It is hard to believe but a large percentage of people have neither licenses or cars. The town is very compact, there is good public transportaition, and cars can be a liability. I have yet to see a garrage in a private home so many people with cars have no place to put them at night but in public garrages at great cost. The streets are so narrow that it is impossible to park near a house.
Bicycles are becoming more popular here although I have not seen anyone wearing a helmet. The motor scooter is extremely popular as they can be parked near a house, are cheap to operate, and can go down the narrow streets easily.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
How hot is it and Spanish Work Times
I am wishing now I had waited a few weeks before coming to Spain. Sevilla is the Phoenix of Spain. if you want to know why there is still a siesta here just come here in the summer. The heat has created a unique workday.
The workday here begins for most people at 1000. That's because so many people have been up late doing things that are are impossible in the daytime and they sleep late. People will work until 1300 and go home for 2 hours or more. Many workers eat lunch at home and then take a nap.
People return to work at 1500 to 1600 and then work until 2000. Its cool by then and most people will have light dinner and then go out for a drink or walk with the family. People use the evening to meet with neighbors, friends, and relatives.
The life here stops in the afternoon. Its almost like a bomb went off. It is difficult to find an open restaurant or store open between 1400 and 1700. I have adopted the Spanish schedule and am napping in the afternoon. When in Sevilla, do as the Sevillanos do!
Getting a cell phone here was quite the experience. It made me realize how far my Spanish needs to go. I had never bought one before in the states and do not much about them. It took the salesman all of 20 minutes to explain all the plans to me in rapid Spanish. After five minutes I was lost but I could not stop him. Seems they get a comission for the more expensive plan.
I had to explain several times I wanted the cheapest plan. I just hope the phone allows me to call other countries besides Spain and Afganistan.
The workday here begins for most people at 1000. That's because so many people have been up late doing things that are are impossible in the daytime and they sleep late. People will work until 1300 and go home for 2 hours or more. Many workers eat lunch at home and then take a nap.
People return to work at 1500 to 1600 and then work until 2000. Its cool by then and most people will have light dinner and then go out for a drink or walk with the family. People use the evening to meet with neighbors, friends, and relatives.
The life here stops in the afternoon. Its almost like a bomb went off. It is difficult to find an open restaurant or store open between 1400 and 1700. I have adopted the Spanish schedule and am napping in the afternoon. When in Sevilla, do as the Sevillanos do!
Getting a cell phone here was quite the experience. It made me realize how far my Spanish needs to go. I had never bought one before in the states and do not much about them. It took the salesman all of 20 minutes to explain all the plans to me in rapid Spanish. After five minutes I was lost but I could not stop him. Seems they get a comission for the more expensive plan.
I had to explain several times I wanted the cheapest plan. I just hope the phone allows me to call other countries besides Spain and Afganistan.
Monday, September 15, 2008
The Streets of Sevilla
I have spent the last two days getting lost in my neighborhood. The streets were never planned and it is a maze of alleys, passages, dead ends, and courtyards. The fun part is that one never knows where one will end up. Each street may have four or five names every few blocks. When the old part of Sevilla was built there were no numbers for houses and every block had a different name. That way the local people would know how to tell people where they lived without numbered houses. The multiple names for the same street persist to this day although the houses at least have numbers. Home postal service did not really begin until the last half of the 20th century so there was not much motivation to change one street to one name.
Another complication is that there are few street signs. With so many names for the same street I can see why. The streets are also so narrow there are no places for sign posts. They call the streets here ¨kissing¨streets. This is not where people kiss so much as the streets make the buildings apear to be kissing each other. Some streets are so close together that neihbors can throw kitchen items and food from one kitchen to the next if they need to share.
Classes are about to begin for me. Until the next time
Another complication is that there are few street signs. With so many names for the same street I can see why. The streets are also so narrow there are no places for sign posts. They call the streets here ¨kissing¨streets. This is not where people kiss so much as the streets make the buildings apear to be kissing each other. Some streets are so close together that neihbors can throw kitchen items and food from one kitchen to the next if they need to share.
Classes are about to begin for me. Until the next time
Thursday, September 11, 2008
my bags are packed
My bags are packed. How does that song go. I am sitting here in the Portland airport. My plane goes to Philadelphia and then on to Madrid. From Madrid it is several subway rides to the train station. Once at the train station I wait 3-4 hours and then take a train 2 1/2 hours to Sevilla.
I will walk from the station to the spanish school to pick up my keys of the apartment I will be staying in.
I will arrive on Friday and be travelling most of the day but will have the weekend to adjust to the time change and jet lag. My spanish classed begin on Monday.
I miss my wife and family already. It is difficult leaving them for so long.
I will walk from the station to the spanish school to pick up my keys of the apartment I will be staying in.
I will arrive on Friday and be travelling most of the day but will have the weekend to adjust to the time change and jet lag. My spanish classed begin on Monday.
I miss my wife and family already. It is difficult leaving them for so long.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
The spanish consulate
Late in June I went to the spanish consulate on Sutter Street in San Francisco. Fool that I am I thought I could work a Thursday in Portland, fly down Thursday night, have my "interview" at the consulate on Friday morning and fly back to work Friday afternoon. Wrong..wrong... wrong
Spain like many countries in Europe requires a special visa to stay longer than 3 months. They have many kinds of visas one may get but the student visa is supposed to be easiest. All you need are three application forms in triplicate with the original in black ink, three passport photos, three letters of invitation from a school in Spain with paid tuition on "original" letterhead, proof of health insurance, letter from my mommy saying she will support me or proof of income, three passport copies, $100.00 cash or money order, and an express mailer.
