Capp Gal's Blog

No! Mute!

2010-07-24T10:01:00.000-07:00

A story from my Spanish high school.

I was in one of the English classes when the students, the teacher and I started talking about how someone can't hear and being deaf. Then one of the students mentioned that when you are deaf, you are also usually 'mudo.' You can't speak. (This conversation was in Spanish.)

Another student asked the English teacher, "Teacher, how do you say 'mudo' in English?'

He went to the board and wrote it down, and then asked me, "This is how you spell it, right?"

When I looked at the board and saw what was written, I practically fell off my seat. On the board the word written was: Dumb!

I started laughing, thinking it was a joke, but the teacher looked at me confused. "Deaf and dumb, no?" he asked, confused.

"No!" I said, horrified. "It's deaf and MUTE! Dumb means stupid."

The teacher was mortified. He couldn't believe it. Someone had taught him the saying, "Deaf and dumb" and that dumb meant mute. He was even more horrified when he remembered he taught the word mute as dumb to last years students.

Glad I'm here to clarify proper English!

Friends in High Places

2010-07-24T09:12:00.000-07:00

Another story from Almorox at the elementary school where I worked at my first year in Spain.

One of the teachers came into school slightly shaken up. Apparently, he couldn't believe what had just happened to him. He was late for work and, since he didn't want his young students to wait for him, he started to speed. He looked at his rear-view window and what did he see? You guessed it! A cop. So he pulled over.

The cop came over and started asking him questions, carefully looking at him. Then, the officer, seeming to recognize him (though the teacher had never seen him in his life) pulled out a piece of paper. He scrutinized the piece of paper and then looked at him again. Then, he briskly folded up the paper, said, "Have a nice day, teacher", turned around and left.

He couldn't believe it. What exactly just happened?

Well, turns out that my elementary school has connections. And that connection is our Principal. Her father was the head of something or other of the police force and, though he's retired, he is still respected. And since he's respected, his daughter is respected as well. So, every school year, the Principal gives the police a list of all teachers' names and photos of that year so that if they are pulled over, they should not ticket them and let them go.

Do you believe it? Pays off knowing people in high places! Or at least family members in high places. Also, I wonder if this would works after school? It makes sense that the cops wouldn't ticket you when you are speeding TO work. But away? I doubt it!

And, since I'm writing about cops and teachers: One of the teachers told me that if I ever got pulled over, somehow slip in that I am a teachers. The police respect teachers and she said I am guaranteed not to get any type of ticket. Good to know!

Weddings

2010-04-28T04:35:00.000-07:00

This is a blog that I wrote for my school. However, I really DID find this interesting so I posted it in my blog.

By the way, this explains a previous post "Useless Fact?? #3"
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Yesterday, I learned something new. Something that shocked and surprised me. How can something that is so similar be so different? This surprise came when the teachers and I were talking about weddings.

Spain and the USA celebrate weddings in the same way. The bride and groom go to church, dressed in a suit and a beautiful white dress, exchange vows in front of a priest, give each other rings and finish with a kiss. Then, afterwards, there is a wedding reception where everyone eats good food, dances, and has fun till late at night.

You are probably wondering: where is the difference? And the difference is in how you PAY for the wedding!

I just learned that in Spain, guests give 'envelopes' to the bride and groom with money in it. Inside, there should be enough money to not only pay for your meal, but also some extra money for the new husband and wife. This means that the guests are the ones who pay for the wedding and, if there is enough extra, the honeymoon as well!

In the USA, we don't do that at all. Originally, the father of the bride pays for the wedding. Now, either the bride and groom pay for the wedding or the parents of BOTH the couple pay. And they pay for the whole wedding. That's right. The whole thing. Guests don't pay for anything. Instead, they give gifts (and the gifts are usually for the house). Some people may give money as a gift, but it's usually not enough to cover a meal and definitely not enough to pay for the wedding.

Thinking about it, now I understand why Spanish weddings are so big. People would tell me how there were 300 or more people in a wedding. I thought that was really big since the average size of an American wedding is about 100 people. I always wondered how someone could afford to pay for all those people, and the answer is that they don't! The guests pay for themselves. Incredible!

Now my Spanish friends are joking, saying how I should get married in Spain because it would be cheaper for me. I might even get extra money! I told them that wasn't the case. If I married a Spanish man, my husband's family and friends would definitely pay for themselves. However, following American/Colombian custom, I'm definitely paying for my friends and family. Looking at the good side, at least my wedding will be 50% cheaper. ;-)

BRAzil

2010-03-06T09:33:00.000-08:00

One of my students loves the Brazilian football team. So much he bought a sweater to show his support. And it looked like THIS!

As you can imagine, the moment I saw what was written on his shirt, I almost fell over. I went up to him and asked, "Do you know what your shirt says?"

And he confidently and proudly responded, "Brazil. It's my favorite football team."

"Well, your shirt literally says 'Bra'. Do you know what that means?"

He looked at me with confused eyes. What is this crazy English teacher talking about?

"Bra means 'sujetador' in English."

His eyes bulged wide open with surprise and then he blushed, looking embarrassingly down. However, soon after, a little small smile started to grow...

And ever since then, he wears this shirt with a lot more pride.

Viva BRAzil! :-)

P.S. I put a smiley face on his face to protect confidentiality, but the smile fits perfectly with his actual face expression.

The Grand Dragon?

2010-01-22T06:54:00.001-08:00

I was sitting at the teacher's desk, writing notes, as I waited for my students to get their materials ready. One girl, sitting in front of me, opened her agenda and I saw this drawing:

First reaction: "OH MY GOD! She's part of the KKK! What should I do?"

One second later, second reaction: "Oooppss! I'm not in the States. I'm in Spain! And this isn't the Grand Dragon, the leader of the KKK. No. It's a Penitente and it's probably a drawing of her father."

I breathed a sigh of relief. I made the common mistake that the usual American would make in Spain, though the mistake would usually occur during Semana Santa, or Easter Week, and not during the middle of January. Because, during Semana Santa, los Andaluces, or the people from the south of Spain, hold Processions. Groups, usually from a specific church, get together, wear those KKK looking outfits, and march through the city. Some play instruments in the band, some carry super heavy statues on their shoulders or on the back of their neck, and some just march. They usually march for approximately 6 hours, though some march up to 24 hours! They are Penitentes and they are sinners. They cover their faces because of the shame of their sins, and they do all that marching for penitence and for forgiveness of their sins.

So, if you are in Spain and you see a KKK figure running around, DON'T PANIC! It's not the KKK looking to lynch someone. It's probably some Spanish guy looking for his Procession. And anyway, the Spanish people only know the KKK from American movies. They wonder why the KKK copied their outfits...

Pictures of Semana Santa, 2009

The closest group of Penitentes that had the colors of a nomal KKK outfit. Most groups have different colors, like blue or purple.

These are the statues the Penitentes carry. They are under the statues and they carry them on the back of their necks.

My Busy Summer Vacation

2009-11-03T03:45:00.000-08:00

So it seems I'm not the best at updating my blog, but once in a while is OK, no? Here is a blog entry I wrote for the children of my school. Thought it was a good summary of my summer. :-)

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This summer, I did quite a bit of traveling. So much that I don't want to see a plane for a very long time! But what exactly did I do? Here's a basic summary of my international summer vacation. (If you'd like to follow the places I've been, scroll down to the bottom of the page and see the maps.)

First, I left Spain and flew into West Palm Beach, FL. That's where my parents live. I enjoyed swimming in the pool, taking boat trips into the ocean, and eating good American food with the great company of my parents. I was lucky because my aunt from Colombia was also visiting so I had a chance to see her too.

Since I hadn't seen my twin sister in months, I decided to visit her in San Francisco! I've never been there so I was very excited. I did quite a lot of tourism including seeing the Golden Gate Bridge, the impenetrable prison Alcatraz, and visiting Muir Woods with its gorgeous ancient old trees. Also, my sister's boyfriend works for Pixar so I was able to go on an exclusive tour through the studio. How lucky! It was a great trip.

