Hello all and welcome to my blog! I'll try to keep this updated as I live out this unbelievable experience that has been given to me, but I'm not making any promises. First, a short personal note about the title of this blog. Unfortunately, over the last 1 1/2 years I have lost two uncles in battles with cancer. Although both put up valiant fights and both lived long, fulfilling, happy lives, ultimately, they succumbed to the disease. Upon hearing about my opportunity to live and work in Spain in his last few months, my Uncle Kenji's words were, "What a life!" And, indeed, what a life it is. As I stroll the streets of Granada and look up to see the 13th century Moorish palace or the 16th century Cathedral or enjoy another small plate of love with my cerveza, I'm reminded of how fortunate I have this unique, once-in-a-lifetime (maybe twice) opportunity. So, in loving and heart-felt memory of both my Uncle Tom and Uncle Kenji, here is my life in Spain...
Another short note about the URL address I ended up with for this blog. Obviously, my first choice was whatalife.com, but this was unavailable. I then tried whatalyfe.com, but this too was unavailable. In the end, I settled on whtalif.com, which leads right into the topic of this first blog and "el acento Andaluz" which is the cause of much confusion in my life as I attempt to be a contributing member to Spanish society.
Overall, I feel my understanding and grasp of the Spanish language is average to above-average. Reading comes very easy now, my vocabulary is decent, and I can hold a normal conversation in a one-on-one situation and even in small groups (especially with a little liquid power-up). By far, oral comprehension is what I lack the most. I know this may seem to contradict what I've just said, but there's a big difference between having a face-to-face conversation with someone you know and talking to a stranger on the street, trying to follow a T.V. program, or trying to stay involved in a conversation when 5 people are talking extremely fast. What makes this even more difficult is the aforementioned "acento Andaluz". During many conversations with Andalucíans, I find myself nodding my head in agreement and saying "vale, vale" or "uh-uh, uh-uh" acting as if I can decipher the sounds that are coming out of their mouths. Most likely, I look like a moronic bobblehead to the Spanish; however, I've found this technique to be more effective than asking them to repeat themselves because I usually don't understand the second or third time either.
The "acento Andaluz" is a very distinct way the people here in Andalucía speak and could be compared to the "drawl" of the southern United States. There are two basic elements to the accent. One, syllables are left out of words, usually the second-to-last one (this happens with all Spanish speakers, but seems to be stronger and harder to understand in Andalucía). Two, the "s" is often dropped at the end of words that should end with the letter. When these two facets are coupled with the speed in which they speak here in the south, my goal of being a contributing member of Spanish society is put in severe peril.
Here's a real life experience for you. A couple of weeks ago I met my Spanish friend Alex for some tapas (which will be a later topic). He brought his girlfriend and another Spanish couple. We went to a random bar and two more Spanish friends joined us. Minutes later this conversation ensued:
Enrique (in acento Andaluz, remember "drop the 's'"): De donde sois? (where are you from? regarding me and my roomate, who was also there)
Me: Cómo? (what?)
Enrique: De donde sois?
Me: Cómo?
Nicolas: De donde eres? (where are you from?)
Me: Ohhh...somos de California, cerca de San Francisco (Ohhh...we're from California, near San Francisco)
Every time Enrique asked me "de donde sois", I heard "de donde soy" (where am I from?). This caused tremendous mental confusion as I tried to figure out why this guy was asking ME where HE is from.
A few more quick examples:
9-year old who I'm giving private english lessons: no lo hemo empezao...no lo hemos empezado...we haven't started it.
Speaker at program orientation: nuetro paí...nuestro país...our country
Heard anytime I buy bread, fruit, or vegetables from the market: algo má?...algo más?...anything else?
There are two positives to the "acento Andaluz". First, slowly, but surely, I can understand more and more everyday. My comprehension is already 100x better than the first time I was in Spain (so you can imagine how that went). Second, if after my 8 months here in Andalucía I can understand this accent, I'm pretty sure I'll be able to understand Spanish no matter where I go.
Cuidaos a todos!
Topics to come: tapas, my school/work, el botellón, some random pictures
