This week's victory

So on Monday I had my appointment for my TIE (Targeta de identificacion de extranjero), or basically what I need to be able to stay in Spain over 90 days.

So I had to go to the bank Monday morning to pay for something that I needed for the TIE application process.  When I get to the bank, there are probably about fifteen people in front of me, and not just any people... about 90% old people.  And I'm sorry, God bless them, but old people are the most unreasonable people you will ever deal with.  So I get in line, figure out who I am behind (because there is no "line" its really just chaos), and then the craziness insues.  Apparently three people thought I said I was the last one, even though I didn't, they just didn't give me the time of day, so then a shouting fight ensues between the lady who was actually behind me and some very rude man.  But in the end I waited about an hour and got to pay my "tasa."  However another fight happened while I was paying cuz this other guy comes out of no where and says he was behind me (which he wasn't) and my good bank friend Fran explained that I was a foreigner (like DUH) and even though I understand and speak Spanish, I don't understand EVERYTHING.

So that was taken care of, phew.

Then Ignacio took me to the NIE office at 5pm and after only a short wait I sit down and the lady looks at my papers and passport and says that they gave me the wrong form and I paid the wrong amount (which I had already figured out but the people out front insisted it was correct).  So she wrote another "tasa" for the additional amount I needed to pay and gave me an appointment for.  And even though I was disappointed, I was grateful that it was only a small problem and I could come back the next day.

So Tuesday morning I go back to the bank.........
But its okay because there were only two other people there, so I paid the additional amount and was on my way.

Then at 4:40 (missing more work :/ ) I was able to get a ride from a guy who works in administration, who was very nice and I was able to practice Spanish with, and we went to the NIE office again.

This time we waited longer, but it wasn't bad. I sat down with one of the workers and after some time he says the fingerprint machine is not working... of course. Luckily is was just his, so I could go to another lady with purple hair and she was very nice and I did my finger prints and now all I have to do is go back on December 2nd at 11am and pick up my TIE!!!!!

Hooray!!!!!

Hooray!!!!

Hoooray!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You probably don't understand what a huge victory this is, but I was fully expecting to have to go back multiple times, because that seems to be how Spain works.

Anyways to celebrate I got to go back to the school and help Alice with Halloween decorations and then we went back home and celebrated Aisha's birthday with ice cream, cake, muffins, and American Horror Story Hotel!!!!

That's it.
Oh, also, if you are looking for a Netflix recommendation, I suggest "You're not You" I watched it last night and it is so sad.

The end.

I FOUND FALL!!!

Yes, that's right, I found it... in Almeria!

For those of you who have never experienced seasonal depression, it is real.  Now, I'm sure I am being overly dramatic because it seems to be just as hot in Lynchburg and Salem, but all I want is fall.  Now generally seasonal depression is probably from too much winter, but Spain has definitely made me a believer in four seasons.  It has been hot since we got here and I think it is worsened by the fact that we have no Air Conditioning so it is literally ALWAYS hot.  

So anyways, I found fall.

How? Today I went on a field trip with the five year olds to a place called Abla which is about 50 minutes from Huercal and they have real trees and it is actually fall there.  The purpose of the trip was literally to see the "Autumn leaves." And I can truthfully tell you that was about as much as this field trip consisted of.  

For me a field trip is going somewhere to be educated about something outside of school.  For them field trip is an all day play day away from the school.  It was fun though and it was a nice break for me.  I got to hang out with the teachers while the kids played for like six hours.  There were chestnuts roasting over an open fire (which is apparently a fall thing, but I definitely thought was a Christmas thing).   

Plus I got to eat some nice sandwiches and got to take home like half of the extra food.  

So... short post... but that is what I did today.  Sorry I don't have pictures because today happened to be the day I lost my phone, but don't worry, the lady who found it was DETERMINED to get it back to me, so I have it now.  

Things that make me smile...

Sometimes after a long day when I have had three classes of psico in a row, it is hard for me to think about coming back to school the next day with a smile on my face.  However I am working on staying positive and focusing on the positive, because that is what can make or break a day.  So here is a list of small things throughout the day that make me smile.


