Remembrances of Spain

Spain has been one of the hardest hit countries with corona virus. I have very good memories of living in the country while attending the university in Pamplona. The people are very warm and welcoming. I recall a peasant family who sat across from me on a train headed south when I chose to do some sightseeing over Christmas break. The family offered to share their loaf of bread with me although they clearly had very little themselves.

When I first arrived there to take a month long course in Spanish that I would encounter in various disciplines, depending on which courses I chose for the academic year, I was in class with other international students. Two of them became good friends. Chieko, a girl friend (from Japan) asked me to teach her more English even though she knew English pretty well. Whenever we were together, we conversed in Spanish. Masayuki was a Japanese boy in my class who offered to walk me home whenever it was raining. Although he was much shorter than me, he had an umbrella and would hold it high so I wouldn't get wet. He was so kind!

My first apartment was on the outskirts of town in a new high-rise (three stories high). In Spain, widows often rent out extra rooms in their apartments to students. Such was the case with both apartments where I lived. My first landlady kicked me out so that she could have three priests move in with her. She cooked for them at a local monastery. She was very nice but needed the income and I could not find other students who needed a place to live which left two bedrooms vacant.
The second apartment is one that I moved into with Pat, a woman (fellow student) from Australia. The landlady was elderly and suffered from very swollen legs. At Thanksgiving time, she and Pat put their heads together and made a special meal for me consisting of roast chicken, white asparagus, olives, and other foods, as well as flan for dessert.

I loved my travels through southern Spain checking out La Alhambra (an old Moorish castle), the cathedrals (which have a lot of beautiful sculptures and paintings), and the usual tourist attractions. The paella that I ate in Sevilla was memorable! At the university, I signed up for the History of Spanish Art and Architecture and German. I loved my studies.

Come February, I was back home and doing my student teaching at a NH high school. It is fun to revisit these memories of when I was young (21). I earned a certificate of "sobresaliente" for my university work (A+). I met lots of friends at the university including Gigi from Puerto Rico who lived in the equivalent of a dorm (which served meals and also had its own chapel). She often invited me for lunch and for the tertulia (meeting of friends with conversation and guitar music). That's where I learned a lot of Spanish songs. It was all a lot of fun!