I just wanted to take a moment to write about my last two weekends and life in general in Valladolid. My last month here is quickly approaching (I finish at Ribera de Castilla June 15th, at the academy June 25th and I move out on June 30th) and I find it hard to believe how time flies! Before I up and flew off to Morocco last week the weekend before was an absolute blast. We had a dinner party for work and Marta came to Valladolid!
I have to say that for as difficult as I've sometimes had it at work, both at the high school and at the academy, I've always been thankful to work with such cool people (again, at both places). Every now and then I go out with some of my co-workers from the academy and they are a lot of fun. I work with a guy from India, a guy from Cuba and another guy and two girls from Spain. They're all a few years older than me but we're around the same age. We finally found a night when we were all free so we decided to have a dinner party, complete with India food and Cuban mojitos.
They all said next time I had to bring chili-dogs to add an American touch. hah. We all had a great time and even one of the girls who worked with us last semester, who I haven't seen since then, was able to make it. She left the academy because she had just finished school and was hired to work at the only school in a tiny village outside of Valladolid. I guess during the first few months she was having a really hard time. We talked a lot and figured out we had had a parallel experience, both of us recently graduated, with her getting used to being the only teacher in a small school and me adjusting to life as a teacher in a foreign land. But now we are doing great. "That's the only important thing," she said to me.
That same weekend Marta and her boyfriend, Joaquín, came to visit! I hadn't seen Joaquín since I went to visit Marta and her family during my winter break sophomore year.
When I was in Pola de Lena this November he was studying abroad in Poland so we missed each other. But he just got back in March so he was able to road trip down to Valladolid with Marta. They could only stay for a night because Marta has to study. I don't know if I mentioned this before but since she graduated from law school last year she's been studying to become a civil law notary, which actually is nothing like a notary at home, it's more on the level of a judge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_law_notary). It's what her Dad does and it seems pretty cool. The two times I stayed with them he took me on some conveyancing jobs so I got to see the world of Latin notaries first hand. Anyway, she has to take public examinations (called "oposiciones públicas") to become a practicing notary. Actually, all public employees at all levels of government are hired by "oposiciones" in Spain, from judges to teachers, diplomats to street cleaners.
Poor Marta is actually facing the most difficult public examination there is, rivaled only by the oposciones to become a judge. Most people study non-stop for at least 3 years before even attempting to take the test. So, I feel special that she used her one free day a week to come and see yours truly. We organized my second dinner party of the week at my place with Joanne and some of our Valladolid friends hosting "los asturianos." It was so fun to have all the Spaniards I love in one room. The only thing missing was David and Marta's brother, Carlos, who were both studying for finals. (Is it just me, or am I the only one not studying for something?)
Marta, Joaquín, and I stayed up until like 4 a.m. talking. Joaquín is another one of those friends with whom I've had the pleasure of experiencing what it's like to not see each other for a long time and then pick up as if not a day has gone by. He and I also had a lot to talk about since he is in the midst of the post-study abroad blues (something I know a little about). The next day I showed them around Valladolid and we had a nice lunch out (thanks Martita!). I'm looking forward to a repeat trip to Asturias sometime in June.
This past weekend I went with my Castilla y León travel partner in crime, Octavio the Canary Islander, to the city of Burgos. Highlights were seeing the most impressive cathedral yet (Our Lady of Burgos), the tomb of El Cid, and the castle where Alfonso X El Sabio once lived.
The cathedral of Burgos is absolutely enormous, completely dominating the old town. Its vast interior contains many ornate chapels, including one where El Cid and his wife, Jimena, are buried. Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (better known as El Cid, from the Arabic "sayyid," meaning "the master") is considered the national hero of Spain for his valiant fight against the Moors in the 11th century. I've studied him a lot throughout various Spanish classes in high school and college. Another person I studied was King Alfonso X of Castile, also know as Alfonso The Wise. He is famous for establishing "castellano" as the language of higher learning and for bringing Spain out of the Dark Ages by writing a legal code so advanced that it still functions in modern society. (It has even been the basis for some United States laws today, which is why the image of Alfonso X appears in the House of Representatives).
He is also know for his religious tolerance; during his reign in the 13th century Christians, Jews, and Muslims coexisted peacefully. When I learned this it was the first time I ever realized how important history can be. Needless to stay, he is my favorite Spanish monarch, so seeing the castle was cool. Unfortunately, not much of it remains thanks to the war against Napoleon and his French invaders. What does remain completely intact is the well built below the original castle, which was apparently a great feat of engineering at the time. We actually got to put on hard hats and go down inside. It was incredible! We went underground and passed through corridors full of trap doors (they were to prevent enemies from poisoning the inhabitants' water supply) that lead to the actual well.
When we got down there the tour guide was explaining this to us. The ground and walls are obviously made of stone but while she was talking I was standing on something metal. When she said "so, as you can see..." the lights below where I was standing turned on and suddenly I was above what appeared to be an bottomless chasm. My reaction was to mutter "HOLY SH*T!" under my breath and jump to the other side. This of course got everyone laughing. I have to admit it was pretty funny.
Well, that leaves me with only two CL provinces left to visit-- Zamora and Soria, arguably the poorest of the 9 but no less important than "los demás," so I'm looking forward to it. For now I'm off to bed to get some rest for the work week! Looking forward to finishing the school year and coming home in August! Miss you all!!!
Love,
Katie
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