Days here: 90
Currently reading: Te Darè La Tierra- Modern Spanish novel set in 11th century Barcelona. A thrilling mix of political intrigue and romance. Too bad that lately I don't have too much time on my hands.
So this week I embarked on a new adventure for my time here in Spain. My school's AMPA (parent's group) hired me to lead after school English practice activities for whatever students sign up. I started this Tuesday and it's going to be a weekly thing, with two hours on Tuesdays, three on Wednesdays, and two on Thursdays. I'm glad about this because not only will it take up some of my formerly excess time but it also means some extra money =D Let me explain the posting's title. The parents made it clear when I agreed to do this that they don't want me to give English lessons to the kids, they just want me to lead activities in which they can practice the English skills that they acquire in school and in their private lessons. (Private lessons are a big thing here because Spanish people- both adults and kids- are really enthusiastic about learning English. I myself have five hours a week of one-on-one lessons with an adult.) I, of course, have no problems with this. Not having to plan lessons or actually teach will only make things easier for me.
Anyway, my first week was somewhat challenging and I had several conflicting impressions. I will be leading activities for all the ages from the preschoolers to 6th grade. My very first hour was with the preschoolers. I had 16 kids, which is a lot for one person alone. After all, when I enter preschool during school hours there are three adults: the English teacher, the main teacher, and me. As we all know, 3-5 year-olds are a riot, all over the place and difficult to control. Some of the activities I had for them included listening and singing songs. We sang and I tried to teach them "If you're happy and you know it" and "Head, shoulders, knees, and toes." They love the latter because the words and the dance are easy to learn! I also taught them the game "red light, green light," but the motion-oriented nature of the game only led to chaos. Since they are learning body parts, I also let them play with a robot that I got from the school, whose limbs and facial features come off so that they can have the opportunity to put them back on, listening to instructions from me. Some of the kids are very good. But there were three or four that just would not listen or stand still. Some of them were just running around and screaming the whole time and bothering the other kids, hitting them and throwing them on the ground. I was so tired that I let them go to the playground for the last ten minutes of class. I must confess: by the end of the first hour, I was dispirited. I told myself that I was going to talk to the parents' group mothers and tell them that I didn't want to work with the preschoolers. But I'm glad I didn't. My hour with preschoolers on Wednesday was also chaotic, but for the last half hour I had some assistance with one of my school's teachers. Afterwards I had a very enlightening conversation with her. She no longer teaches preschool, but she did for twelve years. She let me know that we will be helping me from now on and that we just have to organize ourselves very well in order to lead the preschoolers. Basically, for preschoolers it's all about repetition, repetition, repetition. I already knew this. I know that in order to teach preschoolers, I have to do the same things every week so that they become accustomed and they can internalize the information. So what we're going to do is choose books (the first being Old McDonald) and make visual posters of the story (i.e. ducks saying quack, pigs saying oink, etc.). Using these visuals, we can get so much repetition out of one book that it can last us one whole month. We will be using these visuals every lesson for as long as it takes the kids to be able to sing the song along with me. Of course, there will also be intermittent songs and games, but this organization will help calm the kids down and make things easier for me. I see working with the preschoolers as a challenge which I'm happy to tackle!
The elementary school kids are obviously much easier to handle. I have two 1st/2nd grade groups of about ten kids each. I have two 3rd/4th grade groups of about eight each. And I have one 5th/6th grade group of about 13 kids. For my 1st/2nd grade kids I designed a game board (think a windy road a-la-Candy Land), and during class I instructed them in how to fill each square. The instructions were things like: Go Forward 1,2,3; Go Back 1,2,3; Stay here; Go to certain color; and some squares colored in. I was glad that the kids really enjoyed making their game boards and that they quickly discerned how the game was going to work. They were really excited to begin playing the game, but after filling out the board there was not enough time left. We are going to begin playing their game in two weeks because next week I am going to have all the groups make Valentine's Day cards for each other. In the first 3rd/4th grade group we wrote a story together. I tried to have each kid come up with one sentence, but like in every group, there are some kids who don't speak and some who just love to speak. So, with a little guidance from me, they were successful in writing a whole story with characters, a conflict, and a resolution. After finishing the story, I assigned each of them a sentence that they were to draw. Once the drawings are finished, I plan on putting our story together and we are going to read this story to death. After all, making them practice English is my job, right? In the second group, I wrote a short skit with a group of characters that appear in their English textbooks. They really like these character, which is a group of superhero kids, so I figured it would raise the interest-quotient. What we did in our first session was that we assigned characters and we read over the skit, and I had them each translate everything that they read. In future sessions, we're going to continue going over the skit and I'm going to have them act it out until they learn it as best they can. The next day at school the 3rd/4th English teacher told me that several of them had told her that they really enjoyed it. I overheard one of the girls say (remember, they think I don't really understand Spanish) that this was the best English class she'd ever been to. Things like this make it all worth it =) But honestly, I think the real reason why they all really enjoy it is because they can see their friends and talk, and I don't get as serious or angry as their real teachers. Finally, in the 5th/6th grade group, which is my favorite because they're all really good at English, I also had them write a story together. I also helped them, but they required less help than the 3rd/4th graders doing the same activity. Likewise, the participation level was more even and balanced than it was in the younger group. I gave them the same drawing assignment and we are also going to read this story to death.
