Anaa amreekiya

I think I may have bought the last jar of peanut butter to be shipped to Madrid from the States. It was packaged in July, well before the outbreak of salmonella, and I found it at Alcampo, a gigantic grocery store/mall-ish place that has everything you could ever want to buy. Except peanut butter. Because I bought the last jar. And I don't know what I am going to do when it runs out because I live on this stuff. Everyone I have met so far thinks it is disgusting. My friend Javi claims that peanut butter is made in China (just like everything else) where workers sit, stuff their mouths with peanuts and chew...and what they spit out is peanut butter. I understand that it is a bit thick...and you need to balance it with milk or an apple, but it is a staple, and I realize one of the only things that originated in the States (unless you want to go into the argument about Incas inventing it hundreds of years ago). When you think of "American" food, you think of hamburgers, fries, hot dogs...but none of those really originated in the States. 

My third graders are currently on a trip at an albergue (like a youth overnight camp) this week, except 2 students from our class, and 3 from the other 3rd grade class. Turns out Zakaria, a boy from the other class, is from Morocco. This was super exciting for me, so any spare minute we had I barraged him with questions in arabic (What is your name? How are you? Is this your book?) and we spent some time writing in arabic on the board. Turns out he understood what I was asking, and now he is probably regretting telling me where he is from. I was so excited that I could practice, and I realize that teaching and learning languages make me really really happy. I keep thinking about everything I could do if I became fluent in arabic as well...I could communicate with our Iraaqi students at home in Seattle, I could teach arabic to American students, since it is a language that is becoming more and more useful to know. Too much to do...too little time.

Arabic phrases of the day:

keetab=book

mumtaaz=excellent

Anaa eesmee=My name is...