I returned to Florida but soon after, I flew into Washington D.C. to visit my very close friends. Have you ever heard of the saying, 'The more things change, the more they stay the same'? Well, this was definitely the case for me. I hadn't seen my friends in about two years, and though they had changed (new jobs, marriage, some with babies!), they had also stayed the same. When I visited them, it was as if I had never left. What great fun!

Then I flew back to Florida to spend some more time with my parents. However, at one point, I had to return to Europe so I said my good-byes and flew into Milan, Italy (with a quick stop at Madrid). My older sister, who lives in Milan, had two big things happening in her life: She was moving into a new apartment and she was getting married! So I flew over to help her move and organize her wedding. It was a lot of work. However, her apartment looks great and the wedding was AMAZING! The ceremony was held in Stresa, a cute medieval town north of Milan. She also got married in a castle overlooking the lakes. It was a Colombian-Italian-American wedding. We ate great food, Italian style, and at night we danced Colombian style! It was a lot of fun and I'm happy for the new member of my family, my brother-in-law Claudio.

But my sister's wedding was not the only wedding that summer. My cousin from Colombia was getting married... in Germany! This time, however, I didn't fly. Instead, the whole Colombian side of the family rented a van and we drove through Switzerland to a town north of Frankfurt, Germany. It took about 8 hours. My cousin from Colombia was getting married to a German. It was a civil ceremony. They were married inside a tower in a German town filled with old colorful buildings. It was a very memoriable marriage and trip.

However, at one point I had to return to Spain and get back to work. So my family and I drove back to Milan, and then I flew into Madrid. PHEW!!! That's a lot of flying!

So I'm back in Spain, living in Linares and working in Bailén. In general, I had a wonderful summer with a lot of trips and exciting adventures. Though I love traveling, I am glad to be back in Spain where I can rest and take a break from all those plane rides. Till the next trip!

Below are some maps that show the places I've visted this summer:

Why I Love Spain

2009-03-19T08:58:00.000-07:00

I wrote this blog for my school. I received positive remarks from my students, so I thought I'd share.

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This is my second year living in Spain and I'm considering staying another year. When people hear this, both Spaniards and others ask me the same question: 'Why?'

Why do I love Spain? I have given many answers. I've said how I love Spanish food, including paella, croquetas and salmorejo. I really like eating tapas. Going out with friends and eating different foods, sitting out on a terrace and people watching... there's something very relaxing about it, especially in the warming days of Andalusia.

Perhaps it's its history. From Moors conquering Spain, to Napoleon and Franco, to the present Spain, this country has a complex past. Traveling through the Iberian Peninsula also reflects this complicated history, from Cadiz to Merida to the region of Asturias (to only name a few). All of them are beautiful cities with a lot of ancient stories to tell.

Or maybe it's as simple as the vacations. In Spain, you get minimally 1 month of vacation. In the United States, in average, you start with 0 hours of vacation and you build 1.5 hours every 2 weeks. It takes a long time to build up a good vacation. But perhaps their attitudes towards their vacation reflects something more. Something that is found deep withing the Spanish culture. It's an attitude. A belief. It is hard to pin down but the closest I've come to describe it is: 'They work to live, not live to work.'

All of the above are good reasons and definitely play a factor in my liking of Spain. But the real and ultimate reason why I love Spain is its people. I can't really describe why they are so great. I can say they are fun, friendly, open, caring, fiery people. They seem to really appreciate life. I think that's why I keep staying here. Because I love the Spanish way of life, the people, and its culture. I learn from them and I feel that in Spain, I truly enjoy my life to the fullest.

A Nose by any Other Name...

2009-03-14T10:16:00.000-07:00

A few weekends ago, I went to Granada with my roommate to visit a friend. We hit the bars that night and much later, decided to get a kabob. As we walked in, a man sitting on a bar stool and eating a gyro looked at my friend quite intensely. He started talking to us about how pretty her nose was (which was cute, small and perky). He kept staring at it and just couldn't keep his eyes off it. He even tried to touch it! Of course, this freaked my friend out and she quickly left the establishment.

I, on the other hand, was determined to get my gyro no matter what weirdo was around, so I stayed in line. Plus, he wasn't harassing my nose, was he? (Not cute enough for you, huh? Bastard. ;-) ) However, I had the honor of talking to his friends who somehow found out about my Colombian heritage and asked me about cocaine and if Colombians lived in trees. (Great catches, these boys.) Then, two other girls walked in and the guy stared at their faces too. He commented on how these girls must have had nose jobs. I looked at their noses and they too were small, cute and perky. The girls, understandably, were weirded out and said no, that they were natural and ignored him.

As I grabbed my gyro, I admit I was fascinated. I've never met anyone who was so mesmerized by noses. He didn't just stare and talk about them. He tried to feel them too! Even when it was obvious the girls didn't want to be touched. Very strange behavior.

Then it hit me. This guy had a nose fetish! Isn't that crazy? I've never met anyone with a nose fetish before. Feet? Yes. Belly buttons? Sure. But noses? Never! It was quite exciting.

And you know what the irony was about this whole scene? He had a HUGE nose! HA!

Ah well. To each his own! :-)

Why Spain Needs English Teachers

2009-02-14T03:06:00.000-08:00

I was walking around, clothes shopping when I saw this written on a sweatshirt.

(In case you can't read it, it says, "I <3 Schol", not school.)

Once I saw this, I knew. Spain definitely needs me and English teachers like me!

I'm happy to help. :-)

The Red Head

2009-01-21T04:25:00.001-08:00

I wanted to write this story for quite some time. It happened at the elementary school I worked at last year.

In the first grade class, there was this cute little red head boy. He was quite a spunky fellow who was always the first to volunteer for any activity, holler whatever English words that would pop into his head, and dance and do spins on the ground whenever hip hop was played. He was also the first to throw up his hands in despair and give up. Quite a rumbustious personality. I liked him.

On this supposedly normal day, he had been complaining about a stomach ache. He would hold his stomach painfully and walk around like an old man. As the rest of the class worked on their projects, he would sit in his chair in quiet misery, staring numbly down at his desk. The teachers had wondered if they should send him home and ultimately decided to wait till recess, because 'recess cures almost all illnesses'. Still, I kept watching him from the corner of my eye, making sure he was alright. He pretty much just stayed quiet (which was quite abnormal for him).

About halfway through the class, his face suddenly lit up. He got really excited, ripped a small piece of paper from his notebook and wrote something feverishly on it. Then, grabbing the paper with his two hands, he raised it up into the air and, with a desperate look in his eyes, stared pleadingly up at the ceiling. Then, he quickly slammed this piece of paper on his forehead. He'd leave it there for a moment, then smack his head a couple of times with it and raise it up into the air again and continued to stare up into the sky. He did this a couple more times.

I couldn't hold on to my curiosity any longer so I walked up to him and asked, 'What are you doing?' He gave me this dirty look and shot one finger at me, silently telling me not to interrupt. I waited and continued watching him smack his head some more. Then, the bell rang. Recess time! So he jumped up with the rest of his class and ran out of the classroom.

I was left dumb struck, stunned by the spectacle as well as the sudden end of it. What exactly just happened here? Then I noticed that he had left the small piece of paper on the table. I picked it up and read it. It said:

'Dios, por favor cure.'

'God, please heal.'

Do you believe it? The red head was praying for God to cure him! But not in the normal let's-put-our-hands-together-and-pray. No, not for this boy. Instead, he choose to write it on a piece of paper and smash it on his head. It was great!

When I told the story to the other teachers, they obviously laughed. The Religion teacher said she was proud. He'd learned to ask God for everything.

As for the kid, I'm not sure if praying that way helped, but he made it through the day. As for me, I now have a memory that makes me laugh every time I think about it. And I also have something that reminds me of him... I kept the note. :-)

A Greeting from the New Auxiliar

2008-10-08T14:01:00.000-07:00

I am now in Linares, Spain working at a middle school. My supervisor wanted me to introduce myself and write something on a blog. Here is what I wrote.

