Picture Fracaso

Just wanted to let you know that the lack of new pictures on my blog isn't due to my blogging laziness (this time). For some reason my computer just won't let me upload pictures (and I do have a lot from this past month). I will persevere though, so that you can see me smilingly cheesily in front of monument x, building y, or cityscape z. I know you can't wait!

What have I been up to during the latest internet silence? Well, after the conference in Valencia, I went to Prague with Srinu and some of the Fulbright girls. Prague is beautiful, romantic - and touristy, as I imagine most beautiful, romantic European cities are during the Spring and Summer. We ate well, drank better (I had forgotten how delicious beer could be), and took in some breathtaking views. The highlight for me though is definitely my birthday dinner that the girls organized at a very perfect vegetarian restaurant recommended by Mr. Quesito of Spanish fame (a friend). It was a delectable surprise and I will remember it always!

The weekend after that, Nikhil, Katie, and Mark from Vandy passed through Madrid so we did the tourist thing some more. The weather was freakish and therefore not so amenable to showing off the most wonderful things about Madrid (e.g. terrazzas in the springtime). I think I managed to take them to a few cool places though and hopefully they had a good time.

The week after that, Srinu and I skipped over to Barcelona where we met up with Alex who was meeting up with her college roommate Rita. We didn't see Mark, who was being wined and dined for the Formula 1 races there (hmph; someone with a real job). Though it was the fourth or fifth time I had been there, I still enjoyed the city and loved being on the beach. Can there be anything better than Spain in the springtime? The only downside was, again, that it was PACKED. Tourists are slowly starting to infiltrate the cities to which before, during the winter, we felt like were exclusively for us. How rude! I know I'm a tourist, too, but I'd prefer if no one else was when I was visiting a place :)

Anyway, the week after that brought a long weekend here in Madrid for el Dos de Mayo, celebrating the 2nd of May when, in 1808, the Madrilenos rose up again Napoleon's French occupying forces using scissors, hair pins, and whatever else they could get their hands on. I imagine there were probably a few pots and pans thrown in the mix too.....At any rate, I stuck around for the celebrations, especially since Srinu flew out that morning. The rest of the weekend and week was fairly relaxing as I tried to catch up on things like e-mail, organizing pictures, and this here blog 'o mine.

However, the days reserved for resting are short lived because tomorrow I head out again, this time to Marrakech, Morocco. I'm heading over with Alex and her friend Eddie who lives in France. After seeing countless cathedrals, Roman walls, and medieval streets, I'm ready for a sightseeing change. Bring on the couscous, mint tea, and mosques!

In other news......

I wanted to dedicate a special post to a few new additions to my list of amazing colleagues on the left. Jeff Smith recently hit the Appalachian Trail and intends to spend the next few months working on his mountain man look. For all those interesting in following along, read his Trail Journal!

Joe Finlay, or Joe Argyle as he is more affectionately known to the Nashville crowd has taken it upon himself to comment on the goings on of Nashvegas. Catch up on what's happening in one helluva great city here.

Lastly, my friend Alex Kruzel, with whom I did Alternative Winter Break in Mississippi and New Orleans, is now doing the Peace Corps in Angoche, Mozambique. Some of you may have heard about the terrible hurricanes that have ravaged her small coastal town. She has sent out a letter asking for help which you can find here or on the left-hand side in hopes that some of you may be able to assist. If you have any questions, let me know and I can forward them along to her.

Notes from a Retroactive Blogger

I always knew I´d be terrible at keeping the world at large up to date with my goings ons! I suppose there are three reasons for this: 1) I´m too busy living the next new adventure to blog about, 2) I´m a terrible blogger, or 3) Spain has made me incredibly inefficient with my time. I´m going to go with #3.

The truth is that the past two months have been incredibly busy. After a nice relaxing January post-visitors, February was filled with preparations for the big GC. Having hashed and rehashed the Global Classrooms process ad nauseum over the past few months, I will spare you the details (you should be thankful). I will say, though, that the conference was a success and I think my kids got a lot out of it. We had two honourable mentions and one “Best Delegation Overall” award. Congratulations to them! I have posted a few pictures here. The rest can be seen on my Global Classrooms Blog at http://isaacalbeniz.blogspot.com

