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Posted from Puebla, Mexico at 7:14 PM local timeWrapping up at the Spanish Institute of Puebla(Note: There is a brief slideshow related to this entry; scroll down to the bottom to access the link.) A friend of mine likes to say that to learn another language is to acquire another soul. This week, for the first time in my life, I discovered the truth of her claim. Talking of politics, life in other countries and our general beliefs about the world, a Mexican English teacher and I spent several hours together, drifting into and out of our respective native and acquired languages. We'd stumble, correct each other, and throw in vocabulary from our native tongues when all else failed - but were able to share far more than we'd ever be able to with a barrier of language between us. It was the first time I'd ever experienced such an exchange, and it made me appreciate more the value of speaking multiple languages. Today marks the end of a one-month stint at the Spanish Institute of Puebla. Despite the fact that it flew by rather quickly, I learned a lot. Immersion, for those who've not experienced it, is a challenging but rewarding learning process. You are thrust into an environment of unfamiliar language and culture, and quickly sink or learn to swim. It's not for everyone - particularly true beginners - but for most it is the best way to learn a foreign language. The Spanish Institute of Puebla is a professionally run language school. Unlike some of the others in Mexico, the school encourages participation in one-month blocks. Where other programs attract more casual one- and two-week visitors, the Spanish Institute is appealing to those willing and able to commit more time to studying Spanish. The teachers are knowledgeable and helpful, facilities clean and nice (complete with a computer lab and wireless Internet access), weekly excursions interesting, and afternoon guias (guides who escort students to various locations around the city) eager to engage. Most students live with host families, thus speaking Spanish even after school. It will be interesting to see how my experience in Oaxaca compares with the time in Puebla - but I've been impressed so far. Throughout my stint at the school, there were roughly 25 students enrolled. Some were beginners; a few were experts. Most were eager to learn. Mine was a class of four, five if you include our friendly maestra, Irma. It was a good mix. We had comedian Goldie, minister and artist Archie, inquisitive and studious JoAnne, and me. I was the youngest, a fact that surprised me a bit. While I was there, the average student age likely fell somewhere in the 40s. I mention this in part to encourage anyone curious about learning a language to check out these schools. It's not all 19- and 20-year-olds with few responsibilities at home. I was the only one in my class without children (or a job). Teacher Irma was actually younger than all of us, and she demonstrated proper respect for the elderly by continually repeating, "Muy bien. Muy, muy bien," even when our pronunciations stunk. (I developed what Goldie claimed was an impeccable impersonation of Irma and began repeating her favorite phrases with the others outside of class.) During my initial days in Puebla, the new words came in bluk. (I just spotted the typo but am going to keep it - "bluk" better captures what I felt stumbling through the language those first few days.) From papalote (pronounced "pah-pah-LOE-tay", the common word for kite here was taken from Náhuatl, the language of the ancient Aztecs) to burbuja ("bur-BOO-ha" - bubble) and mariposa ("mah-ree-POH-suh" - butterfly), I quickly put together a list of favorite new words. Activities in class ranged from Scrabble (I got shelled - was holding out to use my "Z" but never managed much) to role-playing (I played Bill Clinton, Jo was Steven Spielberg, Archie Inspector Clouseau from the Pink Panther movies, and Goldie - as I recall - was herself) to that ubiquitous game where a story is built one student and phrase at a time. We each picked a few words, threw 'em into the pile, and took turns coming up with sentences incorporating the vocabulary - piecing together some semblance of a story in the process. By the time we were done, we had a whopper of a tale involving pingüinos (penguins) who'd downed too many cervezas and lost their plumas (feathers) as a result. After a detour involving papalote-flying payasos (clowns) and más cervezas, the penguins located some black construction paper at the papelería (stationary/paper store) and recreated their plumage. We played the game a second time and ended up with Goldie confined in a torre del castillo (castle tower) awaiting rescue from a knight in shining armadura. The knight showed up, promptly fell asleep below her window, and was only awakened when Goldie threw her corona (crown) out the window and hit him in the cabeza (head). Distracted by the wafting olor (scent) of fresh bread, the knight nearly missed his opportunity to rescue the beautiful maiden. When he finally captured the serpiente venenoso (venomous snake) by trapping it with Goldie's corona, he climbed the torre and greeted the maiden by pulling off his mask. Goldie broke into a sonrisa brillante (radiant smile), as she discovered the knight was Gary (her beloved husband). Of course, the two of them vivieron felices el resto do sus vidas (lived happily ever after). I should mention that I got the thing rolling by confusing fairy tales. It was actually Rapunzel and not Goldilocks trapped in the tower. Still, we had a Goldie in class and no Rapunzel, so it worked out for the better. It's amazing Irma didn't boot us at some point. Oh, I won our only game of Memory, proving that I was either very lucky or younger than the others. Seriously, though, with four hours a day of formal class-work, two+ hours with personal guias in the afternoon, daily homework, and the non-English-speakers in our homes, the regimen was adequately intense. On top of all that was the nightly telenovela I watched with my family, Amor en Custodia ("Love in Custody"). (Almita, the six-year-old girl in the house, loves Bárbara and roots heartily for a pairing with Mendoza. Mom covers her eyes whenever the mushy scenes arise, Almita of course giggling and straining to catch a glimpse through gaps in fingers.) After the soap opera ended at 10:30, we typically watched the news that followed. It was an interesting experience viewing the news from Iraq with a Mexican family. One night, new scenes of torture at the hands of British and American soldiers played over and over and over. The reactions were typical, and made me think once again about how our actions impact the rest of the world. How could it be that soldiers from these rich and powerful nations were resorting to physical torture to accomplish their goals? Is that any way to spread ideals of equality and basic human rights? Members of my Mexican family - at least judging by their sighs and muted reactions - were not impressed. (I digress. I cannot seem to leave the heavy topics for long.) Puebla itself is a nice city for studying, in part because it's large enough to keep students exploring new territory during afternoon conversation classes - but hardly overwhelming. As far as I can tell, it also sees fewer tourists than many of Mexico's other principal cities. This means there is little English spoken, generally a good thing for students of Español. The city's zócalo (primary central plaza) is lovely and often filled with locals. On weekends, the plaza hosts activities such as traditional dance and music, political rallies, and more. The zócalo is surrounded by blocks of restaurants, churches, shops, and museums. Exploring the city on foot is best, but there are plenty of accessible buses plying the streets when legs grow weary (cost for city buses: four pesos, the equivalent of about 40 U.S. cents). For the most part, the city is clean and safe. As someone who's been to a few different places in recent years, I wouldn't hesitate to send a sister or daughter to Puebla on her own. For my Puebla family, classmates and friends (and friends and family at home), I've developed a brief slideshow using "personal" images from my month in the city. I have not included "non-personal" images here; instead, I'm holding off to include those in the Mexico slideshow I'll develop at a later date. If you're a stranger looking for cool images of Mexico, this isn't the show to explore. This one is for the people I met in Puebla and personal contacts at home. Having said that, I've already encountered a number of interesting sites, people, and events - and look forward to sharing images down the road. I've added a few words to the show describing my family in Puebla, our classes and excursions, my wonderful guides, and our trip to Veracruz for Carnival. Without further ado, here's my Slideshow for Friends in Puebla. That's all I have for now. I'm sure I'll have more to say about my experience at the Spanish Institute of Puebla after I've sampled another program or two - but for now I have few complaints. In addition to having fun, I learned a great deal and wouldn't hesitate to return. If you're thinking of learning Spanish, check it out: www.sipuebla.com.
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