Everything from my mind and the weather to funny words and politics!

Rain.

Rain, rain, rain, rain, rain. Soooo much rain that, when you look both ways before crossing the street, you do so several meters away from the curb to avoid being soaked from head to toe. The cars shoot up sheets of water that are sometimes so huge that they come up over the windshield and give the effect of being within a submarine instead of a car. Needless to say, the beaches have been deserted for the past few weeks due to this wet, overcast, and often windy weather. The general mood of the people has changed along with the weather; everyone is indecisive about future plans since nobody knows if there will be enough warmth or sun to merit an outing and the students at school huddle indoors to avoid the drizzle. They fret over the new wave of exams that begins crashing down upon us.

Although my outlook is optimistic, I am also preoccupied. Yes, I know that I need not stress over grades and classes, but I am the sort of person who always wants to commit 100% to everything I do. I don’t want to merely go to my classes, absorb something about something, and live for the weekends. I want to understand all of the material in my classes; I want to know how Franco got control of Spain during La Guerra Civíl between 1936 and 1939. I want to understand the mystery of the Mona Lisa and be able to compare her to Venus. I get so wrapped up in this learning that I begin to try to measure my progress, try to answer the questions in class, try to catch up on two trimesters of classes missed. I get so caught up in this that my whole world begins to revolve around analyzing Spanish texts and devoting too much time to figuring out what modulation is within argumentative, periodistical texts. You can see how this could begin to infringe upon my "relax and have fun" time! So then I back down and say, "Look Jocelyn: you are here in Spain for a few particular reasons. You are here to know the people; to know yourself; to climb, see theater, explore the city, revel in art, and learn Spanish. You are obviously learning Spanish, so relax and do everything else! Get your nose out of the books and put on some walking shoes! Call some friends and have some fun!" My other internal self now interjects: "Well, who are my friends? I can’t hang out with everybody, and I can’t hang out with just anybody. If I hang out with everybody, then I will never create lasting friendships. If I hang out with everybody then, in times of need when I just need to spill out my guts and talk, I’ll find myself lacking that closeness that allows for the spilling of hearts. I also can’t hang out with just anybody because I know me and I know I have to be healthy. I know I need to hang out with people who let me feel comfortable; people who respect my need to breathe air that is smoke-free; people who value culture, who want to show me the town, and live during the day instead of during the night. I need friends who will relax with me, explore with me, and carry on philosophical conversation with my ever curious mind." "Right," says my other self. "So you identify those friends and pursue the opportunities that allow you connections with them." So I do that, being the good, obedient self that I am, and I call friends to see if they want to go to the tea-house or Terra Mítica (a theme park with roller-coasters, etcetera). Unfortunately, the rain-produced indecisiveness of the world around me and the upcoming exams halt my plans for bonding. Everyone is indoors studying or brooding or whatever. "Good!" says my carefree self. "Now you can learn the lesson of patience! The rains will dissipate and the sun will return. Then you can frolic on the beach with fun people."

You see how my brain works?! I constantly carry on little internal monologues -and I am happy to say that they are always more hopeful than that of Hamlet!

NOTE: Although it may sound like I spend all my days cloistered in a gloomy room waiting for the rains to stop, this is not the case. I go out with friends, and today actually brought sun, but I am ultimately still looking for those friends that I am comfortable being around. I have, thus far, stumbled upon kind, well-meaning and interesting people who, unfortunately, partake in an array of activities that I do not fancy: drinking, smoking cigarettes, hooka, or hash depending on the people, throwing caution to the wind, and you get the idea. Needless to say, I am working on finding the right crowd, but when you choose the art track, your peers tend to be a little more liberal-minded and loose of spirit. Regardless, there are interesting people everywhere. For example, the rock climbing crowd is great! However, I hold the ranking as youngest by at least half a decade every time and, as much as I love adult males, I’m sorry, but I’m not going to be able to spill my woes over crushes and tampons with you! Thus, I search for some girls of my own age. No worries. It’s all a matter of relaxation and not pushing time.

:::

I have finally figured out the logic behind the Spanish way of eating. Initially, this may sound like a relatively simple issue: three meals a day and you´re on your way! But no! The way of eating is really a reflection on society as a whole. For example, we in America tend to eat whatever is convenient and as quickly as possible so as to get on with our day. We place importance on dinner, devoting the majority of our time and calories to that meal. Lunch, meanwhile, is usually a quick sandwich somewhere in the middle of the workday. The Spanish, on the other hand, love their lunch. They go so far as to organize their entire day around this meal: go to work in the morning, come home for a few hours for lunch, then return for the second part of the work day. The result is that dinner is crammed in at the very end of the day (around 9) and that it is usually a light meal. They, like us, neglect breakfast. Now, I couldn´t figure out how the Spanish survive the long hours between 7:00am breakfast and 3:00pm lunch, but the revelation is upon me. Between desayuno (breakfast) and la comida (lunch), they have almuerzo. On top of that, they have la merenda between lunch and dinner. This makes way for a very light dinner so that you can hop right into bed without worrying about the negative effects of heavy digestion while sleeping. Whew! Now I know what I have to do! I have to tune in for the merenda at 6:30pm and eat less at dinner so that I can sleep well.

:::

Today, since we were not sure if the rains would impede our climbing, we went to a new climbing gym. This gym is bigger, taller, and more interesting than our little bouldering gym here in Alicante, but it was still significantly smaller than our Rocknasium. You can begin to imagine how small the gyms are around here. In reality, the climbers in the area always climb outdoors and they always do sport climbing (with a rope and gear). The rock around here doesn’t lend itself to bouldering -or so they’ve told me. Also, none of the gyms tape routes. The climbers devote their time to continual games of Add-on or laps and, as far as I can tell, don’t devote themselves to particular problems for extended periods of time. The gym is definitely just a way to train for the outdoors, and rightly so since the gyms are fairly dinky. Dinky or not, they are still a good time. Unfortunately, I have not made it to the Alicante climbing gym in a few weeks. After climbing today, we played a fun game of basketball and I realized just how out of shape I am. All right, I may be able to climb and dance, but I definitely don’t do prolonged running. Whew! I need to get my heart in shape! Hopefully I’ll get more opportunities to play soccer or basketball after a nice day’s climbing. (My climbing buddies tell me that these little partidos after climbing are usual occurrences in warmer weather.) I’m hoping for some beach volleyball too!