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Only silence greeted me as I walked through the empty halls of Hermanos Medina Rivilla. I strained my ears, trying to hear any sound and only heard the almost inaudible murmurs of voices behind closed doors. Suddenly, a loud alarm filled the air, breaking the silence. I had the impulse to sprint through the double doors and run outside to safety, as far away from the boomerang-shaped building as possible. I expected to hear screams of panic as I imagined hundreds of students run through those same doors. However, instead, I heard screams of joy. It’s time for recesses! And I think, “Note to self: Another difference between Spain and the States. Their ‘change classroom alarm’ sounds like America’s fire drill alarm.”

I was asked to write on this blog and tell a little about myself, my past experiences, and what I think of this school. I guess I should start by introducing myself. My name is Melissa and I am an Auxiliar de Conversación in the I.E.S. Hermanos Medina Rivilla (a middle school for the Americans reading this blog) in the town of Bailen. I am from the United States and lived in the city of Washington D.C. (as the children excitedly say, “The White House!” and “President Bush!”). When I said ‘lived’, as in the past tense, I really mean it. I haven’t lived in D.C. for almost a year and a half. The reason is that last year, I was also an Auxiliar in Spain in the tiny town of Almorox, outside of Toledo. As I said, I now live in Linares which has about 60,000 inhabitants. Almorox had about 2,000. For me, Linares is New York City!

Though I taught in an elementary school last year, I am now going to teach teenagers. Though this seems like a daunting prospect to some, to me it doesn’t bother me at all. I’ve had plenty of experience with teenagers, especially as a Director of Volunteers in the States. And anyway, I’ve always liked teenagers. I look forward to working with these teens and I am already amazed at their high level of proficiency in English. They are enthusiastic and energetic students, and I am honored in being able to take part in their growth and development in this language.

A big thanks to Miguel Angel for all his support! :-)

Poland Notes

2008-08-29T07:02:00.000-07:00

As I sat at the airport in Warsaw, Poland at 3am, leaving my 1 month adventure in this beautiful country, I wrote some notes in my little notebook. They are quick scribbles and are my general impressions of Poland- things that for some reason or other have stuck out in my mind. There is probably a lot more I could write. I do not go in depth with what happened in the camp, the kids, the teachers, the trips, and the guests that I met during that time. That in itself is its own story. I only write my general impressions of this country. Please note that these are my opinions and nothing more. To make your own impressions, visit the country(then we can compare notes!).

Here is what I wrote, in no specific order:

(Below, I've written my notes in bold. The rest is a little extra info. )

-No highways. All small bumpy roads: The kids and teachers were embarrassed by their roads. They would shake their heads disapprovingly and say, "These Polish roads." Personally, I liked it. I thought it added personality to the country. Reminded me of Colombia. Except Colombia's roads are much worse-instead of bumps, there are freaking holes.

-Breakfast, Dinner = Same Food: For both meals, we were always served: bread, butter, jelly, cucumbers, tomatoes, red peppers, ham, and hard boiled eggs. Always. For 30 some days. It became a little tyring, especially for dinner, so we would eat out. We found great kabobs, pizzas, and hamburgers (great balanced meals! ). I never want to see cucumbers again.

-Lunch-SOUPS!: I have to admit, I LOVED the soups of Poland. They were amazing! I really need to learn how to make those soups. The next plate was usually some type of meat with cabbage or carrots, or both. And let's not forget the potatoes. They love their potatoes. (My roommate, "You guys definitely like your potatoes." Student, "It is like bread to us." Oh so very true! )

-Vodka (pronounced vudka) and Beer (Pivo): Spaniards like their Sangria and Calimochos. Italians like their wine and limoncello. Polish people's drink is vodka and beer. I would get an interesting reaction from different Pole's when I would say how Pole's like to drink vodka. Their response was almost always, "We don't drink as much as the Russians!" Is this true? Probably, but I'm not sure. Guess I'll have to go to Russia to find out!

-Don't like Germans and Russians: They really don't. And the truth is, I don't blame them. Before you judge their anger, do research in their history. I did and, honestly, I can't blame them.

-Most men, shaved heads: I can't believe how many buzz cuts I saw out there. It's the style most men have. Not many other boys had different hair styles. Not my favorite cut what-so-ever, but my roommate LOVED IT. Guess there's something for everyone!

-Houses: Colorful with extremely steep roofs. I saw the roofs and thought, "Oh boy! It really snows here!" From what I hear, they have 6 month winters. That's why I told my students I could never live in Poland because of the cold. But I could definitely visit in the summers!

-Communism's Influence: You walk around and you can see communism's influence. All apartments look the same-cold, old, cement blocks. Tiny cars. Heavy looking street washing machines. You can see the influence of it.

-Nature: Poland is filled with beautiful green forests. We went to Zakopane and that was truly spectacular. Mountains, trees, rivers, lakes. And everything so fresh. You could tell you were breathing in pure, fresh air. I definitely remember Poland for its nature.

-And ultimately, the sweet, kind people: They are truly great and wonderful people. When the students asked me what my impression of Pole's were, I told them what I just wrote- sweet, kind people. And then I told them that there is something more... something that I really couldn't describe without getting... well... poetic, I guess is the word. They asked me to say it anywayz and I said, "You guys have a light. It is not a white light, but a warm light that radiates from all of you. A sweet, calming gentleness that -radiates- from you. I don't know how else to describe it." They smiled and said, "Poland likes you, too."

Thanks! :-)

Kid Love... AGAIN?!?

2008-07-23T07:35:00.000-07:00

I'm in Poland where I'm teaching kids from middle school to high school. Their ages range from 13 to about 18 years old. This story involves one of my 15 year old classes.

It was the first time I met them and so I decided to play an introductory game. They made a circle with their chairs and faced each other with one student left standing in the middle. That student says, "I like.... (soccer, sun, etc)." and then the children who like the same things have to jump up and try to sit on another chair. The last person standing has to start the game over again.

I started the game and we started having a good time, laughing and running around (I like to play with the kids so the kids can learn a little bit about me too). Then, a boy with super short brown hair and blue eyes ended up having to stand up. He turned around and without any hesitation, looked me straight in the eyes and said "I like... YOU."

In my head, I was like, "HUH?!?!?"

But I couldn't just stare at him, dumb founded with my mouth wide open. So I jumped up and said, "Thank you." (though inside I was like, "WHAT DO I DO?!?!?!?").

The other kids were whispering to each other, staring at me and at the kid. You could tell in their eyes what they were thinking: He's got GUTS to say something like that! I had to respond and respond quickly. But what do I say?

And out of nowhere (and I'm not sure where it came from), I turned around, put my hands on my waist, and said, sounding insulted, "Hold on a second. Is he the ONLY ONE that likes me?!?"

The kids all stood up and changed seats.

It was GREAT! And like the other teachers said, "You sure got out of that one!" PHEW!

Kid love... again?!?!?! I thought Salvador was enough. Ah well... What can you do? We'll see how the rest of the month goes!

Update

2008-07-23T07:24:00.000-07:00

I have to apologize for my lack of updates on my blog. I'd like to blame the lack of Internet access in my little pueblo of Almorox, but I did stay in Milan for a little while with Internet access and still didn't get around to it. All I can do is say, "Sorry!!" And to give you a quick update on what's going on.

At the end of May, I ended the program in Almorox, Spain. I said bye to the kids, the teachers I worked with, my roommates, and Castilla-La Mancha. It was so sad! And I will miss that little pueblo. It was a great experience!

Once I moved out, I flew to Milan where I hanged out with my sister for about 3 weeks. I pretty much rested and had GREAT Italian food (my favorite! :-) ).

After that, I went to visit my friend Gerrit in Germany for a week. He invited me to visit him and took me all over Germany, from Berlin to Dortmund and Hamburg. I also had a chance to see some family. It was great!

Then, I went to Pamplona, Spain for the Running of the Bulls! That was crazy in itself and quite a lot of fun. Los Sanfermines have always been a great party. We had a blast!

And now, I am in Poland (I'm keeping busy in my summer in Europe!). I applied to an ESL Program where I teach English for 3 weeks and in the end, they pay for a one week tour around Poland. It has been quite an adventure, learning about a new culture that I don't know anything about. All I know is that the kids I work with are GREAT!! They seem genuinely interested in what I'm teaching them and are just good kids. I've been here for approximately four days and it has already flown by. I have a feeling that this month is going to go by as quickly! :-)

That's the update! I will try to update more often, though it is not easy for me to find Internet access here as well. I will do my best! :-)

Ciao!

