Having arrived in Cádiz on Wednesday in the afternoon, Friday was my second day of class in the city. I was feeling the effects of jet lag, but enjoyed the day of school and took a lot of value out of my Spanish lessons. My teachers were great, and engaged us in discussions and lessons in grammar. Our class is fully immersed in the language, with all instruction being in Spanish. We also have writing assignments to close out each day, where we practice our composition skills for the eventual essay.
During our break in class, I went to the cafe on the first floor of the Facultad, where we are studying. The breaks are also great opportunities to enjoy the great weather in the courtyard. After school, there was a pause before our evening activity where I visited Parque Genoves, the park right across from our dorm. The park contains plants from all over the world that were brought back to Cádiz and planted alongside one another. Trees from California, Patagonia, and Southeast Asia are scattered throughout the park’s walking paths. Plenty of exotic birds also inhabit the park, making it a nice place to spend an afternoon.
After visiting the park, I returned to the dorm for our flamenco lesson. Performers from a local dance group came to share the classic folk music of Spain and the dances that go along with the songs. We got to see a performance of flamenco before we tried ourselves. After running through the dance step by step, we were given flamenco sashes and did our best version of a complete flamenco routine. It was a fun way to try out a popular tradition in Spanish culture.
Later that evening, I went for a walk along the beach, all the way to the gate of Cádiz that separates the “old town” from the new. Walking between the beautiful Cathedral of Cádiz and the scenic beaches, I saw how busy the city still was. Families in Cádiz spend time out in the city and on the beaches until full sunset, which comes a little after 10 pm. I was surprised by the active life of the city in the evenings, but am enjoying the cultural difference.
As everyone in Cádiz sat down for dinner at around 10 pm, my classmates and I got ready to go out for tapas, which are popular dishes of food meant to be shared among groups. We did our best maintaining our Spanish when ordering food and describing to the staff of the restaurant where we were from and what we studied in Cádiz. It was fun to speak Spanish between ourselves as well as with those who are native in the language. Through class and activities around the city, I feel that both my skills and enthusiasm for Spanish are growing every day.
