Lo bueno

So, after complaining quite a bit, it is about time that I write at least a little describing all of the good and wonderful things here. But since there is a lot, I will just give you a tiny glimpse, and save the rest for later:

First, my host family is wonderful. I am living with a mother and her 21-year-old daughter, and I really can't imagine anything better. When I am talking to just one of them, they take time to talk slowly if I need it or explain words I don't know, but when they talk to each other I have the chance to test my listening skills and see if I can follow their conversation (if I am not too tired, I can generally catch the gist of what they are talking about, but when their voices begin to overlap I can't make sense of it anymore). On Tuesday, Patricia (the daughter) had one of her friends over for dinner, and so there were even more voices to keep track of. Most of the previous conversations had been pretty basic (how are you, do you want more food, stories about family and places in Spain) but that night the talk spun in a completely different direction, and suddenly we were talking about language, religion, and the Spanish Civil War. ("We" meaning that I mostly listened to their opinions and asked questions if I could formulate them quickly enough and find a gap in the conversation to insert my voice-- there were not many gaps!) And there it was, the same things that are talked about in class or with family and friends, the same (and yet not the same) in a different country. There were funny moments of Patricia and her friend teaching me slang specific to Toledo and laughing when I tried to use it (I imagine it was something like teaching a Spanish exchange student in America to use words like "bro" and "homie"). There were serious moments when they shared their religious views about the Church and God, and terribly sad and shocking moments when the mother described the attrocities of the Spanish Civil War.

As of now, I know very little about the Spanish Civil War, but thanks to the confusion with my horario (my class schedule) I am now taking a class Spanish history during and proceding the war-- a class I thought sounded interesting, but could not fit before! Overall, my classes have been fine so far. It is a bit strange here because many of the classes are 2 in one day (for example, yesterday I had theology in the morning and again in the evening) and they seem to be a bit slower than usual, though it could simply be that the first week begins a little more slowly. I am glad to have a bit more structure in my day. Roaming around Toledo is more enjoyable when it is squeezed between classes and lunch, when I know that it can only last for a period of time before I have to return to a different place.

And the streets in Toledo! They are narrow and cobblestoned, and pedestrians have to press themselves to the buildings or stand in a doorway when cars drive by. There are little shops and cafes lining the streets, and it reminded me right away of Ireland. A lot of things here remind me of Ireland (the showerheads that remove from the wall, the kind of cold so different from Minnesota cold, people's thoughts on the Church) and at first I was more "homesick" for Ireland than for Minnesota-- homesick for a place I don't even live or visit often!

As for classes, I am taking all of them at the Fundación, and I could not take the internship class. But after adjusting to this idea, I have decided that it is actually much better. My favorite class so far is the history class  that I otherwise would not be taking. I can volunteer at a school or other organization without the hour requirements of an internship. And I will get to travel with Molly and Ellie at the end of the semester if I want to and still spend more time in Ireland. I am looking into volunteering opportunities there for May-- who knows!

So despite my past complaining, everything is really quite good here-- more than I can say in a short little description. A lot of people are travelling already this weekend, but I have decided to stay. So there will be much time to explore, to read, to write, to think, to enjoy Toledo and simply be here.