Bronquitis

I went to the doctor this morning after my severe cough and fever kept me awake all night. After a 3 hour trip to the clinic I was told that I have acute bronchitis. Let's just say, it isn't very fun. But I get to keep my xray which is kind of cool. I was also given a prescription for antibiotics, ibuprofen, as well as two other pills for the cough and fever.

At first I was hesitant to go to the doctor, because in the past here it has been almost more work getting an appointment than actually going in to work. And if you miss a day at my school you have to bring in a "justificante" or a doctor's note saying why you were gone and that he/she approved it. Otherwise you are not paid for your day at work. Which seems a bit strange that they wouldn't trust people to actually be sick and tell the truth. But, in a sense it is better than how things work in the Seattle School District, because if you have a long term illness, you still get paid if you have proof from a doctor (although I have been told that if you have to go on sick leave for longer than 5 weeks you lose your job and they place you at another school for the next year).

So, three days of sitting on the couch and watching movies await. 

Arabic words of the day:

shukran=thank you

kalb=dog

madrassa=school

medina=city

A letter to Spain

Dear Spain,

It has come to my recent attention that your economy is headed to the toilet. A projected 29% unemployment rate by the end of this year paired with a credit fallout and high rates of layoffs mean that a recession, albeit severe, is almost a definite. Although I am in no way experienced in the field of economics, I am, as most everyone is, a consumer, and any insight I have comes from that experience.

I would say now is the time I give you some heartfelt advice. Below are some areas that are in dire need of improvement.

1. Customer Service

It has always been my impression that if you own some type of establishment that sells products, it is your goal to sell those products. And if someone who comes into your store is confused, or does not understand how the product or service works, you would generally think that the storekeeper or clerk would help that person so they would buy something. In my five months living in Madrid thus far, this idea has been all but shattered. It seems as though no one in this city wants to make money. I can't count on two hands the number of times I have walked into a restaurant, shop, or department store and either been ignored, waved away (literally), or treated like I was 5 years old. I know I am not from here, and sometimes I get confused because things like cell phone contracts and doctor's offices are run differently that what I am used to, but in a country with an aging population and a quickly diminishing economy, you would think that tourists would be a welcome sight. I know that tourists can be annoying, and talk super loud and wear their North Face jackets and Rod Lavers and make fun of Spanish culture. I get it. But I also get that adequate customer service and increasing sales go hand in hand.

Example:
I recently bought a converter, or a big mess of a contraption that converts US voltage to European voltage, at El Corte Inglés, the behemoth of a department store that you can find in every corner of every city in Spain. (Side note: a converter converts voltage, an adaptor just converts the type of plug, I learned this too late and fried a few electronic devices). I needed two adaptors besides the converter in order to make the entire thing function, so I was sold what I thought was a US adaptor. I get home and I found out the thing doesn't work because there are prongs in the plug that won't let anything plug into it. I had my roommate as well as her boyfriend try it out, to no avail. So, I head back the next day to exchange it. I get to the counter and the lovely woman says to me, "Yes?" I tell her I need to exchange the adaptor for one that fits. She looks at my adaptor and says, "I can't take that back, it is out of its package". "Yes, I know", I say, "but in order to test it, I had to cut it out of the package, because you sell it in packaging". Then I point to the sign that says "At El Corte Inglés if you are not satisfied, we return your money". I asked her whether or not that sign was true, because there are about 15 of them on every floor. She sighs heavily, obviously not excited that I am challenging her. She discusses the predicament for a moment with another sales clerk and comes back. "I'll return your money" and walks over to the register. I proceed to tell her that I don't want to return it, I want something that works, if she could please help me. She waves me away, saying "those are the plugs we have, if none of those work, we don't have what you need". So I go over, none of them fit, and she says "see, I told you". I keep insisting that if they sold me something to convert US voltage, there has to be something that works. I ask again if she can help me. She does not, and hands me 1,50€ back, making a comment about why should I care to return it if it is so cheap. She finally decides to come over and help me since I am standing there trying every plug on the chain. She finds one that works. Then she takes the plug I HAD BEFORE and plugs in my cord, but in order to do so, she has to break the prongs that are in the plug. I say, "ohhhh, so you have to break it in order for it to work" in as sarcastic a tone as I can muster. She glares at me and says, I guess so, and we both return to the counter so I can RE-BUY what I just returned to her 10 minutes prior. I walk away, shaking my head, with numerous people staring at me. I felt proud of myself that I stood my ground but also miffed that she thought she could wave me off. This experience is not an isolated one, as I have many more stories where that came from.

