can find others.
After coffee, Pepe, Rocio and the guy from the general store helped show me how to make international calls on the payphone. After that lesson Pepe and Rocio insisted they drive me back up to my apartment. I really, REALLY only live a few minutes away (walking!) but am frequently being offered rides so I don’t have to walk up the hill. I’m thankful for the generosity, but I also like the walk…both for the fresh air and exercise. Oh well…I’m sure when it’s starts snowing I’ll really be thankful.
The rest of the day I lounged around the apartment and went to bed early. I have to be up early the next day to go to Jaén and deal with all the residency paperwork.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Oh the joys of jet lag...
It's currently 3am and I'm awake for the second night in a row. This time it's my fault though. I decided to take a nap this afternoon that turned into a 7 hour nap. Oops. So, I figured I'd fill you in on full day #2.
Yesterday was really relaxed. Due to the 7 hour nap I didn't do much. I slept in a little, and then went to school. I met with Inés for about an hour and that was it. Inés told me that there is a couple from Colorado doing the Ambassadors program in Puerta (another town not too far away) and their coordinator asked for my contact information so we could all connect and maybe meet up with each other. Last year in Castilla-La Mancha one of the language assistants gave up and went home. All the coordinators in the area are doing an outstanding job trying to make sure we get plugged in and are successful so that doesn’t happen again.
The main coordinator in Jaén (the province I’m in) for our program is Victor. Until today I didn’t even know about him. Apparently he has made appointments for me at the “extranjería” in Jaén to get my paperwork taken care of instead of at the police station here. I suppose the police station here isn’t big enough to handle things like residency paperwork. I have an appointment on the 27th to get my TIE/NIE paperwork taken care of. The TIE is a temporary residence card for foreigners. The NIE is an official fiscal number that allows me to open a bank account and get paid. Then on November 11th I have to go back and have my fingerprints taken. Victor is trying to convince the extranjería to let me do it all in one visit, because Jaén is 2 ½ hours away. We’ll see if he’s successful.
Inés and I also went over my responsibilities as a language assistant and tomorrow we’re going to try to firm up my schedule. Hopefully she’ll also have a better idea about what I need to prepare to be ready for Monday. Monday is my first day of teaching! Inés wasn’t feeling all that great today and it seemed to be one thing after another interrupting her planning period with me, so hopefully she’ll feel better tomorrow. Inés is pregnant and due in April so morning sickness isn’t her friend right now…she did however ask if I wanted to take the baby’s first pictures and I’m pretty excited about that!
The one thing my apartment doesn’t have is towels. I dried off with an extra sheet this morning, so that was definitely on my list of things to do today. I asked one of the teachers were I could find towels. You know you’re in a small town when you ask where you can find towels and they have to really think about it. “Hmmm, well…it’s a small village…so I’m not really sure…you could try that place down on El Paseo next to the restaurant.” Haha. Oh wow. Having a hard time buying towels, and using “the” restaurant to give directions? Welcome to small town life. Sure enough that place did have towels. Success!
There was also a farmer’s market going at El Paseo. I was shocked at home big the market was considering the size of the town. I also ran into another one of Juan’s friends that I met last night, and yet another new friend that lives in a nearby town. He comes into Siles every Thursday for the market. He also lives in the same town as Inés. The market had so many different foods. I think I will have to do some experimenting in the coming weeks. I don’t quite know how to go about it though. Do I blindly pick something and then try to figure out how to prepare it? I suppose I’ll just ask for recommendations from the people I buy it from.
It’s really interesting to see how people react to me. Inés told me today that in Siles, some people are very friendly, but some are very stuck in their ways. She wants to make sure that I feel connected to the community so it is easier for me to adapt, but realistically some people aren’t going to welcome me with open arms. I have definitely seen examples of both. Of course there is Juan and all of his friends who have taken me right in. Also, last night at Dia I picked up a 12 pack of eggs. The price tag said “1.20.” Here in Spain when you go to the grocery store you don’t have to buy things in the quantity they are packed in. If there’s a 6 pack of soda, you can take off just one can if you want. The cashier explained to me that it is “0.60 euro” for each side of the carton of eggs, then wrote down the number on the carton for me. She didn’t have to do that, but you could tell she was uncertain about how much Spanish I understand. Writing it down for me was really thoughtful because that gives me a different way to understand. Now, on the other side of things, when I was buying towels a lady asked me something that I didn’t understand. I didn’t understand because she mumbled, not because of the language. I asked her to repeat herself and she mumbled back “never mind, you don’t understand me” and walked off. Oh well. Can’t win ‘em all.
