Lions and Tigers and Bears, oh my!

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go to the Selwo Adventura Animal Park with the 5th and 6th graders. Initially I think I was more excited about this field trip than the kids. I kept telling everyone all weekend about it! Opps ;). Selwo is a huge animal reservation in Estepona, about an hour west of Malaga. The park is huge and has a safari feel to it. Throughout the day we saw all kinds of animals; tigers, zebras, crocodiles, anacondas, monkeys, giraffes, etc. We also split up into groups and rode in safari-like jeeps while our guides told us more about the animals we were seeing. Not only did we see animals and ride in jeeps but we did some hiking as well. One of the coolest things was climbing over these long, wobbly bridges. It was pretty windy and we were very high up. Some of my girls were freaking out a little (not me of course ;)) so I encouraged them to keep their eyes on one of the girls pink backpacks ahead. They repeated, in perfect Spanglish, "I follow la mochilla pink, I follow la mochilla pink." I couldn't help chuckling but hey, whatever gets you across your bridge, right? :)



































































There was no schedule for the day and the kids kind of ran off on their own in the park. This stressed me out a little but I realized again that's just the American in me. I have to admit, it was really nice being able to walk around with the kids all day and go wherever they wanted. My favorite thing about this trip was continuing to build relationships with them. We told stories, laughed at jokes, and really enjoyed each others company. I've been pretty strict about only speaking in English in the classroom because I feel like it's a disadvantage for me to be here and them not get all of the English they could get (that, and I'm too intimated to speak in Spanish in front of the whole class :))....this day, however, I decided to only speak in Spanish with them. The students LOVED this. They taught me many new thinks and were very patient with me. It was a really cool thing for them to see me in a student perspective and seeing me make mistakes just like they do. I was also able to communicate with them (and have them understand) that I care about them.







































































The day, although very long, was rewarding beyond measure. I am going to enjoy every second left with these absolutely amazing kids. So thankful for this amazing experience.

Feria- Rota style!

One of the most significant cultural events that occurs in Andalucia is the spring fair. Many cities in Andalucia celebrate this fair throughout the year. The feria in Malaga happens to be in August, when Jessica and I will both be back in the states. We decided to venture to Rota's feria to celebrate with friends.

Each feria differs slightly according to their own city but they all last for several days and provide an exciting atmosphere. There are many covered tents or casetas set up throughout the fair grounds. These tents are owned by families, political parties, groups of friends, clubs, and restaurants. You will find people inside and outside of the tents dancing, eating tapas, or drinking delicious drinks, like rebujito. Walking around you will see tons of people dressed in traditional outfits, like the traje corto for men or the traje de flamenco (also known as traje de gitano) for women. The dresses were absolutely gorgeous and very flattering on every woman. It was really neat to see young girls to old women all dressed in the same attire, celebrating the culture and tradition that they are so proud of.

Aside from the drinking, eating, and dancing there were lots of rides and games! Like your typical state fair these rides are a little sketchy. However, I think it would be safe to say that some of these rides would definitely be illegal in the U.S, like la carcel for example. Dangerous or not, they sure were fun!

The weekend ended a little sad as we said goodbye to some of the friends that we made in Rota and to two of our good friends in Cadiz. Leaving Cadiz made me realize that our days literally are numbered and this is just the beginning to the many goodbyes that will follow.

My Germany Top Ten

This past week we had off work for Semana Sanata (Holy Week). Having a whole week off work means one think for your typical travel bug: GO! Thus, my sweet friend Megan and I packed our bags and headed to Germany! This trip was by FAR the best trip I have ever been on but more on that later. I will write another blog telling you about my adventures. For now, I'm going to leave you with the top ten things I loved about Germany. By the way, these are not in any particular order.

1. BERLIN.



Berlin. Berlin. Berlin. I am officially obsessed with this amazing city. There is so much history everywhere you go. The city has encountered an enormous transformation since the fall of the Berlin Wall. It's like as soon as the wall came down the city completely revolutionized. While it's not the most beautiful place I've been to, Berlin is edgy, trendy, and full of character. I completely loved it :).