After GC, we needed a break so Talia, Alex, Alex´s college roommate Julia, and I rented a small, red car we affectionately nicknamed Small Fry and hit the highway for a whirlwind 36-hour road trip to Bilbao and San Sebastian. Our sole purpose for going to Bilbao was to see the Guggenheim built by Frank Gehry. The museum, both the building and the exhibit on 300 Years of American Innovation, was nothing short of amazing, as expected. The city however, pleasantly surprised us as a revitalized industrial city with lots of new architecture and great pintxos (small tapas that you choose from the bar). I can safely say that in Pais Vasco, realmente se come bien! The rest of the trip was highly entertaining- driving along the Northern coast of Spain belting out Juanes songs and getting lost. San Sebastian was as beautiful as I remembered it and, though the trip home was much longer than might have been desired (because the highway just ended—WHAT???), the trip was well worth it and one of my favourites so far. And now I have bragging rights to having logged over 1,000 KM in just 36 hours in Spain all by myself. Woohoo! Some more pictures (because I know most of you are just scrolling down to see them!)

Other highlights in February include a day trip to Avila with Alex to see the intact Roman wall, lots of museuming, and…..Parul´s engagement! Here´s a photo of that too J

March has been equally, if not more busy. For Semana Santa (Easter Break or Spring Break) I headed to Berlin to see my old buddy Claus. We had a blast and saw a lot – Potsdam, Rheinsberg, Neurruppin (the 750 town where Claus is from), and Berlin for a few days. Though the weather will probably prevent me from moving to Germany any time in the near future, the trip was excellent and I took full advantage of the Huxedorfs´ hospitality. We drank fantastically good beer (I had forgotten what good beer tasted like after drinking the beer-flavored water that is Mahou), ate well, and toured almost non-stop. In addition to the normal touristy sights in Berlin, we hit the dinosaur museum and the Berlin Zoo—both of which I loved! Again, here are some pictures for all you visually inclined folks……

After Berlin, I came back to Madrid and had a far-too-brief reunion with Monica Ecklin, my old roomie from Nashville whom most of you know! It was so great to see her and her fiancé (/my friend) Nick along with the entire Ecklin clan. I wish we had gotten more time together, but it was so great to reunite nonetheless. See how happy we all are?

After two days of resting/laundering/running errands and one day of working, the other Fulbrighters and I repacked our bags and headed to Valencia for our mid-year conference. Though it wasn´t warm enough to go swimming, the weather was phenomenal, particularly after the iciness that characterized my trip to Germany. The conference went rather well. The Fulbright Commission really outdid itself and pampered us to no end- four star hotel, fantastic meals (including seaside paella at La Pepica), etc. It was great to reconnect with many grantees I hadn´t seen since orientation in September and hear what amazing things they had been up to. It was definitely the intellectual stimulation I didn´t realize I had been craving and hopefully it has reenergized me and recommitted me to achieving what it was I set out to achieve in the first place. After much Fulbright feel-good love, though, the conference ended and we were kicked out of the Hotel Beatriz Don Jaime and went to the Central Valencia Backpacker´s Hostal for one extra night. Having 8 of us crammed into one room on bunk beds after the luxury of high-class living was a bit shocking, but it was only for a night. Highlights in Valencia include the Ciudad de Artes y Ciencas, the Aquarium, and, of course, the beach. Lovely!

Now I am finally back in Madrid readjusting to working a “full” work week (these three days are long, I swear!) I have a feeling though, that April will be equally hectic, as I have more visitors coming (yay), a trip to Prague planned followed by a stint in Morocco, and lots of work to do in terms of the impending job search (wish me luck).

That being said, I will try my hardest to not be an internet pill and to provide updates more often. Until then…..Happy Spring!

Racism in Europe

So I think I’ll break my non-updating, sickeningly-optimistic streak by blogging about something that has been downright disturbing to me during my stay here. In early February, my school hosted a talk by Myra Brown, a Department of State librarian sent to us from the US Embassy, about Racism in America. Ms. Brown gave an interesting (albeit slightly difficult for my segundos to understand) talk about race and racism in America using the aid of several YouTube and movie clips (including American History X, Crash, and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?). At the end, she began to talk a little bit about racism in Europe, particularly the ways in which it has manifested itself in sports. She showed clips from the 2006 World Cup, where North African players were insulted by their own fans as “monkeys” and had bananas thrown at them; where dark-skinned players were called terrorists; and where some fans showed a general lack of tact when referencing particular players. For more on the subject, click here.

My kids had prepared questions to ask her, some of which I was proud of but some of which made me cringe in the direct way in which they were asked (“Why are blacks more poor than whites?”) or in their ignorance (“Are blacks allowed to live in any state they want in the United States?”). Needless to say, political correctness is not valued nearly as much (or at all) here in Spain. Still, Myra fielded their questions graciously and honestly and in the end I think it was good for them to get some exposure to someone who was black who defied all the stereotypes they hold of blacks and immigrants as a general group. My kids, at least, behaved better than one of the kids I tutored, who blatantly told me, “Well, all immigrants come here to rob and steal. All blacks do is rob and steal.” Straight from his family’s mouth, no doubt. Having lived in one of the (historically) most racist places in the United States, I had never ever come across such an ignorant attitude. I was livid.