:::

Ok, more on the American image abroad: Apparently the Spanish government paints a pretty nasty picture of we Americans. Arrogance and American go hand in hand in the minds of the average Spaniard, but these are all stereotypes broadcasted by politicians. Everyone I know who has met Americans or been to America say that we seem welcoming and friendly enough. The point being that the Spanish government is adept at manipulation and uses its power over the media to broadcast negative images of the American population, but that immediate relations between Spaniards and Americans are generally positive. Good news. The media manipulation, however, is bad news. The Spanish recognize this manipulation that is brought about by corrupt politicians and an extensively powerful government. They have their king (Carlos I), president (José Luís Rodrie Zapatero), and many political parties all vying for power –among them the socialists (left-wing), the popular party (right-wing), and a number of other parties that very from community to community. (A community is a collection of provinces. i.e. Madrid, Andalucia, etc. Imagine groups of states in the US formed into alliances within different regions while still maintaining their statehood and you have the general structure of Spanish political geography.) Each party has their own newspapers and TV stations, and they all share their very biased opinions vehemently. It seems impossible to find information that even pretends to be neutral or objective. Fortunately, the people here know all of this and always intake their information with a grain of salt. Although we come from a country with free press, we would do well to follow their example and be very critical of all the information that comes our way. But you already know that.

Well, only two days of school left until vacations! Then comes la Semana Santa, or week of the saints, when glorious processions abound. More on that later! In case you’re curious, yes, we’ve changed our clocks for daylight-savings-time over here also. The weather we’re having here is apparently very unusual: they’ve have a very dry winter (too dry) and the heat has come too quickly with everyone fretting over global warming, and now these unpredictable rains. Well, through it all, the birds still sing beautifully! (more beautifully, in fact, than the birds in my part of Davis, and even better than the exotic birds I heard in the South of India. –you know the ones, Rachel!)

As for my singing! Yes, I sang my two songs in Spanish, but I went into English for the end of “Mamma Mia!” by Abba. Humorously enough, the backup singers on the karaoke CD version of the song that we downloaded from the internet sang in Spanish! The version of “I will Always Love You” that a friend of a friend sent through email for me to use ended up having a country feel to it. It was fun re-interpreting the song in my own way after having always heard it sung by Whitney Houston. The show itself was fairly amature in terms of general performance, but the Spanish guitars were marvelous! Their fingers dance over the guitar-strings and the music is so filled with emotion. The theater itself was beautiful and fairly small (about the size of the Hobblit). The people were kind, but I was surprised to find even some of the singers smoking backstage. The sole techie was a very nice guy who is into hiking during his free time and the two ushers were a pair of comedians they were! I had a few laughs with them in the lobby before returning to the stage for the bows.

Well, time for dinner again! And a good thing, too, after all that climbing and basketball earlier today! I hope that all of you are enjoying the sun. Let me know if I have not covered something that interests you or if you want embellishments on topics that I have glossed over. I live to share with you!

Muchos besos,

Jocelyn

PS Couch potato: my friends love this word! Out of all our vocab words for English, they can´t get over this one! Why do we call a teleadicto (a television addict) a couch potato?! My best explanation was that generally you sit on a couch eating potato chips while watching TV. Any thoughts?! :-D

The Mona Lisa :: La Mona Lisa ( La Gioconda)

Have you ever wondered "What is so great about the Mona Lisa? A lot of hype over a chic with a weird smile." I have too. But read this, and delve into the mind of one inspired critic:


"The presence that rose thus so strangely beside the waters, is expressive of what in the ways of a thousand years men had come to desire. Hers is the head upon which all "the ends of the world are come," and the eyelids are a little weary. It is a beauty wrought out from within upon the flesh, the deposit, little cell by cell, of strange thoughts and fantastic reveries and exquisite passions. Set it for a moment beside one of those white Greek goddesses or beautiful women of antiquity, and how would they be troubled by this beauty, into which the soul with all its maladies has passed! All the thoughts and experience of the world have etched and moulded there, in that which they have of power to refine and make expressive the outward form, the animalism of Greece, the lust of Rome, the mysticism of the middle age with its spiritual ambition and imaginative loves, the return of the Pagan world, the sins of the Borgias. She is older than the rocks among which she sits; like the vampire, she has been dead many times, and learned the secrets of the grave; and has been a diver in deep seas, and keeps their fallen day about her; and trafficked for strange webs with Eastern merchants: and, as Leda, was the mother of Helen of Troy, and, as Saint Anne, the mother of Mary; and all this has been to her but as the sound of lyres and flutes, and lives only in the delicacy with which it has moulded the changing lineaments, and tinged the eyelids and the hands. The fancy of a perpetual life, sweeping together ten thousand experiences, is an old one; and modern philosophy has conceived the idea of humanity as wrought upon by, and summing up in itself all modes of thought and life. Certainly Lady Lisa might stand as the embodiment of the old fancy, the symbol of the modern idea."
-The Aesthetic Movement: Walter Pater on the Mona Lisa
The Renaissance (London, 1893). Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1980, pp. 98-99.

We read this excerpt -in spanish, of course!- in my art history class. It struck me as so beautiful that I wanted to share it with you.

Last Week´s Quote:

"As you think, so shall you become."
-Bruce Lee

Photos: My art, climbing and Host mom!

More art from my classes, drawn with charcoal and charcoal pencil while observing the objects.
This is the route that I described from Mula. I LOVE THIS ROUTE!!! Note the excellent upper part. The little crimps are shaped like hollowed out raindrops and mold perfectly to the fingers. I did this route in many pieces, partially because I kept going off route and cliping on the other vias!

My host mom! ¡Que guapa! I am very lucky that I have a host mom who treats me as one more daughter. On top of that, our communication is very open and she cooks beautifully! What more could you want?!

Photos: Singing at the Benefit Concert

I sang "I Will Always Love you" by Whitney Houston and "Mamma Mia" from Abba for this benefit concert. All the proceeds (including many kilos of rice) go to schools in the Sahara. The people of Spain feel obliged to help the people of the Sahara because it was once Spanish territory but they abandoned it to Morroco. Morroco invaded Sahara and so the people of Spain hold benefit concerts and collect supplies to send to the people there. Some of the other performers include the Spanish guitar and Sevillanas dancers. It was definitely an amateur production, but it was for a good cause.

Overcoming funk, little miracles, and pivotal moments

I want you all to know that I have overcome the funk that inundated me this past week. Yes, I have overcome! I spontaneously started crying in art class one day and I felt empty other days, but now I know why. It is because I was worrying about the newly forming expectations around me. Since everyone sees me succeeding (my teachers telling me that I am excelling in my classes, my family telling me that I have adapted beautifully) I began to fear that I would let them down. But now I´ve come full circle and reqalized that I am doing this studying, singing, and art for me. I am doing it so that I can know Spain and open my mind. I am doing it so that I can learn Spanish and the art of relaxation. I am letting go of any fear of failure, because as I concentrate on my goals and what I love and enjoy, all else flows from there. Perhaps I will not finish every little bit of homework for this next week, but all the homework that I do will be fun! I will revel in reading La Casa de Bernarda Alba by García Lorca, I will let Spanish history embelish my understanding of Spanish culture, and I will learn those English tenses so that I can score well on my english test (this may sound paradoxical since English is my first language, but I actually have to study for my English class! Who knew?!)