Baila el ChikiChiki (Dance the ChikiChiki)

2008-05-12T01:41:00.000-07:00

In Spain, there is a wave of… something… going on. A craze? A fad? I’m not sure. But what I do know is that people are dancing, singing, and even making commercials of it. In Spain, the ‘Baila el ChikiChiki’ has consumed everyone.

Not just the young and defenceless. No. E-V-E-R-Y-B-O-D-Y! Old and young alike. Short and tall. With rhythm and without. Why, even my supervisor has been inflicted. At a wedding, he dressed up as a girl (pretty normal here in Spain) and, with his friend being the lead singer, sang and danced the ChikiChiki, twists and all.

It's like the new Macarena.

And it haunts me. I find it everywhere I go. Turn on the TV, a cell phone commercial sings the steps on signing up to their services. At work, every time I say 'Uno,' the children simultaneously break into song. (And you won't believe this!!! I'm writing this blog right now and the kids in the next class are singing it!) And even in travels, on the bus, they play it. And, of course, everyone joins in. They even made a CD with different versions of the song (example: ChikiChiki Rap version, ChikiChiki Techno version, ChikiChiki House version, etc).
And yes, I’ve been afflicted too. I couldn’t escape. When the songs plays, I sing. When it is time for the steps, I dance.

My name is Melissa and I have joined the millions of children and adults sing and dance the ChikiChiki. ¡YO BAILO EL CHIKICHIKI!

To see where this movement came from, please check the original video. You'll be shocked, maybe moved, but in the end, you'll end up liking it, if not dancing to it! Enjoy! :-)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=74mBEXL9UgM

Talent Show!

2008-04-08T05:05:00.000-07:00

My elementary school decided to have a talent show. To represent my country, I taught some teachers how to Country Line Dance! Then we showed it to the school. Here are the results, bloopers and all. Enjoy! :-)

P.S. I know that this is the Electric Slide with Boot Scootin' Boogie, but hey! In Spain, who is really going to know the difference and, in the end, what matters is that we had a BLAST! :-D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDQFt141Xbk

Video #1: Alicante with the Girls

2008-03-17T09:34:00.000-07:00

In one of my advetures, I went to Alicante with some friends. We climbed to the top of the castle and saw a GREAT view. So I had to make a video. Sadly, there is no sound (my camera doesn't record sound and I don't know why!) but we compensate for it! See if you can tell when we are saying 'Background' and 'Mediterranean Sea'! :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXQ5lV5RFnM

Go Back To Your Country!

2008-03-11T03:59:00.000-07:00

In my pueblo, and most of Spain, there is a mix of Spaniards and Moroccans. There are some Hispanic and Romanians mixed in there, but in general it is Spaniards and Moroccans. There is an obvious separation between these two races. The Moroccons are leaving their repressed country to look for a better life. Many Spaniards think they are just too many of them (they make about 40% of the population) and have an underlining fear that they'll take over some day. Because of this and other fears, there is very strong prejudice and separation going on, but that topic is for another blog. This blog, however, is about a British man. I’ve never met this British guy, but I couldn’t believe what happened to him. So I had to share his story.

In general, this British guy married a Spaniard and, like a lot of married couples, had a son. They lived in England for a little bit and for whatever reason, came back to Spain to live in the tiny pueblo of Almorox. Now their son goes to my school (and I get to speak English with him all the time! :-) ).

One day, the British guy went outside of his house and found a group of Moroccans. They started yelling something at him in Spanish, but he didn’t understand them at all. After all, Spanish wasn't his forte. So he turned to his wife and asked, “What are they saying?”

And she said, “They are telling you to go back to your country.”

He turned and looked at her incredulous. “What? No way. You must have heard them wrong. Listen to them again.”

“Ummm… They are definitely telling you to go back to your country.”

When I heard this story, I practically fell off my seat laughing! Moroccans, who are in general not welcomed in Spain, were telling the British guy to go home. I couldn’t believe it!

Guess they are at home enough to feel they can kick someone out.

And as for the British guy, well… I guess what they say is also true: What goes around comes around. :-)

Kids Say The Darnest Things #2

2008-03-03T07:31:00.000-08:00

This story did not happen to me but to one of the teachers in my school. It is a little in the dark side, but what the kids say is interesting. This is what happened:

This teacher has one specific kid in class who has a LOT of troubles at home and has emotional problems. He gets psychological help, but this specific day seemed to be a bad day for him.

The teacher was lecturing and she happened to look over towards the kid. She saw him take his scissors (which are those baby-safe scissors) and start to pretend to cut his wrists, saying, “I’m cutting my wrists! I’m cutting my wrists!” Then he took his scissors and started stabbing himself in the stomach, saying, “I’m going to kill myself! I’m going to kill myself!”

And what do the kids around him say? Did they cry out for him to stop? Tell him not to hurt himself? Or let him know everything would be ok? We wish! Instead, they started saying things like: “You can’t KILL yourself that way!” “If you really want to kill yourself, you should jump out the window!” “Does scissors won’t kill you.” “Yeah. You need to use the teacher’s scissors! They will do the trick!”

…

…

So in the end, the kids gave him advice on how to kill himself. Isn’t that crazy?? Kids definitely say the darnest things!

(Again, he is getting help. Thankfully. He’s a good kid, but obviously in a lot of pain. Poor guy. :-/)

Backwards

2008-02-18T05:15:00.001-08:00

Here, in Spain, I get the feeling that things are a little… backwards. When it is summer, grass and plants are all yellow and brown. In the middle of winter, everything is lush green. What in the world is going on??

I’m in the Twilight Zone. ;-)

My Name is Justina

2008-02-11T05:09:00.001-08:00

“Hola. Me llamo Justina.”

That’s what I would have said a long time ago… about 80 years ago if I had been born in Spain. Turns out that Spain was (and in some degree still is) quite a Catholic country. It was thanks to the dictator Franco who was an extremely religious guy. Since he ruled all, he used the Catholic calendar where each date had a saint’s name on it. What ever date you happened to be born on… WHAM! You ended up with that saint’s name. Like it or not. So if you were born on Saint Julia day, then your name would have either been Julia or Julio, depending obviously on your gender.

I was born on Saint Justo day, which means my name would have been Justina.

…
…

Thank goodness Franco didn’t pick my name! I like my name just the way it is. (Thanks Mom and Dad! :-) )

P.S. If you would like to know what your name could-have-been-but-never-was, tell me your birth date and I will let you know! :-)

My Schedule/Timetable

2008-02-07T02:08:00.000-08:00

Some people have asked what my daily schedule looks like in my little town of Almorox. By popular demand, I have written my schedule! (Or 'timetable' like they like to call it here (British influence!)) You will find it below. It is a general schedule because not every day is the same. However, the idea is there. Enjoy!

8:40am: Wake up, eat breakfast and take a shower.

9:50am: Walk/Run to school (depending if I´m late (And I’m usually late!! :-) )).

10:05am: (I’m already late!) Go to class. - I work with 3 year olds to 6th graders. I assist in either English, Music, or Science classes. Each class is about one hour long.

12:00pm: Snack Time! - Kids go to the playground and eat a little snack, and so do I. Usually I go to the Teachers' Lounge with the other teachers and eat a fruit and some nuts (or any of the snacks the teachers leave on the table!).

12:30pm: Back to class! - At this point, there are two classes left, each one 45 minutes.

2:00pm: School Ends. - The kids either go home and eat lunch or stay for the cafeteria. Only those who are low-income or who's parents pay are able to stay for lunch. The rest go home. I usually stay and either eat lunch (usually a Wed.), lead an English discussion group for the teachers (mandatory), or play in the internet and wait for my roomies to finish their hours.

3:00pm: Go home and Lunch Time! - I usually get a ride from my roomies at this point. Per Spanish costume, I make a BIG meal to fill me up for the rest of the day (usually the meal is made pretty quick b/c by then, I´m starving!).

4:30pm: Start Extracurricular Activities. - Depending on the day, I either play tennis and tutor English (2 to 3 kids, depending on the day an hour each), or Arts and Crafts class (Thurs.). Arts and Crafts days are on another town so one of my roomies usually drives. Then we usually go food shopping in the town's food store since it is in general a lot cheaper than the food store in my town.