I was also slightly bothered and slightly worried, though, by my own kids’ responses to my follow up lesson on the controversy between Formula 1 drivers Hamilton and Lewis: http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/04/racism-hits-formula-one-in-spain/index.html?hp Granted, it’s an editorial published in the NY Times. Granted, we Americans tend to be hypersensitive when it comes to issues of race. Still, I was surprised to find that almost none of my kids thought that the issue between Hamilton and Lewis had anything to do with race. They, along with a good number of teachers, found what occurred on the Barcelona circuit to be inoffensive and exaggerated. I found myself angry at first at Europeans’ attitudes towards and race and racism – how ironic that all the while that they were calling Americans hypocritical they themselves had a problem with festering race relations they didn’t want to confront. Then I began to wonder if they were just being honest and it was I who was being hypersensitive (about this particular situation). I’ve come to the conclusion that it may be a little bit of both. Thoughts?

Cupcakes & Sunshine

Now that I am once again living the solitary life here in Madrid, I have a bit more time to do important things like illegally catch up on episodes of The Office (www.sidereel.com, my newfound friend thanks to Caitlin) and update my blog (again, you’re welcome Alex). Actually, I highly recommend you not waste your time reading what is sure to be my humdrum update but rather turn your attention to one of the several highly entertaining blogs I have added to the left here. There are my far more witty Fulbright compatriots making more astute observations than I on our daily lives in Spain; my adventurous, courageous, and ambitious inspirations from home who are doing good things at home and abroad; and my Spanish friends who are haciendo un esfuerzo para mejorar el mundo a través del arte y de la palabra escrita. I sometimes like to go to my own blog page just to see all of the stories of an odd assortment of people from all facets of my life collected together. It reminds me of how lucky I am to have known all those I keep close in my heart (though stubbornly and ironically enough, not close at hand!) through the years. For those of you who have office jobs, os aconsejo that you substitute precious Facebook minutes to peruse through the lives of some of the phenomenal people I’ve been lucky enough to know; maybe you will even be inspired to donate to Laurel’s race or the Primeros Pasos clinic, vote in the primaries due to Vivek’s campaign enthusiasm, learn a new language after reading about Cameron’s good life in Copacabana, volunteer because of Craig or Lisa’s tireless and giving spirit, paint a picture (Simona), or write a book (Pablo). And, if you visit CWA-Cayce’s page, you’ll see I’m the feature of the week – a “Where are they now?” for old volunteers!

My slightly creepy mention of staring at my own blog page and congratulating myself for having fallen into such fine friendships probably makes it sound like I have too much time on my hands. This has actually not been the case, though I have had time to get my life back together and get into the routine of things again after the holidays. Actually, work has kept me super busy. I really (most days) enjoy the challenge of teaching and have enjoyed in particular the past few weeks at school. Our Global Classrooms Conference is less than a month away (!) – February 14^th and 15^th. I, of course, can think of no better way to spend Valentine’s Day than carting 23 nervous Spanish 12 year-olds to the opening conference an hour away from where they live to listen to representatives from Merrill Lynch, the British Council, the Consejeria de Educacion, the Comunidad de Madrid, UNA-USA, and SLU Madrid all congratulate themselves on what an amazing program they have put together.

All bitterness aside though, today I had three success stories: 1) Ana Gonzalez, 12, during a mock debate on illegally downloading music: “We, the delegation of CD companies, are deeply concerned about illegally downloading music because…,” 2) Lucia, 15, writing a perfect paragraph with complicated sentence structures in an impeccable reporter’s tone on an invented plane crash, and 3) Alicia, ,12, understanding how to use perambulatory clauses in order to form resolutions with minimal explanation. And these three things alone were enough to make this a very good day. Yesterday was also a good day, despite finding out that another one of my students re-failed an exam he retook (it was word for word the same test) after we spent 3 hours working through the problems and finding out the right answers. The frustration and joy of teaching, I think, lies in that your successes and failures are so closely tied to children – in this case adolescents. This means that the highs are very high and the lows, well, downright disappointing.

Who knows, talk to me tomorrow and I’ll probably be singing a different tune. You know, today the proud parent, tomorrow wanting to strangle my own creations.

