8. Lost in translation

A month in a University with extraordinary rules, endless ventures of tourism and some amazing cava.

Firstly, I can't even comprehend the fact I have been here for a month and a half, time has flown by. However I feel like my language  of Spanish has improved, with a bit of Catalan, French and German thrown in there.
I have learnt a lot in the past month about rules and regulations here. Mainly that you can leave a lecture when you want for the loo but if you are five minutes late, there is no entering the class, or all hell breaks lose. Also, I have been bombarded by work, I am yet to have a day where I have completed everything.

I have also realized that concepts can get quickly lost in translation, and part of becoming fluent in a language is experiencing the awkward moments. The word 'awkward' also does not exist in Spanish and I am yet to find anything sufficient to put across my feeling of these moments, so I just stand there looking at the floor.
 For example, I was at my aunties the other day and when I was leaving they said '¿Tienes su movile?´ which i translate to do you have your aunties mobile, in which I responded, no ofcourse I don't I just have my own in my bag. In the end I realised they meant did I have her number in my phone.
And then an example with someone from my own country. I told my friend I was going to a tandem, and she instantly assumed I meant I was riding on a tandem bike, instead of a tandem exchange where people converse in different languages. Therefore, confusion can occur in your maternal language as well as your foreign language.


Also to update my tourism diary, I am happy to say, I am starting to feel like a citizen here, although I still love exploring new places.
The other weekend me and my friends travelled to Zaragoza, which is about four hours away from Barcelona. We went when 'La fiesta del Pilar' was happening; the busiest weekend of the year. However, it made it that much better, we ate churros, watched many spectacles and explore the beautiful city.
I have now also seen the amazing Magical fountains of Monjuic, what a spectacle! I was actually shocked at how grand it is, and how I could stand there for an hour watching water and lights. But it was simply amazing.

 I have also ventured around town, into La Boqueria, where I want to buy every kind of fruit, meat and fish, don't go there when you are hungry as you will end up buying everything, just like I did.


The highlight of my week was 'La champaneria' A little place near la Barcenoleta where you get can a glass of cava for one euro and an array of tapas, without breaking the bank. Also to top it all off, you have a bit  of that pure Spanish culture as there are no seats, so everyone stands round the bar, drinking and munching away, what a great ambience.


"Barcelona is a very old city in which you can feel the weight of history; it is haunted by history. You cannot walk around it without perceiving it" -Carlos Ruiz Zafron

7. Spanish name issues

The title of this blog is self-explanatory.

Basically, I have come to realise that there are many good and also bad points to having a Basque/Catalan/Spanish name!

1) Every time a teacher reads my first name (Aidoia) in the register they then ask, oh your name is Basque, are you from the Basque country?

2) A good point is when someone reads my name, especially the Catalans, they love that I have a Catalan surname (Puig, which is even in many street names!). They all light up, which makes me feel really special.But then they start speaking Catalan to me, and then they are extremely disappointed when the only Catalan word I know is goodbye. Very awkward. Especially for instance the other day when I was the only foreigner in a class full of locals. I had no idea what anyone was saying, and I spent most of the class confused and then the teacher asked me a question, I responded, everyone laughed, and that was that. No one realised I was foreign, and now they definitely all think I'm stupid.

3) Then, there are the people that are like, why does an English girl have a Spanish name? and the people who are like, oh you must be fluent in Spanish if your dad is Spanish? I then have to respond with the same response as always.. "No, I learnt Spanish in education, just like everyone else"

4) However, may favourite point of my Spanish name, is that over here, every one pronounces it correctly, unlike in the UK, where everyone pulls a funny face and I say "just call me doya".

For the first time in my life, I'm known as Aidoia and not Doya, it is a strange feeling.

6. Keep Calm and Speak Catalan

Keep calm and speak Catalan, that is what I saw on a guys t-shirt over the weekend!
(I will definitely give him a ten for effort)

As everyone knows, the region of Cataluña is striving for independence and for their language of Catalan to be spoken throughout. But what about those who only speak Castilian?

Well, when I first came to Barcelona, I knew that people spoke Catalan and so on, however not to this extent. The street signs, menus and even the whole of my university website is in Catalan. But if you have ever studied French and Spanish, then I would like to say it is a mixture of both, however that doesn't make it easy. I attended a class of basic Catalan, as I thought it would be a good idea to learn some, yet the first thing the teacher says is 'if you can't speak Catalan then you shouldn't be in this class'.. great. Although, I am lucky as many of my friends have classes in Catalan, and I struggle enough to understand fully classes in Castilian, yet in a language I have never studied!

On the other hand, I do understand slightly why the region wants independence. For example, just from me living here for a month I have realised that every street I walk down, it is full of tourists. Tourists taking photos left right and centre, tourists standing in the street, and tourists blocking the metro stops. I know I can't really say much as I am a foreigner here too, but I can now see a bit why the Catalans want their city back.


Anyway, onto less controversial subjects... over the weekend I went to the beautiful town of Sitges with my friends, two French girls, which is good as I am forced to speak Spanish with them. The town is only an hour away from Barcelona on the train, and we managed to get an apartment for quite cheap, so off we went. In recent years, Sitges has been known for it's homosexual culture, and it is definitely apparent. By day, the stunning beach and endless shops are full of people and by night the small city transforms into a colourful array of fiestas, with dancers, drag queens and a vibe like no other, all mainly situated down the street that is sin street.

It was a lovely weekend, but then it was back to reality and my first week at university, the next blog will reveal all.