8:30pm: Return home.

9:00pm: Eat dinner and chill with the roommies. - Dinner is late and so should be light, like a small salad. With the roomies, we usually watch TV. Right now I have two favorite shows: a comedy show with police officers (which USA bought the rights for so we should be seeing it soon!) and a great Karaoke show (I hope USA buys the rights because it is so much fun! Imagine in English! The 80's!! :-) )

12:00pm: Bed Time! - I still and have always needed about 9 hours of sleep to feel refreshed for the next day! :-)

On weekends, I try to go somewhere. I usually go to Madrid because there are a lot more buses that go to that city than the other closest city, Toledo.

That's pretty much it! Hope that gave you a little glance in my present Spaniard life. :-)

Holiday Commercials

2008-01-27T08:12:00.000-08:00

Again, pretend this was writen during the holidays! Never got a chance to post it. Better late than never! :-)

--------

The Holidays are here! There are Christmas lights all over town. The kids are talking about what gifts they want, and the television has… GONE INSANE!!! Why is there another commercial for a watch? For a perfume?? What’s going on????

Spain (and maybe all of Europe?) seems to have this fascination with two things: perfumes and watches. Or at least that’s what they try to sell the most during the Holidays. It is insane how many commercials are there for Armani colognes and Gucci watches. They show gorgeous men with fancy watches and sexy women spraying on perfume. I can’t believe how many perfumes and watches are out there. More, how many perfume and watch commercials are out there. This is all they play on TV between shows. And I am not exaggerating. That is ALL they play between shows! No signs of car commercials. No hint of cell phones anywhere. They just play the same commercials over and over and over and over. I practically became best friends with Armani.

I can’t believe I’m going to say this but… Bring back my car commercials!

P.S. My roommate says that Europe in general is a big fan of colognes, perfumes and watches. There is also a BIG market for the fake stuff. (Though don’t walk around France with imitation because the cops will fine you!)

P.P.S. Ironically, this year, I didn’t get any of these items. Gasp! What would Armani (my best bud) think?!

P.P.P.S. The Holidays are now over and the television commercials are back to normal. Nothing like cars and cell phones coverage to make you feel complete! ;-)

The Lottery

2008-01-21T04:34:00.000-08:00

I meant to publish this post before the end of the year, but never had a chance to. So I applied my personal philosophy of ´Better late than never!´:-) Just pretend you are reading this before the Holidays. Enjoy!

---------

I was sleeping contently in my bed on a Saturday morning when suddenly two singing voices filled my room. One voice called out something and then the other replied, singing the exact same notes and verses over and over, only changing a little:

(In Spanish)
“56789”
“Mil Euros.” (1,000 euros)
“947598”
“Mil Euros.”
“538485”
“Mil Euros.”

What the heck is going on?

I got out of bed and walked into the living room (which is next to my room) and saw my roommate and her boyfriend focusing intently on the TV. On the screen were two young kids (about 12 years old) standing next to each other, each one picking up a small wooden ball and reading what was on them. One kid would squint at one of the balls and sing “49563” and the other would do the same and reply “Mil Euros”. Then they’d start over again.

Ah yes. I had forgotten. Today is a big and special day in Spain. Today is the lottery.

I’m not sure why but Spain has a BIG thing for the lottery, especially during the Christmas Season. Everyone goes nuts and buys tons of lottery tickets, each one costing 20 euros each (about $35). They buy them individually or in groups. They go to different cities all over Spain and buy different tickets. There are even towns where people stand in line for hours in hope of buying the winning ticket.

But why is the Holiday lottery so… big? What about the rest of the year? Well, people say there is a higher chance of winning. To be specific, you have a 1 out of 10 chance of winning something (which is much higher than usual). Maybe you’ll win one of the 1,000 euros prizes. Or one of the jackpots! (There are about 10, ranging from 5,000 euros to 500,000 euros ($750,000)). Imagine… If you win something, it could cover your Christmas expenses. If you get one of the big ones, you’d be covered for the rest of the year-or more! Whatever the reasons may be, you have a higher chance of winning and everyone plays. In the end, it is a tradition. So everyone holds their breath on that special day when the kids sing that song over and over letting all of Spain know who got the lucky numbers and what they won. (Cross your fingers for at least the “Mil Euros” prize!)

Fun Facts about the Lottery:
-The kids who sing out the numbers come from an orphanage.
-If one of the kids pick “The Big One” (the 500,000 euros) that kid later gets a Big Prize! It’s something the kids look forward to and hope to win.
-The day of the lottery is also called “El Dia de la Salud.” AKA: The Day of Health. Why? Because when you loose (and a lot do) people comfort each other and say, “Hey. It’s only money. We still have our health!!” :-)

P.S. I actually know someone who had a winning ticket. However, they shared the ticket with a lot of other teachers so she ended up winning 5 euros in all. She said she was fine with it. Especially since last year she won 750 euros. Not bad for tradition! ;-)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! :-D

2007-12-25T13:44:00.000-08:00

I wanted to wish everyone a very HAPPY HOLIDAYS! I hope everyone is enjoying their time with family and/or friends, and that you're experiencing the full season of giving!

This year I am in Milan, Italy spending Christmas with my older sister. It is my first Christmas abroad, so things have been different, including: Italians everywhere, Italian language, and lots and lots and LOTS of Italian food. All so very delicious! I have definitely been blessed this year! :-)

Again, HAPPY HOLIDAYS, and thinking of you!

(Below I have pasted my sister's Christmas Tree. :-) )

Last Week Of School for 2007

2007-12-18T05:21:00.000-08:00

This is the last week before school ends, and, as you can imagine, things are pretty hectic! Here are some activities that are going on this week in Almorox:

1) DINNNERS EVERYWHERE! I´ve been invited to quite a lot of dinners, mostly from the teachers of the school. Very exciting! Look forward to eating my face off (to make up for missing Thanksgiving! ;-) )

2) Final Tennis Match. I play tennis about 2 to 3 times a week. This Wednesday are the Finals. I made it into the finals, though there are two pretty good players: me and another girl. The other girl is better than me. But you never know how I will play! Wish me luck!

3) On Friday, we're having a Christmas concert! This is during the school day and all the kids in every class are singing Christmas songs. The first graders are singing Jingle Bells in ENGLISH! The kids have done a great job memorizing the chorus. However, I have to sing along with them. That means I sing the chorus as well as the gingle... and the gingle is by myself (YIKES!). Thank goodness I like Karaoke! :-)

4) Traveling. I fly to Milan on Satruday! WOOHOO! I´m going to spend Christmas with my older sister. Then I go to Rome and spend New Years there with some more family! This is my first New Years over the ocean. Interesting times! :-)

That´s the update! Hope you´re having a great week before the Holidays! :-D

HAPPY (belated) HALLOWEEN!

2007-11-22T01:59:00.000-08:00

Though today is officially Thanksgiving Day and I am missing one of the most deliscious meals of the year (turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy!! I MISS YOU!! :-) ), I thought today would be a perfect day to share this video.

Since it is my responsibility to represent United States and its culture during my stay here in Spain, I decided to teach one of our most important festivals- Halloween! And I didn´t expect to be recorded. This is the result!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BwbW0aMUTM

PS: Sorry guys! I had to remove the video because of Children Protective Rights (oopppss!) If you want a detail description of the video, let me know! :-)

In Love... Part 2!

2007-11-20T04:19:00.000-08:00

As some of you may remember from a previous blog, I had a very young and silent admirer. I was informed sometime in the beginning of the school year that he “loves Melissa!” Then after that, he wasn’t even able to make eye contact with me. However, after working with his class for a month or so, I’d watched him in the corner of my eye, and he acted normally. No signs of blushing or hesitations or looking away when I asked him questions during class. It seemed his crush was over, until…

I was working with the English teacher when she suddenly had to step out. I was left alone to supervise the class when Salvador stood up and started talking to his friend, interrupting the rest of the class. (He’s the type that can’t sit still.) I looked at him and said firmly, in English, “Salvador, please sit down.”