I think that for my first week it went very well. I definitely noticed that the kids enjoyed themselves and the parent organizers all seemed satisfied. I myself am satisfied. Of course, things can definitely improve in every group. But the way I see it, it's a work in progress. It was the first week, and I'm not a trained teacher. The experiences I have and lessons I learn each week will help me to improve the way I approach these sessions and will help me to better organize myself. After all, what are experiences for if not to learn from them? This is, after all, why I took a job halfway across the world from my home.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Scientologists
Circle I Limbo
George Bush
Circle II Whirling in a Dark & Stormy Wind
Parents who bring squalling brats to R-rated movies
Circle III Mud, Rain, Cold, Hail & Snow
Republicans
Circle IV Rolling Weights
Libertarians
Circle V Stuck in Mud, Mangled
River Styx
Objectivists
Circle VI Buried for Eternity
River Phlegyas
Creationists
Circle VII Burning Sands
Jerry Falwell
Circle IIX Immersed in Excrement
Osama bin Laden
Circle IX Frozen in Ice
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
The Tourists Go to Madrid
Days here: 61 (It's my two-month-aversary today!)
New Year's Resolutions: 1. Write more; 2. Spend less money on alcohol; 3. Make better and more mature choices
Last Week, from Wednesday 29th to Friday 31st, Courtney, one of my fellow Auxiliaries in Socuèllamos, and I spent a busy few days as crazy American tourists in Madrid. Though I've been here almost two months, I hadn't had a chance to go to Madrid and really spend time there taking in the sights. I'd gone there for official business and spent a night or two there waiting for a flight in the morning, but I hadn't really experienced Madrid. Shameful, I know! Well, I finally made it.
Day 1
This trip was all the more exciting because it was my first couchsurfing experience. For those of you who don't know what that is, check out couchsurfing.org. Basically, you search for people who offer couches in various cities. You request to "surf" on somebody's couch for a certain amount of nights, and if they accept, you have a free place to sleep! So legit and a really great way to meet people. Our host was Carlos, a 28-year-old Peruvian immigrant who worked at the Madrid airport as a waiter. He gave us a bed and an extra mattress to sleep on, so our two nights were actually quite comfortable. We arrived in Madrid on Wednesday, and after dropping our stuff off at Carlos' place, we started on our way to the Madrid center. Fortunately Madrid's metro system is very extensive and it was easy to get there from our neighborhood, which was well outside of the main areas.
Our first stop was Plaza de Puerta del Sol, Kilometer 0 of Madrid. This bustling and crowded ant farm of a plaza is called Kilometer 0 because of its centralized location and because all of the important sites can be easily reached with Puerta del Sol as a starting point. After spending a few minutes admiring the street performers we headed towards Calle Alcalà, one of the four major avenues branching out of Puerta del Sol. Alcalà, as busy as the plaza, is a giant avenue of shops, businesses, and government buildings. Not the least of which was... STARBUCK'S! Yes, it was obligatory to walk into the shop and get a little taste of America. Because it was freezing, I had to resist the temptation of getting a Mocha Frappuccino and instead went for a good old-fashioned Cafe Latte. Tall, of course. After this short pit stop, we continued on our trek. After a short walk, we reached the intersection of Alcalà and Paseo del Prado, another major Madrid avenue. On the corner was what is possibly my favorite building in Madrid (from outside, as we didn't go inside). It was the Palacio de Comunicaciones, which houses the Madrid mayoral offices. I was impressed by it's majestic presence in the middle of such a busy intersection (as opposed to the other important buildings, which are mostly set apart), by its aesthetic beauty, and by the fact that such a beautiful building still serves an official purpose rather than being redesigned as a museum. We continued down the same street and finally hit the Plaza de Independencia, which houses the Puerta de Alcalà. The Puerta is much like the medieval city doors in many European cities, and it quite reminded me of the Arc de Triomphe (thought Alcalà is bigger and of course, nicer), but that doesn't take away from its majesty and imposing presence.
After a million pictures, we continued down Calle Alfonso XII. It was getting close to 6pm and we had made plans to go to the Musèo Nacional del Prado at that hour. We arrived at the Prado, a public art museum which houses mostly Renaissance-era productions, such as Goya, Velazquez, etc. (Mostly Spanish artists, of course.), right around 6. We made plans to meet with Kayla Gordon (whom many of you know from Berkeley and is an Auxiliar in Sevilla), Johnny Chiou (whom many of of you also know and was visiting for the holidays), and two other friends of theirs also from Berkeley, at the museum at 6pm because that's when the free admission starts. Of course, being poor recent college graduates, we take advantage of every free opportunity. As we arrived, the line was already kind of long but it actually moved quite fast. We were inside the museum by 6:30pm. We headed into the galleries and giddily didn't follow any particular order or look for any particular rooms. We just followed the layout of the galleries and enjoyed the various paintings. My favorite piece was definitely Francisco Goya's La Familia de Carlos IV. Now, you all know I'm not a monarchist, but the beauty of this work of art in its representation of the royal family is quite breathtaking and thought-provoking. Like, for example, why did Goya decide to shroud some of his subjects in shadows, including himself? Haha, look at me sounding like an art scholar! The thing is I've been reading much about Goya and romantic art since the exhibition.
After the museum, Courtney and I walked around a bit more before deciding to stop for dinner at a restaurant not far from the center. After dinner, we went to a bar called Populart, a place we had read about that offered live jazz shows. The place lives up to its name- it was very full considering it was a Wednesday. We couldn't find anywhere to sit, but the show was enjoyable. What wasn't enjoyable was the bill: we paid 7euros for a Tinto de Verano, a drink for which in Socuèllamos we pay 1,50 for comparable size and quality! Yeah, I limited myself to one. We decided to call it a night and headed to our host's flat.