I didn’t stay long because I had some things I wanted to get done. Plus, I had to conduct Mushroom Experiment 2010. I fried up the mushrooms with olive oil and salt when I got home. It really wasn’t too bad. If anything I just put too much salt on them. They are still not my favorite, but tolerable, especially as far as mushrooms go. I stuck with left over tortilla for the bulk of my lunch.
At the store I also bought a hair dryer with a Spanish electrical connection. My hair dryer just wasn’t working very well with the adaptor, and I don’t want to have a wet head all winter. I found the warning on the box quite amusing. “The appliance must not be taken into the bathroom.” Oh really? Maybe there's something about Spanish bathrooms that reject hair dryers?
After lunch I worked on Bella Baby orders, responding to the gazillion messages I’ve received in the last 48 hours and took my excessively long nap. Now that I’m got you caught up…I’m going to try to sleep for a couple more hours in hope of ending this jet lag. ¡Buenas noches!
Yesterday was really relaxed. Due to the 7 hour nap I didn't do much. I slept in a little, and then went to school. I met with Inés for about an hour and that was it. Inés told me that there is a couple from Colorado doing the Ambassadors program in Puerta (another town not too far away) and their coordinator asked for my contact information so we could all connect and maybe meet up with each other. Last year in Castilla-La Mancha one of the language assistants gave up and went home. All the coordinators in the area are doing an outstanding job trying to make sure we get plugged in and are successful so that doesn’t happen again.
The main coordinator in Jaén (the province I’m in) for our program is Victor. Until today I didn’t even know about him. Apparently he has made appointments for me at the “extranjería” in Jaén to get my paperwork taken care of instead of at the police station here. I suppose the police station here isn’t big enough to handle things like residency paperwork. I have an appointment on the 27th to get my TIE/NIE paperwork taken care of. The TIE is a temporary residence card for foreigners. The NIE is an official fiscal number that allows me to open a bank account and get paid. Then on November 11th I have to go back and have my fingerprints taken. Victor is trying to convince the extranjería to let me do it all in one visit, because Jaén is 2 ½ hours away. We’ll see if he’s successful.
Inés and I also went over my responsibilities as a language assistant and tomorrow we’re going to try to firm up my schedule. Hopefully she’ll also have a better idea about what I need to prepare to be ready for Monday. Monday is my first day of teaching! Inés wasn’t feeling all that great today and it seemed to be one thing after another interrupting her planning period with me, so hopefully she’ll feel better tomorrow. Inés is pregnant and due in April so morning sickness isn’t her friend right now…she did however ask if I wanted to take the baby’s first pictures and I’m pretty excited about that!
The one thing my apartment doesn’t have is towels. I dried off with an extra sheet this morning, so that was definitely on my list of things to do today. I asked one of the teachers were I could find towels. You know you’re in a small town when you ask where you can find towels and they have to really think about it. “Hmmm, well…it’s a small village…so I’m not really sure…you could try that place down on El Paseo next to the restaurant.” Haha. Oh wow. Having a hard time buying towels, and using “the” restaurant to give directions? Welcome to small town life. Sure enough that place did have towels. Success!
There was also a farmer’s market going at El Paseo. I was shocked at home big the market was considering the size of the town. I also ran into another one of Juan’s friends that I met last night, and yet another new friend that lives in a nearby town. He comes into Siles every Thursday for the market. He also lives in the same town as Inés. The market had so many different foods. I think I will have to do some experimenting in the coming weeks. I don’t quite know how to go about it though. Do I blindly pick something and then try to figure out how to prepare it? I suppose I’ll just ask for recommendations from the people I buy it from.