1. Talking with one boy during patio.
I may not understand the majority of what he says, but I do know his dad has a friend that speaks only English and basically half of what he says to me is about English.  Today he asked me how to say ballet in English... ballet. I explained to him that it is a French word and he was like "oh, so you know French?" Then I explained to him that no, I don't not know French, but I have taken many years of ballet.  His endless rambling might not be well communicated, but its nice to have the distraction from the chaos around me.

2. One student's goofiness.
Although most of the time it comes out when he is acting out in psico, I can't help but have a soft spot for him. He has had an English nanny for years, so he understands English very well.  So if anything I can use him as an example to the other kids, because they pay attention when he is up front.

3.  One of my five year old class.
Just everything about them. They are the best class that I work with and she is just the sweetest woman.  At the end of the day I basically have my choice of classes to go into until I have to take the 5 year olds down to their parents, but now I only go to her class, because, well they are my favorite.  Today I even brought an English book with me to read to them while they ate their sandwiches and their teacher said "que suerte tenemos que Kendall ha traido un cuento en ingles!" (How lucky are we the Kendall brought an English book to read).

4. "Help, please."
This is what I have taught the boys in the previously stated class to say when they need help tucking in their shirts.  It comes with many variations like, "hop please" and "hell please" and "holp peas" but regardless, they are starting to remember it all on their own which is really cute.

5. Helping one of the five year olds at the end of the day.
He is this goofy kid who always has something going on.  Whether his shoes are on the wrong feet, his shirt is tucked into his underwear, or his pants are on backwards, it is always something.  But he is loving life regardless.  Sometimes he give me big whopping kisses on the cheek, and despite how grubby his little face and hands probably are I can't help but smile.  Today after he used the bathroom and put his sweater on, he ask me to tuck in his shirt and I looked at it and said "mira" (look) because it was already tucked in, he then got this amazed look and said "es magico!" He was absolutely in awe that the shirt was already tucked in, it was hilarious.

6. The endless flow of "teechair" and then a hug.
My second name is really just teacher.  That what I am called most of the time, which is fine because it is generally followed by a hug.

7.  The kids have started calling me Kendall.
Even though teacher is basically my name, the kids sometimes do call me Kendall.  Especially one boy from the five year olds who calls me Kendall just as if we are good friends, its really funny.  And last week, the THREE year olds started calling me Kendall, which is a major accomplishment for them because I don't spend much time with them.  One student even told her mom my name was Kendall.

8. This one very special boy with autism.
Anything he does is precious.  He has autism and he is absolutely the sweetest child.  He is always just doing his own thing and having the time of his life and it makes me so happy.

9. When my problem child is on his good behavior. 
Recently that is few and far between but I just love his hugs and when he holds my hand.  He has something wrong with his bones or something, so he runs really funny, but it is so cute (kinda like watching a puppy run).

10. How the english teacher understands that nothing at the school makes sense.
She is one of the English teachers and she understands our pain and she doesn't hide the fact that she just thinks some things are so dumb.

11.  A different boy with autism.
Even though I rarely get to work with him, we seem to have a special bond.  He also has autism and because of this he has the incredible ability to speak English.  No one has taught him, he just knows it.  He also loves to copy everything you say and that he has heard ever which is cute.  One time he was standing beside me while we waited to get into the pool and I heard him say "find the lowercase b." Completely random but I like he had probably heard it from a toy that was in English.  Anyways, overtime he sees me he just watches everything I do and he will go out of the way to hold my hand.  I think it might have something to do with me being American and my accent is what he is used to hearing from where ever he is hearing his English (probably the TV).

12. Five year olds singing the Tooty Ta.
As I said before, they are obsessed and will just go about singing it.  It makes me happy knowing tat least I have taught them on thing.


I'm sure there are more, but that is all I can think of for now.
Hasta luego.

I came to Spain to photograph food.

It's true.  I am here under the premise of being a language assistant, but I am really here to pursue my dream of being a foodporn photographer.

Lies, just kidding, but it seems to be what I do a lot.  But it was all in preparation from this blog post.

What I have been eating while I have been in Spain.
      A food diary by Kendall Faris.

School Lunch:
So our lunch is provided by the school each school day, and as you can see, they are quite large. 

Above we have a typical potato and broth soup, some melon (the Irish girls said it's literally just called melon), fish, and some weird scrabbled egg and vegetable stuff. This was not my favorite meal. 

