My weekend in Ourense

Part of the Cathedral

This past weekend some of my friends and I traveled to Ourense, which is one of the larger cities here in Galicia.  We were able to take the train and it was only a two hour trip.  It's more inland than Coruna and has a very different feel.  Currently Coruna is one of the largest cities in Galicia, but it developed more recently than the other cities in Galicia so it has a much newer feel.  It is Europe so it still feels older than most parts of the US, but for Spain it is a relatively newer city.  The way I see it, the modernity of Coruna makes it a great place to live, but it makes travelling to the other parts of Spain even more interesting.  Ourense has some really interesting older buildings, there's a Plaza Mayor and a really neat Cathedral. One of the cool things about Spain is that many of the cities have tourism offices where you can go to get information about the best places to visit, a map of the cities and information about the historic sites.  After we checked into our Hostel on Saturday, we stopped by the tourism office to pick up a map and find out the hours of the museums and places we wanted to visit.  Since we arrived to the city too early for lunch but we were all hungry, we stopped at a chocolateria  to have coffee and some churros.  Then we explored the city, most of the museums had closed for lunch by that point but we were able to walk around and enjoy the architecture of the city.  After walking around the city and burning off our churros we stopped for lunch at a really nice restaurant.  The great thing about Spain is that if you take advantage of a menu del dia you can eat very well for a very economic price.  We were able to choose a first plate, an entree, dessert or coffee and water or wine for 10 euro.  The food was delicious, and the region of Galicia we were in is known for its wine so all in all a delicious meal.

Part of the Plaza Mayor

In the afternoon we went inside the Cathedral which was pretty cool.  It's always hard to believe how old some of the buildings are here.  We also went to an exhibit about the Iberos, the pre-romanic people who lived in southern Spain while the Celts inhabited Northern Spain.  It was a very nice exhibit sponsored by one of the banks in Spain.  We wandered around the exhibit and then when it was time for the guided tour to start the tour guide asked the group whether they wanted the tour in gallego or castellano, the tour ended up being in gallego since there were more natives in the tour and we were so tired we weren't sure if we were going to stay for the entire tour.  I actually understand more of the gallego tour than I thought I would, so I guess I've absorbed more at the school than I thought.

The thermal pool in the city

A cool fact about Ourense is that there are natural hot springs there.  The Romans had baths in Ourense by the hot springs and right next to some of the ruins of the Roman baths are newer "termales" thermal pools which are open to the public.  Friday evening after a short siesta at the hostel, we went to the pool in the city which is right next to the ruins of the Roman baths.  On Sunday we took a bus to some pools outside the city which overlook the river and are surrounded by trees and shrubbery.  That was really interesting because you could walk down near the river and see exactly where the source of the hot spring was and smell the sulfur.  It was a really cool experience.  One of the pamphlets we had on Ourense listed Ourense as the second most important thermal city in Europe.  However, when we got home I tried to look up what the most important thermal city was in Europe and Ourense wasn't even on any of the lists I found, so I'm a little perplexed as to what Ourense is the second most in Europe.  Overall it was an amazing trip and I have so many more pictures to upload to facebook but the past few times I've tried to upload them facebook has malfunctioned, so those will be coming soon!

Pools near the river

"La Verguenza del Gallego"

When I first arrived in Spain, the abundance of food at every meal was a little overwhelming.  I had to mentally prepare before any meal I had with Spaniards because I knew there would be many different dishes to try.  Well, I think my stomach has finally adjusted to the Spanish way of eating.  Don’t be too surprised when I come back to the US several pounds heavier, although since I’m in Europe I guess the correct phrasing is several kilos heavier.  The Spaniards like to eat, and they like to eat a lot.  One of the first phrases I learned when I arrived in Galicia is “La verguenza del Gallego” which translates to “the shame of the Galician.”  And of course, it relates to food.  During tapas, the last portion that remains is referred to as “la verguenza del gallego” which of course means someone has to eat it, because waste not want not.  Something tells me the Boehmers would have no problem embracing this part of the Spanish culture.

