Learn To Love Life, New Experiences, and Traveling

Throughout this amazing trip there are several things I've learned about myself, and here are a few:

1.  I've learned I've become more brave from visiting lovely Europe. I've done so much that six months ago I might have said I would not do, like having four lively parrots on me at once when I went to Croatia, or  going 1,063 feet off the ground in Paris on the Eiffel Tower. Now I know, some risks are worth taking, even if I'm afraid to, because in the end, I'll be extremely happy I took them.

2. I've learned that before this trip, I was someone who would get and wear clothes not as much because I liked them, but more because my friends or other people at my school would. Now that I've been away from my friends for a while, and have seen so many people from all around the world wearing different outfits, I'm learning to happily pick out outfits that I like, as opposed to outfits my friends do.

3. I've learned I appreciate art more than I expected I would. I expected that I wouldn't enjoy going to museums and looking at art all day, however, surprisingly, the art in the museums drew me in, and, unexpectedly, made me gaze at it and wonder, how was this created?

4. I've learned I used to get stressed over school too much. Before I came here I would often stay up until midnight studying and take an unbelievably long time on my homework to make sure I got it all right, however, now I've learned how much easier life can be if I learn to live it to the fullest and how much happier I am if I get enough sleep. Of course I know I should still try hard in school, I just think I shouldn't get so stressed over things.

5.  I've learned I say I don't want to go places sometimes, when I shouldn't, because where I say I don't want to go, ends up being a great place. Two examples of that are the Odyssey in Paris and the Natural History museum in London, both of which were places I didn't want to go to. The Natural History Museum, honestly, ended up being my favorite museum I've probably ever been to, and the Odyssey had the best selection of art I've ever seen.

6. I've learned I like new experiences. Whether it's a learning experience, trying a new food, or seeing new artwork, I like it. I've definitely had plenty of new experiences over this past six months, from learning about the colosseum, to riding delightfully on a Gondola in Venice. Basically, all my life has been this past six months is new experiences, and that's definitely a good thing.

7. It has been great to be able to see what other parts of the word are like, and I hope that when I'm older I'll be able to do more of that. To me, seeing different parts of the world is what traveling is, so the fact that I like doing that is another thing I've learned about myself.

Independent Homeschooling Subject: Me

In 6 months, I've learned several things about myself. I've learned that I know more Spanish than I thought I did, I learn a language faster than I thought, I dislike traveling, and I'm more social than I thought.

I've taken Spanish class since 1st grade. The classes were always very basic. I never thought I would ever have to speak to someone in Spanish using the questions and answers we've learned in Spanish class. I remember wondering why we should learn a language we probably won't ever have to speak. It makes the school lose money while you could be learning something more fascinating such as history. I now know why. I've answered with confidence where I was from when someone asked at the park about two months ago.

I also realized that I learn a language fast. I've always been quite practical with my strengths and weaknesses. However, I sometimes underestimate my strengths. I never really realized how fast I can learn a language. I think that I can remember things better when I experience it and put myself in a world of the beautiful language helps me remember it better. Yesterday morning, I looked up the alphabet in sign language and I memorized it by the afternoon.
 

I also learned that I can get stressed out when we have to go on airplanes or subways.  I don't like airplanes because they make my ears clog up and it's hard to sit down and wait for so long. On our plane ride to Barcelona from the U. S. my ears were not only clogged, but they hurt. The pain was almost unbearable. Luckily, it was in the last hour I started to feel like that. The packing makes me the most nervous. I'm always worried that we forgot something. I frantically end up searching for something at the last minute and end up forgetting something like my toothbrush.
Lastly,  I realized that I'm more social than I thought. I know I've never clung to my friends but I did think I was more independent. I always check my email or see if they're on Skype so I can talk to them. I think the reason is we only have one friend here in Spain and I get bored without being able to invite a friend over or see them at school. I miss my friends and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing them.

After Europe, Life Gets Shorter

As this six-month Barcelona experience draws to a close, I can't help but think of life shrinking.  That's not necessarily a horrible thing.  Henry David Thoreau once wrote that "most men lead lives of quiet desperation."  Throughout my life, this has been echoed in my mind. I suppose that one can view this quote as meaning that men tend to be unhappy with what they have.  But that's not the way I see it.  Instead, I believe it speaks to how so many of us think of how we can do better--whether that's be a better father, a better husband, or even a better person.  And travel to a foreign country with my wife and four children has constantly brought that question to bare. 

I felt that desperation months back, when I couldn't find a suitable apartment for us.  As we looked at places in various neighborhoods, I kept asking, how can we get something better?  I also felt it when teaching my students at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and the University of Barcelona, as I battled to best serve them under challenging circumstances that resulted in more than three weeks of classes being canceled. And naturally, I felt it with linguistic endeavors, as I tried to maneuver my way through the Catalan language and tried to get my children to learn Spanish. 