Above we have some fried fish, carrot salad, potato and chickpea soup, and pickles vegetables.  This meal was better, but the pickled vegetables were too vinegary for me.

  

Here we have a slice of what supposedly was chicken (but it definitely looks like ham), a mushroom souffle kinda thing, this pasta stuffed with some meat and white sauce, and tomato salad.  Other than the weird chicken/ ham stuff this was a very good meal! That pasta stuff is strange but really good! 

Breakfast:

I make my own breakfast everyday, and yes, mom, I still pretty much eat an egg every morning, but recently I have gotten a little creative.

Here is an egg and avocado sandwich which was delicious.

Here are two pieces of french toast I made with some honey on top.

This is yogurt, granola, and pomegranate.

Here are some fried apple and nutella crepes I made with my daily dose of coffee!

Dinner:

Most of the time dinner is not spectacular because I am so tired from school that day, but here are some highlights.

Mashed potatoes, sautéed carrots, cauliflower, and onions, and pan seared lemon pepper fish.

Homade oven fries and oven cooked lemon pepper fish with a side of orange juice.

Pesto chicken sandwich with lettuce, tomato, onions, and cheese, and a side of mandarin oranges.

Salads:

Some days I try to eat healthy and vegan (or sometimes with chicken).

This is my attempt at homemade salsa, but really its just tomato, onion, and avocado salad.

Fired chicken, garbanzos, lettuce, other miscellaneous leafy greens, cheese, and croutons with a lemon and olive oil dressing.

Lettuce, garbonzos, grapes, walnuts, and avocado with a lemon, pepper, and olive oil dressing. 

So I am eating quite nicely here, it helps that our groceries are provided for and someone goes and picks them up every week.  Since I am at the school for only a fraction of my time I try to cook to stay busy and limit my Netflix time.  I try to avoid the frozen pizzas, but they win out sometimes too.

That's all for my food diary, thanks for reading!

Bye bye!

Patio- Readers Digest Version

Patio: Colegio Agave (the school where I work)'s version of playground.

So you know how people refer to NYC as the concrete jungle? ...Well patio is like that, except a concrete playground.

In case that didn't set off any alarms in your head, let me paint a better picture for you.  The setting is quite literally a patio, with granite and concrete and a small plastic playset with a tunnel and a slide.  This is what the children play on everyday for 45 minutes. Now when I say granite I not only mean this:

I'm actually pretty sure it is the exact same granite as the table in my kitchen at home....

But I mean a few quite sharp corners as well.






There are also stairs and granite benches that are super fun to jump off of.

Its humorous, really, how unsafe it is.  But somehow we survive each day with minimal scrapes and bruises.

Here is a little poem I like to call "Patio"

First its the four year olds.
They come in waving and smiling as they run screaming towards the playset.
Its adorable.
Then this one kid pushes someone.
A boy with glasses makes it to the top of the slide.
Children are pulling up the watering hose.
And then reality sets in.
The next forty-five minutes are filled with "no" and "down" and "pee pee."
Let's see who the boy from before hurt this time.
"Off the stairs."
"... me ha empujado."
Then the four year old teachers arrive.
Clap Clap Clap... "Time to go."

Then come the four year olds.
They are much less excited to see us.
Immediately they begin play fighting.
Climbing up the playset in every wrong way you could imagine.
"Hello tee-chair"
"Off the stairs."
"No (so and so)"
Then I sit for awhile until the next kid falls.
Some kid says something I don't understand.
I reply "sorry."
Leaves are pulled off, dirt is thrown.
Then someone pees on the wall or in the corner.
WHERE DID YOU KIDS COME FROM?
At least they don't get hurt as much at 5.
"Hoy tenemos psico?" (Do we have psico today?)
Clap Clap Clap... "Time to go."


If you think that sounds amusing, please ask me for some stories, I've got plenty.

Aisha and I stay on that patio for an hour and a half. And THAT is why I have such a great tan on my shoulders.

El fin.

P.s. Random revelation I had during patio today...
Why do we say, "Why aren't you going?" or "Why aren't you playing?"
That's literally "Why are not you going?" or "Why are not you playing?"
Kinda backwards... isn't it?
...wait... "is not it?"
That makes no sense either!!!!

K bye.

When a Spaniard tells you you're tan...

