Sunday, November 27, 2011

The Little Things In Life


As I lay in bed on this chilly Sunday morning, attempting to muster up the motivation to begin homework, I take a little trip down memory lane through my blog. Although I am satisfied that I have successfully portrayed the adventures of this semester, I realize that with only three weeks remaining I have left out some important moments. Sure, every weekend trip has been documented with play-by-play scenarios, sarcastic thoughts, and pictures that highlight the given location. However, as great as those times have been, I did not travel across the world to study in Geneva, or Paris, or Sevilla. I came to Bilbao; I've lived here, studied here, made friends here, learned valuable lessons here, and I seem to have forgotten to write about the little things that have created the full "study abroad experience". So, in the spirit of procrastination, this post is about Bilbao.

My routine during the week is similar to that in America; wake up wishing there was more time to sleep, go to school attempting to process as many of the near-impossible Spanish concepts as mentally possible and focus while the Culture teacher goes on unknown tangents in broken English, head home to eat/rest/do hours of homework/socialize with the roommates/make dinner/more socializing or homework, then off to bed in preparation to repeat the following day. That part of the experience I was prepared for, it's the small aspects of the day (many of which I don't even realize anymore) that differ from home and remind me I'm in Spain. For example, the group of elementary school children waiting at our bus stop every morning that make us look like the most lazy people ever as they are dressed in uniforms waiting for a private bus while we appear to have rolled out of bed and exchange minimal words to each other until the sun rises, as if we are incapable of functioning without daylight, and the public bus arrives only to inconveniently stop closest to the Spaniards. Once on the bus, a shift occurs and we suddenly become the only ones speaking. We are surrounded by girls with oddly dyed hair and piercings, and boys with drullets (our nickname for a popular Basque cut that combines the mullet and dreadlocks - as you can imagine, it's not attractive. I’m still hoping to find a prime moment to snap a picture of one as proof). 

The campus itself is similar to those in America, except less visually appealing; its cement buildings, walkways, and benches give the impression you're there to study and nothing more. But that's just the first half of the day, and the academic side of things; although I'm technically here to study, I've come to realize in some ways I've learned more outside the classroom than in it and these lessons will impact my life more than when to use a conjugated verb in past subjunctive versus pluscuamperfecto (yes, I know the difference in that example and no, for your own good I will not take time to explain haha).  My knowledge of maps has significantly increased; the days of getting lost on the 405 freeway are (hopefully) long behind me after getting turned around numerous times in Spain, France, and Switzerland yet always finding my way safely. My patience level has also improved; it’s amazing what inconsistent public transportation, cultural trends of 3-hour meals in restaurants, and a language barrier can do to someone’s personality! Before I came here I was obsessed with planning in advance and being on time (if not early) to everything; now, however, I expect to find myself much more relaxed when I return to the fast-paced society of the USA.

Although newfound stress reduction is a definite plus, it’s important to remember the random moments too. Like the weekend I went to 3 different restaurants, ordered water at each (a simple request in America), and ended up being served coca cola, beer, and a fizzy fruit drink instead. Good for the pocketbook since water is the most expensive beverage here. I know I’m not fluent, but I assumed the word “agua” was a relatively simple term haha Or the time my roommates and I used a knife, hammer, and scissors to open a can of beans because we couldn’t find a can-opener but were determined to create a somewhat Mexican meal. Or the time a group of us got caught in the middle of a festival outside the metro station; not one full of food and dancing, nope we were lucky enough to end up in the middle of people on stilts wearing masks and smacking (yes, legitimately hitting) people with newspaper. (I later found out this is an annual, Spain-wide tradition) Or the time we missed the last metro of the night and were too cheap to pay for a taxi so we spent 4 hours in the metro station teaching each other random dances and swapping funny stories from home. Or the days of going to class in wet clothes because the temperature outside dropped as you were doing laundry so it took 2x as long to dry as usual (aka 4 days instead of 2).

And what about the food? The taunting bakery I pass every morning on the way to the bus who’s just pulled out a fresh batch of bread, the candy store on the walk home with the couple bickering outside and kid stealing tastes behind the counter every afternoon, the Italian restaurant by the metro hidden above a row of shops but with the best view of the suburb, the restaurant on the corner with the most delicious hamburgers I’ve ever had (and single gambling machine that kids under 18 consistently try to use and, like clock work, get kicked out by the chefs), the pizza place that takes hours to deliver but is super cheap, and the kebab stand a few blocks from my apartment who (we recently discovered) is the secret supplier of the Moroccan’s who wander through the city selling inexpensive cd’s.

There are countless more scenarios that pop into my mind, but I suppose the point of all this is after all the doubts of passing classes, complaints of waking up before the sun rises 5 days a week, and bouts of homesickness there isn’t a second of the past 3 months I would change. The people I’ve met, things I’ve done, places I’ve seen, lessons I’ve learned, and new outlook on life I’ve obtained are priceless! That being said I have 20 more days to finish with a bang, here I go!!!!

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