It’s really interesting to see how people react to me. Inés told me today that in Siles, some people are very friendly, but some are very stuck in their ways. She wants to make sure that I feel connected to the community so it is easier for me to adapt, but realistically some people aren’t going to welcome me with open arms. I have definitely seen examples of both. Of course there is Juan and all of his friends who have taken me right in. Also, last night at Dia I picked up a 12 pack of eggs. The price tag said “1.20.” Here in Spain when you go to the grocery store you don’t have to buy things in the quantity they are packed in. If there’s a 6 pack of soda, you can take off just one can if you want. The cashier explained to me that it is “0.60 euro” for each side of the carton of eggs, then wrote down the number on the carton for me. She didn’t have to do that, but you could tell she was uncertain about how much Spanish I understand. Writing it down for me was really thoughtful because that gives me a different way to understand. Now, on the other side of things, when I was buying towels a lady asked me something that I didn’t understand. I didn’t understand because she mumbled, not because of the language. I asked her to repeat herself and she mumbled back “never mind, you don’t understand me” and walked off. Oh well. Can’t win ‘em all.
I didn’t stay long because I had some things I wanted to get done. Plus, I had to conduct Mushroom Experiment 2010. I fried up the mushrooms with olive oil and salt when I got home. It really wasn’t too bad. If anything I just put too much salt on them. They are still not my favorite, but tolerable, especially as far as mushrooms go. I stuck with left over tortilla for the bulk of my lunch.
At the store I also bought a hair dryer with a Spanish electrical connection. My hair dryer just wasn’t working very well with the adaptor, and I don’t want to have a wet head all winter. I found the warning on the box quite amusing. “The appliance must not be taken into the bathroom.” Oh really? Maybe there's something about Spanish bathrooms that reject hair dryers?
After lunch I worked on Bella Baby orders, responding to the gazillion messages I’ve received in the last 48 hours and took my excessively long nap. Now that I’m got you caught up…I’m going to try to sleep for a couple more hours in hope of ending this jet lag. ¡Buenas noches!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
My first full day in Siles
I slept pretty well. I woke up a couple times during the night but basically slept about 11 hours…exactly what I needed to recover from my travels. I got up, showered in the smallest shower I think I’ve ever seen (yes Furbs, even smaller than ours at the Yellow Sub) and tried to organize my things a little in case housekeeping came in. My suitcases basically spit everything out when I arrived yesterday.
Getting to the school was even easier today than yesterday because I could follow all the families walking small children with backpacks. I met with Inés and she is officially my angel here on earth. She had several ideas for housing for me. There was a posting for someone looking for a roommate, and she had the contact information for another lady wanting to rent out an apartment that one of the teachers recommended. She called the lady for me, made sure of the price and arranged a time for us to meet.
Silvia is another one of my angels today. She is the school secretary and the one who took me around the village today to help run my errands. First she took me to my potential apartment to meet with the landlady and see if I like the place. It’s not too far away from school, but realistically nothing is too far away from anything else in the village. The apartment was fantastic. Just perfect. It’s small, but I don’t need a big place. It looks nice and new on the inside and has everything I will need. I had been preparing myself to live in an older, run down apartment with potentially no furniture. Definitely not the case. It even has a fantastic view. Words can’t describe how happy I am. It’s great. The landlady is also a lot younger and more relaxed than my landlady in Murcia was. She gave me the keys on the spot and said she could come down to the hostel to pick me and my things up. I can’t believe I have an apartment already and only had to stay at the hostel one night!
I then continued on my trek through town with Silvia. She ran into people right and left that knew her and stopped to say hi. Unlike some of the other teachers Silvia actually lives here in the village. She said that people here know basically everyone and that within about 48 hours of me arriving everyone would know that I was here.
Our next stop was the police station. I needed to fill out some residency paperwork. There is a grand total of 3 police officers in Siles. Haha. Then on top of that, the police station was closed! Not only that, but when we called the police (yes, we called them to do paperwork), they didn’t answer! When I got back to the school I was joking around with one of the teachers that not much must happen here if you can’t get a hold of the police. She laughed and joked that nothing exciting ever happens in this town. I’ll have to try to get a hold of the police again tomorrow.
We also went to the post office, the bookstore, the bank, and a convenience store. She showed me where the market is, and told me that the grocery store I had visited the night before (Called ‘Dia’) is the largest they have in town. It’s so different from grocery stores in the US, and even in Murcia. In Murcia they had Mercadona which was a pretty decent sized grocery store. It’s blatantly clear that I need to learn how to cook unless I want to starve here. She also showed me the shoe store, the restaurant area (which is on El Paseo) and the discoteca. Yes, small little Siles has a discoteca. I am so curious about. How many people really go on any given night? How happenin’ can it really be? I’ll be sure to let you know when I check it out.