Whew! Now that I got that off my chest I can share with you the beautiful moments that glittered my week.

English class on Thursday was a miracle! A friend of mine -Paz- walked right in and started teaching the class! The teacher turned around, smiled, and sat down beside me in the front row to watch! It all unrolled after that: Paz moved the chalk across the board, immitating gestures of the teacher and captivating the attention and amuzement of every person in the room. I hardly dare breathe for fear of breaking the spell that seems to be cast over this room: a group of students actively engaged in class, paying attention to a fellow pupil who spontaneously decided to play teacher. And let me tell you, playing is the best way to learn! Everyone was actively engaged correcting Paz´s spelling on the chalkboard, throwing out phrases in 2nd and 3rd condition, and coming out of their shells. I felt like I was in one of those inspirational teacher movies. I ended up teaching the second half of class when Paz got tired. I asked them what they wanted to know about America, and they said everything! Paz wanted to learn a colloquial phrase, so I wrote on the board, "If I say wazzup, then you will say not much." Then we conjugated it: "If I said wazzup, then you would say not much." -second conditional. "If I had said wazzup, then you would have said not much," -third conditional! They, of course, corrected my grammar, because who really knows the difference between the three conditionals! I´m learning with them! After class, I asked the teacher if a student had ever taught the class before. She said no. :-)

Monday was Father´s Day here in Spain. So, Dear Dad: Happy Belated Fathers´ Day! (Fathers´ day in America is teh 17th of June -the same day that you, Dad, will come to Spain to see me for the first time in months! :-) ) Since it was fathers´day, we didn´t have school! So I, of course, went climbing!

The highlight of monday´s climbing was my final triumph: a 7a+ (5.12a/b) in pieces. Beautiful route. The upper half (my favorite part) was a shallow hollow that reminded me of the space left after someone delicately scoops up a taste of icecream. The route is beyond words. On Saturday I climbed a 7a+ and a 7b (5.12a/b and 5.12 b/c). :-) I climbed them in pieces (many, many pieces!) but I know I can climb them so much better next time! Better than my growing confidence in outdoor climbing is the people I meet. There are so many wonderful people in the world! Granted, it doesn´t hurt that a lot of them happen to be hot, young Spanish men with toned bodies! jk. A lot of them are good looking, but what I really enjoy is their conversation (which tends to lean toward conversation about Yosemite! All of them want to see ut!) and their encouragement. Everyone has so much energy to help everybody else get up the mountain!

I´ve also hung out with a couple new guy friends on the weekends. I got into a good conversation over world politics and health with one friend. I was amazed when he got very emotional over September 11th. The whole world united over this tragedy. In addition to the human compasion that follows such a huge loss, the location compounded that loss. New York is more than just a city; it is a place that people around the world feel they belong to, like a second home. The movies give them so much familiarity that they cry and laugh in unison with NYC. They feel they know it and they all want to see it. (Everyone I have asked has said they want to see New York, Florida, and California.) Hollywood gives America immeasurable power over this world. We depict facets of our lives and broadcast them around the world time and again and this has real effects. The world feels they know America, even if they disagree with our politics and/or our lifestyle (ie. Bush, the war in Iraq, our eating habits, our careless use of energy and resources, etc.) On the other hand, they are fascinated by how big and spacious everything is in America (ie. our cars, our houses, our country itself!...)

Well, the topics that I have just brushed over merit much more attention and explanaton. Another day.

I love you all! Wish me luck with my singing and let me know your thoughts!

Besos,

Jocelyn

Kenny and Jocelyn: Our Conversation on Our Beliefs, Life, the Universe, and Everything.

I want to share something very special with you. It is the continuation of a conversation that Kenny and I have been having over myspace. Each of us takes several day to compose our letters, but they are worth the work, because we ultimately end up understanding ourselves, our beliefs, and our universe better. It is important that you put this section of our conversation into it´s proper context. Kenny and I have already established that we both believe that god is love. We come from different religious/spiritual backgrounds but we have much in common. If you want to dive right into my latest response, skip to the black font at the bottom of this entry. To better understand mine and Kenny´s foundation of beliefs, keep reading!

MY PREVIOUS RESPONSE: "I do not consider myself religious (since I follow no exact doctrine) but I am incredibly spiritual. I believe that love is the ultimate goal that we are all searching for. I belive that the means of achieving this goal is through your mind. I believe that my thoughts are my reality (not my senses or the material from which I am made). I believe that through constant focus on positivity, one can create a world around them that is magnificent to behold! Thus, I am training myself to relax and emmanate love to that the universe can reciprocate this love and bring me closer to a place of infinite truth and happiness. I believe that every religion embraces these basic concepts: the ultimate perfection which is around us, within us, the epitome of love. Some call it god. I believe that every religion also has a name for the attainment of this perfection within yourself: heaven, nirvana, etc."

SELECTIVE PARTS OF KENNY´S RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE: "What is God to me? Well, the first thing that comes to mind is that God is love. God is my Father (not in the literal sense but in the spiritual sense); He is the Creator of all things, and He desires to have relationship with us. This is what I believe God is. Now one might say that I am making God out to what I want Him to be but that is far from the truth. He is to me what is said in His Word, the Bible, and the Bible also talks about judgment on me for my sin, my wrongdoings against God. If God is love then why would He punish me? Why would God who is love punish someone that He loves? Because God can not have anything to do with sin and I am a sinful and wicked man. How do we correct our relationship with God? Wouldn't God give me a way to try and reconcile myself with Him? This is where Christ comes in. Christ is the Son of God sent as a holy sacrifice for my sins. Because Jesus Christ and God loved me so much, Christ was willing to die so that I can have a right relationship with God. Christ is the one I follow, and I give my life completely to Him. I must be an idiot because I am following someone who is dead, but Christ rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. My goal is to follow Christ and to die to myself and devote my life totally to Him. It is a continuious work that I am not even close to completing. Christ had true love (love being to me what I quoted a couple messages ago), so when I become like Him, I have love in the center of my life. [...] The last thing I want to say before I end this long message, :), is that I don't want what I believe in, to become a "religion" in the sense that I get stuck in routine I do at certain points in the week. I want this to be a lifestyle for I believe that this is truth and not some "religion"."