Day 2
After breakfast on day 2, our first stop was the Plaza del Oriente, the park just east of the Palacio Real. After walking a bit through the streets and through the Plaza (beautiful, I can just imagine the royal family centuries ago taking strolls in the same places I walked), we decided to get in line for the Palacio. The Palacio Real used to be the official residence of the Spanish royal family and the royal court, but now it is used only for official ceremonies. The line didn't look as long as the Prado's, but it moved soooo much slower (and it was cold and rainy!!!). Maybe that's because people actually had to pay this time. We finally got in proceeded to follow the museum-like route of the Palacio. First stop was the Real Armerìa, the Royal Armory. This exhibit houses an interesting collection of old weapons (from ancient swords to modern-ish pistols and rifles) and sets of armor from all eras of Spanish history. There's even a section of child-sized sets of armor for the little prince's. Those were purely ceremonial, obviously, but kind of interesting. The next stop was a temporary art exhibit called "La Pintura de los Reinos," or "The Painting of the Kingdoms." I really enjoyed this exhibit (gosh, I realize I am becoming an art junkie), which was a demonstration of the way Spanish and Italian art in the 16th and 17th centuries influenced art in New Spain and vice-versa. So you can picture what the exhibit was like, one prominent section showed three different paintings of Jesus' Crucifixion. One was done in Spain, one was done in Mexico, and one one was done in Peru, all within one hundred years of each other. I don't understand much about painting, but the displays explained the similarities in the pieces despite the different styles and miles that separated them. The next stop were the Official Palace Rooms, which is a pre-set tour of several (though not all, as that would probably take too many hours) of the Palacio's chambers. The chambers are very pretty and elaborately decorated, but honestly, once you've seen one you've seen all of them. Anyway, the tour was mercifully short. The last stop in the Palacio was the Real Farmacia, the Royal Apothecary. This... basically... consisted... of... several... hallways... with...jars.... and... vases... labeled... with... different...herbs...and...potions. Yeah, seriously! I had to write it like that so you could get a full sense of the experience. Finally we left the Palacio, which overall was a good site. And in any case I consider it such a privilege to be able to witness all of these testaments to history that I enjoy even the most miniscule and insignificant things.
Next we walked up Calle Mayor towards the center. By this time it was about 5:30pm so we stopped by one of its restaurants for a late lunch. The essence of this meal is that I ate WAYYY too much bread. And some food and triple chocolate cake with it, I believe. We continued walking up the street and stopped by Plaza Mayor, one of Madrid's important plaza's for some window shopping. The Plaza is surrounded by quaint shops and restaurants, and because of the holidays there were cute shopping stands in the middle. Being the pragmatist that I am, I didn't buy any of the cute stuff. We then went back to Puerta del Sol's shopping district and did some actual shopping. The whole time I'd been looking for a messenger bag as a Christmas gift for myself, and I finally found a really great one at H&M. I bought it! And I use it all the time now! We ended the night by going to Cafè y Tè, a Spanish coffee-shop chain, and having some heartwarming coffee and napolitanos (Spanish pastries filled with chocolate or custard). We chilled there for a good couple of hours, marking a good end to the night.
Day 3
Our last day! Our first stop was the Parque del Retiro, known as the "Central Park of Madrid." Honestly, that's an exaggeration. The park is beautiful, but it's actually pretty small. We entered the park through the Puerta del Angel Caìdo, a reference to Lucifer, the Fallen Angel. After a short walk, the path from this door led us to the Monumento del Angel Caìdo, one of the few homages in the world to Lucifer. Being the sinner that I am: GLORIOUS. We continued walking through the park, this time off the paths. We came across the park's two "palaces," the Palacio de Cristal, whose purpose I haven't quite figured out, and the Palacio de Velàzquez, used as an art gallery. Both were closed because it was New Year's Eve. We continued walking until we reached one of the prettiest parts of the park and one of my favorite monuments in Madrid. In the middle of the park is a large pond (when it's not rainy, you can ride onto the pond on little rowboats). Overlooking the pond is the Monumento a Su Majestad el Rey Alfonso XII. I have plenty of pictures on my Facebook album, but if you like immediate gratification (who doesn't), here you go. I don't know why I like this monument so much. It just speaks to me as a historian. Alfonso XII (1857-1885), the great-grandfather of the current king, was one of the most popular and beloved king's in Spanish history. So beloved, in fact, that he was able to attain and consolidate power even though his family had been exiled by the First Spanish Republic, created by the Revolution of 1868. Anyway, enough of the history lesson. I get carried away =P
After finishing the park, we yet again walked to Puerta del Sol's shopping district and did some more shopping. Don't judge. What is vacation for? I didn't buy anything more. We did some more walking on the main avenues and went back to Plaza Mayor for some more shopping. As lunchtime approached, we decided to just head back to the train station and have a long, relaxed lunch in one of it's restaurants. As our train left at 4:53, we thought this best so that we wouldn't have to rush to the station after eating. Besides, we'd seen enough.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderfully Happy New Year!
New Year's Resolutions: 1. Write more; 2. Spend less money on alcohol; 3. Make better and more mature choices
Last Week, from Wednesday 29th to Friday 31st, Courtney, one of my fellow Auxiliaries in Socuèllamos, and I spent a busy few days as crazy American tourists in Madrid. Though I've been here almost two months, I hadn't had a chance to go to Madrid and really spend time there taking in the sights. I'd gone there for official business and spent a night or two there waiting for a flight in the morning, but I hadn't really experienced Madrid. Shameful, I know! Well, I finally made it.
