Winding Down

When you look back on an experience you remember all the fun times and good things, you don't remember so much all of the struggles and inconveniences. Although I still have over two weeks left before returning home I'm starting to think about how my year is coming to a close. Most of the other auxiliares finished work this week with the kids, and have left or are leaving in the next few days. I also have a week in southern Portugal after I leave Spain, so although I won't be home for awhile I leave Spain in just over a week. It still hasn't completely hit me yet that I'm leaving but once the goodbyes start it will begin to sink in. I've definitely had my share of rough patches this year but right now they were just bumps in the road. As things wind down there is still so much I want to do in these next few weeks and the reality is hitting me that I am going home. I am really excited to see my family and friends in the States again but overall this year has been great and I will be sad to see it end. I still have time to go exploring though, so I'm off to make the most of the time I have left!!

Last day with the kiddies!

Today was our last day of work while the kids were still in school. It's a (religious) holiday here tomorrow so no one has class; the kids go back Friday for their last day but since we don't work Fridays this was our last day with them. It was a bit crazy since the teachers really don't have anything for them to do (since grades were due last week) and the 6th grade graduation was going on today. All the 6th graders were dressed up and they pinned blue ribbons across their chests to their shoulders- it was a cute idea but it looked a bit odd. I did have my fifth graders without another teacher- that was an interesting class. All but 4 of them actually participated in the English game I did which was impressive considering it's the low level English class and none of them (nor I) care about this school year anymore since we all knew it was basically over. I handed out stickers to everyone in my 4th grade class (one of my favs!) and they were all sad and said good-bye, so that was sweet! Anyways, it still doesn't feel like I'm leaving yet but that's probably because I still have another week of work left. Although the reality is starting to set in now that I don't have travels planned every weekend- I am really going to miss that!

Asturias

This past weekend Cassie and I went to Asturias, also known as Cider country! It's located in northwestern Spain making its climate very different from Madrid's. There was green (grass and trees) everywhere; I hadn't realized how much I really missed being surrounded by green. The Picos de Europa are also located there so it was nice to be in the mountains for a bit. We did do some hiking one day which was nice, and we also got to relax on the beach another day! We tried some cider cheese from a market as well as drinking lots of cider from the bottle. Cider in Asturias is poured from extremely high up, and the glass is only filled a little so that you down the recently poured cider in one gulp. The cider tastes much better freshly poured :) We visited three towns in Asturias- Oviedo, Aviles, and Gijon. Our CS host in Oviedo is the tallest Spanish person I've ever seen; he's literally almost 7feet tall which made hearing him a bit difficult but he was really nice. Our CS host in Gijon was actually from South Carolina and made us corndogs for dinner! Similar to our CS host in Mallorca he also had lots of space so there were more couchsurfers there which was awesome!

Tenerife :)

This past weekend I went to Tenerife, an island in the Canary Islands, with Julia and Cassie. We had a blast! We rented a car so we were able to see all of the island and I got to drive!!! It was the first time I had driven since the beginning of September!! I forgot how much I missed it. We stayed in a bungalow on a finca (like a small family farm) which was incredible! The bungalow was fabulous and we had a view of El Teide on one terrace and a view of the ocean cliffs on the other terrace! El Teide in the volcano on Tenerife and the highest point in Spain (the Canary Islands are volcanic islands in the Atlantic Ocean belonging to Spain and off the coast of Africa)! Highlights of the trip include: relaxing on a black sand beach, seeing giant waves, driving along the spectacular coastlines, climbing El Teide (although we did experience some altitude sickness at over 11,000ft- we were walking super slowly and our breathing was normal but our hearts were racing and we were a bit lightheaded. I've been higher up before and not had problems, but I guess before I was just walking around not hiking up from 7,000ft), and seeing the point where the North Atlantic meets the South Atlantic. There was actually a line in the middle of the ocean where the currents meet. The north Atlantic is very choppy and more of a dark blue/grey color, where as the south Atlantic is a brilliant blue color and very calm- it was crazy to see both standing on the rocks. The island is absolutely gorgeous and I just wish we could have spent more time there!!!

Art Test

Today in school one of my classes had an art test- they had to make an origami boat and frog from the 2 sheets of paper they were given. I (wrongly) assumed that if they had memorized how to fold the paper to make the items they would be given a 10 (out of 10). However, the teacher seemed to be partial to some student's frogs/boats. Even though to me they looked exactly the same some students received a 10 while other received an 8. Both of these are excellent marks as far as the Spanish standard of grading goes, but it was strange for me to witness first hand how something so similar could be graded so differently. It's art, so there is no right or wrong answer, but I guess there's more to it then just folding paper. Then again I've never been an art person so maybe I'm just missing something.

Copenhagen

This past weekend I traveled to Copenhagen, Denmark to see the city and visit Christina (a friend I met when we were both studying in Chile). Luckily for me the weather was much warmer than my previous visits to Scandinavia. This weekend it was absolutely gorgeous- sunny and in the 70s with a bit of a breeze! It was a bit strange that the sun set around 10pm and rose around 4am, but lots of sunlight meant more time to do things! June 5th is actually Denmark's independence day, but Christina told me that somebody gives a speech and that's really all that happens- no closings or celebrations or anything. This weekend, however, was CPH Distortion! According to wikitravel Distortion " is longest and wildest party you could ever go to. Over 60 parties in five days in each of the city districts, outdoors on the city streets and squares, in the clubs and three seriously huge parties. Over 32,000 people usually partying away between Wednesday and Sunday." And that's exactly what it was- a huge street party. There were tons of people everywhere and everyone was drinking, dancing, hanging out, and just having a good time!

Besides Distortion I got to do other "normal" touristy things- like go on a boat tour, wander though Christiania (a part of Copenhagen that's like a free society with it's own rules, or rather lack thereof. The only rule I noticed was the no photos signs- probably because of all the open table drug selling going on in the middle of the streets), pass by Tivoli, eat delicious food, climb the tower to get a great view of the city, see the Parliament, the Palace, visit the beaches, and just enjoy the beautiful weather and scenery that is Copenhagen! Of course I also got to visit The Little Mermaid statue which was neat :)

Early Dismissal

During the months of June and September all of the schools in the Comunidad de Madrid get out at 1pm. This means that the end is near and that I'll have a lot more free time during the afternoons- not only because of the earlier dismissal but also because my private classes are all coming to an end this week. The afternoon schedule has changed and everyone is gearing up for and anxiously awaiting summer vacation here (although I know it's already started in the States). I also found out that the term actually ends June 11th even though the kids are in school till the 24th. Grades are sent home with the kids on the last or second to last day of school, so in order to have them done in time the term technically ends June 11th. I have no idea how none of the kids have caught onto this, but lucky for the teachers they think all the work they do after that is still graded/counts otherwise it would be even harder to control them than it already is. Alas, we have finally arrived in the last month of work!

I also find it ironic that today, the first time they're let out early because of the heat, it's actually sweater weather and feels like fall- sunny but in the 50s and windy!