THE LATEST MESSAGE: ¨Why would God who is love punish someone that He loves? Because God can not have anything to do with sin and I am a sinful and wicked man.¨ First of all, what do you mean by “sinful” and “wicked?” To me, those sound awfully harsh applied to yourself and the general human race. Do you mean that you do bad things? That you ere from what is right, from what is god, from what is love? If this is the case, then I agree; to ere is human. Second, by “punish,” do you mean that everything you give you get? That the universe –a broader version of god- responds to your actions with more of the same? As in, you hurt someone and the universe repays you with pain? That you give pure, sincere love and this love is then reciprocated by the universe through the love that you receive from your friends and family? In this case, I would also agree. I guess that when it comes right down to it (assuming that we are on the same page about all of the above) is that deep down in my heart, I am trying to figure out if god is the universe. Yes, I have come to accept that god is love and that god is within everything and everyone, but love is perfect and love is pure. Love doesn’t make mistakes because it is always giving, and this giving always balances the lives of those who give it freely. Then, the dissonance in my heart comes from the negativity I find in the universe: the wars, the death, the pain, the suffering. I am trying to understand how this can come from –no, be made from- something so pure and perfect as love. But wait…perhaps this war, pain, and suffering is really good. Perhaps it is a means that the universe (god) uses to teach us the means of reaching love. Well, that makes sense: that war and suffering is actually good because it is part of our learning. But my next question is, why do we need to “learn” in the first place? Why can’t we always have had and known this perfect love. Why can’t the universe be eternally harmonious and balanced in the kingdom of love? (We are, of course, talking in a very metaphysical, un-materialistic kingdom.) Perhaps (and this is a very big, unsure perhaps) the chaotic start of the universe called for a slow “coming of order” to the universe. Perhaps we are still walking this path forward balance and harmony. That makes a lot of sense. But I detect one catch: time. I am speaking of time linearly. I have said that the universe “started” at some moment and that, ever since then, we have been walking down a path. I have been imagining it like a straight line that starts at one point (the chaotic beginning of the universe) and reaches another distant point (the final, perfect balance of all that is). Well, time isn’t quite so reliable as all that. Time is subjective: each person perceives time in his or her own way. (Think of that one day when you were having the time of your life reading or sketching when hours seemed to fly by in seconds. But when you asked your mom how her day went, she says it dragged on for an eternity with the endless cleaning and other stresses. You each perceived the same “block of time” differently –in your own personal way.) Ultimately, time is a concept –a tool- that we use to organize our thoughts; our experiences; our minds; our realities. So, really, time is not the dependable, straight line that we make it out to be. It jumps back and forth, adjusting to each persons personal needs and experiences. If time is so unreliable in day to day life, then how can it possibly rule over and be applied to the universe? How can the universe have a linear “start” and “finish” when time is only a vague concept that some life-forms use as a form of organization within it? My answer is that the universe (in it’s biggest form) is independent from time and, thus, has no start or finish. Does this blow my theory to dust? Does this mean that the universe is not walking down the path that takes us from chaos to balance? Maybe. Perhaps, instead of throwing out war and suffering as bad, love has embraced them as a balance of itself. Perhaps the oriental side of the world has it right: yin and yang, black and white, male and female, balance in everything –even a balance for love itself. But then I come back to the question, if love is everything in the universe, then how can it “balance itself?” (because if love is everything, then love is still suffering, war, and pain) Black and white are two different things, but love and love (it’s balance of war and suffering) are one and the same. Is this balance? Can something balance itself? Can love balance itself? --- Speaking of defying scientific laws, how can love give and give and give and never run out? Material things are finite, but love is infinite. If love can be an exception to one scientific law, then love can be an exception of another. In other words, yes, love can balance itself. --- This leaves me in awe of the omnipotence and “otherworldliness” of love. It defies everything. What is this love that gives and gives, and balances itself, and creates and is the universe."

:-)

What do you think?

Love,

Jocelyn

Inspirational love (and my week) - And many thanks to You!

Consistency is returning to my life! It is seeping back in through the metaphoric channels that I have carved in the weeks gone by. In other words, my schedule is getting more orderly! I now know that I can go to yoga on Monday, the climbing gym on Tuesday, Spanish class on Wednesday, Spanish dance on Thursday, and still have time to go to school every morning, climb on the weekends, and spend time with friends besides. This schedule will be tested again in the week to come, and this testing may lead to some important refinements so that I can maintain sanity amongst my ever forthcoming wants, but this horario worked pretty well this week!

To begin with, yoga is a beautiful thing. Just to breathe is a gift, and a full hour of relaxation amounts to something close to a miracle! Granted, laying the foundation for the ability to balance on my head isn’t so bad either! (Imagine me starting in a crawling position, bringing my head to the ground, balancing my knees on my forearms and then, with the help of my teacher, lifting my legs into the air with head and hands pressing into the solid earth. I can hardly wait to try it again!) My most important lesson in Spain, aside from the usual quest for eternal happiness, is how to relax. I am so active and goal oriented that I used to forget to take a few deep breaths and keep a few moments for me and myself every now and then. Spain has given me the gift of perspective; I am in a place where I have no responsibility except to myself and the new goals that I am setting for myself. I have given myself the gift of freedom by working my tooshie off for many years at school, and now I can let go of that need to keep straight A’s and refocus on balancing life. This is not to say that school is a thing of the past. Quite the contrary! I love learning with a passion and this liberation from worry over grades and their consequences on my future actually feeds my desire to learn. Additionally, I have realized how important friends are. Life is essentially nothing without the beautiful relationships of love that we create within it. These friendships –and the deeper love that you share with one special person- is the ultimate everything. All else is just a means to that end (or that continuum, I should say!). All pretty words aside, I have realized how much I love you guys! Elsbeth, Rhiannon: You guys are amazing. I can’t believe mi suerte. To have had you guys in my life for as long as I have, wow. It’s a real gift. Only now, in retrospect, do I realize that I should have been hanging out with you guys every single weekend this year. Thanks for always being there and always being incredible.

Now, I hope the rest of you out there know that I am just bubbling and overflowing with thanks for each of you and that my expression of one particular gratefulness to particular people in no way demeans my love and gratefulness for you. I only wish I had more time and space to express this thanks. To all of my young friends, thank you for giving me laughter, light-heartedness, and smiles. Thank you for being there for me when I need to talk and for accepting my sometimes silly feelings with mature graciousness. To all my friends who are young-at-heart (and yes, that means you! All of you!), thank you for giving me wonderful, perceptive conversation. Thank you for sharing your wise and varied perspectives that have allowed me to grow into the person that I am today. To all of my teacher (and this, again, includes everyone to some degree and in some way), thank you for inspiring me. No. That was not enough. Thank you for inspiring me; on stage, in the classroom, in your living room, and walking down the street you have given me morsels of understanding that amount to inspiration. You know who you are. You are the people who have made life possible, the people who have given me the world through knowledge, opportunities, kindness, and open-mindedness. Allen, I have to single you out here. You can not begin to imagine how much you have given me. So let me help you! Imagine infinite confidence, absolute trust, extensive knowledge, and endless pleasure. Now times that by a million! For this, I say thank you. Mom. I don’t even need to begin, because we both know there will never be an end to our special connection that includes so much more than maternal affection and daughterly love. You are my friend, teacher, and inspiration – and in this way, in the above words, I have already thanked you infinitely. But one more time can never hurt! Thank you, Mom. And Dad: add to everything above a faithful companion and the best rock-climbing buddy in the world, and then your portrait might be complete. Nah! Maybe if Leonardo DaVinci were alive he could capture all that is you within a canvas and a bit of paint, but otherwise, words and colors are not adequate.