Day 1
This trip was all the more exciting because it was my first couchsurfing experience. For those of you who don't know what that is, check out couchsurfing.org. Basically, you search for people who offer couches in various cities. You request to "surf" on somebody's couch for a certain amount of nights, and if they accept, you have a free place to sleep! So legit and a really great way to meet people. Our host was Carlos, a 28-year-old Peruvian immigrant who worked at the Madrid airport as a waiter. He gave us a bed and an extra mattress to sleep on, so our two nights were actually quite comfortable. We arrived in Madrid on Wednesday, and after dropping our stuff off at Carlos' place, we started on our way to the Madrid center. Fortunately Madrid's metro system is very extensive and it was easy to get there from our neighborhood, which was well outside of the main areas.
Our first stop was Plaza de Puerta del Sol, Kilometer 0 of Madrid. This bustling and crowded ant farm of a plaza is called Kilometer 0 because of its centralized location and because all of the important sites can be easily reached with Puerta del Sol as a starting point. After spending a few minutes admiring the street performers we headed towards Calle Alcalà, one of the four major avenues branching out of Puerta del Sol. Alcalà, as busy as the plaza, is a giant avenue of shops, businesses, and government buildings. Not the least of which was... STARBUCK'S! Yes, it was obligatory to walk into the shop and get a little taste of America. Because it was freezing, I had to resist the temptation of getting a Mocha Frappuccino and instead went for a good old-fashioned Cafe Latte. Tall, of course. After this short pit stop, we continued on our trek. After a short walk, we reached the intersection of Alcalà and Paseo del Prado, another major Madrid avenue. On the corner was what is possibly my favorite building in Madrid (from outside, as we didn't go inside). It was the Palacio de Comunicaciones, which houses the Madrid mayoral offices. I was impressed by it's majestic presence in the middle of such a busy intersection (as opposed to the other important buildings, which are mostly set apart), by its aesthetic beauty, and by the fact that such a beautiful building still serves an official purpose rather than being redesigned as a museum. We continued down the same street and finally hit the Plaza de Independencia, which houses the Puerta de Alcalà. The Puerta is much like the medieval city doors in many European cities, and it quite reminded me of the Arc de Triomphe (thought Alcalà is bigger and of course, nicer), but that doesn't take away from its majesty and imposing presence.
After a million pictures, we continued down Calle Alfonso XII. It was getting close to 6pm and we had made plans to go to the Musèo Nacional del Prado at that hour. We arrived at the Prado, a public art museum which houses mostly Renaissance-era productions, such as Goya, Velazquez, etc. (Mostly Spanish artists, of course.), right around 6. We made plans to meet with Kayla Gordon (whom many of you know from Berkeley and is an Auxiliar in Sevilla), Johnny Chiou (whom many of of you also know and was visiting for the holidays), and two other friends of theirs also from Berkeley, at the museum at 6pm because that's when the free admission starts. Of course, being poor recent college graduates, we take advantage of every free opportunity. As we arrived, the line was already kind of long but it actually moved quite fast. We were inside the museum by 6:30pm. We headed into the galleries and giddily didn't follow any particular order or look for any particular rooms. We just followed the layout of the galleries and enjoyed the various paintings. My favorite piece was definitely Francisco Goya's La Familia de Carlos IV. Now, you all know I'm not a monarchist, but the beauty of this work of art in its representation of the royal family is quite breathtaking and thought-provoking. Like, for example, why did Goya decide to shroud some of his subjects in shadows, including himself? Haha, look at me sounding like an art scholar! The thing is I've been reading much about Goya and romantic art since the exhibition.
After the museum, Courtney and I walked around a bit more before deciding to stop for dinner at a restaurant not far from the center. After dinner, we went to a bar called Populart, a place we had read about that offered live jazz shows. The place lives up to its name- it was very full considering it was a Wednesday. We couldn't find anywhere to sit, but the show was enjoyable. What wasn't enjoyable was the bill: we paid 7euros for a Tinto de Verano, a drink for which in Socuèllamos we pay 1,50 for comparable size and quality! Yeah, I limited myself to one. We decided to call it a night and headed to our host's flat.
Day 2
After breakfast on day 2, our first stop was the Plaza del Oriente, the park just east of the Palacio Real. After walking a bit through the streets and through the Plaza (beautiful, I can just imagine the royal family centuries ago taking strolls in the same places I walked), we decided to get in line for the Palacio. The Palacio Real used to be the official residence of the Spanish royal family and the royal court, but now it is used only for official ceremonies. The line didn't look as long as the Prado's, but it moved soooo much slower (and it was cold and rainy!!!). Maybe that's because people actually had to pay this time. We finally got in proceeded to follow the museum-like route of the Palacio. First stop was the Real Armerìa, the Royal Armory. This exhibit houses an interesting collection of old weapons (from ancient swords to modern-ish pistols and rifles) and sets of armor from all eras of Spanish history. There's even a section of child-sized sets of armor for the little prince's. Those were purely ceremonial, obviously, but kind of interesting. The next stop was a temporary art exhibit called "La Pintura de los Reinos," or "The Painting of the Kingdoms." I really enjoyed this exhibit (gosh, I realize I am becoming an art junkie), which was a demonstration of the way Spanish and Italian art in the 16th and 17th centuries influenced art in New Spain and vice-versa. So you can picture what the exhibit was like, one prominent section showed three different paintings of Jesus' Crucifixion. One was done in Spain, one was done in Mexico, and one one was done in Peru, all within one hundred years of each other. I don't understand much about painting, but the displays explained the similarities in the pieces despite the different styles and miles that separated them. The next stop were the Official Palace Rooms, which is a pre-set tour of several (though not all, as that would probably take too many hours) of the Palacio's chambers. The chambers are very pretty and elaborately decorated, but honestly, once you've seen one you've seen all of them. Anyway, the tour was mercifully short. The last stop in the Palacio was the Real Farmacia, the Royal Apothecary. This... basically... consisted... of... several... hallways... with...jars.... and... vases... labeled... with... different...herbs...and...potions. Yeah, seriously! I had to write it like that so you could get a full sense of the experience. Finally we left the Palacio, which overall was a good site. And in any case I consider it such a privilege to be able to witness all of these testaments to history that I enjoy even the most miniscule and insignificant things.
