Hello all, it’s been awhile. The art of getting the internet to work on my computer is a tricky thing. It’s working right now after being on for about an hour. Sometimes it works if I simply reconnect. But, if those tricks don’t work, I will write my posts offline and publish them while I’m at school. Speaking of school, it finally starts tomorrow! Most would be groaning at this fact, but I have had 7 weeks of vacation and am anxious to get into a routine. I tested into the third grammar level of the advanced Spanish program (there are five advanced levels), which is slightly intimidating. It’s probably accurate, but my brain tends to freeze when I need to form sentences in Spanish other than “Sí”, “No” or “Está Bien” (Translation: “Yes”, “No”, “It is good”). I am taking the rest of my classes in Spanish. They are Memory of Sephardic Jews and Their Identity (Sephardic= Spanish), Islamic Art and Architecture, Islamic Civilization until 1492 (the last Moorish Kingdom fell in 1492 in Granada at the Alhambra, which is also where Christopher Columbus asked Isabel and Ferdinand for money to “sail the ocean blue” in the same year), and also Women in Mediterranean Film. I am pleased with my schedule, and we do not have class on Fridays!
Now, what have I been doing with the past 12 days that I have been in Granada? Each day at 9 AM, everyone had orientation in small groups of about 10-15 people. We went over survival vocabulary, cultural information, and other important information about this semester. We ended at 2 PM each day, and would go home for lunch. This seems late to us hungry Americans, but the Spanish schedule is much more stretched out than ours. Most people eat breakfast and go to work at 9, then they take a break, a “second breakfast”, around 11 to get coffee and a snack, like toast. Lunch is between 2 and 3 PM, and then there is siesta time! It’s not necessary that people take a nap during this time, but it is a restful time. Even if you wanted to do something, besides walk around, all of the stores are closed from 2 to about 5 PM. After this, most people walk around, go shopping, or go to a café or to a park. Then, dinner is after 9 PM. I’ve been eating a lot of tapas for dinner this past week, which is fun but slightly expensive. Tapas are small appetizers that are free with the purchase of a drink. Apparently, tapas are only free in Granada.
Good deal? For the most part. Tapas are not usually enough to fill you up, and you never know what you will get. One night I was out with friends, and we got fried anchovies and whole, uncooked shrimp. Therefore, wine was my dinner that night. Bad idea? Not if you stay out at a club until 5 AM, which is still early for a young Spaniard. Don’t worry, Mother, that was my latest night yet, and I slept in until noon the next day and then took a nap.
Well, I’m going to take advantage of my working internet to post this now. I will write more about my first (almost) 2 weeks soon!
What's the normal work schedule for a typical businessman or -woman there? Do they go back to work after siesta?
ReplyDeleteI am so glad the internet was connected for awhile at home. I cannot understand why it is so erratic there.
ReplyDeleteBTW, my old eyes find it difficult to read the white font over the train; I would find it easier if your background was plain black. But I will always persevere, because I want to read what you write!
I also think it's hard to read; can you increase the contrast between the background the the transparent grey content box?
ReplyDeleteFor anyone who works in a store, like a pharmacy, a restaurant, a clothing store, a cafe, etc, they go back to work after siesta. I'm not sure about other professionals, like lawyers. I'm sure they have their own schedule. Doctors work in shifts. I believe museums are open in the evenings. So, it seems like the majority does go back to work, except for school teachers.
ReplyDeletehow long is the school day?
ReplyDeleteThe darker color helps! I didn't feel quite so old when IS made a similar comment. So glad you're getting internet and can post more.
ReplyDeleteSchool day for middle school and elementary school is until 2 PM. I think high schoolers go longer. And, college students have similar schedules to those in the states, but usually do not have class from 2-3 or so.
ReplyDelete