And I know why. It is because you (and you, and you, and you, and you, and you!) are made from love. - We are such stuff as dreams are made on. I believe that dreams are made of wishes and wants. In turn, wishes and wants, in their purest forms, are love. Love cannot be confined to nor adequately expressed through such rudimentary, material things as paintings and prose. It is so absolute that, as I try to grasp phrases to describe it, my mind evokes only brilliant colors and instinctive, indescribable concepts. My mind swims with the implications of infinite love, and I can do little more than sit, simply smiling, and let a vague residue of these emotions filter through my fingertips and onto this page.

Well, now that I have covered yoga on Monday, shall we move on to Tuesday?!

Tuesday brings climbing, beautiful climbing! This climbing is, of course, in the rock climbing gym for an hour or so in the evening. I catch a ride with Ignacio and his dad, have a few laughs during the car-ride before we drop Ignacio off for his physics class, and then continue on to our ultimate destination. During this time, Ignacio’s dad (Juan Augustine) and I bonded over Botticeli, Picasso, vanGogh, and Goya. We shared experiences from our travels and he re-renewed my dreams of experiencing Europe’s nuances step-by-step and country my country. But back to what is most important: climbing. The climbing gym is actually just a practice for the real thing. It is a social hour, a brief dance across walls in anticipation of real rock. Individual pieces of plastic on a wall have a profoundly different feel from one unified mountain. I enjoy the gym and I have no desire to trade Tuesday evenings for anything else, but the joy of the gym is totally eclipsed by what comes on the weekends! Yesterday (Saturday), I went climbing in Mula –a gorgeous rock formation an hour North of Alicante in Murcia. I must emphasize that this rock is some of the most incredible rock that I have ever seen in my life. Parts of it look like the type of relief that you would find on the inside of the cave, or within the pages of a science fiction novel! Instead of climbers, I saw green, extra-terrestrial beings sliding their way up the wall. Other parts were like an exciting three-dimensional puzzle, with incredible pockets and tunnels. In describing this maze of opportunities to a fellow climber who was readying himself to second my climb, I explained how there were some parts of the rock where you could stick one arm in each end of a hole and have them meet in the middle. He said, “Of course! And then you could just crawl in and have a cup of tea!” --- Brilliant rock. Absolutely brilliant. It is limestone of the highest caliber and the reason that everyone knows and longs for Spain’s climbing. I wish I could pack all you rocknasium folk in a little suitcase and ship you over here for a little fun, but alas!

The highlight of the day was the climb that I have alluded to earlier –the “stop and take a sip of tea” route. Despite its deceiving name, this route is really a little mind game. I studied the route and took a few deep breaths. Once relaxed, the route clicked into place all by itself. I do, however, need to develop my endurance because, two bolts from the top and directly below a huge bulge that turned out to be the crux, I took a break. It was as much a break for my mind as my body. No; more so. When I train my mind to regard that lengthy pitch as nothing more than one, easy movement upward, then my body will naturally follow my will; I won’t tire two bolts from the end. Let me tell you, I came down from that climb so mellow and relaxed that I just sat for a while after that, appreciating the horizon. The rating of the route is a 6C+, or a 5.11b/c by our rating system. (To access a table comparing rating systems, see http://home.tiscalinet.de/ockier/ratings.htm.)

Wednesday is Castellano para extrangeros day –otherwise known as a solid hour of hardcore Spanish grammar and vocab! Like many students my age, I return during the evening to take more classes. It is an intimate little group of three or four students and an enthusiastic but focused teacher. He knows that our little group of Americans, Germans, Eukranians, and Russians (among other nationalities that vary from week to week) are only there because we want to be there. He keeps things upbeat and bridges the gaps in our levels of Spanish fluidly. Every week, I take home my fun little illustrated text books and drill out three or four pages of futuro compuesto or pretérito imperfecto de indicative. Amazingly enough, my brain is still intact and functioning! jk. Grammar is a lot of fun -once you get over its ominous name: grammar (*thunderclap!*). In addition to my progress in Spanish grammar, I am also able to read exceedingly quickly compared to my initial snails pace back in early February, my comprehension is blossoming, and most importantly, I have had a breakthrough in my ability to communicate orally. If you asked me, I would not be able to pinpoint the exact moment when this change took place, but somewhere around Wednesday or Thursday, everyone started understanding me. Maybe it was that filosophy tutorial on Thursday morning where my kind-hearted professor and I delved with renewed relish into the history of human thought, but regardless of what triggered the relaxation of my Spanish tongue, the truth is apparent: I have carried on a multitude of deep conversations with brand-new friends and found that not only the message got across, but also the subtleties. My next goal: master synonyms and antonyms, implement turns of phrases, and pick up the Spanish equivalent of a few English phrases -such as “He got cold feet and backed out of the challenge”- to put to good. At any rate, all is well in Spanish Language Land.

Thursday: Spanish dance. Or, more specifically, Sevillanas. I will have to embellish upon this topic at another time since I haven’t done much dancing up to this point. I’ll give you the full scoop next week.

As always, there’s more to share but less time to share it in! I anticipate your comments and hope that you note the photo entries that I have posted below.

“Give me your ears, if we be friends, and Robin shall restore amends.” Until next time friends and, as always, thank you for your interest and attention!

Love,

Jocelyn

Photos - Yes, this is where we went climbing! (and a flower) :: Fotos - Si, ¡eso es donde nosotros fuimos escalando! (y un flor)

Photos - Climbing that SciFi rock in Mula (5.10c-ish) :: Fotos - Escalando piedra de ciencia ficción en Mula (6b)

From the beginning to the middle -because my camera ran out of batteries!













My hands were so cold! The shadow had fallen accross this rock and soaked out all the warmth! I was constantly rubbing my hands against my pant-leg for warmth!

























This is the scifi rock that you have heard so much about!

Photos - Climbing 5.11b/c in Mula :: Fotos - Escalando 6C+ en Mula

This route was the highlight of my day! :: ¡Ese via ere el mejor parte de mi dia!
The photos start from close to the end because we didn´t have the camera before then. Sorry, but you missed all the good stuff! :: Esos fotos empiezan al fin de mi via porque no teniamos la camera antes.


¡Me encanta ese via! Tan relajando. :: I love this route! So relaxing.

A Few More Thoughtful Quotes:

"Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way round or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves. [...] Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water my friend."