Next we walked up Calle Mayor towards the center. By this time it was about 5:30pm so we stopped by one of its restaurants for a late lunch. The essence of this meal is that I ate WAYYY too much bread. And some food and triple chocolate cake with it, I believe. We continued walking up the street and stopped by Plaza Mayor, one of Madrid's important plaza's for some window shopping. The Plaza is surrounded by quaint shops and restaurants, and because of the holidays there were cute shopping stands in the middle. Being the pragmatist that I am, I didn't buy any of the cute stuff. We then went back to Puerta del Sol's shopping district and did some actual shopping. The whole time I'd been looking for a messenger bag as a Christmas gift for myself, and I finally found a really great one at H&M. I bought it! And I use it all the time now! We ended the night by going to Cafè y Tè, a Spanish coffee-shop chain, and having some heartwarming coffee and napolitanos (Spanish pastries filled with chocolate or custard). We chilled there for a good couple of hours, marking a good end to the night.
Day 3
Our last day! Our first stop was the Parque del Retiro, known as the "Central Park of Madrid." Honestly, that's an exaggeration. The park is beautiful, but it's actually pretty small. We entered the park through the Puerta del Angel Caìdo, a reference to Lucifer, the Fallen Angel. After a short walk, the path from this door led us to the Monumento del Angel Caìdo, one of the few homages in the world to Lucifer. Being the sinner that I am: GLORIOUS. We continued walking through the park, this time off the paths. We came across the park's two "palaces," the Palacio de Cristal, whose purpose I haven't quite figured out, and the Palacio de Velàzquez, used as an art gallery. Both were closed because it was New Year's Eve. We continued walking until we reached one of the prettiest parts of the park and one of my favorite monuments in Madrid. In the middle of the park is a large pond (when it's not rainy, you can ride onto the pond on little rowboats). Overlooking the pond is the Monumento a Su Majestad el Rey Alfonso XII. I have plenty of pictures on my Facebook album, but if you like immediate gratification (who doesn't), here you go. I don't know why I like this monument so much. It just speaks to me as a historian. Alfonso XII (1857-1885), the great-grandfather of the current king, was one of the most popular and beloved king's in Spanish history. So beloved, in fact, that he was able to attain and consolidate power even though his family had been exiled by the First Spanish Republic, created by the Revolution of 1868. Anyway, enough of the history lesson. I get carried away =P
After finishing the park, we yet again walked to Puerta del Sol's shopping district and did some more shopping. Don't judge. What is vacation for? I didn't buy anything more. We did some more walking on the main avenues and went back to Plaza Mayor for some more shopping. As lunchtime approached, we decided to just head back to the train station and have a long, relaxed lunch in one of it's restaurants. As our train left at 4:53, we thought this best so that we wouldn't have to rush to the station after eating. Besides, we'd seen enough.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderfully Happy New Year!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Buon Natale, Milano!
Merry Christmas and a Happy 2011 to all my lovely readers!
Let me start by saying that I was never very interested in visiting Milan. It's just something I had never thought about or desired. But I had a great time for two reasons: because it was Christmas and because I got to spend it with my friend Damiano and his whole family: his dad Carlo, his mom Patricia, his brother Oscar, and his friend Qing, who is his classmate in London and was also visiting.
I was supposed to leave for Milan on Thursday 12/23 in a 4pm flight from Madrid. But I overslept so I missed all the buses and trains that could have gotten me to Madrid in time. I pride myself on how good I am with alarms and waking up on time for stuff, even on minimal sleep. So you have to understand how exhausted I must have been for this to have happened (I hadn't slept very well the past couple of nights). Anyway, I switched my flight to Friday at 7am and left for Madrid that very day on a 6:30pm train. I arrived in Madrid close to 9pm, and went straight to the airport. I didn't feel like paying an extra 50 or so euros for a hostel, so I decided I would sleep in the airport. The terrible night of semi-sleep that I had on the concrete floor only added to my tired state. But finally morning came and after a sleep-filled trip (which, by the way, left an hour late) I finally made it to Milan. I took a train from the Milan airport to Milan center, where Damiano picked me up and took me to his home.
There, I met: Carlo, his father. He is a retired electrician who volunteers doing electrician work for a non-profit. He is the cook of the family and did most of the cooking while I was there and for Christmas Eve dinner. Patricia, his mother. Sweet woman, retired pre-school teacher with a talent for pencil sketches, which are hanging throughout their flat. Qing, Damiano's classmate in London, originally from Shanghai. I was glad I was not the only non-Italian in the group because this meant we both asked tons of questions but didn't look as dumb and both were "the tourists" always stopping for pictures. My first meal in Milan was cooked by Qing. She made something that tasted to me like Mongolian pork and grilled bok choy. Delicious. Finally, Oscar, Damiano's older brother, who studies some sort of finance/account managing in Milan.
