Weekend Musings

If there's one thing I've learned from my time working with kids it's that you can never quite be sure what they are going to say. Whether the little ones are speaking English or Spanish their unpredictable utterances are often smile inducing and always memorable. Some of the best I've heard since starting work at the elementary school include: "You speak Spanish well for a British person.", "Why does it sound like a dog barking when you speak English?", "Why do you speak English if everyone else speaks Spanish?" and just the other day, "They speak Spanish in Seattle, don't they?". That last one is compliments of Alvaro, an 8 year old that I tutor. We we're finishing up class last Wednesday and had about 5 minutes left. He has a globe that sits on his desk so I thought to ask him if he knew where I'm from. He didn't, but after I pointed out Seattle he got really excited. Apparently the Disney show 'I-Carly' is based in Seattle and he wanted to know if I know the characters. I had to break it to him that unfortunately I do not, but that I do have some pictures of  the city I could show him. It was while we were flipping through the pictures that he made the above comment. I told that they speak English in Seattle and he said, "but the people in the show speak Spanish and you speak Spanish." After explaining the process of dubbing, I went on to explain that I only speak Spanish because I studied it and that neither my parents, my sister or my brother speak Spanish. His mouth dropped open in surprise and he said, "I always thought they spoke Spanish in Seattle."

Feria de Abril

  

Every year, two weeks after Semana Santa, Sevilla holds its annual fair. Originally organized as a livestock fair in 1847, the Feria de Abril has become a time for Sevillanos to eat, drink, dance and socialize with friends. From Monday night at midnight until the following Sunday the fairgrounds (which are conveniently located right down the street from my house) are awash with color and merriment. Women in flamenco dresses mingle with men in suit jackets, walking from here to there, weaving among the horses and dashing across the street to avoid the oncoming carriages. While some have come just to soak up the atmosphere, most are on their way to one 'caseta' or another. Red or green and white striped, the 'casetas' are owned by groups of friends or companies and are the heart of feria. Inside these tents is where the people dance 'sevillanas'  and where they order their pitchers of rebujito -a mix of Manzanilla wine and Sprite. It's also where you must be invited, making it difficult to enjoy every aspect of the fair if you don't have a "caseta' or know someone who does. Luckily through friends of friends I was able to experience all that is feria, including the sugar overload of one too many rebujitos. While I had a good enough time as is, everyone keeps telling me it's better if you dance. Looks like I have some 'sevillana' lessons in my future.