Language is such a funny thing ... have you ever thought about how it is weird that we do not say a country's name in its' own language? For example, we do not say Espana, we say Spain. I understand that at some point we would face difficulties when trying to spell out the country name in its' origin language, but even so ... If we were taught the country name in its' own language originially, it might not be so hard.
Another thing about language - I feel fortunate to know English. It seems like such a go-to language. Our common denominator is English or better yet, BODY language. I watched an interaction between someone from Asia and someone from Greece. The person from Greece was working at a coffee counter and the person from Asia was trying to purchase something. The Greek woman started by speaking in Greek and then went to English. The Asian woman stuck with the language she knew. When they both realized they were not understanding each other or getting anywhere, they moved on to body language. They pointed - the Asian woman pointed to what she wanted and the Greek woman pointed to the numerical sign with the cost.
Truth is - we all do speak the same language: body language.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Series of Dreams
Written in Santorini, Greece 28/04/09:
"I was thinking ... of a series of dreams ..."
This song came on my iPod and so I wrote ... I've had a series of dreams throughout my life: become a teacher, a lobbyist, an international lawyer (and have attended Northwestern law), ... these have changed, come, and gone, but a few that have held steadfast have been my travel dreams. Since I was very young, I have always wanted to go to Venice. It was always a dream-city for me. I guess I thought the gondola rides were just super neat. I'm going on May 17th with my mom. It will be a dream come true. Do you know what that is like? Have you ever actually had one of your dreams come true?
I have.
Another travel dream of mine (and I admit, it isn't as old as my dream of going to Venice & it was highly influenced by The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) was to go to Greece. I'm here. I'm lying on the Black Perissa Beach. To my right - a mountain, behind me - the sea, underneath me - the sand. Although Venice will be a longer time coming, Greece is still a dream come true. It is a kind of surreal feeling.
I always though of myself as a "dream big, little girl" kind of girl, and I'm usually fairly optomistic, but for some reason, I guess I did not believe these dreams would come true. "Dream for the moon 'cause if you miss, you'll still land among the stars." I always thought that my travel dreams, Ireland, Greece, and Venice, were the moon - a mere dream - and the other travels in my life were the great stars. Well, here I am. I've landed on the moon and it is undescribeable.
Lance, I'm living out my series of dreams.
To all of you ... I urge you to do the same.
xoxo
"I was thinking ... of a series of dreams ..."
This song came on my iPod and so I wrote ... I've had a series of dreams throughout my life: become a teacher, a lobbyist, an international lawyer (and have attended Northwestern law), ... these have changed, come, and gone, but a few that have held steadfast have been my travel dreams. Since I was very young, I have always wanted to go to Venice. It was always a dream-city for me. I guess I thought the gondola rides were just super neat. I'm going on May 17th with my mom. It will be a dream come true. Do you know what that is like? Have you ever actually had one of your dreams come true?
I have.
Another travel dream of mine (and I admit, it isn't as old as my dream of going to Venice & it was highly influenced by The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) was to go to Greece. I'm here. I'm lying on the Black Perissa Beach. To my right - a mountain, behind me - the sea, underneath me - the sand. Although Venice will be a longer time coming, Greece is still a dream come true. It is a kind of surreal feeling.
I always though of myself as a "dream big, little girl" kind of girl, and I'm usually fairly optomistic, but for some reason, I guess I did not believe these dreams would come true. "Dream for the moon 'cause if you miss, you'll still land among the stars." I always thought that my travel dreams, Ireland, Greece, and Venice, were the moon - a mere dream - and the other travels in my life were the great stars. Well, here I am. I've landed on the moon and it is undescribeable.
Lance, I'm living out my series of dreams.
To all of you ... I urge you to do the same.
xoxo
Friday, April 24, 2009
You're going to ALWAYS want your Mommy
So this has been a crazy week ...