He quickly sat down. But instead of looking upset, I noticed a small little smile on his face. Then, when I looked away, he turned quickly to his friend and with a big happy smile, whispered, “She knows my name!”

Oh boy. Guess the crush is still there!

And guess I’ll have to start memorizing the other kid’s names. :-/

C’est l’amour!

You know you are in a little town when... #4

2007-11-15T01:01:00.000-08:00

You know you are in a little town when…

Sheep are walked through town. That’s right! SHEEP! When I first saw them, I couldn’t believe my eyes. There are actual sheep on the streets! And not just a few, but a bunch of them! One of them has a bell around its neck so wherever they walk, I can hear them coming (like a bad horror movie. ;-) ). And that´s when it him me... I am definitely living in a rural town!

By the way, this also solved a mystery I was pondering: where in the world did all this dung on the street come from? Now I know what sheep dung looks like! (A fact I could probably have lived my life without knowing. ;-) )

Kids Say the Darnest Things

2007-11-10T08:07:00.000-08:00

At school, I have to pretend I don’t understand Spanish so the children are forced to speak English to me. But I do understand them, and boy, kids DO say the darnest things! Here’s an example:

In the 1^st grade Science class, the kids were practicing the phrase, “How do you say…” For example, the children would say, “How do you say ‘manzana’ in English, please?” And I would reply, “Apple.” And then they’d get excited and say, “OOOHHHH!! APPLE! WOW!” (So cute! :-) )

While practicing this exercise, one of the students (who really struggles with English) suddenly stopped, looked at the teacher, and asked in Spanish, “Profe. Does she only speak English?”

The teacher said, “Yes.”

“All the time?”

“Yes.”

“Even at home??”

“Of course.”

“Oooooffff!!” he said, smacking his head with his hand. “That’s a LOT of work!”

He couldn’t believe someone could speak ONLY English all day! He was struggling with the language so much that it HAS to be a lot of work for me too!

Isn’t that CUTE?!?!? Kids say the darnest (or cutest) things! :-)

Internet

2007-10-29T05:48:00.000-07:00

Some of you may be wondering why I haven´t been updating my blog recetnly. I have a good reason! In general, I am now living in an apartment that does not have internet access. The only internet access I have is at school and I can only use it during the limited hours the school is open (and I´m not working!). I do have some storiest I want to share. They will be available soon!

Wanted to let you know what was going on! Till next time! :-)

You know you are in a little town when... #3

2007-10-15T05:02:00.000-07:00

You know you are in a little town when...

the nearest movie theater is about 5 towns away, which is about a half hour ride from Almorox!

Too bad I don´t have a car!

Boy, I miss Brad Pitt in big screen. ;-)

Photo Albums of the Summer

2007-10-08T13:06:00.000-07:00

If you are curious about what I did this summer abroad, please visit my Web Album and you'll get to see all my adventures!From Milan to Rome, Prague to Key West! It's been a GREAT summer. Enjoy! (I know I did! ;-) )

http://picasaweb.google.com/melissacappiello

In Love...

2007-10-04T12:46:00.000-07:00

I work as a Conversational English Assistant at the elementary school of Almorox. I teach children from 1st to 6th grade. Today, we went on a field trip to Madrid where we were quite busy! We saw "Notre Dame" on theater, the "Deep Sea" on IMax, and walked through an interactive zoo. It was very cool!

However, a very interesting development happened during the trip. While standing around waiting to get into the theater, one little and very hyperactive girl came running up to me, looked me right in the eyes and said (in broken but very good English), "Salvador loves Melissa!"

I just stared at her in shock. I definitely wasn't expecting that one! And the first thing that popped into my mind was : "Who's Salvador?"

She pointed, giggled and ran off. "Uhhhh... Thanks??"

I looked at where she pointed and saw this 9 year old skinny kid. I never really noticed him before though that's not a surprise since this was my first time working with this 6th grade class. He looked at me and quickly looked away embarrassed. After that, I started noticing how he sort of was always looking at me. And any time I happened to look his way, he would quickly dart his eyes away. (Guess he's shy!)

Also, you could tell he really wanted to talk to me. However, he couldn't because: "I don't speak Spanish. No Español." All the teachers had agreed that I should only speak English to the children. That way, if they wanted to talk to me, they would have to use their English skills. (This actually works because kids really want to talk to me!) However, the girls seem to be more willing to try English than the boys, so I always have a group of girls around me.

When a group of girls were talking to me, I saw Salvador just outside the group. He was kinda trying to act like he wasn't listening yet you could see him leaning towards the group, listening, with a deep look of concentration on his face. And sometimes you could tell that he wanted and may have even tried to join in. But he just... couldn't. Then he would stare at me with this helpless and hopeless look (thank goodness for peripheral vision!) because he really wanted to talk to me. When I looked his way to try to bring him into the conversation, he quickly looked away and ran off. This kept happening over and over during the whole trip! Isn't that cute??

C'est l'amour! ;-)

You know you are in a little town when... #2

2007-09-30T11:34:00.000-07:00

You know you are in a little town when...

If you want to buy clothes, there is only one store to do your shopping... and it's the size of a walk-in closet!

Yes. My town is that small.

I hope I don't have to go shopping any time soon because I may not find my size! ;-)

Useless Fact?? #3

2007-09-28T08:11:00.000-07:00

DID YOU KNOW...

That, in average, a wedding in Spain costs approximately $30,000? This is due mostly because everyone invites their family, their friends, their family's friends, their friend's friends, and their family's friend's friend's friends. That is a lot of mouths to feed!

But wait! There's more!

DID YOU ALSO KNOW...

That Spain has a divorce rate of approximately 75%? And, not only that, the average marriage lasts approximately 2 years?

That means that if you get married in Spain, you will spend approximately $30,000 in a wedding and there's a 75% change that you'll divorce in 2 years. That's $15,000 a year! That's someone's salary!!

Honestly, I wouldn't take those odds.

Now, I am going to end this blog with the same ending as the other Useless Facts posts. However, you can't help bur wonder... Is this fact really useless? (aka: Avoid marrying Spaniards?) I'll let you decide. ;-)

Another!... Uuuuuseless fact. :-)

You know you are in a little town when... #1

2007-09-24T07:16:00.000-07:00

I am officially in Spain now! I flew into Madrid about two days ago and was fortunate to be picked up by the family I am staying with now. We drove for a little more than an hour and arrived at my home-away-from-home (for the next 8 months): Almorox.

What should I tell you about this town? I am really not sure. After all, I've only been here for two days. But I will tell you what everyone has told me (which I agree with 100%): Almorox is a VERY small town. It is a pueblo. Or how I like to call it, a pueblito.

Now, when I heard I would be living in Almorox, I found out quickly how small it would be. I looked it up in maps.google.com and it was like 10 streets big. I also looked up town information and all I could find was "Max Population: 2,000 people" (my high school was bigger than that!). Furthermore, the fact that I couldn't find any more information also spoke plenty of its size.

But how small is it really? Well, I think it is best explained with examples. After all, it is the small details that the average person doesn't know that speaks volumes of the situation. So, for everyone to get a grasp on how small my pueblito is, I've decided to use the same tactic of "Did you know..." random facts and apply it to Almorox. It's called: "You know you are in a little town when..." So here we go!

You know you are in a little town when...

The dentist comes into town once a week.

...

That's pretty small!

I hope I never get a tooth ache while the dentist is gone! ;-)

Photo Album #2: WINE WARS!

2007-08-08T05:43:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, one of the planned adventures for this summer is a special festival held in Haro, the capital of Rioja, one of the "counties" of Spain. This region is known for its amazing wine and it is an intricate part of their culture and lives. To the point where they have a week long festival which ends with La Batalla del Vino - WINE WARS!!! It is the best water fight I've ever been in! Check out the photos! :-)

http://picasaweb.google.com/melissacappiello/WINEWARS

Only In Italy

2007-08-03T13:39:00.000-07:00

Only in Italy will you find, in the nicest section of shops in Milan, the Prada store:

and McDonald's right next door!

I do admit that it was the nicest McDonald's I've ever seen! I walked around inside and I was VERY impressed. Though don't worry. I didn't buy a Big Mac! ;-)

Only in Italy!