The first part of the trip went well. I caught the evening flight to Oakland and spent the night there. Hopped on BART from Oakland to Downtown SF and walked one mile to the consulate. My appointment was at 0900 but no one was there at 0900. Seems like Spain won the Euro Cup in Soccer the night before and everyone was out celebrating till the wee hours of the morning. At 0915 we were let in. I was in a room with 6 other people with all of them young American high school and college students and all female. It was the wrong day to be male. Although first through the door and the only one with a 0900 slot I was the last to be seen. At 1000 I was taken to a bank teller like window where a very pleasant and young female spanish woman took all my papers. First question , "Are you not kind of old to be a student? " I wanted to say that I had one of those diseases that only make you look old but she had my passport. "Well, I may be old but this a part of my sabbatical" I replied. "Yea ... we had one those once." she added.
She went through my papers. I had everything except the "original" letter from the school in Spain. Copies just will not do. I also needed a different express mailer. I could not tell the difference between my mailer and the one she pointed to but she said I needed "that one" and I had to across the street and buy it now in order to process my application.
Across the street I went, but now at 1030 the store was not open although the hours posted were 1000 to 1800. Now I had to catch a plane in Oakland at 1230 so back into the consulate I went. I pleaded my case and the clerk allowed me to buy the sample envelope mailer.
It was now 1100 and off I went to get on BART back to the airport . I ran my Boston Marathon best down to BART on Market St. , got on and arrived in Oakland at 1130. I had to take a shuttle from the BART station there and arrived at the the airport at 1145. Lucky for me there was only a small line in security. I made it to the gate just as they were boarding. And there I was back in Portland all ready for work at Saint Vincent Hospital.
It took two weeks for the consulate to get my "original" letter from the school in Spain. I received my special student visa with my passport two weeks ago so now I am good to go.
For those who are trying to do the same make sure you have plenty of time after your scheduled appointment for the problems that will occur, bring lots of bucks, and don't look old.
Spain like many countries in Europe requires a special visa to stay longer than 3 months. They have many kinds of visas one may get but the student visa is supposed to be easiest. All you need are three application forms in triplicate with the original in black ink, three passport photos, three letters of invitation from a school in Spain with paid tuition on "original" letterhead, proof of health insurance, letter from my mommy saying she will support me or proof of income, three passport copies, $100.00 cash or money order, and an express mailer.
The first part of the trip went well. I caught the evening flight to Oakland and spent the night there. Hopped on BART from Oakland to Downtown SF and walked one mile to the consulate. My appointment was at 0900 but no one was there at 0900. Seems like Spain won the Euro Cup in Soccer the night before and everyone was out celebrating till the wee hours of the morning. At 0915 we were let in. I was in a room with 6 other people with all of them young American high school and college students and all female. It was the wrong day to be male. Although first through the door and the only one with a 0900 slot I was the last to be seen. At 1000 I was taken to a bank teller like window where a very pleasant and young female spanish woman took all my papers. First question , "Are you not kind of old to be a student? " I wanted to say that I had one of those diseases that only make you look old but she had my passport. "Well, I may be old but this a part of my sabbatical" I replied. "Yea ... we had one those once." she added.
She went through my papers. I had everything except the "original" letter from the school in Spain. Copies just will not do. I also needed a different express mailer. I could not tell the difference between my mailer and the one she pointed to but she said I needed "that one" and I had to across the street and buy it now in order to process my application.
Across the street I went, but now at 1030 the store was not open although the hours posted were 1000 to 1800. Now I had to catch a plane in Oakland at 1230 so back into the consulate I went. I pleaded my case and the clerk allowed me to buy the sample envelope mailer.
It was now 1100 and off I went to get on BART back to the airport . I ran my Boston Marathon best down to BART on Market St. , got on and arrived in Oakland at 1130. I had to take a shuttle from the BART station there and arrived at the the airport at 1145. Lucky for me there was only a small line in security. I made it to the gate just as they were boarding. And there I was back in Portland all ready for work at Saint Vincent Hospital.
It took two weeks for the consulate to get my "original" letter from the school in Spain. I received my special student visa with my passport two weeks ago so now I am good to go.
For those who are trying to do the same make sure you have plenty of time after your scheduled appointment for the problems that will occur, bring lots of bucks, and don't look old.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Getting Ready
From Sept. 11, 2008 to March 20, 2009 I will spend a bit more than six months in Sevilla,Spain. I will be studying Spanish, learning about the Spanish and Andalusian Culture, and teaching medicine. For those unfamiliar with Spain, Sevilla is the fourth largest city of Spain, is in the Southernmost Province of Spain, and is about 30 miles from the Mediterranean Sea. It is known as one the warmest places to be in Spain in the summer and has mild (Los Angeles style) winters. It is famous for its cathedral, alcazar (fort and palace), narrow winding downtown streets, and long history as a port and trading center. It claims to have the best tapas in Spain.
I hope to travel to many parts of Spain during my stay and make a sojourn to Morocco.In the following posts I will give observations of Spanish life, customs, and how they compare to the those in the U.S. I will also report on medical practice in Spain vs. the U.S.
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