After lunch, Damiano, Qing, Oscar, and I went out to explore the center. First we went to Santa Maria delle Grazie church, which was mostly destroyed during World War II, but was now restored to much of its originally glory. I, being the Papist that I am, was dying to see Il Cenacolo (The Last Supper, which is housed in the dining room of the church monastery). According to the story, during the WWII bombings, while everything around it was destroyed, Il Cenacolo was the only part of the church left intact. Glory! But what Damiano failed to mention before is that seeing it requires reservations months in advance, so we continued our trek After seeing some more churches, we also stopped by Castello Sforzesco, a 14th-century castle which was one of the biggest military forts in Europe, used during Milan's many battles with other Italian cities and with foreign invaders. The castle was also badly damaged during WWII, but has now been fully restored. It is now used for museums and art galleries. Finally, we arrived at Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the center of Milan's high-class shopping and one of the oldest shopping centers in the world. Entering the Gallery, which is cross-shaped with shops extending in all four directions, is comparable to walking down Main Street in Disneyland. You are bombarded by people walking in all directions, bright lights everywhere above you, and the sensation that this place is larger than life. Of course I didn't buy anything in this very expensive center, but just window-shopping in this area is an experience in itself.
Finally, we made it back home around 7:30pm, in time to get ready for Christmas Eve dinner. We were expecting several family friends, for a total of 14 people at dinner (big, but nothing compared to the Mexican holidays I'm used to). A long table was set out quite lovely, and after everyone had arrived we settled into our spots. Dinner started with an endless array of antipasto- everything from tuna pate to grilled peppers to salmon cakes to pigs in a blanket. Naturally, wine and bread were ever-present and obligatory. Qing and I weren't aware that this wasn't "dinner" and ate to our heart's content. But this was Christmas and we were in Italy, so there was plenty of extra space in our bellies. After appetizers and short break, we had the first main dish. We had two types of beef ravioli: a plain dish and a sort of sweet tomato sauce ravioli. Both very delicious, and very Italian! This time, the break was much longer, about 30 minutes or so. Then the second dish was brought out: roasted duck! I'm not much of duck fan, but this was deliciously prepared and perfectly seasoned. And for some reason, duck seems very Christmasy anyway. Finally, dessert time! We had two desserts. The first was marrons glàce, or chestnut cream. It's a white cake cut into different layers and shaped so that it looks like a Christmas tree, and the center is filled with the delicious (and addicting!) chestnut cream. We had this for dessert on Christmas Eve, and as there was plenty left over, we had it for dessert for several meals after. Fine by me! The second desert was chocolate "salami," a chocolate-fudge like concoction filled with rice crispies. It's called so because it's shaped like salami. Yes, it's very obviously phallic. Yes, jokes of this nature were made. Yes, I am a 14 year old boy.
Dinner, which started about 8:30, ended a little after midnight (Christmas!). Now, it was time for presents! Gift-giving was very un-personalized, which means that I also got some of the goods, even though nobody knew me. First, one of the guests, who works at some kind of publishing house and gets of tons of books for free, brought gift-wrapped books and distributed them to everyone. I got two medieval mysteries. Of course, they're in Italian, so.... Second, we had the Christmas lottery. Here, several gifts were set out, each with a number. Each person picks a number out of a bag, and you get the corresponding gift. First, I got a woman's wallet, so they let me pick again, since there were several gifts left over. My new gift was a small kitchen scale. Useful, I guess =P After gift-giving, everybody started leaving and the sweet siren song of bed called my name. After cleaning, we went to bed. It was about 3am (much earlier than I'm used to for Christmas). After several nights of not sleeping well and the night I'd had before, the bed seemed like the most comfortable in the world and I had the best sleep I've ever had.
Next morning, I woke up pretty late (12ish) and it was time for more gifts! This time, it was the gifts that the family had bought for us! I hadn't bought any gifts, but I had brought them some turròn, traditional Spanish Christmas candy, which they loved! I got a fancy pen set from Parker, which apparently is a very famous Italian brand. Sweet! After lunch (homemade lasagna!!!), we went to take Qing to the train station, as she was leaving to spend the rest of her break in another part of Italy, which another London classmate. After dropping her off, Damiano, Oscar, and I went to explore some more. This time, we went to Il Duomo, the Cathedral, which is the second-largest church in the world, after Rome's cathedral. Standing outside the Cathedral is an awe-inspiring and humbling experience. Its tall spires, which always shine like they're covered in jewels, look the building look like something out of Lord of the Rings. And I was particularly impressed by the semi-permanent scaffolding, which gives the building a dangerous and deadly air. Unfortunately, the inside is quite ordinary and not as impressive. Apparently you can climb to the Cathedral terrace a the very top, which offers a breathtaking view of the city, but it was raining, so no go. After this, we went to the Museum of Nine-Hundred, a 20th century modern art museum. The most interesting thing I learned here was that the Futurists were an Italian art movement characterized by their twisting and distorting of reality with shape, color, and movement. They were also associated with the Fascists. Figures. This day drained us and we drove back to their flat, where after dinner Damiano, his friend Nathan (who joined us at the museum and for dinner), Patricia, and I settled down to watch an Italian documentary about gay parents. I never escape the gayness in my life =)
Sunday, my last full day in Milan, was another long and exciting day. After lunch, Damiano and I went back to the Castello Sforzesco. The time before, we had admired its contours from the outside. This time, we went in. First, we saw a short exhibition of Milanese history through photography. I took so many pictures on this trip that Damiano said that someday my pictures will be displayed in this exhibition. Second, we went into the Museum of Ancient Art, a collection of antique Roman art and sculpture, into the Furniture Museum (which is exactly what it sounds like), and finally into the Picture Gallery, a collection of Italian Renaissance art. I definitely prefer older art to modern art, so I enjoyed this more than the Nine-Hundred. The castle has several more museums, such as the Egyptian Museum, Museum of Prehistory, Museum of Musical Instruments, but we didn't feel like looking at more stuff, so we left and got some gelato! Even though it was raining and freezing, one of the things I had to do was eat Italian gelato. We went into a small and crowded shop (always a good sign), and I ordered a scoop of chocolate and a scoop of coffee on a cone, topped with whipped cream. The combination of all three flavors is heavenly. After this we met a few of Damiano's friends and headed to the Palazzo Reale, the Royal Palace, which, like everything else in every old city, is now used for art and cultural exhibitions. We were lucky enough to be there for the temporary Salvador Dali exhibit, "Il Sogno si Avvicina," or "The Dream is Approaching." There were several other exhibitions, but we opted for this one. Like I said, I'm not much of a modern art guy, but I consider being able to see a Dali show such a privilege that I was thrilled and really enjoyed it. My favorite was Landscape with Girl Jumping Rope. There's something just so haunting and beautiful about it. After this, we went to dinner at a traditional pizza parlor. One of Damiano's friends, Giorgi, told me that pizza is not as good in Milan as it is in other parts of Italy. But it tasted perfectly to me, and it was real Italian pizza!