Fun Changes in Milan

2007-07-29T10:56:00.001-07:00

I was in Milan less than a year ago and a couple of little things have changed since I've been away. Wanted to share them with you so here we go!

1) Il Duomo
This is really THE main thing to see in Milan. The reason is that Milan was heavily bombed during WWII, so there really isn't much old stuff still standing. Thankfully, Il Duomo still stands! When I was in Milan last year, this is what it looked like:

As you can see, it is mostly blocked by that big board. They are cleaning it up! Now it looks like:

They are making progress! If you look closely, the board shows you the progress they have done in the past few years. They are almost done!

2) The Bull

To the left of Il Duomo is another section of Milan that wasn't blown up. There are murals on the ground and the most popular is one of a bull. Don't ask me why but someone from who-knows-how-long-ago said that if you put your heel on the testicles of the bull and rotate, it will bring you good luck! Of course, I couldn't miss the chance!

Good luck! Good luck! I take it all! ;-)

And what does the bull look like last year?

See? So many people have done it that it has a hole in it! And now?

Now the hole is MUCH deeper! (OUCH! Poor bull. ;-) )

My sister said that every year they fill in the hole and every year, a new hole is created. Funny huh? In Italy!

Anywayz, those are some of the few changes in Milan that were really obvious and I wanted to share! :-)

Useless Fact #2!

2007-07-19T08:42:00.000-07:00

DID YOU KNOW...

The uniforms the Italian police wear were designed by Armani??

I couldn't believe it! But if you look it up, it is true!

And here I thought the officers looked good because they were Italian. Guess it's their uniform! ;-)

Another! Uuuuse-less fact!

(Here's an example of the uniform. The white belt is definitely a nice touch. Good job, Armani! :-) )

Photo Album #1: MILAN!

2007-07-13T13:16:00.000-07:00

Some have been wondering exactly what I have been up to. I think photos are the best way to show where I've been, what I've seen and have done. After all, for me, my photos are my memories!

Below you will find a link to my photo album. Right now I have only been able to upload the first part of my trip, which is Milan! More to come. Enjoy! :-)

http://picasaweb.google.com/melissacappiello/WhileInMilan

Everyone Meets a Psycho

2007-07-12T11:14:00.000-07:00

I think every person in every trip has a run in with a psycho. Usually it is never intended. It just sort of happens. Sometimes you come out shaken, but in the end, you always laugh. Here's my story:

I was visiting a museum in Rome, walking around and looking at ancient sarcophagus, when my cell phone rang. It was my cousin who wanted to talk about tonight's plan. I scurried to a secluded corner and started talking to her when suddenly I hear a voice behind me. "Excuse me!" I turned around and in front of me stood this lady. I don't remember much of the lady other than an impression: short kidna purplish hair, a long dark purplish dress, and really thick dark green eyeliner over small eyes. She starts telling me,"Excuse me! You cannot use cell phones in a museum!"

Oh geez! I didn't know that!

"You need to go outside immediately and finish your conversation OUTSIDE!"

OK. No problem. I nooded my head and I started walking towards the door while trying to let my cousin know that I needed to hang up. After all, I didn't want to leave the museum just yet.

I also briefly thought how it was strange that a museum person didn't tell me this rule, especially when they are found everywhere. But that was OK. I obviously broke a major rule of museum etiquette since this lady was pretty upset.

Then the lady said, "I am going with you! I am going to MAKE SURE you go OUTSIDE!" Then she starts to follow me, continuingly repeating how I needed to go outside and how she's going with me. And she is getting louder and louder. So imagine me on my cell phone, trying to walk out of a room, with this lady following me and yelling into my ear how I need to go outside, while I am trying to tell my cousin that I have to go, but I can't hear her because this lady is yelling in my ear! I started getting a little frustrated but, in between the lady's snapping, I was able to let my cousin know I would call her back after I finish the museum.

I press the end button, show the lady my cell phone is off, and start walking away. I've hung up the phone, I've stopped talking, so the problem is solved, right? Wrong!

Then she hissed, "Who do you think you are?"

... Who do I think I am?

"Who do you think you ARE!" Then she starts yelling! In a museum! "YOU ARE IN A MUSEUM! YOU CANNOT TALK IN A CELL PHONE WHILE IN A MUSEUM! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!!!!"

Now mind you, I have absolutly not said ONE WORD during this whole "conversation". The only time I've spoken was to let my cousin know I had to go. I couldn't believe it! I just stared at her. I had hung up the phone. What else do you want, lady? And more, even the people who where with her were telling her to calm down. When she didn't, they walked away from her, embarrassed!

And she didn't stop yelling at me. She kept going and going. And honestly guys, I almost lost it. I almost let my temper rise, let her have it and told her who I am. Almost. But I didn't. Because the truth is, I looked at her and I felt sorry for her. It was obvious that she had blown this WAY out of proportion, which meant something really bad was happening in her life. She needed a scape goat and picked the girl talking on a cell phone in a museum. Though this doesn't excuse her behavior what-so-ever, I didn't have the heart to yell back at her. My sadness deflated my anger. Whatever was bothering her had to be pretty bad to make such a ruckus in a museum.

So I walked away again. And this time she didn't follow.

She did turn to a friend and in another langauge, said something. Must have been a Latin-based language because I understood what she said: "Who does she think she is?? %&£&#%$!!!"

Ah well. I didn't see her after that. And I enjoyed the rest of the museum.

By the way, do you want to know what the "cream on top" of this story is? The moment I walked away an uniformed man approached me. He worked for the museum. He said, "I am very sorry."

I looked at him and said, "No. I am very sorry. I didn't know about that rule."

"No. In museums, you are allowed to talk on cell phones."

...

HA! So all of this was over nothing.

Psycho lady. ;-)

A Joke

2007-07-05T16:19:00.001-07:00

Here's a joke that goes something like this:

In heaven, the policemen are British, the mechanics are German, the lovers are French, the cooks are Italian, and everything is organized by the Swiss.

In hell, the policemen are German, the cooks are British, the mechanics are French, the lovers are Swiss and everything is organized by the Italians.

The more I travel, the more this is true!

Wanted to share! :-)

Useless Fact #1

2007-07-03T08:57:00.000-07:00

In high school, there used to be a show called The Animeniacs. I rarely watched this show though there is one episode I still remember today.

I remember the episode clearly. One little cartoon guy goes up to another and says "Did you know! That a termite can live up to 40 years?" The other cartoon guy looks amazed by this fact and nods approvingly by this new information. And I too was amazed by this fact! How could a termite live for that long? Then the cartoon showed a quick flash of a little old lady termite, with glasses and wrinkles, talking to its little grand-termites. Then it flashed back to the two cartoon guys, who turned to look at the audience and said, "ANOTHER... uuuuuse-less fact."

And I started laughing. It was so funny! Mostly because it is true! Knowing how long termites live IS useless information! It is interesting, but useless. And yes, practically 10 years later, I still remember that fact and that episode.

So, what is the point of this story? Well, I've decided to have a "Useless Fact" section in my blog! It is for those random pieces of information that I encounter in my trip that are useless, but VERY interesting! :-)

Here we go!

DID YOU KNOW...

That in England, the number 1 most popular food to eat is an Indian dish? I can't remember the name exactly, but it is made of curry and chicken (coronation chicken? ).

A Brittish cook I met told me that England really didn't have a specific cousine. However, when a lot of Indians immigrated to England, the English adopted their way of cooking, especially curry. So this curry chicken dish has replaced Fish and Chips all over the country! It is the #1 food the Brittish cook at home! Isn't that interesting?

Another! Useless fact. ;-)

Mama's Boys?

2007-07-02T03:10:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if too many people know this but in Italy, children live with their parents until they get married. This means that, in average, they are not moving out of their homes till 30 something. My sister's Italian boyfriend and brother are perfect examples. They still live at home and both are over 30 (one over 35). This is definitely unheard of in good ol' USA. "Young adults" are pretty much asked to leave home around age 18. Or after college. Or maybe stay a couple of years after college so you can save a little $$ and move out. But there really isn't that attitude of "Stay home till you get married." It is more "Get a job, prove that you can live on your own, and THEN get married."