In other news, I have been enjoying being on the other side of having visitors, playing the “meet the friend” role for several of the other Fulbrighters’ family members, significant others, and friends who are in town. Another huge highlight was American Brunch on Sunday with the Fulbrighters, a Brit, and Morgan’s Guatemalan roommates— real syrup, pancakes, hashbrowns, fruit salad, spinach and potato frittata, real bacon (for the others, this was exciting)—it was almost too much. I also had a moment last Friday night, after making dinner, watching a movie, and having a spontaneous dance party with my roommates (that lasted for an hour) in which I was almost annoyingly, sickeningly, smugly content with where I was and who I was with. I was, am, and remain encantada to be here. Cheesy, perhaps the faux Spring weather is getting to my head, but true.

Last, but definitely not least, a few thank-yous: Sanjeet for his festive and characteristically hilarious Christmas card; Kitty & Mehul for bringing me a suitcase full of Trader Joe’s and Asian food that I have been enjoying immensely; Mary Margaret for a box full of random and delicious treats (including snack-size 80s Trivial Pursuit and swirly straws); and Urmi & Pranav for the sweet, unexpected card and jewelry. Finding things like this in the mail are wonderful and much appreciated – so thank you!

¡Feliz Navidad y Prospero Año!

"All I want for Christmas is a blog update!" After a few messages along these lines, I decided I couldn't disappoint my audience (a.k.a. my peers who spend way too much time in front of their computers at their respective places of work).

The past month has been a whirlwind (as is everything these days) and I have been traipsing around Spain and Portugal, picking up much anticipated visitors along the way. In the week or two following Thanksgiving, I spent time with my Fulbrighters, most notably going to see a play (Fedra) that my co-worker was in and meeting the cast afterwards. The following weekend I jetted off via train to Salamanca, a university town just north of Madrid with my roommate Teresa to go to the presentation of my friend Pablo's new book: "Las cuatro llaves: Marketing y el cambio social" (The Four Keys: Marketing and Social Change -- see a link to his blog on the side if you want more information). The trip was a great success, so much so that instead of coming back the following day I stayed until Sunday. We battled the melancholy weather armed with jazz and long walks around the city, good conversations and lots of food and drink. In the end, one of the most random and memorable weekends I have had in a long time, not to mention the fact that I am so proud of Pablo and his accomplishment.

The following weekend was a puente, or a long weekend, because December 6 was Constitution Day in Spain. In celebration of the constitution (and more time off from school!) I went with Alex, Jen, Morgan, Emily and our two British compatriots, Helen and Jane, to Sevilla in the south of Spain. I had been there before, but it was still nice to revisit the city, the gigantic cathedral, the river, and the WARM WEATHER. The orange trees were also a nice romantic touch in theory, but having had our first meal under a line of them (and having suffered the consequences of our feathered friends' waste landing in our food) we decided to admire them from afar and never eat under them again! The last night we were there we made reservations at an Italian restaurant and had a raucous girls night out. I hate to admit it, but I had actually missed singing "Shot Through the Heart" at the top of my lungs, frat-style.

We got back late Sunday night and after a harried day of work on Monday, I skipped on Tuesday to go pick up my sister, who has been here for the past three weeks "doing a rotation." After a few hospital visits, lots of shopping, and one fantastic Birthday celebration, we welcomed TJ to the mix, visiting the Prado and the Reina Sofia yet again and having some fantastic meals post-work Mon-Wed. Wednesday afternoon brought my brother Shivan, who we whisked away to Toledo the following day. Friday morning we all sprinted to the airport to make our flight to.....Lisbon! We spent two glorious nights in Lisbon, eating some amazing meals and taking in some breathtaking sights. My favorite, though, was Oporto on Sunday. We only were able to spend one night there, but the city was absolutely beautiful and port-tasting was a fun experience. It was also nice, albeit strange, to watch the locals doing their last minutes shopping, coming to the main square outside of our hotel to see the giant Christmas tree, be tourists themselves for the sakes of their out-of-town family members....

We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (Nochebuena y el Dia de Navidad) at home in Madrid, cooking Italian and Indian food, watching cheesy American movies, and playing scrabble and other nerdy word games online. Unfortunately, TJ had to leave on Christmas Day to go back to the States, but we were glad he was at least able to come for the week he was here!

To numb the loss of one of our fellow travelers, my sister, brother, and I headed to Barcelona Wednesday-Friday. I had been there a couple of times before, but it was great to see the sights again with the family and show off my limited knowledge of the place. Madrid will always feel more like home, but I must say, I fell in love with Barcelona all over again. I didn't realize how much I was craving its cosmopolitan, diverse feel, its eclectic cuisine, and its beautiful architecture and city art. Maybe I'll take up Catalan next and head out there to live.....

