Blog Post #2 – Ahliaa

Hello again!

It has been a whole month since I have started living in Spain and I have learned a lot. There are many different customs that I have become accustomed to, such as the siesta. I’ve also tried many different foods and met many friendly people in town.  I now know that Churros and chocolate is a great way to start the morning, while tapas and a Radler is a great way to end the night. 

We have started teaching classes at the Academia and I think they are going well. There are many classes to teach therefore the other interns and I have assigned each other classes. All of the students are a lot of fun. The class of 5 and 6 year-olds is the hardest! Most of the older students are studying for the Trinity or Cambridge Exam, so it is important for them to practice reading, writing, listening, and discussing. We make the students practice different skills by creating new and engaging lessons everyday. 

When I’m not teaching in the Academia, then I am traveling somewhere new in Spain. So far, I have seen Granada, Sevilla, Cordoba, and a beach in Malaga. This weekend I will be going to Ronda and then Portugal after that! I have many pictures from all of these trips. I need to organize all of these photos! I buy a magnet from each city as a souvenir from the trip. I need to buy gifts for my family. I want them to have a little piece of Spain. 

That’s the end of my little update! Talk to you soon!

Week One is Done! – Anna

I arrived here in Villanueva exactly a week ago and the time has flown by! Since being here I have been speaking so much Spanish and meeting lots of people. Yesterday I was invited to my host brother’s girlfriends’s house in the country for lunch and swimming. When I got there I realized it was more of a party than a lunch. I was overwhelmed at first but it ended up being really fun. We ate tortilla española with spinach and pasta and lounged by the pool. It was hot outside and the pool felt so good!  Later on that day I tried caracoles for the first time and they were pretty good! Although they may be a bit of an acquired taste they are really fun to eat! My host mom told me that they’re best while they’re hot so you have to eat them really fast. Everyone here seems to love them. I also saw the procession of Corpus Christi with my host mom, Rafi, and her friends. I really enjoyed listening to the band that was playing. It was a lovely way to end the day!

Outside of Villanueva, I went to Córdoba on Saturday with the other interns. My favorite part was the Alcazar de los Reyes Cristianos. It only cost 2.50 euros to get in with my international student card and from the top you could see most of Córdoba. I really liked how the gardens were full of bushes shaped like pottery and castles. When we were standing in line to get into the Alcazar, I saw someone wearing a t-shirt from my high school and then Vivian, one of the other interns, yelled “Colorado” to get there attention. Turns out, a tour group from my high school was in Spain for their Spanish class! I even saw Sra. Bouchta, my old Spanish teacher from high school. I gave her a big hug and we talked for a little while. It was such a coincidence! After the Alcazar, we went to the Mezquita and I spent an hour and a half walking around and looking at all the tiny details in the architecture. It was the second time I had visited the Mezquita and it was even more beautiful than I remember.

After spending a week here, I am looking forward to starting teaching classes next week and to continue practicing my Spanish. I feel so excited and grateful to be here and I can already tell that this time is going to go by really fast! 

¡Hasta luego!

Anna

Blog Post #1 – Vivian

Hello from the sunny Villanueva de Córdoba! I am happy to be falling into a routine after a rough start in Madrid.

Spending the summer in Spain didn’t become real to me until I touched down in the Barajas airport, and all I can say is that it was a bumpy start. From Barajas, I accidentally took the train to Chamartín instead of Atocha. I then jumped on a different line that was supposed to take me to Atocha and sadly watched as the train passed the station and made its way to Perla instead. Unaccustomed to how the train system works, I spent a whopping two hours riding a total of four lines until I finally arrived at the correct station.

When I finally made it to Atocha — sleep-deprived and sweat-soaked —  I, for reasons unknown, thought it would be a good idea to accept and eat candy given to me by a total stranger. In retrospect, I realize how dangerous and silly that was, and thankfully, nothing happened to me. (Caution: please do not ever accept candy from a stranger!)

From Atocha, the trip to Pedroches was a quick two hours, and I have been in Villanueva now for a little more than one week.

I’ve had a few chances to explore the local food, and I have fallen in love with the seafood dishes, such as the ensaladilla from La Dulce and the paella that my host mother made. If I had to choose, I would say that my favorite meal so far has been the escargot dish from El Ruedo. I haven’t stopped talking about those snails!

The snails from El Ruedo come in a flavorful and savory tomato-based sauce. I enjoyed eating this dish with bread and left my bowl spotless. I also tried snails served in a spicy, herbal broth from a nearby bar. It was equally as delicious. It reminded me of babbouche, a Moroccan street food that features snails in a thyme, liquorice, mint, chili, and tea-laden broth.

Reflecting on my first full week, I am excited for the weeks to come and not just because of the food. The students at the academy are great, and I have really enjoyed sitting in on the different classes. Spaniards have a great sense of humor! I am also looking forward to exploring and traveling. For instance, this weekend, I will go to Granada for a day-trip/jamón competition.