-Bruce Lee

"Wisdom does not come from knowing all the answers, but from knowing that you will forever seek them."
-me

"Once I find my way back to the cocoon of my heart, I can fly anywhere."
-me

Inspirational Quotes gone by

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams"
-Eleanor Roosevelt

"Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong."
-Peter T. McIntyre

"Imagine one day struck out of your life, and think how different its course would have been. Pause you who read this, and think for a moment of the long chain of iron or gold, of thorns and flowers, that would never have bound you, but for the formation of the first link on one memorable day." -Charles Dickens

(From now on, I am going to save my quote of the week here as well as in its special place. This will serve as a reccord of my evolution of thought here in Spain.)

Life is beautiful: Climbing, Castles, and the Tram.

Parchessi!

Yes, those little men are the playing pieces!

Food, Glorious food!

Paz, Andy and me!

Life is beautiful.

Arching slabs of limestone majestically overlook rolling hills of a rosy-brown hue with splotches of dark green where pines reside above orchards of oranges, avocados, and almonds. The peaked hills give way to a shinning, tan city and then the glimmering ocean of bright, mediterranean blue. The ragged coast softens before the city, becoming a comfortable crescent where tourists speaking anything from German to Ukrainian to Chinese laze, play soccer, juggle, build sandcastles, or anything else imaginable. But above all, they sunbathe –many topless because this is, after all, Europe! The beach is relaxed and yet full of energy, with eager children and athletic youth. People of every age can be seen playing volleyball, soccer, and, a particular favorite, ping-pong. There is something to be said about the Spanish and their ball games. Soccer is huge here, and this is reflected in the sheer number of games that are being played at any given time: the men on the beach, the boys at school with their wads of aluminum foil –leftover from the usual bocadillo, or sandwich.

Today I went rock climbing in Benadorm, an area close to Alicante. The limestone has the texture of stucco and leaves interesting patterns on my callused hands. We climbed some four routes, mostly 6a and 6b level. I don’t know how to convert this to the American number system, but I would guesstimate around 5.10a/b. It was so refreshing to be out in the clean air again, soaking in the sun (through my thick layer of sunscreen, of course!) and reuniting with the pattern of climbing. I love how climbing is a psychological game as well as a physical challenge. I have to let all fear go in order to truly commit to my next move, and when I make it to that hold, it’s exhilarating. Ignacio led all the routes before me (except one) and so I did all the cleaning. That way, I was pretty much top-roping it, so I was pretty much always protected. The weather was perfect for climbing! Unfortunately, the pictures of me climbing are on Ignacio’s camera, so I will have to include them in a later post.

We returned from climbing just in time for lunch. Lunch, beautiful lunch! Ok, so I cannot adequately express how wonderful this food was. In order to compensate for this inadequacy, I have included pictures! I had a puree of different vegetables, which my host mom already knows is one of my favorites, along with an assortment of appetizers: cute little quail eggs with brown speckles and the perfect size for popping them in your mouth whole; a crispy ball of some foreign fish; shrimp; kabobs of pickled veggies; tarts of imitation crab, miniature shrimp, and a white sauce that apparently comes from the claw of some sea creature; and squid of an absolutely frightening, black-purple appearance, but with a mild fishy taste and spongy consistency that wasn’t half bad! My favorite was the tarts…Mmmmmm!

On Friday, I went to a tea house with my friend Paz from school. She introduced me to a few of her friends who turned out to be wonderful. The most notable of these is Andy. After our tea -some fruity, other flowery, and mine strange because it was a treatment for my sore throat- and banana-chocolate crepe, Andy and I played a quick game of parchessi on this awesome clay board that has colorful little clay men for playing pieces! (I had to take a picture to show you guys!) After some wonderful chatting in the dim mood lighting of the artsy tea house, we decided that a trip up to the castle on the hill would be a great way to spend the next day. So, we planned to meet at noon to start our lovely treck (on foot) up through the older parts of the city to the muslim Castillo de San Barbara. I had been admiring this castle from day one, so now that I had found the right friends to go with, I leapt at the opportunity to see more of the city. Frolicking through narrow alleys and winding stairways, we discovered little pockets of hidden beauty within this modernized city. We saw old houses with tiny balconies overflowing with flowers and laundry in turn. The narrowness of the streets combined with the flowers reminded me distinctly of Italy! Coming out of the residential district, we wound our way up flights of stairs, stopping spontaneously to admire the view. We happened upon an art gallery that I found very interesting. A Spanish artist by the name of Salvador Gómez was inspired by the diversity of New York and decided to paint a series of portraits as a result. His unique technique drew my attention; he used large splotches of color within the faces of portraits, like a sort of mild impressionism. The expressiveness and individuality of each piece captivated me before we continued up the multiple flights of stairs. After more than an hour of walking, we triumphantly reached the castle and breathed in the clean, afternoon air. After a bit of meandering and exploring on my part (discovering more art and history) and some scenery viewing on the part of my tired friends, the three of us sat down to lunch. Andy made me laugh my whipping out the entire makings of a gourmet salad –bottle of oil and can of tuna included! I had my bocadillo and we all lounged, overlooking the entire city and the Sierra Nevadas beyond. We talked of god and love and beauty, sharing experiences and laughing over mispronunciations. We bonded over common experiences and compared favorite movies. It was a perfect day. Absolutely perfect. Andy smokes, but she wants to stop. My friends respect how healthy I am –how I avoid cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, and the late-night parties that go hand-in-hand with the affore mentioned substances. They are open, artsy, intellectual, and fun! I couldn’t ask for anything more!

Speaking of intellectual and fun, that reminds me of someone who I met on the tram Friday night on the way home from the tetería (the tea house). First off, you must understand that the tram is an adventure in and of itself! Every time I take the tram, I meet someone new, like the Ukrainian woman who randomly decided to move to Spain, alone and without knowing Spanish or a single person who lives here. Or the Spanish poet who lived in France 20 years ago and still retains a mild French accent over his native Spanish. Or the college girl who randomly approached me and said in Spanish, “Hi! Can you do me a favor? I have to do this for my mom. She wants me to introduce a girl to my brother. Can you come over and meet him?” They turned out to be from Argentina, and the brother turned out to be 27-years-old. Apparently the girl thought I was much older than I am! Or the English couple with the lovely accents: one from Kent and the other from London. They’re currently living in Spain and they love it. There’s also Jorge. We made accidental eye contact so many times that I finally asked him if I could see the photos on his camera, we decided that we want to hang out sometime, and we exchanged numbers. And finally, there’s Alberto. Alberto saw me flipping through my newly-bought “Spanish for Foreigners” books and he asked me in English, “Where are you from?” My automatic response was, “Yo vengo de California, pero estoy estudiando aqui en Alicante!¨ Oops! But it was ok, because he turned out to be Spanish! I ended up getting into a long conversation about Spain, culture, and all sorts of random things with him, his brother, and a nice elderly couple who were sitting across the way. Oh, how friendly everyone is! Alberto is 18, studying to be a lawyer and was just coming back from a political gathering in the city, as were the other 50-billion people on the tram that evening! Apparently, some terrorist was put on trial and condemned to many years in prison, but he went on a hunger strike against his sentence and the government agreed to reduce his sentence. The outraged Spanish population is gathering in peaceful protest across the nation, and this was one of those gatherings. It turns out that Alberto and his brother live right across the way from me, so we’ll hang out later tonight. I look forward to good conversation!

