melaniehyers
Monday morning, September 7th, 2020
The Pandemic continues.
I am hesitant to be on the mainland of Spain, there are so many more cases of Covid here than on the islands. The Canaries have been somewhat buffered from a direct Covid-hit. Fuerteventura has been mostly shut down since March leaving the island tourist-free and as a result, relatively Covid-free. As I boarded the plane yesterday I felt hesitant. I was leaving a place that since the beginning of this whole fiasco, has tallied only 49 positive Covid cases! I’d say the lack of tourism has been more of a concern than Covid for the Majoreros since their economy is almost exclusively based on tourism—well, and goats.
But, now, here I am in Valladolid, day one, mask on, sanitizing gel in my purse— ready to see what this place has to offer.
There is a brilliant blue sky overhead and the weather is warm. I’m glad I can still wear my summer dresses and sandals since it’s literally all I got!
Folks keep telling me—- get ready for the cold and wind of the Castillian meseta.
I expect it to be in its full glory by the full moon in October.—-Ok, so I’ve got about a month to re-wardrobe myself. Too bad my wallet is light since I’ve been out of work for the last 4 months. Hopefully I can find some hip used-clothes shops here in the big city.
I have no idea where I’m going to live. Shall I choose to be a city girl this year or continue my life in a small village?
Over the last two years, I lived in a small beach town of about 9,000 inhabitants, will a city be a jarring experience or a welcome change of pace… hum?—- To be determined.
For now I need to find the main bus station and make my way to the small pueblo called Tordesillas. It’s just outside of Valladolid and I’ve been assigned to be an assistant English teacher there for the next 8 months at the primary school, CEIP Pablo I.—- I hope the kids aren’t as unruly and the teachers don’t yell as much as in Fuerteventura! I’m tired of daily headaches!!
It feels a bit destabilizing to start over again, new routines, new friendships, a new Spanish accent to get used to.
I’ve never been great at pronouncing the “th” of the Castillian “Z.” In all the other Spanish speaking places I have traveled to or lived in, they don’t use the zeta, nor do they use the vosotros form, but they sure do here. I wonder if I will ever get the swing of the accent here.
My Spanish comes from the mountains of Bogotá.
From the colonial town of Granada as it wraps around Lake Nicaragua.
It comes from the vibrant flores del campo Santo of Mexico,
and el mojo picón of the Canary Islands.
Here in Castilla y León, on mainland Spain it is the region which boasts the most authentic and correct spoken form of the Spanish language, I mean of Castellano—- I may be afraid to open my mouth!
Over the last few years I’ve been getting better at living light, and living more open. More open to the newness of place, of people, of culture, language, and experiences that I come into contact with. It’s not always easy or smooth but I’m flowing more.
Sometimes I think had I not started to travel back when I was 17 years old that I would be an incredibly different person than I am today.
Well, you may think that’s obvious, and of course yes, it’s obvious, the things we do in our lives shape us, so of course living in different countries and learning another language has definitely shaped me, but what I’m trying to say is that I have this tendency and maybe its just a human tendency, to want to be comfortable, to always have a plan, to keep things a certain way, but I’m here to tell you that traveling and living in different places, especially in different cultures, is NOT the way to keep things safe and comfortable and in line with a certain plan.
What I’m saying is that if I had never travelled I think I would be a much more rigid person.
I am grateful I had the opportunity to hit the road at such a young age so that I may stretch myself, challenge my beliefs, examine my values, question my thoughts and reappraise my very way of being.
Caterpillar to butterfly— de oruga a mariposa— what a fantastic process!
First spending a period of time enjoying the bounty of a garden in full bloom,
then taking a step back from the activity to pull into your cocoon only to wake up one day with these gorgeous wings that flit you about from colorful flower to colorful flower —dancing on the light of the air!
I picture myself with the graceful blue wings of the Morpho Menalus; spellbinding to witness in its buoyant flight!
Spanish words of the day:
Majoreros = Natives of Fuerteventura
Castillian Meseta = The Plateau of the region of Castile
Zeta = the letter “Z” with a sound similar to “th” in English
Vosotros = informal way to say plural “you”
Flores del campo Santo = flowers of the graveyard (holy ground)
**Mojo picón = typical salsas of the Canary islands—- so delicious!
Castellano= Spanish from the region of Castile— Castillian Spanish, the most correct Spanish
Oruga = Caterpillar
Mariposa = Butterfly
See recipes section for some delicious Mojo picón ideas!
Photos:
All photos are mine except:
Blue Morpho Butterfly: “Blue Morpho Butterfly” by wwarby is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Bogotá, Candelaria: “Bogota, Colombia” by szeke is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