I went to Morocco last weekend and it was amazing! Really pretty and I had an awesome experience that will probably be in my top ten of my time overseas - we went to visit a synagogue. I expected it to look like a synagogue - chairs, a stage ... NOPE! Nonetheless, it was very neat. It had an ark with a gorgeous Torah and a bimah-like area. I went to speak to the man who was there to show it to us (it was cool because he was Jewish, living in Morocco, and we were speaking Spanish) - anyhoo - I went to speak to him because, for the life of me, I couldn't remember how the Shchechyanu started. He helped me and I said it - it was the only prayer that came to mind to say ... 1st time in that synagouge - or in a synagouge while overseas at all for that matter... and then I asked him if he had a Siddur. I looked at it, carefully going through each page and letting it affect my senses (touch, smell ...) - it was so old and in just hebrew, no English. When I went to hand the Siddur back to him he asked me if I'd like it. I said yes thinking I'd be able to buy it, but then he said - well then, it's my gift to you. It was so touching & one of the best souvenirs ever; something you cannot just simply purchase at a Kiosk - I will never forget that Synagogue. It may sound strange, but I know that Bubby was with me during my visit - I could feel her.
When I got back from Morocco Sunday night, I felt achy - you know, that going-to-be-sick achy. Monday it continued, but I took Tylenol (which they sell here - how cool!) and it masked the pain UNTIL I stopped taking the Tylenol and then BOOM! Monday night started the painful sickness that continued into Tuesday - couldn't eat, bathroom visits up the wazoo ... which lead to de-hydration and Wednesday morning at 3am it got worse. I decided to go to the hospital. To make a long story short - I got food poisoning (Gastro Interitis - which I can't spell) and stayed overnight in the hospital causing me to miss my bus to Madrid and my flight to Greece with my friends. The rest of my friends left Thursday as well for all of their Spring Break trips.
Since Tuesday, all I have wanted was my family. The truth is, you're always going to want your Mom. It was hard going through all of this (in Spanish) without my family and without my real home. I am fortunate for cell phones and the Internet, but I really wanted the care of Kerry and my Mom like I was used to (they were so good to me in December). My friends were great and so was my school, I had lots of visitors, but even so ... I still wanted my Mom and my family - my home.
Something about a Mother ... their care, their nature, their knowledge - it's comforting. My Mom is extra special - she never wants us to be in pain and will do what she can to help. Because of her, I get to go to Greece tomorrow. I couldn't be more thankful.
Till next time ... maybe you can go call your Mom, or think of her if she's no longer around, and tell her you love her!
xoxo
ME
I went to Morocco last weekend and it was amazing! Really pretty and I had an awesome experience that will probably be in my top ten of my time overseas - we went to visit a synagogue. I expected it to look like a synagogue - chairs, a stage ... NOPE! Nonetheless, it was very neat. It had an ark with a gorgeous Torah and a bimah-like area. I went to speak to the man who was there to show it to us (it was cool because he was Jewish, living in Morocco, and we were speaking Spanish) - anyhoo - I went to speak to him because, for the life of me, I couldn't remember how the Shchechyanu started. He helped me and I said it - it was the only prayer that came to mind to say ... 1st time in that synagouge - or in a synagouge while overseas at all for that matter... and then I asked him if he had a Siddur. I looked at it, carefully going through each page and letting it affect my senses (touch, smell ...) - it was so old and in just hebrew, no English. When I went to hand the Siddur back to him he asked me if I'd like it. I said yes thinking I'd be able to buy it, but then he said - well then, it's my gift to you. It was so touching & one of the best souvenirs ever; something you cannot just simply purchase at a Kiosk - I will never forget that Synagogue. It may sound strange, but I know that Bubby was with me during my visit - I could feel her.
When I got back from Morocco Sunday night, I felt achy - you know, that going-to-be-sick achy. Monday it continued, but I took Tylenol (which they sell here - how cool!) and it masked the pain UNTIL I stopped taking the Tylenol and then BOOM! Monday night started the painful sickness that continued into Tuesday - couldn't eat, bathroom visits up the wazoo ... which lead to de-hydration and Wednesday morning at 3am it got worse. I decided to go to the hospital. To make a long story short - I got food poisoning (Gastro Interitis - which I can't spell) and stayed overnight in the hospital causing me to miss my bus to Madrid and my flight to Greece with my friends. The rest of my friends left Thursday as well for all of their Spring Break trips.