Until next time,

Vivian

Getting Started – Ahliaa

Hello Everyone!

I have only been in Spain for a couple of days now and I have already done a lot of new and exciting things! Just in my first day, I made it through the airport and train station without getting lost, rode a super fast train from Atocha station to Pedroches, and got to see the parade for the last day of Romería. My second day was full of observing classes at Academia Manhattan, eating at some of the local cafes and restaurants, and seeing new parts of the city.

Villanueva de Córdoba is beautiful! From the roof of my host family’s home, I can see the whole pueblo. It is even more beautiful during the sunset! My host parents, Sebastian and Anna, are super friendly and really funny. They showed me some of the best places around and always make sure that I’m not hungry. They have been helping me improve my Spanish speaking skills by having long conversations with me and encouraging me to say full sentences (rather than just “Sí”). They let me take my time and stop me from using Google Translate. Once they understand what I am trying to say, they correct any grammar or conjugation mistakes. Through all of this, I’m sure my speaking and listening skills are going to improve greatly!

Sebastian and Anna also run a little clothing store and they seem to know everyone who walks in! I think it is nice that everyone in town knows one another and are super friendly. Hopefully I can also meet more of the residents (especially when I start teaching some classes).

One thing that I have noticed is how late dinner can be. Last night, I ate dinner at 10:00 pm (22:00), but in America, dinner is usually at 6:00 pm (18:00). Even though there is a four hour difference, I don’t get too hungry since the meal sizes for lunch are very large. It also helps that everything is delicious! The siesta is also a new experience that I have to get used to. I love the idea of a midday nap, especially if it means cooling down when it is way too hot, but having all of the shops close down can be difficult. Hopefully I will learn to work around that since I have an entire summer left to go!

I can’t wait for the many new things I will get to try while I am here and am especially ready to start exploring Spain!

Ahliaa

Blog Post # 1 – Joanne

Gooooood afternoon, friends! Joanne, here, from SPAIN (woot woot)!

After a stressful day of spending an entire day at the airport, getting lost in Atocha station, and almost missing my train to Pedroches, I am HERE. It is currently June 7th, my third day here in Villanueva and so far I am having the time of my flippin’ life.

Villanueva de Córdoba is a very small city with approximately 8,774 people; it is adorned by beautiful architecture which I have had the pleasure of looking at on my way to the Academia. Caty, my host mother, is a very sweet and caring lady and has been showing me around the pueblo. From what I have noticed, everyone is very kind and greets each other with two cheek kisses (~so euro~). SPEAKING OF MY HOST FAMILY, everyone is so nice and funny! Because they speak a very limited amount of English (and my Spanish is… improving) our communication oscillates between hand gestures and Google Translate. It is a fantastic system.

My host family also has a dog, PEPITO! He is very cute and I have been playing with him regularly. He is a very charismatic pup and is fond of belly rubs. I like him a lot.

After spending the first day catching up on some sleep, I had my first day at the Academia. Lucy, my supervisor, gave me a tour of the place and we reviewed the summer schedule together. Because of the Trinity Exams that are taking place today and the “feria chica” happening this weekend, there isn’t a lot of work to do yet. However, today I helped with the review session for students taking the B2 exam by working on the conversation section with them. I was very impressed by their fluency and how well they discussed the social dilemmas of Spain in English.

After the review session, my new friend Vivian and I walked around the town and checked out a small cafe called Churreria El Lagarto (lol, lizard). And let me tell you, this cafe has THE BEST café de leche I have ever had. After catching up with Vivian and doing some work, it was time for lunch and the siesta and I walked back home where Caty was waiting for me with huevos y patatas. Again, we communicated using hand gestures and GoogleTranslate. It is still very funny.

In the middle of lunch, my host brother Fernando and his friends walked in and I got to meet them all for the first time! But it was slightly awkward because I didn’t know that boys in Spain did the cheek kiss greeting to girls so when they all leaned in I was like, “Oh! Uhhhh, hola…. *kiss kiss*” Yeahhhh, awkward. But, noted! (Just confirmed with Lucy, it is common for everybody to do the cheek-kiss thing regardless of gender/sexuality).

Now, I am here back at the Academia to do some work before I meet with the examiner to go over what students need the most improvement on and what parts of the exam went well. Then, I will be working alongside Lucy by assisting a C1 class (the most advanced). Yay!

Thanks for reading, friends!

Hasta pronto,

Joanne

Matrícula examen septiembre 2019

Ya tenemos disponible el formulario de matrícula para la próxima convocatoria de exámenes de Trinity en Academia Manhattan. Apúntate ya!