I usually commute back to A Coruña at 2pm with the other teachers who live there and then I make lunch for myself in my apartment.  Wednesday, however, the teachers had a meeting in the evening which meant I needed to stay in Laxe until 7 as well and would be having lunch here.  Because the majority of the teachers do not live in Laxe, we all went out for lunch.  We went to a restaurant tucked away in an even more remote little village about 12 km away from Laxe.  It was one of the best meals I have ever had.  First they brought us multiple plates to start with that we all shared.  There were 12 of us and they brought us three of each of these plates, so yet again an abundance of food.  The first plate they brought out was a salad which was amazingly simple, but delicious.  It was lettuce, tomato and onion but dressed perfectly with oil.  The next plate was a pasta salad that had a creamy dressing and I believe tuna.  The next plate was an omelet with prawns and mushrooms.  I actually really enjoyed it, which surprised me because I typically don’t care for prawns or mushrooms, but in this omelet it was an amazing combination.  The fourth plate, which was my favorite of the starters, is called fideua and it’s paella, but made with fideo(essentially spaghetti) instead of rice.  Keep in mind these were only the starters.  The choices for the main course were fish or beef, and I had a little bit of difficulty understanding the descriptions of the two beef options which were carne asada or carne empanada.  The teachers tried to help explain them to me, but unfortunately I couldn’t remember my Spanish cooking terminology and they couldn’t remember how to describe the food in English, so I ordered carne asada and just hoped for the best.  It turned out that carne empanada was essentially what we would call chicken fried steak, beef that had been dipped in egg, then breadcrumbs and then baked in the oven.  When the carne asada came out, one of the teachers remembered that it is the equivalent of roast beef.  However this particular dish was cooked in a pot instead of in the oven, so essentially it was a pot roast.  It was served with potatoes that tasted like butter and sautéed red peppers.  In the US I typically don’t eat much beef but this was one of the best things I have ever had.  The beef was so tender it practically fell apart when the fork touched it, and the flavor was amazing.  To think that taco bell calls whatever it is that they put inside their burritos carne asada is a sad joke.  Then for dessert, I ordered the cheesecake and it was a peach cheesecake filling in a graham cracker crust.  Somehow I managed to finish the entire cheesecake and have a café con leche as well.  I think it’s safe to say my stomach has adjusted to the Galician way.  And did I mention it only cost 9€?  Amazing.

The End of ETA

 The Basque region of Spain is a small region along the French-Spanish border.  They have their own specific language and a culture very different from the rest of Spain.  Since 1959 ETA has existed with the goal of creating a separate Basque nation.  The group is responsible for 829 deaths as well as many more kidnappings and injuries.  Initially ETA was blamed for the 2004 train bombing in Madrid, which was later tied to Al Qaeda.  In October, the Basque terrorist group ETA officially announced an end to all of their armed activity.  The group has declared cease-fires before, however all have been broken.  There appears to be hope that this is the end of ETA, since this is the first time they have announced a definitive end to their armed activities and not just a ceasefire.

A few days prior to announcing the end, there was an International Peace Conference in the Basque region attended by Kofi Annan, Bertie Ahern, and other diplomatic figures.  I happened to be with some of the teachers when they were talking about the Peace Conference and they all seemed hopeful that it would mean an end to ETA for good.  ETA signed a declaration ending all of their armed activity therefore ending the violence.  The declaration was supported by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Former US President Jimmy Carter and former US Senator George Mitchell.  ETA will begin talks with the Spanish and French governments as how to move forward in the peace process.  There still is some concern because although this is the first definitive statement calling for an end to violence, ETA has broken cease-fire agreements in the past.  The Spanish Interior Minister warns that the most difficult task lies ahead, which is ensuring that this truly is the end of terrorist activities in Spain.

As I have previously mentioned, Northern Spain is very different from Southern Spain.  Don’t expect to see any Flamenco dancers or to see the Moorish influenced on architecture.  The Moors came to Spain in 711 and conquered the majority of the peninsula.  However, in 722 the Moors were driven from the Christian kingdom of Asturias(the region directly to the East of Galicia) and in 739 the Moors were driven from Galicia.   Frankish forces drove the Muslims out of the region south of the Pyrenees, creating a Christian kingdom in the region north of the Ebro and Duero rivers.  

Muslim Spain didn’t fall to the Christian kingdom until the 13^th century, and in 1492 Isabel and Ferdinand recaptured Granada ending the last presence of Muslim rule in Spain.  For hundreds of years, Northern and Southern Spain had completely different influences.  Northern Spain had the influence of the Celts Southern Spain the Moors. There are four official languages in Spain, three of which are spoken in Northern Spain.  The regions of Northern Spain are very proud of their heritage and are committed to keeping their history alive, which can lead to conflict when they feel the Spanish government does not give them enough autonomy.  In Galicia, there is a lot of pride toward their national language, Gallego, particularly in smaller towns like Laxe.  Some of my students in the primary school are so used to speaking Gallego at home that they forget to speak to me in Castilian, or what we would call Spanish.  One of the teachers told me there are separatist groups for most of the regions of Northern Spain, but none of them have turned to violence the way ETA has.  Hopefully this will be the end of ETA for good, and represent the end of violence in the Northern Spain separatist groups.