On another note, I will be singing in a benefit concert on the 25^th of March! Since my host family hears me singing around the house all the time, my host mom recommended me to a friend of hers who is involved in this benefit concert where all the proceeds go to children in Africa. I will sing “I will Always love you” by Whitney Houston (if I can get the music sorted out) and Mamma Mia! Unfortunately, I had a bad cold all this week, so I haven’t been able to practice for real yet.

Well, I congratulate you for making it through this lengthy blog! Lol! I have not even begun to scratch the surface of all the beauty, history, art, culture, and nuances of this incredible place and my experiences within it. Here there are plazas with ancient statues and walkways with beautiful inlaid tile mosaics. Old men gather in these plazas and walkways to talk and wink kindly at passing girls on warm weekends. Huge trees with roots that grow from their branches stand in stark contrast with the multitude of palm trees that line every walkway. The people are open and cariñoso. They hug, they touch, and they show what they feel. The birds sing and the sun rises, like anywhere else, but the people are unique. I can’t wait to get on the next tram so that I can meet more exciting strangers!

Love to everyone.

Truly yours,

Jocelyn

Cross-Comparison of Two Exchange Student´s Experiences

A few weeks ago, an aquaintance of mine -another exchange student- sent me a lengthy email describing her experiences up in the north of Spain. I thought you might find a cross-comparison of our experiences interesting.

On Moday and Tuesday classes end at 5 something, Wednesday at 1:40 and Thur, Friday at 2:40. School starts at 8:15. I have three classes and then a half hour break. Kids go outside the school and the schoolyard. There is a lot of freedom. This break is called the media. Today I walked with friends to a sort of bar/cafe. People bought drinks and smoked. Many had small sandwhiches from home, which is breakfast for many, including me. No, I did not smoke, I went to Spain, I did´t have a brain transplant. Then we return for two classes. Then lunch at 1:30...Many play soccer and other things in the yard and many wonder off. Monday I walked with people to a supermarket. Then on Monday and Tuesday we return to class after a little more than an hour and a half I think. The other days I would go home to eat lunch. They said usually three of the four family members are there for that. It is the biggest meal of the day.
-My school works similarly. I am taking many classes and am given two breaks in between, but we call them "recreo" -or recess- not "medio." Yes, everyone smokes in my school. Well, seemingly everyone. Many people drink as well, but that is engrained into their culture from a young age. I myself have tasted some fine wines over lunch. And yes, lunch is the main attraction here!

Today in English the teacher had me explain about myself and why I am here. The concept of studying abroad. The system of studying is so different that they cannot figure out how I am going to graduate. They chose concentrations their Junior year. Then we asked eachother about each other´s cultures. I asked what Spaniards think of Americans and they laughed. The first thing one girl said was that they are fat. Another said politely that this may not be true, but they only care about themselves and do not learn other languages. I sorta defended us and said it is harder to learn. Look at me, I had to come all the way to Spain to learn another language. I also said that we have to take world history. I asked them what they do on the weekends and they said they go to Barcelona to go to eat, watch movies, shop, and try to get into clubs. The teachers mentioned exhibits. One boy called Sant Cugat ugly, but trust me, it is not.
-Her description of the system of schooling (choosing your concentration early) is the same nationwide. Her reaction to American stereotyping, however, is different than mine. I know that the American schooling system is very egocentric; we focus time and again on ourselves. Yes, we have world history for one year, but how much do we really know about the rest of the world? Americans are notoriously bad at geography (compared to Europeans) and the only parts of world history that we truly know are those concerning the world wars. As for being fat, that is obviously a generalization, but look at our obesity epidemic. Those students in Barcelona have well founded premonitions in my opinion. As for the pastimes of those students, that sounds about right. Of course, its warmer here, so much of the going-ons here have to do with the beach!

There are few schools that do more than one kind of dance. They all specailize. There is also a Flamenco school in Sant Cugat. What I anticipate is two or three ballet classes at a school other than the coco comin, latin dance with Monica, and maybe trying out a Flamenco.I really think I need to keep myself busy or I will miss home. I have not had homework all week. I could join a chorus, but I am starting to apreciate my Falmouth high school with all the activities built in. Everything here is an epic to find.
-Yes, school in Spain is purely school. They don´t provide sports or theater or any other extras. I, however, am used to seeking my own extracurriculars, having done independent study for the last few years. None the less, everything is, as she says, "an epic to find!" Keeping busy is incredibly important. It is the surest way of maintaining sanity in a world that doesn´t understand you.

Ok, here are some different cultural things. I have already explained the eating schedule. They go to bed between eleven and twelve. Sometimes people go out, for example to dance class after their very late dinner. They eat more meat, not bigger portions, but mixed into dishes, or various kinds, at almost any time of the day. The light switches and toilet flushing thingys are different. You can move the showerhead around like a hose. There is a animal leg with a hoof sitting on the counter downstairs. That is not good for my vegetarian instincts. That way they know it is fresh. They eat a lot baguette bread and always fruit after dinner. I really miss salad. They often cook a part of the meal during a meal so that everything is hot. I really miss salad. The wotk schedule is weird. They often get home at eight and would prefer the American work schedule. They really know there American movies. Here there is a lot of Catalán pride. They learn the two languages at the same time. Many want to be separated from Spain. Many prefer Catalán. In my house they speak Spanish. Montse said she speaks Catalán with her daughters but I have not heard it. I already feel my Spanish improving. I can understand Catalán a little but I doubt that I will ever speak that language. One girl said where there is money there is Catalán.
-The animal leg with the hoof on the counter to which she refers is very usual in Spain. It is a hung of dried meat that they whittle away at meal after meal. It is intimidating, but at least you know where your food comes from. My host family does not actually have one, but most of our neighbors do. As for the languages, here in Alicante, everyone learns Castellano and Valenciano, which is the regional language. Many of the northern provinces want to be separate from Spain, but it appears that most of the south is content as is.

I am definitely clinging to normalcy. I really bonded with the other exchange students. When it was time to leave my temporary host family I wanted to stay with them. Even though I am all the way across the world I am still wondering a little about my SAT´s and anticipating the new Harry Potter
-I am the opposite. I have distanced myself from other exchange students as much as possible, attempting to immerse myself in my new environment. I do have to admit, however, that I have a few bits of home here (ie. my bumperstickers with inspirational phrases, which are in English, a few photos, etcetera). Many of the other exchange students are looking into taking SATs while here in Spain. Let me tell you, I am so happy that I am not one of them!