The next day, Monday, was my departure date. After a delicious lunch of pasta Bolognese, more bread, and more wine, we headed to the center, where I took the train to the airport. My flight was at 5:45pm (again, it took of an hour late) and I got to Madrid around 9pm. I would again have to sleep in the airport and take a bus or train to Socuèllamos Tuesday morning, as none are available at night. And thus, exactly the way it began, ended my Milanese Christmas.
Days here: 57
Currently reading: El Ùltimo Catòn by Matilde Asensi
Let me start by saying that I was never very interested in visiting Milan. It's just something I had never thought about or desired. But I had a great time for two reasons: because it was Christmas and because I got to spend it with my friend Damiano and his whole family: his dad Carlo, his mom Patricia, his brother Oscar, and his friend Qing, who is his classmate in London and was also visiting.
I was supposed to leave for Milan on Thursday 12/23 in a 4pm flight from Madrid. But I overslept so I missed all the buses and trains that could have gotten me to Madrid in time. I pride myself on how good I am with alarms and waking up on time for stuff, even on minimal sleep. So you have to understand how exhausted I must have been for this to have happened (I hadn't slept very well the past couple of nights). Anyway, I switched my flight to Friday at 7am and left for Madrid that very day on a 6:30pm train. I arrived in Madrid close to 9pm, and went straight to the airport. I didn't feel like paying an extra 50 or so euros for a hostel, so I decided I would sleep in the airport. The terrible night of semi-sleep that I had on the concrete floor only added to my tired state. But finally morning came and after a sleep-filled trip (which, by the way, left an hour late) I finally made it to Milan. I took a train from the Milan airport to Milan center, where Damiano picked me up and took me to his home.
There, I met: Carlo, his father. He is a retired electrician who volunteers doing electrician work for a non-profit. He is the cook of the family and did most of the cooking while I was there and for Christmas Eve dinner. Patricia, his mother. Sweet woman, retired pre-school teacher with a talent for pencil sketches, which are hanging throughout their flat. Qing, Damiano's classmate in London, originally from Shanghai. I was glad I was not the only non-Italian in the group because this meant we both asked tons of questions but didn't look as dumb and both were "the tourists" always stopping for pictures. My first meal in Milan was cooked by Qing. She made something that tasted to me like Mongolian pork and grilled bok choy. Delicious. Finally, Oscar, Damiano's older brother, who studies some sort of finance/account managing in Milan.
After lunch, Damiano, Qing, Oscar, and I went out to explore the center. First we went to Santa Maria delle Grazie church, which was mostly destroyed during World War II, but was now restored to much of its originally glory. I, being the Papist that I am, was dying to see Il Cenacolo (The Last Supper, which is housed in the dining room of the church monastery). According to the story, during the WWII bombings, while everything around it was destroyed, Il Cenacolo was the only part of the church left intact. Glory! But what Damiano failed to mention before is that seeing it requires reservations months in advance, so we continued our trek After seeing some more churches, we also stopped by Castello Sforzesco, a 14th-century castle which was one of the biggest military forts in Europe, used during Milan's many battles with other Italian cities and with foreign invaders. The castle was also badly damaged during WWII, but has now been fully restored. It is now used for museums and art galleries. Finally, we arrived at Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the center of Milan's high-class shopping and one of the oldest shopping centers in the world. Entering the Gallery, which is cross-shaped with shops extending in all four directions, is comparable to walking down Main Street in Disneyland. You are bombarded by people walking in all directions, bright lights everywhere above you, and the sensation that this place is larger than life. Of course I didn't buy anything in this very expensive center, but just window-shopping in this area is an experience in itself.