2. Web Sites

If you took away my laptop it would be as though you took away my mode of communication, my navegation device, and also my 411. I use the internet for practically everything. My roommate makes fun of me because the first thing I do when I get home is turn on my computer. But she also has a gadget that she is attached to, which is her cell phone. For me it is too expensive to use my phone here, so I prefer to communicate via email or facebook. In the States, if I want to find something, all I do is google it. If it is, say a grocery store or a yoga studio, it most definitely has a website, and the website is easy to navegate, and generally has the key information easily accessible, like the address and hours of operation. I have realized that I take this for granted.

Many places in Madrid don't have websites, and if they do, they are generally confusing and hard to navegate. Here are some examples (in Spanish, sorry):

Salamandra Climbing Gym
El Corte Inglés supermarket

now compare them to some websites in Seattle:

Vertical World Climbing Gym
Safeway supermarkets

I understand that as far as internet and online companies go, the US pretty much beats out everyone, but nowadays if your company or store doesn't have an adequate website in the States, you are considered to be in the dark ages. Not so true here, it is as though they don't want you to find what product you need, or even find the store at all. So, my advice is, while you are sitting around trying to figure out how to boost sales, update your website, and people might actually go to it. I can't tell you how many times I have tried to find something on a website here and have given up and gone to another place because it was easier to find.


3. Immigrants help your economy, not hurt it

People may disagree with me, but in my experience living in the US as well as in Spain, the immigrant population is always the hardest working. They are the backbone of the economy. They do work that other people don't want to do, and they do it at dirt cheap wages. They also pay taxes, pay rent and buy things (which, surprise! help the economy). Zapatero's government recently announced an incentive to immigrants to return to their native countries in exchange for unemployment payments that would last up to a year:

The government offers incentives for immigrants to return home

Any documented immigrant who is unemployed would qualify for the incentive. It doesn't sound like a bad deal, but it also just adds to the growing sentiment here that immigrants are bad for the country, and they are taking away jobs. I was recently on a walk to the bank near my school and I saw stickers on a telephone pole that said "Join the fight, keep Spain for the Spaniards, immigrants out" and directed people to a website with the information about how to get involved. I went to the website but it has since been removed. The sentiment will not be so difficult to get rid of, and I can imagine that things are only going to get worse. What also bothers me is that when many Spaniards hear the word "immigrant" they think of someone from South America or Sub-saharan Africa and somehow associate them with the guys who sell pirated cds on the street, or somehow "beneath them". In September when I told my host mom in Cádiz that I had found an apartment in Madrid, she asked me, sounding concerned "are there a lot of immigrants in the building?" I looked at her, saying, I am not sure, but inside thinking, what does she think I am, a Spaniard dressed up like an American?

So, Spain, I love you very much, and it may seem like I complain whenever I get the chance, but I am truly looking out for your own interests (since I also don't want them to make cutbacks in the program I am in and send me home)...

Besitos,
Maya

ONO

ONO: Internet and Phone Company in Spain

By far, the worst company I have ever dealt with in my life. Our wifi never works, we spend various hours on the phone with their technicians, and I am sick of it.

So, I just called their customer service and basically told them how I felt, and we now have 50% off our next internet/phone bill.

