I'm getting pretty close to my 8 months mark. That means I only have a little bit over 2 months left, and it's starting to scare me because I know how quickly these 2 months are going to pass. But this has also got me to do a lot of reflection on this year, what I've achieved, and what I've learned, and what I still have to or want to complete.
One of the things I thought about was how I remember one time that AFS told us about trying to become more of a global person, a world citizen- being educated in and experiencing other cultures, languages, and parts of the world, instead of being ignorant and only knowing about where you come from.
This reminded me of one time a few months ago. I was with my friend Ben, who's German, and we were watching a soccer game (of course).
I remember that at one point during the game, he started talking to a guy who was sitting on the other side of him.
Picture this: in that moment, we had a German speaking in English to a Japanese speaking in Spanish.
They're from totally different places in the world, they weren't speaking their native languages, and yet they were able to understand eachother, interact, have an enjoyable conversation, and learn about eachother and their respective cultures.
How amazing is that? I think about that moment a lot. And I think everyone could learn a lot from an experience like that. I know I did.
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Anonymous says:
Very... amazing.
Anonymous says:
Jake, you "get it"!! I'm so proud of you. You seem to be having exactly the experience that parents HOPE their kids will have when the sacrifices are made in order to provide this kind of once-in-a-lifetime opportunity...Way to go!
Make the most out of your remaining time and then come home to the BIG hug I have waiting for you!! :)Maureen
Anonymous says:
What type of camera did you use in your JOurney to Madrid video?
Anonymous says:
hi jake
ive been reading your blog for a while now. im going to spain next year for my junior year with AFS.iwill be living in tenerife(canary islands)which are part of spain even thogh they are of the coast of morocco. your year sounds absolutely amazing and i want to thank you for sharing it with evryone.
i have a few quetions if you dont mind.
do they use the vosotros form in spain?
do they call the language espanol or castellano?
is it true that only americans wear shorts?
how long did it take for you to start to understand/be able to speak somewhat easily in spanish?
what things do you wish you had done?
what helped you/any other tips you would pass on?
i know its a lot im sorry im just really anxious/excited.
thank you
maya
palo alto (san fransisco) CA
Jake Moser says:
Maya-
1) In Madrid, vosotros. Always. Well... very very very rarely you'll hear Ustedes. But only in like business settings and such. In Canarias they use Ustedes more than vosotros.
2) They say both español and castellano, about equally.
3) Not at all. You could maybe say they wear pants a little more often than Americans, but they definitely wear shorts.
4) Very hard to answer. You learn a little bit every single day, so it's not like I can say at THIS date, I understood and could speak well. You don't really notice your improvements until you look back at things you wrote at the beginning the year, or if you recorded yourself speaking. Also depends on how much you already know. But I'd probably say for me, I pretty much understood everything and could speak pretty well by Christmas.
4) I wish I would've started activities from the moment I got here. A sports team, a band, whatever. Don't wait, do it right from the start.
5) Watch movies. Watch TV. Read books. Right in Spanish and have your host parents correct it. Those are the most helpful things as far as language learning. Also, take initiative when you're trying to make friends. If there's some people you think you wanna be friends with say "hey, let's hang out on Friday" Don't wait for someone to come to you.
I know you'll have an amazing year. Don't be nervous because everything works out.
I'm glad you like my blog! And I'm kinda jealous you got placed in Canarias- I've wanted to go there all year!
If you have anymore questions just let me know.
Jake
jmoser@live.com