Well, the time has officially come. I am now COMPLETELY IMMERSED into Spanish culture. The long awaited day has finally come. Two days ago, I received the highly anticipated email from Eva confirming my status as an enrolled student at the University of Seville. And what a process it was to finally get me to that point! The week of February 7th was one of the busiest and most stressful weeks I have had since I have been in Seville. Eva gave us the entire week to "try out" various classes and see which ones would be best suited for our interests and college degree requirements. And I took advantage of that opportunity like nobody else. In 5 days, I went to 17 different classes and spoke with the professors about the pros and cons of taking their class as a foreign exchange student. There were so many things to take into consideration, that I could barely think at the end of the day because I was so overwhelmed and delusional from being in class 9 to 5 every day (and even 9 to 9 on Monday and Tuesday!) Should I take a class on Friday? Should I take 1 or 2 classes in the Center? Should I take a literature class? Will this class count towards my 400 level requirement at Michigan? Will I even be able to get into this class? My two favorite classes are at the exact same time and the exact same days, which one should I take? These questions, and so many more swarmed my brain that week. When the weekend finally came, I felt so liberated... and used the free time to organize my thoughts and my class schedule. Oh, and on top of the stress of choosing classes, we still weren't done with out homework from the pro cultural seminar. We were required to write 2 essays and take a grammar exam in order to receive credit, but fortunately the papers were about any cultural topic that interested us, and the grammar exam was no longer than 2 pages front and back. I turned in the final drafts of my essays yesterday, and I will know my grade in a few short weeks. The grading system here is characterized by numbers (1-10) rather than letters (A-F), but the meaning of the numbers is way different here. In fact, you only need to get a 5 out of 10, or 50%, to pass the class. And our grammar professor Juan told us most spanish students are relieved when they get a 5 in a class. Whereas most Michigan students say the "failed" a class, when really they got a B... The Spaniards are overjoyed with a 7 in a class which means "exceeds expectations". It will be an adjustment receiving such (seemingly) low notes, but I am just going to try my best in my classes, and seek help if I ever don't understand anything. You're probably wondering what classes I actually got into... so here is the final list: 1. Creative Writing Workshop (in the Center) 2. Short Stories of Love: Passion, Desire, and Death in contemporary Spanish Literature (also in the Center) 3. History of Contemporary Iberoamerica (university) 4. Modern Day Spain (university) and 5. History of Hispanic Cities (university). A very full list, but I really like all of them so far. I wanted to take a class called Anthropology of Social Marginalization but the class filled up too fast, and Eva was not able to enroll me in it. Therefore, I was forced to take the Hispanic Cities class as a backup and it meets on Fridays during the middle of the day. At first I was kind of upset, but I realized that the Hispanic Cities class will be a very helpful class in the long run because we actually talk about the urbanization and the economic / political trends throughout time in Latin America. Perhaps this class will come in handy later if/when I have a career in Economics and Latin American studies. I didn't really know what to expect from most of the classes, but from what I can gather so far, most classes in the university consist of a lecture as well as a discussion. For example, my History of Iberoamerica class meets Monday - Thursday from 4 to 5. The professor lectures Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and then Thursday, we discuss an article relevant to that week's topic as a group. Most of the professors don't use powerpoint, and only occasionally will write on the chalkboard. It is definitely an adjustment because not only do I have to take notes in Spanish (which is hard in and of itself) but also try and comprehend what they are talking about at the same time. I have trouble writing down exactly what the professor says because I can't catch every single word, and sometimes they go too fast for me to even write down a complete thought. I think that is a skill that will come with time though. All my professors in the university are male, and all of them seem very willing to work with foreign exchange students. My favorite class though is the Short Stories of Love class offered through the center. There are 15 of us from the program taking the class, which is more than half. I think we all had a really good impression of the professor, Mercedes, on the first day so we all decided to stay with the class. We actually have already finished our first book, entitled Don Alvaro o el fuerzo del sino (Don Alvaro or the force of fate). Mercedes chose me to act as Don Alvaro in class, and my friend Leann to be his forbidden lover Doña Leonor. I had to wear a costume and read all the lines of Don Alvaro, which was probably 70% of the book. I have no theatre background, but I think I did a pretty good job, if I say so myself. I did have a fun time playing the part, so I think I am really going to like this class. I also had a pretty funny experience in the university that week... My friend Katie from UPenn told me about a class I should try out and told me to meet her in Classroom #7 at 4 PM. Unannounced to me however, there are actually TWO room #7's in the university, and I definitely went to the WRONG class. I was in a 50 person lecture hall with all Spaniards studying Roman Archeology. I was in the middle of the row and on the opposite side of the door, so there was no way for me to escape the class. Plus, Eva told us it is considered rude to leave a class early in Spain because it is a sign of disrespect to the professor. So I sat in Roman Archeology (which is an annual class) for an hour and had absolutely no idea what was going on. I joked later with Katie that she purposely sent me to a horrible class, but reflecting on the experience now, it definitely was a funny situation. I guess it had to happen to someone...
A really cool thing about the University, is that it used to be a Tobacco Factory. The building is constructed from an antique brick, and inside there are a bunch of different courtyards and water fountains as well. The set up of the university is pretty easy; the whole thing is one giant square, but within the building there are small hallways that lead to different departments of Geography / History. Going to class is actually like walking through a beautiful monument, and I love the feeling of being a part of something so historic and important.
I also bought my school supplies and a journal this week. I have divided the journal into three parts: one for new Spanish words that I learn, another for places and restaurants that I either want to remember, or want to go to, and a third section for my own personal thoughts and memories. I write this section in Spanish, just to fully ensure I am not cheating myself in the language while I am over here. It will be fun to read the journal in July, when I return home from Spain. I also met my first Spanish friend last Saturday night. Her and I are likely going to meet up next week for an intercambio because she wants to improve her English. She is extremely nice, and told me she loves meeting new people so there is one thing we already have in common. I'm excited to get to know her better because she told me she can introduce me to a lot of Spanish folk while I am here. It's good to have connections, and I think I found the right one.
Tomorrow I am going to Granada and we have to wake up especially early because it is about a 3 to 4 hour bus ride. I have also been planning a LOT of other trips recently with my friends Justin and Marni. I am going to try and start updating the blog more frequently, but with less length, so I don't have to try and cover EVERYTHING in one single blog post. Look out for updates on travel plans, night life, and more info on my classes in the near future.
-Miguel.
PS. Happy Birthday to two of my friends, Elizabeth and Hillary. I'm sad I had to miss their 21st birthday celebrations, but thanks to technology I am able to keep in relatively close contact with them and virtually wish them a happy birthday. Only 6 more months now till it's my birthday turn.
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