  • Septiembre 2019:
    • Reading & Writing (examen escrito): 11 de septiembre
    • Speaking & Listening (examen oral): semana del 9 de septiembre
    • plazo de matrícula: hasta el 26 de junio
    • cursos intensivos o semi-intensivos: Cursos de verano 2019
    • tasas de examen
    • formulario de matricula:
      • Online
      • PDF (rellenar y entregar en la academia, o mandar escaneado a academiamanhattan@gmail.com)
      • una vez recibido el formulario de matricula recibirás un email de confirmación detallando cómo proceder a hacer el pago de las tasas

Matrícula examen mayo/junio 2019

Ya tenemos disponible el formulario de matrícula para la próxima convocatoria de exámenes de Trinity en Academia Manhattan. Apúntate ya!

  • Mayo/Junio 2019:
    • Reading & Writing (examen escrito): 25 de mayo
    • Speaking & Listening (examen oral): semana del 3 de junio
    • plazo de matrícula: hasta el 5 de abril
    • tasas de examen
    • formulario de matrícula:
      • Online
      • PDF (rellenar y entregar en la academia, o mandar escaneado a academiamanhattan@gmail.com)
      • una vez recibido el formulario de matricula recibirás un email de confirmación detallando cómo proceder a hacer el pago de las tasas


Convocatorias Trinity 2019

Ya tenemos nuestras convocatorias de Trinity para el año 2019. Para más información sobre los exámenes, consulta en la web de Trinity College.

  • Marzo 2019, Test Trialling
  • Mayo/Junio 2019:
    • Reading & Writing (examen escrito): 25 de mayo
    • Speaking & Listening (examen oral): semana del 3 de junio
    • plazo de matrícula: hasta el 27 de marzo
    • formulario de matrícula disponible diciembre 2019
  • Septiembre 2019:
    • Reading & Writing (examen escrito): 11 de septiembre
    • Speaking & Listening (examen oral): semana del 9 de septiembre
    • plazo de matrícula: hasta el 26 de junio
    • cursos intensivos o semi-intensivos (información de verano 2018): Cursos de verano 2018
    • formulario de matricula disponible marzo 2019

2019poster

Differences between the United States and Spain – Elizabeth

Hello Academia Manhattan! I have been in Spain for almost a year now, and I’ve noticed a lot of cultural differences between Spain and my home in the U.S.  For example, people here eat meat more often than at home, or at least within my family in the United States. My mother is vegetarian, and I have noticed that in Spain it is less common to be a vegetarian or vegan. I haven’t eaten very many vegetables here compared to in the U.S.  People also use olive oil much more here than in the U.S.! Speaking of food, people in Spain seem to go to bars more often than in the U.S. I’ve seen children’s birthday parties hosted at bars, which would never happen in the United States! In the United States, people under the legal drinking age, 21, are not even allowed inside bars. Here, anyone can spend time in a bar. I’ve also seen Spanish people drink a beer or wine with both lunch and dinner. In contrast, in the United States people usually only drink alcohol with dinner or after dinner, and generally don’t drink it as often, unless they are at an event, party, or some kind of celebration. Spaniards attitudes seem to be more relaxed about alcohol.

In terms of cities and towns, in Spain they are distinct. Many cities here have old neighborhoods that date back centuries and are still more or less the same as when they were built (with modern renovations of course). But there are also archeological remains right in the middle of the city, like the aqueduct of Segovia and the Mezquita in Córdoba.  In the United States, not many cities have these old neighborhoods, and everything is relatively new. Our oldest areas are only a few hundred years old, which in comparison with Spain, is basically new. Many of the towns or villages I have seen in Spain are built clustered together, with most people living within the town limits and in houses that are built right next to each other. There are patios, but few gardens or backyards. In the United States, towns are built more spaced out. It is harder to see where the town ends, whereas in Spain the buildings are built where the town suddenly becomes the country, and there are few buildings outside of it. In my town (Essex, Vermont) we have a town center where all of the shops and public buildings are built, but they are not near peoples houses. We have neighborhoods that are outside the center where there are only houses, and everyone has a backyard or garden. I live on a road that leads to the town center, but more in the country where I have a big backyard, or garden.  There is nothing but other houses and nature around me. That also exists in Spain, but it seems to be less popular to live so far from the town center.

I think the living standards are more or less the same in both countries. I have noticed that apartments and some houses and generally smaller here than in the U.S., but both countries have air conditioning, dishwashers, and that kind of technology.  I didn’t find it very hard to adjust to Spain in that respect. Although there tends to be more noise, especially in cities like Córdoba, compared to the U.S. People spend more time in the street and stay out later in Spain, so you hear people talking or the sounds from bars and restaurants more in Spain than in the U.S.  People are generally expected to be quiet past 10pm (22:00) in the U.S., and neighbors will get mad if people are making a lot of noise outside. Here in Spain I have heard people setting off fireworks at 8am in the streets of Córdoba on a Sunday, but people don’t seem to complain about it or talk to the police about it, whereas people in the U.S. would be more likely to complain.