tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1211010296423657139.post2766513631749902008..comments2023-06-11T14:57:36.704+02:00Comments on l_missbossy's ELT playground: From Spain about Spainlittle_miss_bossyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09423142937875532976noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1211010296423657139.post-66174843317068805682010-10-16T18:46:26.272+02:002010-10-16T18:46:26.272+02:00Told you about the pintxos, right! My fave has to ...Told you about the pintxos, right! My fave has to be in Bar Río in Calle San Nicolas - just ask for un pintxo de huevo ;o) If you get to San Sebastián you'll find loads more delicious things to eat, and remember to wash them down with a nice cool glass of Txakoli!<br /><br />Funny thing, you're working at the exact same place where I was a couple of years ago - although I lived in Rochapea (near one of the other Clen College buildings).<br /><br />About the bread - I'm sure that the panaderias open at least for a part of the day on Sundays. However, if you're really desperate, try to find a Chinese run shop somewhere - they are open all the time! <br /><br />For VO (version original) i.e. subtitled films, check out the GOLEM cinema nearer to Parque Yamaguchi - they often have a few non-dubbed films there (I saw Blade Runner and Shine a Light).<br /><br />Anyways, most of all enjoy yourself!<br /><br />Mike =)Mike Harrisonhttp://www.mikejharrison.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1211010296423657139.post-38190715371454996762010-10-12T00:56:36.034+02:002010-10-12T00:56:36.034+02:00Welcome to Spain - what a great synopsis of your a...Welcome to Spain - what a great synopsis of your arrival and situation! I'm sure you'll enjoy it, it sounds like things are going well so far. Will certainly let you know when I'm in the neighbourhood, and see you in Paris!Lindsay Clandfieldhttp://www.sixthings.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1211010296423657139.post-18462977544249429572010-10-11T16:07:08.171+02:002010-10-11T16:07:08.171+02:00A belated welcome to Spain!!! Hope you enjoy it as...A belated welcome to Spain!!! Hope you enjoy it as much as I have so far. Suerte!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17100032923373338585noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1211010296423657139.post-71587153785131855102010-10-10T19:30:30.909+02:002010-10-10T19:30:30.909+02:00Hola! (Or "kaixo" in Euskera!)
Interest...Hola! (Or "kaixo" in Euskera!)<br /><br />Interesting to read your first impressions. I can tell you 'Spanish' or 'Basque' (or in my case 'Catalan') kids are a mixed bag but generally I've found that most classes are composed of basically good kids who sometimes get "contaminated" by the odd troublemaker in the bunch.<br /><br />As far as the "s" and "sh" thing, they are allophones of the same phoneme, such that in some dialects the Spanish word "sí" sounds just like the English word "she". Hence the difficulty there, I suppose.<br /><br />The similarities in lexis between Spanish and English are great, but they do of course lead to problems with "false friends", a huge source of errors, i.e. the verb asistir means "to attend" and the verb atender means "to assist" (just to name one of many).<br /><br />You're correct in your suspicion that the language thing is a sensitive issue. In Cataluña it's been a big deal lately, but in the Basque country and Navarra more so historically, seeing as how people have been blown up in terrorist attacks because of it(well, indirectly because of it).<br /><br />I don't know how people react when you try to pay with a 500€ bill--in fact Ive never even seen one! But yeah, taxis and news stands tend not to accept 50€ bills, so you can imagine...<br /><br />Anyway, sorry for the neverending comment, I think in general it's a great place to be)Ive been in BCN for five years now), and I hope things go well and I'm looking forward to reading more about it! Cheers!Nickyhttp://strictly4myteacherz.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1211010296423657139.post-43526772496304623712010-10-10T14:18:32.530+02:002010-10-10T14:18:32.530+02:00Hi, that's a really interesting read. Thanks!
...Hi, that's a really interesting read. Thanks!<br /><br />Having lived in Spain, as you know, in Andalucia, I can tell you that even though it's different, many things are the same or similar. I totally understand the internet thing, but you should be able to get a connection with Telefonica (although they are an evil monopoly), I was paying about 15 euros for a phone-line and about 34 euros for an unlimited broadband wifi connection, which was a good connection. With the mobile, usually a cheap phone comes more or less free with a sim.<br /><br />In terms of the language (btw I believe Euskara is Basque, that's their name for the language) and the issue with translation my feeling is that so many teachers in Spain speak Spanish or learn it to a decent level so quickly that translation is constantly used. My students expected it and really couldn't get to grips with any other approach, so I slipped into it as well, but is that so bad? Well, there's another argument!<br /><br />I also thought there were twins everywhere, I think that's a weird Spanish genetic thing! I wouldn't try to pay with anything above a 50 euro note normally. Food is great but can be unhealthy - watch your cholesterol! The dubbing thing is really annoying. <br /><br />However, overall, I think Spain is a great place to live and though I don't know the north, I'm sure you'll have a great time! No doubt there will be other comments from people who have been in Spain for a lot longer, but it's really interesting for me to read this as I was in the same position only a couple of years ago and felt the same about lots of things.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04498348608169698035noreply@blogger.com