Finally, we made it back home around 7:30pm, in time to get ready for Christmas Eve dinner. We were expecting several family friends, for a total of 14 people at dinner (big, but nothing compared to the Mexican holidays I'm used to). A long table was set out quite lovely, and after everyone had arrived we settled into our spots. Dinner started with an endless array of antipasto- everything from tuna pate to grilled peppers to salmon cakes to pigs in a blanket. Naturally, wine and bread were ever-present and obligatory. Qing and I weren't aware that this wasn't "dinner" and ate to our heart's content. But this was Christmas and we were in Italy, so there was plenty of extra space in our bellies. After appetizers and short break, we had the first main dish. We had two types of beef ravioli: a plain dish and a sort of sweet tomato sauce ravioli. Both very delicious, and very Italian! This time, the break was much longer, about 30 minutes or so. Then the second dish was brought out: roasted duck! I'm not much of duck fan, but this was deliciously prepared and perfectly seasoned. And for some reason, duck seems very Christmasy anyway. Finally, dessert time! We had two desserts. The first was marrons glàce, or chestnut cream. It's a white cake cut into different layers and shaped so that it looks like a Christmas tree, and the center is filled with the delicious (and addicting!) chestnut cream. We had this for dessert on Christmas Eve, and as there was plenty left over, we had it for dessert for several meals after. Fine by me! The second desert was chocolate "salami," a chocolate-fudge like concoction filled with rice crispies. It's called so because it's shaped like salami. Yes, it's very obviously phallic. Yes, jokes of this nature were made. Yes, I am a 14 year old boy.
Dinner, which started about 8:30, ended a little after midnight (Christmas!). Now, it was time for presents! Gift-giving was very un-personalized, which means that I also got some of the goods, even though nobody knew me. First, one of the guests, who works at some kind of publishing house and gets of tons of books for free, brought gift-wrapped books and distributed them to everyone. I got two medieval mysteries. Of course, they're in Italian, so.... Second, we had the Christmas lottery. Here, several gifts were set out, each with a number. Each person picks a number out of a bag, and you get the corresponding gift. First, I got a woman's wallet, so they let me pick again, since there were several gifts left over. My new gift was a small kitchen scale. Useful, I guess =P After gift-giving, everybody started leaving and the sweet siren song of bed called my name. After cleaning, we went to bed. It was about 3am (much earlier than I'm used to for Christmas). After several nights of not sleeping well and the night I'd had before, the bed seemed like the most comfortable in the world and I had the best sleep I've ever had.
Next morning, I woke up pretty late (12ish) and it was time for more gifts! This time, it was the gifts that the family had bought for us! I hadn't bought any gifts, but I had brought them some turròn, traditional Spanish Christmas candy, which they loved! I got a fancy pen set from Parker, which apparently is a very famous Italian brand. Sweet! After lunch (homemade lasagna!!!), we went to take Qing to the train station, as she was leaving to spend the rest of her break in another part of Italy, which another London classmate. After dropping her off, Damiano, Oscar, and I went to explore some more. This time, we went to Il Duomo, the Cathedral, which is the second-largest church in the world, after Rome's cathedral. Standing outside the Cathedral is an awe-inspiring and humbling experience. Its tall spires, which always shine like they're covered in jewels, look the building look like something out of Lord of the Rings. And I was particularly impressed by the semi-permanent scaffolding, which gives the building a dangerous and deadly air. Unfortunately, the inside is quite ordinary and not as impressive. Apparently you can climb to the Cathedral terrace a the very top, which offers a breathtaking view of the city, but it was raining, so no go. After this, we went to the Museum of Nine-Hundred, a 20th century modern art museum. The most interesting thing I learned here was that the Futurists were an Italian art movement characterized by their twisting and distorting of reality with shape, color, and movement. They were also associated with the Fascists. Figures. This day drained us and we drove back to their flat, where after dinner Damiano, his friend Nathan (who joined us at the museum and for dinner), Patricia, and I settled down to watch an Italian documentary about gay parents. I never escape the gayness in my life =)
Sunday, my last full day in Milan, was another long and exciting day. After lunch, Damiano and I went back to the Castello Sforzesco. The time before, we had admired its contours from the outside. This time, we went in. First, we saw a short exhibition of Milanese history through photography. I took so many pictures on this trip that Damiano said that someday my pictures will be displayed in this exhibition. Second, we went into the Museum of Ancient Art, a collection of antique Roman art and sculpture, into the Furniture Museum (which is exactly what it sounds like), and finally into the Picture Gallery, a collection of Italian Renaissance art. I definitely prefer older art to modern art, so I enjoyed this more than the Nine-Hundred. The castle has several more museums, such as the Egyptian Museum, Museum of Prehistory, Museum of Musical Instruments, but we didn't feel like looking at more stuff, so we left and got some gelato! Even though it was raining and freezing, one of the things I had to do was eat Italian gelato. We went into a small and crowded shop (always a good sign), and I ordered a scoop of chocolate and a scoop of coffee on a cone, topped with whipped cream. The combination of all three flavors is heavenly. After this we met a few of Damiano's friends and headed to the Palazzo Reale, the Royal Palace, which, like everything else in every old city, is now used for art and cultural exhibitions. We were lucky enough to be there for the temporary Salvador Dali exhibit, "Il Sogno si Avvicina," or "The Dream is Approaching." There were several other exhibitions, but we opted for this one. Like I said, I'm not much of a modern art guy, but I consider being able to see a Dali show such a privilege that I was thrilled and really enjoyed it. My favorite was Landscape with Girl Jumping Rope. There's something just so haunting and beautiful about it. After this, we went to dinner at a traditional pizza parlor. One of Damiano's friends, Giorgi, told me that pizza is not as good in Milan as it is in other parts of Italy. But it tasted perfectly to me, and it was real Italian pizza!
The next day, Monday, was my departure date. After a delicious lunch of pasta Bolognese, more bread, and more wine, we headed to the center, where I took the train to the airport. My flight was at 5:45pm (again, it took of an hour late) and I got to Madrid around 9pm. I would again have to sleep in the airport and take a bus or train to Socuèllamos Tuesday morning, as none are available at night. And thus, exactly the way it began, ended my Milanese Christmas.
Days here: 57
Currently reading: El Ùltimo Catòn by Matilde Asensi
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