I never thought I would miss U.S. companies...but sometimes you just want to receive a service you are paying for...as simple as that. I have even found myself advising my friend who works at a clothing/department store about how they can improve sales by working on their website. I am coaching businesses now? What? It is almost as though I feel pity for them, with Spain's economy going into the toilet...more on that later though. And no, I have not turned over to the dark side, I just understand the relationship between massive layoffs and poverty...and anti-immigration sentiment, which is about to hit Spain if things don't improve. And that will affect my friends and people who are here trying to make a better life for their families, and in turn helping the economy by working and spending money. But for some reason, not everyone understands this...

Me paso de hablar de esto...

Roscón y Nochevieja

Right: everything I had to carry with me (according to Venezuelan custom) in order to bring me luck in the new year

Below: roscón de reyes (see previous post)

Un día de nieve

I walked out the door this morning and almost said "no me jodas" (a slightly vulgar way of saying "you've got to be kidding me"). It was SNOWING. And it hasn't stopped. There is about a half a foot of snow so far, and everyone has told me that this is not normal at all (I am feeling deja vu from 2 weeks ago in Seattle).

A snow storm has taken over Spain and this time has hit the city of Madrid. All the major highways that run around the edge of the city are backed up with accidents and stalled cars, and at the moment the Barajas airport is closed and they don't know if they will reopen or not. My roommate, Mariana, and her family had plans to fly out to Rome today at 4pm and are going to head to the airport to wait and see what happens. Her parents (since they are from warm Venezuela) were freaking out about the cold yesterday...I think they are truly freaking out now because this is the first time in their lives that they have seen snow.

School has been pretty much crazy, since it is our week back after break, and a short week at that. Yesterday's talk was all about what presents the Three Wise Men brought them, and today is all about the snow. Consider it a lost week, learning-wise.

And yet again, why I love this city. The metro. Although it does have its issues, anything that happens above ground rarely affects it. You can still get to pretty much every part of the city with no problem...no scraping off car windows and no waiting in traffic.

A link to an article about the snow storm (it is in Spanish, but there is a video that shows the extent of the snow in Madrid): Snow

guita, chorros, pelotudos y quilombos

Every day I realize how much I don't know. I watched an Argentinian movie the other night with the Venezuelan fam (Mariana and her parents) and Mariana helped me with all the Argentinian slang. Which was a lot. But I started to use it in my vocabulary and have been realizing that I now have Mexican, Venezuelan, and Spain spanish all mixing around in my brain. I don't need to add Argentinian spanish as well, unless I go there...which who knows, I might. I highly recommend the movie we watched: Nueve Reinas (2000). It was remade into an American movie called Criminal (2004) with John C. Reilly, Diego Luna and Maggie Gyllenhaal but I liked the original much better, as is usually the case.

I was woken up this morning by a woman who works at Casa Árabe, where I am going to be taking arabic classes. I had signed up for beginning classes but I was told that since I already know the alphabet, I would be bored because that is what about half of Level 1 consists of. So she signed me up for Level 2, which means I need to study, and quickly. I learned the alphabet last summer, and have my arabic notebook with me, but it has been awhile and I am out of practice. Learning a 3rd language in my 2nd language might prove to be a challenge as well...

Mariana's parents sleep more than I have ever seen parents sleep. We went to bed around midnight and it is noon and they are still asleep. I bet you they won't wake up until around 1:30pm. It's crazy, how can anyone sleep that long on a consistent basis?

Feliz Año

This was definitely a New Year's to remember. We had some Venezuelan traditions mixed with Colombian food mixed with the Marcha Madrileña (meaning we got home at 9 in the morning).