2. Take away food and drinks

Go ahead and laugh. I know what you're thinking, "You traveled all the way to Germany and THIS made your top ten list? Something that is so prevalent in America??" Well, the answer is yes. Germany is a lot like America in the "go, go, go" sense. Germans pick up their coffee and pastry or sandwich and are literally eating it on their way to wherever they are going. Spain has no concept of take away coffee. So many times I want to grab a coffee on the way to school but the people in my favorite cafe always look at me like I'm crazy when I ask for a to go cup. It was nice to order my coffee and not have people look at me like I'm an alien. Don't get me wrong, I like the "no pasa nada"-take a break-enjoy life kind of atmosphere that Spain provides. But I also don't like to be forced to sit down and eat for three hours. It was a nice change of pace.

3. Beer












LeftPicture: the middle drink is Bananenwiezen.

There is really nothing to say here except that German beer is phenomenal. ESPECIALLY this interesting mix called "Bananenwiezen" which is Wiezen beer and banana juice. I know it sounds disguising, but it is the best drink I think I've ever had. I am SO bringing that back to the states.


4. Bratwurst





Yum. The first thing on our list to eat was Bratwurst and it surely did not disapoint us, as we would continue to eat Bratwurst almost every day. My favorite was getting a Bratwurst sandwich, with roasted onions on top. YUM. You can order Bratwurst at almost every restaurant or you can stop at one of the MANY local bratwurst stands and get one to go.

5. Restaurants

A cool thing about many of the restaurants in Germany is that they have long tables and you just fill in the seats (meaning you basically eat with complete strangers). I found this really cool because it kind of forced you to talk to the people next to you. You could try to keep your conversation secluded, but that would only work for so long. We sat next to Americans, Italians, Spaniards, and of course Germans. Prost! (cheers)

6. Susi










One of the highlights of my trip was getting to visit my sweet friend, Susi, in her university town of Dresden. It was so nice to catch up with her, laugh with her, and spend time with her. She even was a tour guide, despite having a neck injury. Miss you, Susi!













7. History



Left: Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe.
Right: What's left of the wall


It's no secret that Germany has a painful history. Although extremely sad, it was very eye
opening to learn more about the horrors of WWII and how the country has revolutionized since then.












Top Left: Crematory at Dachau Concentration Camp.
Top Right: Dachau Concentration Camp


8. Wombats City Hostel










Best hostels ever!!! We stayed at the Wombats City hostel in both Berlin and Munich and it was such a great choice. The facilities are great and each hostel organizes walking tours, pub crawls, and many other activities. They also have bars in the hostel (the one in Berlin is on the roof....sick!) which were a great way to meet new people.











9. Language

I'm not going to lie, the German language is CHALLENGING. Especially since it's so different from English and Spanish. I always thought that the language was so rough and hard and I guess comparatively to English and Spanish it is...but it's not near as rough as I thought. After listening to it for a week, I really wanted to learn more but Megan and I completely butchered everything we tried to pronounce. Maybe one day I will learn....until then, I'll continue doing what we did when we were looking at our map, "Turn left at the 'S' word, then go straight by the long word that starts with a 'd'." :)












10. Neuswanstein Palace












Coolest part of my trip was seeing the Neuswanstein Palace! This is the castle that inspired Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty and let me tell you, it was a fairy tale experience. We enjoyed a beautiful day exploring this castle as well as a nearby waterfall.

Live the Question

"You are so young; you stand before beginnings. I would like to beg of you, dear friend, as well as I can, to have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not now look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them. It is a question of experiencing everything. At present you need to live the question. Perhaps you will gradually, without even noticing it, find yourself experiencing the answer, some distant day." -Rainer Maria Rilke


My good friend Julie sent me this quote and it has been echoing in my heart ever since I read it. What an angel that girl is; she always knows exactly what to say and knows exactly what I need to hear.

The past few years have been such a journey for me. I came to Spain with a very unsettled heart. I'm not saying that 7 months of being here has settled it, but it has definitely made me aware of many things. Life is full of questions; why did this happen? what could I have done differently? why am I here? what do I need to do now? how do I fix this? WHY ME? Perhaps maybe the most unsettling thing is when we hoard those "questions" and allow them to build a wall. Having questions is inevitable, it's something that we cannot avoid... but maybe we should spend less time focusing on those unanswered questions and more time on LIVING them out. What does that mean? That means not letting unanswered questions control you life. It means choosing to continue forward and choosing to focus on the things in your life that you KNOW to be true and real and beautiful.