YES. Today it happened.  As I was standing downstairs at the school waiting for the parents to come get the kids, Irene, one of the five year old teachers, says "you're brown."  Now keep in mind that Irene is absolutely gorgeous and has a boyfriend that looks like a freaking model... so yeah, I'll trust her opinion.

So take that all you people who ever said I was pale, especially those who have lost their nice summer tan while mine continues to get better haha!

Anyways....

This week has been better.  For psico (the stupid PE class I teach) I took a different approach and stopped waiting for the kids to be quite and just distracted them from their talking.  Plus, these 5 year old LOVE the Tooty Ta.

If you don't know the Tooty Ta, here it is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4gNCR0HVuk

Its like a magic song.  I don't really understand, but they are obsessed.  They sing it while we do it, after we do it, and when I come into their class at the end of the day.  Literal magic. And its a great song for learning body movements in English.
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OH MY GOODNESS. I haven't shared the best news of all.  My bank account is open and I have a CARD! Thanks to Fran at the bank.  Fran is the best, love him.

If you think your finances are difficult... try going a month with no bank card and minimal money.  I'm sorry that sounded terrible and horribly insensitive, but when you are moving to a brand new country I really don't recommend it.

Granted, I still cannot use my cashier's check because it has yet to process, but I'm still in a much better place than I was last week as far as banking goes.
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This weekend we have a THREE DAY WEEKEND! And even though I only have like 2 euro to my name at the moment, I am so excited! Two more days! Hooray!



Hasta luego amigos!

See the potential

This week my phrase to repeat is "see the potential in everyone."
Specifically each child.

I've found that so often I get caught up in thinking "this child is bad so I have to look out for whatever they'll do next to defy me." But recently those "problem" children have been the ones that will humor me when I try to rationalize with them when they do something they aren't supposed to.

Yesterday one boy was using me as a shield from another, so I joined in! And it worked, they continued to play with me for the remainder of patio time (that's basically like recess, just on a large patio). Last week I had a lovely conversation with two boys about how if they continued to climb all the way over the playset, that at some point they would slip and fall and crack their heads open... and surprisingly they listened.

For me the worst part of the day is the hour and a half that I teach three different "psico" classes.  Psico is basically the Spanish preschool version of PE, but in a tiny room that absorbs no noise and is blazing hot.  I teach psico for 3 and 5 year olds all by myself, supposedly only in English, however if I actually spoke zero Spanish to them, nothing would be accomplished.  Usually the first class goes decently and then from there it is a downward spiral. Something about four o'clock just makes children go insane.  It's getting better though, yesterday they were fairly decent. And that's all I ask for. I understand they are children and they aren't going to be quiet and sit and listen to me speak in a different language of half and hour without making a peep.  The thing I hate is that half the time I spend yelling at them trying to get them to be quiet, and they can't even hear me because of the roar of 20 children speaking drowns me out.

Most of them aren't doing it viciously.  I guess. I just need to try to keep my calm and not freak out when they've been talking for ten minutes of the thirty minute class.  Like Alice said, I don't need to be afraid of them.  As long as I keep confident in what I'm doing, they don't have any power over me.


Last night we had parent meetings where basically the five year old teachers just told each of their class's parents what they do each day.  And I was there for nothing more than to be like "this is Kendall from America and she does psico with your children."  I stayed for three extra hours for that.

I did learn that the math they do with these kids is INSANE.  You know those old Chinese math tablet things with the beads (I put a picture below)? They use those, but it's not some ancient way of doing math, its actually incredibly advanced! Check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXC41DphVI4   Skip to about 40 seconds.  Basically these kids will be able to do that in about three to four years.  Its scary though, I don't think I want children to be that smart haha.

In other news, I have a BANK ACCOUNT! Hooray! Now I'm just waiting until my check from the US clears and for my card to come in!!! Finally something.  Also, I have an appointment to get finger printed for the process of getting my TIE which is basically a foreigner identification number and lets me stay here for over 90 days.  Its at the end of October, but it could be worst, one girl from Meddeas has her's in February (which is impossible because she's from the US and will be illegally here by that point).  

The best news of all... TOMORROW IS FRIDAY! 

Hope the rain and flooding hasn't washed anyone away, stay safe.

Hasta luego!