Now what I found REALLY interesting is that in Italy, MEN stay at home until they get married, while the women move out by themselves much earlier. Why? I know in Colombia, women should definitely stay home. Who will take care and protect them? With the underlying "we need to make sure she's 'pure' for the wedding." In USA, women are allowed to live at home longer than men, but not too long. Men definitely can't (and definitely not till 35!!!!) because people not only start to think "What's wrong with you?!", but how they are not independent and, worse, a "Mama's boy."

So I decided to find out. Why are Italian men staying at home and girls don't? I asked around and here's what people say:

Some say: Men don't move out because they want to be babied their whole lives. When they get married, they expect their wives to replace their mothers who cook, clean and do everything for them.

Other's says: In Italy, men have a very strong and even unhealthy attachment to their mother so they don't want to leave. They stay at home until they find someone who can take care of them like their mother. And even then, they'd rather be with their mother.

A German friend who's lived in Milan for many years. Here's what she says:

When you live with your parents, you get all the perks: free rent, free food, free TV, free laundry service, everything! And while you work, you get to save (or spend) as much as you want, in traveling, food, anything! However, for men, they get a perk. They get their independence. Italian men are allowed to go out and party, come home late as they want, do whatever they want without their parents saying anything. Women, on the other hand, do not. Their parents will always ask where they are going, what they are doing, put rules and limitations. So women have to pick between two things: comfort or independence. And usually they pick independence. So, men live at home. And women move out earlier.

My aunt from Colombia who has lived in Italy for 25+ years says:

In Italy, buying a place is outrageously super expensive and jobs don't pay well at all till you are in your 30's. It is not so much as they are "Mama's boys" but that there is no reason to move out when they have their independence and live well. Why move out to a little efficiency with no living room and pay so much money to barely survive, when you can live well at home until you can afford your own place? There is also no pressure from the parents to move out - they like having their kids at home. She also says that women and men face the same thing. She doesn't see more women moving out than men. This is something all Italian youths face.

And as for the Italian boyfriend who is a perfect example? He just shrugs and says "Bo" (aka: who knows). I told him everyone's opinion and he agrees with all of them, so....

Who is right? Who knows! Maybe everyone is right at some degree. You decide! :-)

Ps. Couldn't help myself. I had to ask. The thing is that in USA, women consider it a problem if a man lives at home because, well... where do you go and "do it"? To a hotel? Every time? Too expensive. Under their mother's roof? I don't think so! So I had to ask the Italian boyfriend. And he said "...I'd take them to the lake house."

OK. What if you don't have a lake house? Or anything else like that. Then what?

"Umm.... when your parents aren't home."

You mean you have to sneak it around? Do it more at your parent's convenience than yours?

"Yes."

In other words, it is like high school but for 20 more years. Wow.

PPS. I told this conversation to my Mom and she said "So they do it the old fashion way. When we had to stay at home."

The old fashion way.

hahahhahahahaa!!!! :-)

The Fat One

2007-06-26T06:38:00.001-07:00

My sister and I went to a BBQ at a farm in the middle of nowhere - about 1 hour away from Milan. It was a gorgeous farm near a mid-evil castle. The day was beautiful with perfect skies, great food, surrounded by Italians. I looked around at the Italians, made an observation, and commented to my sister's friends: "Wow. There's a lot of thin people here. My sister and I both look fat here!"

And she responded, "Yes, you both are definitely fat."

....

....

Thanks.

But then I started laughing. I couldn't help myself. I was just called fat right in my face! And I was also thinking of the irony. After all, I've always been called "The Skinny One" in the USA. I was amazed how just jumping on a plane and flying over an ocean can change people's perception. (All is relative!) It was just too funny.

But the truth is that I didn't like what I saw. I mean, I could go down to their size.. what 4?.. again if I wanted to. But they were just too skinny!! And it kinda grossed me out (the guys were too skinny too, by the way. No eye candy for me! ;-) ). There is also the reason that I just love my butt. I personally think it is the cutest thing ever. And I just can't have the cute butt like that if I'm 105 pounds. It just ain't going to happen!

So, back to the beautiful farm. After a little bit, I gained my composure and stopped laughing. I smiled at my sister's friend (who was looking at me very confused), and said, "Great! So... where's the gelato?" ;-)

----

PS. Actually, I think that party was a fluke. Most Italians don't look like that. There are definitely a lot more thin people here (both guys and girls) but I would consider myself average. Though maybe a little rounder cause of my cute butt! ;-)

PPS. OOPPSS! Apparently I'm wrong. I AM fat! Ha! I was corrected and apparently I was comparing myself to ALL the population, instead of my age range. Oh well! Pasta, per favore! ;-)

Italian Drivers

2007-06-21T09:18:00.000-07:00

I've been to Italy a couple of times - minimum 4 times - and I don't know why but I always forget about the driving here. In general, I think Italians are pretty good drivers. Crazy, but good. However, it is being a pedestrian that I'm having problems with. Crossing these crazy streets is just... well... crazy!

I remember one time in Rome, while getting a tour, the American tour guide said, before we crossed the street, "Now, I will be the first sheep to the slaughter!" and she'd throw herself on the street with cars and motorinos zigzagging around. And miraculously, all of them stop. Once we all crossed safely, she turned to us and said "That's the way to do it."

It's just crazy. I just haven't gotten used to it. When I'm crossing the street and I see a car flying towards me, my "fight or flight" response is to freeze. And the car(s) either stop or at least swerve around me. And they always give me an annoyed look, even when I do it right! (I think they just don't like to slow down in the first place). I give the "Mi dispiace!" look (I'm sorry!) and scurry across. I'm hoping in time I'll get use to this.

So I took this picture:

It seemed appropriate. A car speeding over a pedestrian walk in front of a church. It symbolizes everything I face while crossing crazy busy Italian streets. After all, every time, I say a little prayer, close my eyes, think "first sheep to slaughter!" and jump! :-)

My Arrival

2007-06-15T07:40:00.000-07:00

I left Thursday evening from Washington DC to fly to Milan. It was a 7 hour flight which arrived in London. Then 4 hours later, I took another 2 hour flight to Milan. When I arrived at the airport, my older sister told me she couldn't pick me up so to take the train into the city. I took the train. Then she said that she couldn't pick me up at the train station, that I needed to take the Metro into her neighborhood. Ok. I found the Metro and I walked in.

And talk about lost and confused! I looked at the machines and I had no clue how to make them work. I looked at the maps and I had no clue where I was. I looked at all the signs around me and I didn't even know what the basic little stick figures were doing!

At last, I decide to ask for help. Now, I don't speak Italian except for the basic Ciao and Prego (Hi/Bye and OK). Oh, and of course, Mange! (Eat!). But at that time even those words were completely forgotten (I blame exhaustion). I tried using my Spanish because so many people told me it would help. Well, the funny looks people were giving me said that wasn't working. I tried English, body language (aka: waving my arms), even FRENCH, a dead language for me since high school (and I think the French would probably agree it should remain dead- it was horrible). No good. Nada.

At last, after 1/2 hour of trying, with only 2 hours of sleep in 48 hours, carrying heavy luggage, lost, dazed and confused, I couldn't take it. I called my sister and said, "PICK ME UP RIGHT NOW!" She said, "Take the Metro!" and I said "I CAN'T! I CAN'T FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET A TICKET!" She said "Oh, brother."

She picked me up. Home. Relief.

I slept great that night.

Later, my sister's boyfriend said, "All tourist have the exact same problem when they first try to use this Metro. Welcome to Milan."

...

@#$%@ Metro.

.....
........

YEY! I'm in Milan! :-D

(Ps. This is Il Duomo found in Milan)

By Popular Demand!

2007-06-15T05:01:00.000-07:00

By popular demand, I have created a BLOG! In theory, it'll contain the different adventures that I've experienced while abroad. Right now I am in Milan with my older sister. I have officially been in Europe for a whole WEEK (wow!) and counting! :-) I've been pretty busy from exploring the city of Milano, to going outside of Milan and visiting a gorgeous farm near a mid-evil castle. It already has been a great adventure!

More to come! :-)