We also went to the doctor’s office. I have health insurance through the program I’m working with. I already received my insurance card, but I needed to go and have a doctor assigned to me. That was fairly uneventful, but another thing marked off the to-do list.
After all that we went back to school, I arranged a time to meet with Inés the next day and headed back to the hostel to pack my things. I took my backpack and camera bag and walked to my apartment to let Ma. Cele (my landlady) know that I was ready when she was. Me, the hostel owner and Ma. Cele got a good laugh at how ridiculous my bags are. Ma. Cele drove me back up to the apartment and helped me lug all my bags downstairs, even though I insisted she didn’t need to. Then on top of all her help, she only made me pay 50 euros to live in the apartment for the rest of October. It’s just crazy how lucky I got!!! She didn’t ask for any cleaning deposits, or last months rest, or move-in fees. 50 euro to live in the apartment from October 20-October 31st. Score! She also has so many nice little touches in the apartment. There is a full set of cups, dishes, pots, pans, silverware, cleaning supplies, an iron and ironing board (which is crucial since I don’t have a dryer), stocked paper towels and toilet paper and a toilet bowl freshener in the toilet. My apartment costs 280 euros (approx. $393) a month and includes everything (heat, water, electricity). Inés says that’s a fantastic deal, especially with heat included since it gets so cold in the winter and heating bills usually get expensive.
I unpacked, tried to get caught up on some messages, listened to Napster (Last time Napster didn’t work when I was here but I guess they’ve finally got international. Yay!), took some pictures and relaxed a bit…just trying to get settled. When it was dinner time I headed back to Dia.
On El Paseo I ran into the older gentleman that stopped me yesterday and was thrilled that I was going to teach his little girl. He seemed excited to see me again. I would say overall, at least so far, the older men tend to be friendlier, and the women tend to appear more suspicious of me. It’s so weird walking down the street though. I definitely feel like there’s a spotlight on me. People’s heads turn, I’m sure wondering who the heck I am and why I’m there. I also feel really tall, and I’ve already had comments about my long blond-ish hair. Anyways, I can’t remember this guy’s name and need to ask again when I see him. He was sitting with his friend Juan and once again stopped me to chat. He’s so great and full of personality. Juan and his friend asked me about the US, like population, how long it took me to get here and how far it is to Seattle. Juan was a truck driver so he’s been all over Europe, but never to the US. I chatted with them for quite some time, and several other people joined in our conversation as time flew by.
Juan said that in 2 months I’ll be speaking like an Espanola. I hope he’s right! They also want me to teach them English. “Definitely! I’ll teach you English and you help me with my Spanish, ok?” He proceeded to ask me what “beautiful” and “ugly” were in English. The way he pronounced “ugly” was something along the lines of “wugly,” and priceless, especially when he burst into laughter at the sound.
They were also giving me a hard time about finding a novio. I’m pretty sure I’m going to have at least half of the older men around her trying to set me up with their sons. Juan’s friend also asked me if I knew how to cook. I informed him sadly that I don’t really, but that I want to learn. Then he asked me if I knew how to cook an egg. Haha. Well…yes…I do know how to do that. Then I received my first (physical) gift upon arriving in Siles…niscalos and some fruit from Juan’s friend.
Let me introduce you to los niscalos…
…yep…a type of mushroom. Haha. Mushrooms are not exactly my favorite food, but for the sake of community, I’ll give it a shot. This is supposed to be a time of self-growth after all. Plus, their scientific name is Lactarius deliciosus. If ‘delicious’ is in their scientific name it must be true, right? They told me that I needed to wash the niscalos very well. They repeated this to me at least 50 times. Haha. It’s nice they are looking out for me and making sure the language barrier doesn’t cause me to eat dirt. Then they said I needed to fry them in olive oil and add salt. I promised them I would. I don't know what they type of fruit was that they had me try. It seemed like a combination of a plum and a pomegranate and I actually really liked it. There was a miscommunication because I thought 'niscalo' was the name of the fruit, not the mushroom.
When Juan and his friends realized that I was heading towards Dia they sent me off with the typical Spanish kisses on the cheek and pushed me on my way because it was about to close. They told me that I should go there and get a snack, but that the restaurant was open late and a good place for dinner. At the grocery store I picked up some eggs, cheese, pasta, Spanish tortilla, water, a bottle of wine, and a bottle of tinto verano to celebrate the first night in my new apartment. I was on cloud nine, especially because of my interactions with the locals. I really hope that I can meet and growth with the people here.