Since Tuesday, all I have wanted was my family. The truth is, you're always going to want your Mom. It was hard going through all of this (in Spanish) without my family and without my real home. I am fortunate for cell phones and the Internet, but I really wanted the care of Kerry and my Mom like I was used to (they were so good to me in December). My friends were great and so was my school, I had lots of visitors, but even so ... I still wanted my Mom and my family - my home.
Something about a Mother ... their care, their nature, their knowledge - it's comforting. My Mom is extra special - she never wants us to be in pain and will do what she can to help. Because of her, I get to go to Greece tomorrow. I couldn't be more thankful.
Till next time ... maybe you can go call your Mom, or think of her if she's no longer around, and tell her you love her!
xoxo
ME
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Malaga!
Those red things in the bull ... they're swords :-(
Bull fights are not easy to watch, but everyone says you just have to do it ...
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Happiness
"Well," said Pooh, "what I like best," and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called. ~A.A. Milne
The other day I was walking and I realized that I'm happy. It's weird to think, to say, to write ... I am a 20 year old girl - was I not happy before? The truth is, I think I lost myself a little while back - I wasn't acting like me and I didn't know what I wanted (out of life). Since being in Sevilla, I have felt more like myself than I have in such a very long time. I came to realize that I am not quite sure what I want or where I am going. It feels nice to not know exactly what I will be doing this summer or where I will be when I graduate or even which degress I will be graduating with, BUT I do know that I want to try and keep this feeling around ... the one that Pooh can't quite describe - the feeling right before you begin to eat the honey.
There is a moment in the movie Life as a House when Chris Kline says "I'm happy today", and that is the moment I had the other day. I can't completely explain why or exactly how I feel, but I know that I am happy. I know that I feel more in tune with myself and my surroundings than I had felt previously.
All I can say is that, just like Pooh, I can't really figure out what to call how I feel other than happiness - the feeling that my heart is literally smiling along side me with each passing moment (and even in the moments that make me frown ... my heart still feels whole and content).
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Things I'd Never done before Spain ...
This one I will keep updating ...
BEFORE I CAME TO SPAIN I HAD NEVER:
- Gone to Sevilla, Granada, Lisbon, Cadiz, Malaga, Dublin, Barcelona, Huelva, Madrid, Sintra, Algarve (Albeifera), Marbella, Morocco, Greece (Santorini & a little bit of Athens)
- Been to Africa!!! (the 4th continent I've seen)
- Lived with a Spanish family
- Kissed in the rain
- Eaten: bacon, ham, mussels, clams, OH SO MANY THINGS
- Taken non-Spanish classes in Spanish
- Taken Yoga in Spanish
- Had a shot of Absynthe (don't do it)
- Stayed in a hostal
- Riden a bike on a cobblestone street
- Drank a pint of: Guiness, Smithwicks, Bulmers
- Sun bathed topless
- Gone to a movie alone
- Seen a Spanish film without English or Spanish subtitles
- Swam off the African Atlantic coast!, in hot springs, in the Agrarian sea, in a large body of water when I could not touch the bottom without a life vest
- Rode a donkey
BEFORE I CAME TO SPAIN I HAD NEVER:
- Gone to Sevilla, Granada, Lisbon, Cadiz, Malaga, Dublin, Barcelona, Huelva, Madrid, Sintra, Algarve (Albeifera), Marbella, Morocco, Greece (Santorini & a little bit of Athens)
- Been to Africa!!! (the 4th continent I've seen)
- Lived with a Spanish family
- Kissed in the rain
- Eaten: bacon, ham, mussels, clams, OH SO MANY THINGS
- Taken non-Spanish classes in Spanish
- Taken Yoga in Spanish
- Had a shot of Absynthe (don't do it)
- Stayed in a hostal
- Riden a bike on a cobblestone street
- Drank a pint of: Guiness, Smithwicks, Bulmers
- Sun bathed topless
- Gone to a movie alone
- Seen a Spanish film without English or Spanish subtitles
- Swam off the African Atlantic coast!, in hot springs, in the Agrarian sea, in a large body of water when I could not touch the bottom without a life vest
- Rode a donkey
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