Maybe we do not know at this exact moment the answer, maybe we never will, or maybe we will learn it some day down the road. For now, lets just choose to live the question.

This post is short, I know, and kind of random (welcome to my brain). My purpose for blogging is three fold: sharing my traveling stories, processing what's on my mind through written (or typed) words, and hoping to inspire. I think I wrote this blog for the last one. Hope it inspires someone today.

All my love, KA.

Beauty Is In The Eye of the Beholder

It's common for people to ask what's your favorite part of being abroad or what's the most amazing thing you've seen, whether it be the places you've visited, the people you've met, etc. I will tell you all that the most beautiful thing that I have seen was not found in the markets of Morocco, or the mountains of Granada, or even in the breath-taking Mediterranean sea.

I have been working as a Language and Culture Assistant since October and over this period of time I have been observing the children in my school. Comparing my experience in the U.S schools and in schools in Spain has led me to believe that, in many ways, kids all over the world are the same. They all freak out when you cut in line. They say whatever is on their minds. They all get deeply upset when a student they “tag” doesn’t become the tagger. They cry when they are sad. They smile when they are happy. They laugh. They are kids. Kids all over the world have so many similarities. However, they are not all the same. In many ways they are very different, each with their own unique story.

Every Wednesday afternoon I go to one of my favorite classes, 2^.C. I walk into the class and am greeted by 25 6 and 7 year olds, each giving me hugs and dos besos. Included in this crazy, frantic mix of students is a child named David. David has grown to become one of my favorite students. He is 7 years old and in his 7 years he has endured many terrible things. For the sake of privacy I will just say that his life has been extremely difficult, and you will have to believe me. Because of reasons beyond his control, he wasn’t able to start school until way later than the rest of the children in his grade. Starting school so late and never practicing things like using scissors or coloring with markers at home caused a delay in his motor skill development. He is also very behind in his reading and in other subject areas. Last year he was very angry and almost never smiled. This year he has shown a dramatic improvement and is, for the most part, a happy child.

So why am I writing this? I’m writing to tell you about something so special and significant with this class. A lot of times myself and the classroom teacher, Ana, will modify things for David. Whenever David gets an answer correct, can you guess what happens? The class cheers. The entire class CHEERS! The room is filled with “Toma David!” or “Bien, tio!” The applause is so loud that the class next door can always hear. As I listen to my students congratulating their classmate and watch his face completely light up, I cannot help but to tear up. These kids believe in their friend. They support him and they don’t even know his story. I watch as it all passes, taking a deep breath, wiping the tears from my eyes, and thinking that this is truly the most beautiful thing I have seen in Spain. Not all of the gorgeous landscapes or the historical monuments but the beauty that exists within each of these children. The demonstration of true love and support….that, my friends, is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.

A Little Taste of America

This past week we had a week off school (thank you, Semana Blanca). Instead of doing any big traveling, Jessica and I decided to spend the first part of the week by the beach in Málaga (tough life, I know) and the second part traveling to a little, beautiful place called Rota. We had no idea of the adventures that were to come!

Rota is located in the province of Cádiz, about four hours west of Málaga. We arrived in Cádiz capital and took the ferry over to Rota. It's a gorgeous little beach town that is settled on the Atlantic Ocean and man was it good to see the Atlantic again! Living on the Mediterranean, Jessica and I had almost forgotten what ACTUAL waves looked like. The town itself is absolutely gorgeous with it's white buildings, narrow streets, and beautiful beaches.Our few days in Rota were spent eating delicious Chinese food and pizza, going to the beach, venturing to some amazing bars\pubs, and meeting lots of really amazing people. We have already decided to return very soon!

Aside from it being such a beautiful place, I have to say the coolest part about Rota is the American Naval Base. We met so many amazing people in the military and it really made me feel like I was back in Virginia Beach, where I am constantly surrounded by the military. I even met a few people who are stationed in VA Beach- what a small world! Rota was unique because it was like a little taste of America in a foreign place. Jessica and I, being extremely supportive of the U.S military, were reminded of how much we truly love and appreciate our country. Although I love being in Spain, my roots are American and I look forward to returning.

Rota was a great reminder of home. My days left in Spain are numbered (literally) but I am going to enjoy my last few months abroad and look forward to watch the United States brings in June.

Since you're already here, check out my favorite website. http://welcomehomeblog.com/