Instituto

I know I just posted a couple of days ago but a lot has happened and I want to keep you updated. To begin, my Spanish is getting better and better. I am still not very good, but I am learning and i can understand more easily. And speaking is better, although I still mix some stuff up and end up saying something completely wrong, but my host family gets it. Anyway, I think my last post was Sunday. On Monday, I woke up at 1130. That was a surprise. I looked at my iPod and was like," AHHHHHHHHH!!! ITS ELEVEN THIRTY!!" This is the latest I have ever slept in and i was afraid it was offensive or something. But my host family was fine with it, which is good because it was SUPER nice to wake up then. Monday and Tuesday were pretty boring, though. I didn't do much. I read a lot. It was quite nice to read a lot, but I wanted to do something (like school). Tuesday was pretty much the same as Monday except I woke up at 9 instead of 1130. Wednesday I started school. I say started. Wednesday I went to school for thirty minutes. It was pretty sad. I got there early because Pablo had to be there at 12. So I had to find my class by myself. (by find my class i mean find what class i was in, not find the actual classroom.) Pablo came out at 1225 ish and introduced me to one of his friends who is in my grade. His friend introduced me to this American guy, Tim. I was super surprised and Tim said that he went to school there last year and we talked for a minute. I don't know if he still goes there but i hope so because i want to talk to an American some times. Anyway, Pablo's friend took me to class, except we couldn't find the class. Once we did find it, i made a great impression by coming in late and everyone looked at me like I was crazy. It was great. The teacher is pretty nice though. But i met no one. Today i went to school again, also for thirty minutes. Today was better, though. Not including the fact that it is my birthday. YAY! Anyway, i got to class a little early and only two other girls were there. They introduced themselves so i had two new friends! Monica and someone else i cant remember. Then the rest of the class got there and we mixed up the seats again because new desks were added. I am super lucky because i get to sit next to the half Irish girl who speaks pretty good English. HALLELUJAH! So if i don't know what is going on i can ask her. After school i went to the phone store and decided what phone i want to get. I think we are going back later to get it. Oh, i almost forgot. Last night i got to meet my two tutors. (and for all you AFS Spain people reading this, you didn't read that wrong. I have two. :) Actually i have one officially and one that is unofficial but whatever.) Anyway, i met them and we talked for about 45 minutes. It was pretty good!

Ok, now for things that are different in Spain. Here is as many as i can think of:

1. Language: Kinda obvious, I know but hey, it is a difference.
2. Signs on the Highway: They are not just a little different, but a lot different. I will post pictures later…
3. Houses: There is a lot more of what I would call townhomes, a bunch of houses that share walls and are in a row.
4. Houses (2): All of the freestanding houses have walls around their yards and a gate with an intercom to talk to whoever is inside if you want to get in.
5. Light Switches: We usually have two different ones in the US, the ones with and actual switch that sticks out from the wall, and the ones shaped like a rectangle. Here their light switches are more like the second, except they are square. They are about the same height as the rectangle ones and are as wide as they are tall.
6. Toilets: The toilets dont have a little handle you push to flush, it is a botton of sorts…
7. Plugs: Its Europe, the plugs are different.
8. Money: The money is different in Europe, too.
9. Eating Times: We eat breakfast at the normal time, but lunch is a big meal at about 2 and dinner is another big meal at about 9.
10. Carpet: Or lack of. There is no carpet in the house. At all. It is really weird and you don’t realize how much you appreciate carpet until you dont have it.
11. People: They are! I mean, they are still people, but they are different. It is kinda hard to explain.
12. Roundabouts: They are EVERYWHERE! At least in Tres Cantos. There is one outside my neighborhood, one 100 yards away from that one, another one on the main road, another one on the main road, another one, and many more.
13. Trash: They don't put their trash in bins and then put the bins out on the sidewalk once a week for the trash people to come pick it up. There are just big bins along the street that they put their trash and recycle into (I don't think all of Spain is like this, just some parts).
14. Shoes: You don't go barefoot in the House. You wear flip-flops or socks or just regular shoes. I sometimes go barefoot but the rest of my family? Nope.
15. School: As far as I know, we sit in the same classroom all day and the teachers switch rooms. I think this is crazy because who wants to be stuck in the same chair ALL DAY! Crazy.
16. Metro: Compared to Seattle, the metro is super good. I haven't ridden it, but everyone I have talked to says it is really reliable and stuff.
17. School: The way school is organized is also different. There is the first 6 years. Then the next 4, then the last two. The middle for are called ESO and the last is Bachillerato. I can't remember the first one, but I think it is Primaria.
18. School: Another way school is different is that you don't have a bunch of elementary schools then a few junior highs, and then one or two high schools in a City. I think there is 3 or 4 elemenary schools, 3 or 4 junior highs/high schools. There are a few private schools too.
19. Textbooks: They are not the hard-cover, thick books the school owns that you borrow every year. They are soft cover, you buy your own every year, and they don't really look like what I think textbooks look like.
20. Cars: They have the same car companies (and some different ones) but the cars are all more compact. There are no minivans or suburbans.
21. Parking: Ok, I was only going to do twenty, but this one i had to do, too. There are no parking lots. Anywhere. You just parallel park or park in the single row of parking spots that are in the large median in the middle of the road. (the median is super huge with trees and a huge sidewalk for people and bikes and stuff. The whole thing is probably as big as about a 4 lane road, not including the two actual lanes for cars. Then again they do have very narrow Roads)
22. Driving: Ok, one more. If the road is four lanes, two one way and two the other, and there is the lane line thingy in the middle, you can drive over that and no one really cares. And i have only seen about 3 speed limit signs. It is quite crazy.

Wow, that was more than I thought I had. OH! And the one thing I miss the most:

Carpet.

Anyway, So far everything is going pretty well. Miss you!

Adios!