Hola!
I've arrived in A Coruña! Well I've been here now for nearly a month. Spain has been wonderful; warm, sunny, and the people have been fantastic.
About A Coruña and my new adventure:
It’s a small city on the Northwest coast of Spain. I'm living with a teacher from the school I am teaching at and her husband, Julia & Txemi. They are two of the nicest people I have met so far. The School I teach at is outside of the city in a town called A Laracha. It takes about 30 minutes to get there by car an hour or more by bus. Usually I travel with a teacher from my school.
The school has about 400 students and the level is secondary school, which is grades 7 to 12. The grades 7 to 10 are compulsory and 11 and 12 are optional. The last two years are preparatory for studying at a University. I teach the equivalent to grades 9, 10, and 11. I teach in English classes mostly, but also Gym, Art, and Music (all taught in English and Spanish/Galego).
Galego is a local language that is a mix of Spanish and Portuguese. This makes learning Spanish, true Spanish, a little difficult because people here switch between Spanish and Galego naturally and this makes it more challenging. In A Coruña, most people speak Spanish, but occasionally use Galego.
The Spanish schedule is quite different from the United States. My work day (Monday thru Thursday) schedule starts at 7am. I have a coffee and read, then get ready and leave the flat by 8am. I then travel to school and work until 2:30 in the afternoon. After the car ride, I get home at about 3 or 3:15pm. I make "lunch" and then go for a run, go to the market, run errands, or tutor students. Later at night I might meet a friend for a beer or coffee (about 7 or 8). Dinner is typically between 9 and 10pm. Since I have to get up early I push my dinner earlier, usually between 7:30 and 8pm. Then I might socialize with my roommates, watch a movie, surf the internet, etc. I try to be in bed between 11 and 12. That is my typical work day.
On the weekend I will go out at least once. In Spain you don't go out until much later. You might go for Tapas for dinner (9 - 10pm), and then stay out for the night hoping from bar to bar, and then disco to disco. The clubs don't open until 11pm and close about 4am. Most people don't show up until 2am. And there are clubs to go to after the disco's close, yes they open between 4 and 5am! Then you go to bed between 6 and 8am. Sleep all day and then go out again. Well, this might not be every night, but this is what I have been told. I have not stayed out this late yet. Time will tell.
Here are a few pictures from my first few weeks in A Coruña:
Of course the first thing I do is go to the beach!
Plaza de María Pita.
The next four photos are of the protest on October 15, 2011 in
Plaza de Pontevedra.
The view from my apartment!
The living room.
Until Next Time,
