Beachin´and Teachin´

I live on the beach! That’s a REALLY big deal for a landlocked girl from Texas. The sand is literally eight steps from my front door. Never mind that in the right light it looks like kitty litter; it’s truly lovely. I leave my windows open to let in the sea breeze and hear the waves. My pedestrian-only street attracts toursits and couples from all over the world. I often pull back the curtains to see people snapping pictures of the view, or couples kissing by the palm tree out my front door. But more often than not, when I look outside, I catch people peeking in at me. I live in that house with the open windows and music that can be heard faintly from the street. In Hyde Park (Austin) I often biked past homes that looked like illustrations in a storybook – warmly lit, friends laughing on the front porch, comfortably nestled in overgrown flowers and ferns. And I remember very specific homes in Valparaiso whose salsa music penetrated bougainvillea walls and whose front porches held at least two grandparents on rocking chairs. These homes were enviable and untouchable, like chocolate cakes behind glass. Their inhabitants didn’t seem like real human beings with jobs and worries, but like people in Southern Living magazine photographs, frozen in that one perfect moment. It’s exciting to realize that some passersby on Paseo Maritimo may view me through that same lens.

View from my front door and bedroom window

My wonderful flat. I´m on the bottom floor.

I hate to admit it, but the “real world” is the same no matter where you live, even on the beach in Spain. The last three weeks have left little time for strolling like the Andalucians (and tourists) on my boardwalk. Like many of my friends and family, I had a condescending view of teaching English abroad before coming here. “Oh, it will be fun for a year! What’s wrong with delaying reality? It will be like studying abroad and getting paid for it!” I daydreamed. Not the case. Like any job, it can be fun, but it’s a far stretch from studying abroad and “delaying reality.” In fact, I’ve had to relate that sad news to several study abroad students I’ve met who hope to join the TEFL workforce post-college. Just like in the states, teaching is exhausting and doesn’t end when you leave the workplace. Right now I’m teaching ages 3 to 20, levels ranging from zero to nearly bilingual. It’s frustrating to know that while the rest of Andalucia has a three hour lunch break, I have none. It was also extremely strange to have gone from student-in-Cadiz to adulto-“Senorita”-profe-de-ingles literally over night. Sometimes I feel like a fraud; there are so many days when nothing goes as planned and I think, “What the hell am I doing?” Also, without a program or any hand-holding institution, I’ve been quite lonely and nostalgic for, dare I say, the USA. But lucky for me, I don’t have to leave my new home to receive the best kind of therapy out there – watching and listening to the sea. And thankfully, some of my students are so cute and amusing that I could hug and kiss them (which is totally acceptable of a teacher in Spain).

If you visit, you´ll know my house by the Jesus portrait.

Below, I’ve taken on the persona of several students, just so you get an idea of the type of people I hang out with every day. Read on if you´re interested...

My name is Julia, I am six-years-old, and my favorite word in English is “fantastic.” I like to be called Julia the English way instead of the Spanish way. My best friend is Beatriz, and we always sit by each other. We have the same pink and purple Witch doll binders that are the same size as our desks. One time Senorita put me and Beatriz on separate teams for a game, and I cried a little. But after class Bea and me did our best friend handshake, so everything’s okay. We’re still friends and I still like English. I hope Senorita calls on me tomorrow!

My name is Pepe and I am six years old, too. I always bring my dad’s old messenger bag to class because it is big enough to hold my coloring kit, books, pencil case, stapler, and binder. I don’t know why, but for some reason I am always the last one to pack up my supplies and leave the classroom. At least I know how to spell “seventeen;” nobody else does!

I’m Carmen, I’m fifteen, and I hate English class. I only go because my parents make me. Annie makes the class do stupid stuff, like talk to each other in English about famous people. I always wear my hair in front of my face so she can’t see me and won’t call on me. Oh, and the one time she actually let us listen to a song to guess the lyrics, I was twenty-five minutes late and missed out. I also missed the day she fell out of her chair and flashed her underwear to the whole class. Ines and Juan said it was hilarious. How old is she, anyway?

My name is Daniel, and whenever Annie asks “How are you?” I say I’m “okay and terrible.” I’m nine years old, but I feel older. I am very good at English and always finish assignments first. I am very funny and make everybody laugh, except for Annie. When she isn’t looking, I like to push buttons on the CD player, say bad words in Spanish, and shoot the middle finger. Also, I enjoy making fun of my friend Jesus for wetting his bed and being fat.

My name is Jesus, and I am eight years old, but I turn nine very soon. Entering English class on time is always very hard for me. I am usually late because I have to eat a bocadillo that my mom gives me. Then, I have to roll in my backpack that is too big to fit between the wall and my desk, and squeeze myself into a chair. I usually have food on my face during class and feel very uncomfortable; this doesn’t help when Daniel makes fun of me for being gordo.

Hello, I’m Roberto, I’m 18, and I’m a biology student. I feel very strange sharing a class with a 12 year-old-girl whose English is better than mine. Also, it’s strange to have a teacher that looks younger than me. I’m only in this class because I have to pass the Trinity exam before graduating university. Annie likes to do a lot of speaking activities, but I don’t have much to say in Spanish, so what would I say in English?! Especially to a 12 year-old-girl.

Hello! My name is Raquel! I have four years and I like boys. I love to kiss them and jump on top of them. Sometimes me and the boys jump on top of desks. Then teacher gives me a banana on the board so I behave better. I love to sit right next to teacher during story time, and I hate sharing colors, even when they aren’t mine.

I´m liking most of them more and more. Hasta luego.