I went home, heated up the tortilla (Tortilla is like an egg, potato and onion omelet.) and settled in to enjoy the fact that I have internet in my apartment. That isn’t very common here, and it is such a blessing. I was afraid I wasn’t going to have much phone or internet access based on my adventures yesterday. The only bad thing about the evening…the giant beetle that hopped into bed with me. Bleeeech. Yuck. He was quick too. Sadly for him, my shoe spread his guts onto the floor. Gave me the heebie jeebies. I was afraid to pull up the covers to see if there was more but thank goodness there weren’t.
On a totally different note, $5 says I land on my face at least once this winter climbing the hills in the snow. This entire town is hills except for El Paseo, and when it gets icy…oh dear…I can only imagine the embarrassing moments yet to come!
Getting to the school was even easier today than yesterday because I could follow all the families walking small children with backpacks. I met with Inés and she is officially my angel here on earth. She had several ideas for housing for me. There was a posting for someone looking for a roommate, and she had the contact information for another lady wanting to rent out an apartment that one of the teachers recommended. She called the lady for me, made sure of the price and arranged a time for us to meet.
Silvia is another one of my angels today. She is the school secretary and the one who took me around the village today to help run my errands. First she took me to my potential apartment to meet with the landlady and see if I like the place. It’s not too far away from school, but realistically nothing is too far away from anything else in the village. The apartment was fantastic. Just perfect. It’s small, but I don’t need a big place. It looks nice and new on the inside and has everything I will need. I had been preparing myself to live in an older, run down apartment with potentially no furniture. Definitely not the case. It even has a fantastic view. Words can’t describe how happy I am. It’s great. The landlady is also a lot younger and more relaxed than my landlady in Murcia was. She gave me the keys on the spot and said she could come down to the hostel to pick me and my things up. I can’t believe I have an apartment already and only had to stay at the hostel one night!
I then continued on my trek through town with Silvia. She ran into people right and left that knew her and stopped to say hi. Unlike some of the other teachers Silvia actually lives here in the village. She said that people here know basically everyone and that within about 48 hours of me arriving everyone would know that I was here.
Our next stop was the police station. I needed to fill out some residency paperwork. There is a grand total of 3 police officers in Siles. Haha. Then on top of that, the police station was closed! Not only that, but when we called the police (yes, we called them to do paperwork), they didn’t answer! When I got back to the school I was joking around with one of the teachers that not much must happen here if you can’t get a hold of the police. She laughed and joked that nothing exciting ever happens in this town. I’ll have to try to get a hold of the police again tomorrow.
We also went to the post office, the bookstore, the bank, and a convenience store. She showed me where the market is, and told me that the grocery store I had visited the night before (Called ‘Dia’) is the largest they have in town. It’s so different from grocery stores in the US, and even in Murcia. In Murcia they had Mercadona which was a pretty decent sized grocery store. It’s blatantly clear that I need to learn how to cook unless I want to starve here. She also showed me the shoe store, the restaurant area (which is on El Paseo) and the discoteca. Yes, small little Siles has a discoteca. I am so curious about. How many people really go on any given night? How happenin’ can it really be? I’ll be sure to let you know when I check it out.
We also went to the doctor’s office. I have health insurance through the program I’m working with. I already received my insurance card, but I needed to go and have a doctor assigned to me. That was fairly uneventful, but another thing marked off the to-do list.
After all that we went back to school, I arranged a time to meet with Inés the next day and headed back to the hostel to pack my things. I took my backpack and camera bag and walked to my apartment to let Ma. Cele (my landlady) know that I was ready when she was. Me, the hostel owner and Ma. Cele got a good laugh at how ridiculous my bags are. Ma. Cele drove me back up to the apartment and helped me lug all my bags downstairs, even though I insisted she didn’t need to. Then on top of all her help, she only made me pay 50 euros to live in the apartment for the rest of October. It’s just crazy how lucky I got!!! She didn’t ask for any cleaning deposits, or last months rest, or move-in fees. 50 euro to live in the apartment from October 20-October 31st. Score! She also has so many nice little touches in the apartment. There is a full set of cups, dishes, pots, pans, silverware, cleaning supplies, an iron and ironing board (which is crucial since I don’t have a dryer), stocked paper towels and toilet paper and a toilet bowl freshener in the toilet. My apartment costs 280 euros (approx. $393) a month and includes everything (heat, water, electricity). Inés says that’s a fantastic deal, especially with heat included since it gets so cold in the winter and heating bills usually get expensive.