We took a flight back late Friday night so that we could be back in Madrid in time to pick up Visitor #4, my cousin Mehul! He got in yesterday afternoon and we walked around again, seeing the madness of Sol with its thousands of people, moving on to the quieter vistas of the Palace lit up at night, and onto Cava Baja, where we took in some tapas and (of course) vino. We ended the night early, due to Mehul's jet-laggedness and sickness (he's just recovering from the flu). Plus, we wanted to save our energy for this evening, which is when his girlfriend Kitty comes in (Visitor #5). They're all only staying for a few days, but I can't wait to hang out and spend New Year's Eve together. I feel so lucky to have all these visitors all at once! It really made the holidays special to have so much family here to come visit me, particularly since they have all come armed with edible goodies like brownie mix and chocolate chip cookies. The most recent shipment, brought by my dear cousin Mehul, even includes frozen veggie burgers and dumplings! It's almost too good to be true ;) They all head out on the 2, 3, and 4 of this week, so I'm sure it will be a little lonely afterwards. Thankfully, Shivan is staying until the 11th to keep me company!

So it seems like the house is starting to stir finally, giving me my cue to resume my hostessing duties (a.k.a. making bagels - YES, BAGELS! that my brother brought me - for the crew). Hopefully there won't be as much lag time between this and the next post, but I can't promise anything!

And to all of you who are far away, I hope you have had a happy holiday and I wish you a very, very Happy New Year!

Día de Acción de Gracias

Happy Thanksgiving! In the spirit of the season, we had a massive dinner (and by massive, I mean a 7x3 table absolutely covered in food) with some of the Fulbrighters over at Talia’s apartment on Sunday. She has eight roommates, most of whom joined the 12 or so of us, so dinner was a grab bag of Americans + Europeans (Greek, Italian, French, Spanish). For over five hours, we all cooked, gushed over what good cooks we all were, ate copious amounts of food in several stages, gorged on rich desserts (including homemade pumpkin pie from scratch, which was a-mazing), and laughed hysterically over YouTube videos. We all agreed that while we sometimes lament our lack of Spanish friends, we really should be thankful for all of the absolutely phenomenal people we have met over the past three months (even though, desgraciadamente, they are American). Needless to say, we all left with that warm fuzzy holiday feeling that most of you will probably get this afternoon (read: also known as food coma).

Then came Monday, and our warm fuzzy feeling was washed away by a much needed torrential downpour that lasted three days! The cold accompanied the rain and, all in all, the weather was downright shitty. Madrid is generally a brilliantly sunny city, so it seemed to me that the bad weather really affected the mood of the city. Magically, however, my kids were quiet and attentive during these days…I am almost willing to say I would trade in all the sunny days of Spain for this miracle, though I’m not sure yet.

Yesterday, I went to go see Cassandra’s Dream in version original (since most of the movies here in Spain are dubbed in Spanish with cheesy voices). It’s yet another one of Woody Allen’s forays into the gray area of morality, culpability, and choice. Definitely not the most uplifting movie I have ever seen, but I would recommend it, since it is infinitely more thought-provoking than the last movie I saw (Lío Embarazoso, which is “Knocked Up” dubbed in Spanish). Also, Philip Glass is the composer, so at the very least, go for the music!

In other, more (most) important news, today is the day that my dearest cousin Ranak gets married in New Delhi (only to get married again in two days in Baroda). Me da pena (“it pains me”) that I can’t be there celebrating her marriage. While I can’t wait to see the pictures and squeal over the outfits, it’s just not the same, particularly since Ranak is my other sister. Every day I think of what a pity it is that we have not yet invented teleporting, as this simple device would make my life 1,000x easier! Case and point: my roommate Monica E. from Nashville is engaged to the fabulous Nick E.! Seeing the two of them almost every day for the past year made me an invested stakeholder in this engagement, but I couldn’t be there to help celebrate! Pues, por lo menos, Monica y Nick, felicidades!

Today starts my absurdly long weekend. I’m going to celebrate by running never-ending errands and watching a French movie with my language classmates. After all, what better way to celebrate Thanksgiving than watching a French movie in Spain with Colombians and eating Indian food? It’s the American way.

P.S. For a little Thanksgiving cheer, check out the adorable video the CWA-Cayce Learning Center has posted of my former students describing what they are thankful for. I miss them! http://www.cwacayce.blogspot.com/