I arrived in Madrid very tired. I flew over with a 7 hour flight. I used to take Trazadone which is an antidepressant. I hadn't taken it for quite a while but thought it would help me sleep on the plane. I guess it reacted to the beer I had drank and caused me to have a weird reaction. I couldn't sleep and I felt hot then cold within a few minutes. It was a bad reaction and stupid of me to take a medication which I hadn't taken in while. I arrived and took the metro to my friends apartment. When I arrived I was greeted by two old friends I had met when I lived in Madrid five years prior. It was good to see them but I had some trouble speaking in spanish. I was really tired and my spanish had gotten rusty. It was quite challenging. I got some rest and felt a little better in the morning. My verbal skills were slower than my listening skills. My friend Marianelly took me to the center of Madrid where we walked around and I was able to try some jamon which is amazing ham that the spaniards smoke. She told me about a program called bla bla car. You sign up online where you can basically hitch a ride from one place to another. I was going to Fuengirola, my old home town where there was a feria or festival that weekend. I met a guy who was from Venezuela who picked up two others and we headed five hours down to Fuengirola. I didn't feel like I knew spanish when I got into the car but by the end of car ride, my spanish had improved a lot. I arrived at 10pm to my friend Damaris' house. I dropped off my bag and went straight out to the feria.
This festival or fair had grown so much since I lived there. It had many more fair rides and lots of games where you could win prizes. The back of the fair was where these little buildings or casetas had been set up where each caseta was a different country. In the little building you could find crafts, food, drinks, t-shirts and music from that specific country. There were 12-15 buildings of different countries. You could travel around the world in just one night. It was amazing. This was the feria that I remembered. I loved hanging out in south america but it was really interesting to see countries that I knew I would be going to but never had been before. It was exciting to visit Peru because I knew this country was on my list to go to, a dream to hike macchu piccu would sometime soon come true.
Damaris and I partied for three days and three nights straight. We met up with her friends and family and we traveled around trying kangaroo meat and playing drums in Australia and getting drunk in Belgium and listening to music in Ireland. It was so amazing. We even went to the beach the next day to relax from so much partying. I even went back and met some students of mine after the local high school got out. They didnt recognize me at first but when they did they told me something that I will always remember. A student told me, "Tracy, you were the best english teacher we ever had. Its true. You really taught us a lot." I really invested in them. They were my life. The teachers let me do anything and I had planned a play and music concert for Christmas and it turned out amazingly. It was good to hear this. My trip back home to Fuengirola was remarkable.
My students reminded me that although I wasn't sure of what I was doing as a teacher, I still was making a difference. My fourth graders were now in their last year in high school. They grew up. I couldn't remember some of their names but I remembered their faces and who they were. I gave more attention to the kids that were in love with learning. The ones that blended in and didnt want recognition or liked being called on thought I wouldn't remember them but I did. They all made a difference to me. After meeting with them, I realized I made a difference to them as well.
This festival or fair had grown so much since I lived there. It had many more fair rides and lots of games where you could win prizes. The back of the fair was where these little buildings or casetas had been set up where each caseta was a different country. In the little building you could find crafts, food, drinks, t-shirts and music from that specific country. There were 12-15 buildings of different countries. You could travel around the world in just one night. It was amazing. This was the feria that I remembered. I loved hanging out in south america but it was really interesting to see countries that I knew I would be going to but never had been before. It was exciting to visit Peru because I knew this country was on my list to go to, a dream to hike macchu piccu would sometime soon come true.
Damaris and I partied for three days and three nights straight. We met up with her friends and family and we traveled around trying kangaroo meat and playing drums in Australia and getting drunk in Belgium and listening to music in Ireland. It was so amazing. We even went to the beach the next day to relax from so much partying. I even went back and met some students of mine after the local high school got out. They didnt recognize me at first but when they did they told me something that I will always remember. A student told me, "Tracy, you were the best english teacher we ever had. Its true. You really taught us a lot." I really invested in them. They were my life. The teachers let me do anything and I had planned a play and music concert for Christmas and it turned out amazingly. It was good to hear this. My trip back home to Fuengirola was remarkable.
No comments:
Post a Comment