I unpacked, tried to get caught up on some messages, listened to Napster (Last time Napster didn’t work when I was here but I guess they’ve finally got international. Yay!), took some pictures and relaxed a bit…just trying to get settled. When it was dinner time I headed back to Dia.
On El Paseo I ran into the older gentleman that stopped me yesterday and was thrilled that I was going to teach his little girl. He seemed excited to see me again. I would say overall, at least so far, the older men tend to be friendlier, and the women tend to appear more suspicious of me. It’s so weird walking down the street though. I definitely feel like there’s a spotlight on me. People’s heads turn, I’m sure wondering who the heck I am and why I’m there. I also feel really tall, and I’ve already had comments about my long blond-ish hair. Anyways, I can’t remember this guy’s name and need to ask again when I see him. He was sitting with his friend Juan and once again stopped me to chat. He’s so great and full of personality. Juan and his friend asked me about the US, like population, how long it took me to get here and how far it is to Seattle. Juan was a truck driver so he’s been all over Europe, but never to the US. I chatted with them for quite some time, and several other people joined in our conversation as time flew by.
Juan said that in 2 months I’ll be speaking like an Espanola. I hope he’s right! They also want me to teach them English. “Definitely! I’ll teach you English and you help me with my Spanish, ok?” He proceeded to ask me what “beautiful” and “ugly” were in English. The way he pronounced “ugly” was something along the lines of “wugly,” and priceless, especially when he burst into laughter at the sound.
They were also giving me a hard time about finding a novio. I’m pretty sure I’m going to have at least half of the older men around her trying to set me up with their sons. Juan’s friend also asked me if I knew how to cook. I informed him sadly that I don’t really, but that I want to learn. Then he asked me if I knew how to cook an egg. Haha. Well…yes…I do know how to do that. Then I received my first (physical) gift upon arriving in Siles…niscalos and some fruit from Juan’s friend.
Let me introduce you to los niscalos…
…yep…a type of mushroom. Haha. Mushrooms are not exactly my favorite food, but for the sake of community, I’ll give it a shot. This is supposed to be a time of self-growth after all. Plus, their scientific name is Lactarius deliciosus. If ‘delicious’ is in their scientific name it must be true, right? They told me that I needed to wash the niscalos very well. They repeated this to me at least 50 times. Haha. It’s nice they are looking out for me and making sure the language barrier doesn’t cause me to eat dirt. Then they said I needed to fry them in olive oil and add salt. I promised them I would. I don't know what they type of fruit was that they had me try. It seemed like a combination of a plum and a pomegranate and I actually really liked it. There was a miscommunication because I thought 'niscalo' was the name of the fruit, not the mushroom.
When Juan and his friends realized that I was heading towards Dia they sent me off with the typical Spanish kisses on the cheek and pushed me on my way because it was about to close. They told me that I should go there and get a snack, but that the restaurant was open late and a good place for dinner. At the grocery store I picked up some eggs, cheese, pasta, Spanish tortilla, water, a bottle of wine, and a bottle of tinto verano to celebrate the first night in my new apartment. I was on cloud nine, especially because of my interactions with the locals. I really hope that I can meet and growth with the people here.
I went home, heated up the tortilla (Tortilla is like an egg, potato and onion omelet.) and settled in to enjoy the fact that I have internet in my apartment. That isn’t very common here, and it is such a blessing. I was afraid I wasn’t going to have much phone or internet access based on my adventures yesterday. The only bad thing about the evening…the giant beetle that hopped into bed with me. Bleeeech. Yuck. He was quick too. Sadly for him, my shoe spread his guts onto the floor. Gave me the heebie jeebies. I was afraid to pull up the covers to see if there was more but thank goodness there weren’t.
On a totally different note, $5 says I land on my face at least once this winter climbing the hills in the snow. This entire town is hills except for El Paseo, and when it gets icy…oh dear…I can only imagine the embarrassing moments yet to come!
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