I think this is a lesson in expectations. I don´t think I am settling for less, just something a little different. I have to remember that a big part of the reason I am here is for the cultural experience.
-True that! This is so important! The best way to prepare yourself for an exchange is to learn as much about the country as you can and then throw it all away. Walk into the country without expectations and you will not be disapointed. But walk in with all sorts of ideas about how the people act, live, and think, and you´ll only have to erase it all to make way for the truth. An important phrase that they give us in our student handbook is "Different is not bad. It´s just different!" That is something that I always try to keep in mind.

Now that I can speak much more people are more keen to chat. Listening to Catalan is sorta like a lesson in picking up a language without studying, which I have never done, even if I am not trying to speak it.
-Throw your mind into new situations and miracles occur. You start absorbing things at a rate that you once thought impossible. This brings me back to a very important Seussical phrase: "Anything´s possible!"

So I have accepted that I am staying at my school. By the time I transfered if I ever found a school, it would be June. Spainards work on a different clock. The more I accept differences the happier I am. Things are going great. Catalan is a nice break to relax because people never expect me to understand it. I just took my first break and watched a movie in English. If I were hearing Spanish all day long I might go nuts.
-All of this is true. Spaniards work on a clock that goes more slowly than the American clock. They know that everything comes in time and that if you try to rush it, you only make time run out faster! Just as Catalan is her break, Valenciano is mine. I sleep during that class...or study, or draw, or center myself...you get the idea! I differ from her in that I know more Spanish so I could listen to Spanish all day and still be sane. The problem is that I have so much to share with you guys that I keep coming back to English time and again.

My Family (And My Spanish Date)

I feel like I constantly have so much to share, but so little time and space to share it in!

I have thus far neglected to elaborate on a very important part of my life in Spain: my host family.

I live with a family of four (a family of five for the time being!) consisting of two lovely daughters -Saioa of 8 and Janire of 15- and parents. My host mom´s name is Idoia, but I call her Amaxtu (pronounced "amachoo"), which is a Basque endearment for mother. My host dad´s name is Piri. They are newcomers to Alicante, having lived here for only the past 8 months. Before, they lived in the País Vasco which I am pretty sure translates to Basque (a community of provinces in the north of Spain). Yes, this does mean that they have a funny accent compared to everyone else here! But it doesn´t make any difference to me! I can understand most everything that is said to me, minus select terms, regardless of the accent. I even have a Portuguese friend who speaks half in Portuguese and half in Spanish; I can´t tell when he switches! It is very interesting to have my brain in a place where I am so used to absorbing new terms that a variety of accents and languages can all mesh together into one soup of understanding.

But I digress! I share a room with my host sister Janire, which works out well. We go to the same school by tram every day and that gives us plenty of time to bond. She is a lovely, goofy girl who loves fashion, her friends, her sister (even though they have frequent verbal sparring!), laughing, and getting up in the morning "to take in the sun and be content." I enjoy her presence greatly. Her younger sister, Saioa, is a boistrous little thing who loves patinando (roller-skating) and learning hip-hop dance off of tutorial videos. She is an active child who seeks attention, but is very loving. For the first week, I had to concentrate very hard to understand her chatter. I´ve relaxed into it now, but I still have to ask her to slow down sometimes! Piri, my host dad, is an athletic man who goes running every day, works in the civil guard, and loves to make jokes. The jokes are good...when I can understand them! jk. He taught me how to play paddle, which is like tennis with a different variety of ball and racket and where you play bouncing the ball off of the walls as well as the ground. Idoia is the classic Spanish mother, with her constant caressing and concern over my food intake. She loves playing dominoes and hardly seems to sleep during the week as she stays on the computer playing dominoes electronically with her friends untill all hours of the night! She is a good cook and a very open communicator; she and I have had many frank and open conversations over the weeks, which have proven essential to my survival in this world of unestablished expectations. She and I played dominoes a week ago and she taught me how to make the Spanish tortilla today! This consists of frying potatoe and egg together into something akin to an omlet -only better! I guarantee you that, whoever you are, you will like this traditional Spanish dish. Spanish tortillas on me this July! Bring a plate and you will be served!

Evan, this entry was inspired by you.

As for everyone else, please let me know where your curiosity lays. I have so much to share, but I have to select the focus of my entries carefully since I can´t be on the computer all day writing out eveything! I can tell you more about my day-to-day activities, my school, my friends, general cultural trends, Spanish politics and history, or anything! Let me know what interest you most and that I will deliver!

Ok, here you go MJ: My first date with a Spanish guy. (And probably the second date of my life): He´s not my type, but he´s a nice guy! We had a nice time walking up and down the street along the beach before sitting at a cafe for a Fanta and tapas (a Spanish tradition of serving a little something foodwise with the drinks: potatoe with a garlic sauce called aleoli in this case). He smokes and enjoys beer (which is ok since he´s of age: 19), but he also likes politics and hearing about my life and experiences. He loves his car, which is all decked out, and he is working in road construction right now. He does not like studying, so he stopped school after the 4th Eso, which is our equivalent of 10th grade. This is not necessarily bad since required highschool ends there; 11th and 12th gade (1 and 2 Bachillerato) are optional. He bought me a drink and tapas, behaved gentlemanly, and generally seems to be a very nice person. Good for him. As I said; not my type.

Well, I hope that satisfys your curiosity, MJ!

Just to let everyone know, today was practically a perfect day! I slept until 9:30am before biking to my climber friend´s house (Ignacio) where I spent several hours climbing blisfully, albeit alone, with just me, the music, and the holds on the wall. Well, to be honest, there was a little dancing interspersedly! After biking back home, I showered and had a nice lunch of puree of lentil soup and bread. This was followed shortly by a switch into bathing suit, skirt, and sunblcok for a few hours on the sand. I bonded with my watercolors during this time and was even visited by a few curious young men who inquired into my art, flattered me by saying I could make a living off of my art, and shared a little bit of their lives with me -all in less than 5 minutes, of course! Then came the date. But anyways, I have to go!

Love to everyone!

-Jocelyn

(PS Did you know that there is a lunar eclipse tonight?!)

PPS Yes, those are my host sisters in the photo!

Photos: Climbing, Watercolor, and Other

CLIMBING!!! (Note: I did not have any climbing partner today, so I made do as photographer and climber as one!)











ART: This is the first piece of art that I have posted which is not for my class. I decided I wanted to play with watercolors (aquareles, in Spanish), so I started this on my own.









A quaint house:











LOVE OF MY LIFE! This is a climbing structure on the beach that I pretty much love! There is one every mile or so along the beach. *choir of angels singing* :-)