The Halloween storm of the century

News of the nor'easter reached Spain, http://internacional.elpais.com/internacional/2011/10/30/album/1319991225_352169.html.   I was supposed to skype with my parents this past weekend but because of the storm in Connecticut, they had no power, and still have no power.  When I was at school this week, many of the teachers asked how my family was because they remembered I was from Connecticut and they had seen on the news that Connecticut was in a state of emergency from the storm.  I was sure to remind them that a snow storm this early was very unusual, but I am very happy to be in Spain and have power right now.

I'm back!

After a very long hiatus, I am back!  Since I have been teaching for about a month now, I think I can finally fill you all in on my adventures in teaching.  The Spanish education system is set up slightly differently from the American system.  Obligatory schooling only goes up through what we consider 10th grade.  After that students can attend prep school(which is free) to prepare for University, or they can attend a vocational school, or begin working.  The way the obligatory schooling is set up is with the primary school which starts at age 3 and goes through 6th grade.  Then they have secondary school which they refer to as years 1-4, instead of grades 7-10.  I  work with years 3-6 in the primary school and years 1-4 in the secondary school, and I'm with each class about one hour a week.  Depending on which school I'm in, or what teacher I'm with I have a different role.  In the primary school, the English teacher sits in the back of the room and I run the class for an hour.  In the secondary schools, I'm more of an assistant in the class and we're still trying to really figure out my role.

In Spain, there is a push to increase the mastery of multiple languages, and many schools have subjects which are taught in Spanish and English.  In some schools it's music, in others it's physical education and in my school it's art.  I work mostly in the English classes, but I also help in the art class in the secondary school. Fun fact: in Spain, art class also includes geometry.  I haven't taken geometry since freshman year of high school, so I'm a little rusty.  The students work on problems during the class and the teacher typically walks around the class and answers any of their questions, typically in English.  So that's what I am doing as well.  And while I can help them understand that regla is a ruler, I'm pretty useless when they ask me how to find the perpendicular line bisector using a protractor.  So if nothing else, I am definitely brushing up on my protractor skills and the properties of a triangle.

The English classes in the secondary school can be bit challenging.  Being a middle school teacher requires a certain type of personality, and if nothing else my first month has reinforced that it is not a viable career option for me when I return.  They can be very talkative and very difficult, so everyday you have no idea what to expect with them.  And in Spain, deadlines aren't as strictly enforced as in the US.  The first week I was teaching I made a simple powerpoint for the English classes for years one and two in the secondary school about myself.  It was very basic with pictures of my family, my house, my school, all in all maybe 8 slides.  We told the students they needed to bring in something similar about themselves the next week.  Fast forward 4 weeks, we still are not done, in year 2 half of them don't even have it finished yet, and while they presented the majority of them spent more time talking in Spanish.  But now I know, this is not something to continue with.  Live and learn, right?  In year 4 since they have a better grasp of the language, I did a presentation on Connecticut and then in pairs they all picked a state to present on.  Because of the way a few holidays fell, we've only had time for two presentations.  Both were well done, and I was very impressed with the presentation on Massachusetts since it went into a lot of detail about the state.  As I was reading the report they handed in, at first I was very impressed with their almost flawless grammar, but about two sentences in, I realized the grammar was a little too good.  Also, I can spot a wikipedia entry a mile away.  When I found the English wikipedia entry on Massachusetts, I realized it was word for word what they had handed in.  That was a little frustrating.

As frustrated as I get with secondary school, I love working at the primary school!  The students all listen to me for the most part and are very well behaved.  It's amazing the difference between the students in year six of the primary school and year one in the secondary school.  The students in year six are remarkably well behaved, and unlike the students in their first year, they will take the time to struggle through forming an English sentence whereas the others will revert back to Spanish once they get frustrated.  I think part of the problem is that the students in year one in the secondary school are more self-conscious now that they are older, and they would rather speak in Spanish than risk making a mistake in English.  But, the English teacher at the primary school has told me that her students love me, and they always ask when I will be coming to teach.  An even bigger compliment was when she told me that some students who won't participate in her class, participate in mine.  It was definitely encouraging to hear that, because I have no teaching experience so sometimes I feel really lost in front of the classroom.