I was asked by Mariana's parents about American traditions on Nochevieja (New Year's Eve) and I was at a loss for words. "Uhh we countdown at midnight?" For Venezuelan New Year we each had our 12 grapes (which they all started eating right before the countdown, and I had so much trouble because of course they have seeds in them and I am not used to that...) then we all had to put money in our pockets for good wealth and security in the new year, and then our passports and our suitcases so that we travel a lot in the new year...and then we each had our glass of champagne and Mariana's mom was running around with a bowl of cooked lentils, shoveling spoonfuls into our mouths. I didn't get the back story on the lentils, but I am assuming it is for luck. So about ten minutes after midnight I finished my grapes, all the while they are laughing at me because I am not accustomed to the process and therefore was running around crazy. It took everyone so much time to get ready that by the time we ate dinner it was after midnight. I was starving and on the verge of a migraine, but the food was so good. Victor's girlfriend laura from colombia made caramelized chicken, which was amazing. I watched every step and wrote down the recipe. We finally went out to celebrate in Malasaña (a neighborhood with a lot of cool stores and nightlife) around 2am and it was the busiest I have seen the streets of Madrid. We found a good bar that was playing good music (ie not all Spanish pop music) and stayed there for awhile before making our way to eat breakfast and then caught the metro home at 9am just in time to usher Seattle into the New Year (the guy sitting next to us didn't really seem to care).

The other night we had an Arepas & Apple Pie party. Mariana's friend Jose liked my apple pies at Thanksgiving so much that he begged me to make more. I told him I would but he had to make something Venezuelan. Which ended up meaning that his wife Melisa made a whole bunch of arepas for everyone (thick tortilla like things stuffed with ham and cheese). But, Jose pointed out, he bought the cheese at El Corte Ingles (the mega huge department store/supermarket/everything store) and therefore contributed to the cooking. Mariana's dad took out his "cuatro" (Venezuelan guitar with 4 strings) and we all sang Venezuelan folk songs and flamenco songs until the grouchy neighbor lady came over and started yelling at us. It was only 8:30pm, not even dinner time in Spain, and she was yelling at us to shut up. Mariana says that our building is full of immigrants and that it really bothers "la vieja" so she gets really annoyed and takes to yelling at people from her window. We suspect it was her who threw our broom off the balcony a few months ago.

Today is Día de Los Reyes (or Three Wise Men Day) where all the polite, well-behaved Spanish children (all 5 of them--just kidding) receive their presents. So yet again everything is closed down and the only stores open are "Los Chinos" or the convenience stores that are mainly run by Chinese people (or anyone who is Asian, but of course they are referred to as Chinese). Last night I headed to the Cabalgata de los Reyes Magos, or the annual Three Wise Men/Epiphany Parade. I couldn't really see much, and spent most of the time dodging the candy being thrown our way, but I was able to see the three wise man who rode by to close out the parade. The first wise man rode by with a wife, the second one the same, and the third one rode by with another guy and both of them were wearing black face. So according to madrileños, the third wise man was gay? And they couldn't have just asked a guy from the crowd, or the numerous people who live in Madrid of African or Arab descent? It had to be a Spanish guy painted black? 

Another tradition of Día de los Reyes is roscón. I am not too much a fan of the pastries I have encountered so far in Madrid, and the roscones that I saw just looked plain gross. It looks like a round piece of bread with some fake cherries and fruit and sugar on top. They are cut in half and then stuffed with cream. I walked by a bakery the other day with a line out the door and down the block--these things are super popular. I thought they had ham in the middle and I kept thinking, "man this bread thing looks gross". Marcy, Erin and I bought one last night to try. We took it to a restaurant and carried it to the back so we wouldn't stick out (I am guessing that eating the roscón on the night before the Reyes is sacrilege). After all the fuss of the roscón, it really is just bread with some sugar on top...and dry bread at that. But anyway, there is generally something put in the roscón and whoever gets it (like a small plastic baby) will have luck for the rest of the year...kind of like our wishbone on Thanksgiving.

This vacation thing needs to stop or I will permanently be in my pjs. It is 8pm I am still in pajamas and I haven't brushed my teeth yet today. Feel free to be grossed out.

Picture side note: That is Víctor, Yandira, Mariana, me, Reynaldo, and Laura (Víctor's Colombian/French girlfriend)