But where I have felt this desperation most is in travel.  I'm saying the obvious, but the Fulbright experience has exposed the family to so much culture that I'm left wondering, "next time, how can I make something like that better?"  The answer to that is not necessarily up to me, precisely because the privilege of moving a family to a foreign country for six months can indeed wind up being a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I can't control the desperation, as I don't know if and when any other travel will be better.  But I can reflect, look behind my shoulders at Barcelona, Paris, London, Rome, Venice, Valladolid, Madrid, Florence, Palma de Mallorca, Sitges, Sicily, and say, if the next one isn't better, maybe that desperation should best be described as a quiet one. 

Gondolas Under the Rialto Bridge

     This past week my family had a wonderful oppurtunity to visit Venice, a place like no other. As we excitedly rode on a boat into Venice, and I started to notice steps covered by water, my Mom explained to me how Venice is slowly sinking, and the sea level is rising. As a result, they are making a system so that if the sea levels get too high, they have a way to block all water ways from getting into Venice.
      Once we got into Venice, we stopped in many shops and found something called Murano glass, which is lovely hand blown glass made in Murano, an Island only about a mile north of Venice.  After a bit of shopping, I not only got the chance to see gondeleers happily steer their gondulas on water that replaces streets, but got to ride in one and slowly glide past Marco Polo's and Mozart's houses along with Rialto bridge which really was an unbelievebly gorgeous site with the boats on water that sparkles beneath it.
      What I found very quickly once I gladly stepped foot in Venice was beauty, beauty in the Gondolas, the buildings, the Murano glass, the Rialto bridge.  I could go on and on, but that would take up the whole page at least. When I was just four, I remember watching a show on Venice and thinking how fun it would be to go there. I didn't know what it was called. In fact, I didn't even know if this place was real, but I knew it was a place with these beautiful boats called gondolas and no streets, but instead water. Without a doubt, it was like a dream come true for me to go to this fantastic place.

Nolan's European Observations

On Pompeii:  "We're going to Pompeii tomorrow to see all the people.  Just kidding.  They're all dead."

To Olivia at the Vatican:  "Olivia, I love you more than this museum."

On using men's or women's  bathrooms in Paris:  "They all look like girls here anyway."

Upon walking inside the Coliseum in Rome for the first time:  "WOW, not interesting."

While watching a TV program that showed the Eiffel Tower and the London Eye:  "Olivia, I think the view is better from the Eiffel Tower than the London Eye."

On ants in Rome:  "These are kittens. They're a different kind of kittens."

While making pretend he is soccer star, Lionel Messi: "I'm Messi.  Ouch, Pepe just hit me."  If you're not familiar with Pepe, you'll have to YouTube search more of Pepe to get that one.

Pompeii by Sofia

My favorite part of Pompeii was the baths and Mount Vesuvius.  Mount Vesuvius was a volcano that erupted and destroyed Pompeii.  We could see Mount Vesuvius out in the distance.  The volcano erupted in 79 AD.  The bath was like a public spa.  The baths had a large room that had a hole that led to the outside.  You may say it had no ceiling.  It had the hole so that the steam would not stay inside the whole room.  The roads were interesting too because they were like large pebbles so that when it rains, you would just step on the pebbles and the rain would just go through the tracks.

Barcelona Highlights

As my trip is coming to an end, I decided to make a list of my favorite parts of Barcelona. Here they are...
1. Las Ramblas- This street is one of the main attractions here with La Boqueria market, plenty of clothing stores, street performers, restaurants,  and souvenir shops. People visiting should know the Picasso Museum in Born is walking distance from Las Ramblas, so they definitely could easily see both those places within a day (Sunday's the Picasso museum is free).  Warning- be careful with belongings at night while on Las Ramblas because this busy street attracts tourists, who attract thieves.

2. Magic Fountains-  Seeing the Magic Fountains is like going around the streets at Christmas time and seeing beautiful lights glowing brightly on every lawn, except these light are on water, in a huge fountain synchronized to music. The fountains are something everyone will happily watch, especially kids. If visiting the fountains, it might be worth a stop in a mall very close to the fountains that used to be a bull-fighting rink (which is an event currently not allowed in Barcelona) and go up to the roof where a great view of Barcelona can be found. The Magic Fountain show is every Thursday through Saturday from 9-11:30 p.m. during the 30th of April to the 30th of September and 7-9 p.m. from  October 1st to April 30th.

3. Park Guell- Unsurprisingly, this Park designed by Gaudi is amazing from the top (where you will get lovely views of Barcelona) to the bottom. At the main entrance is all Gaudi's colorful mosaic art that he carefully worked on for years, as well as two buildings, that look exactly like gingerbread houses. If it's not too hot out, it might be a good idea to pack some food for a picnic to sit down and eat surrounded by bright, youthful art.  A visit to Park Guell is free and, in my opinion, well worth the trip.

4. Sagrada Familia- Sagrada Familia is yet another work of art by Gaudi. It is unfinished and, shockingly, not expected to be finished until at least 2025. The outside is extremely detailed with hundreds of people and designs carved into it that makes it unique, and different from every church I've ever seen. One side of the church looks, quite noticeably, more modern than the other, which makes it interesting. My family hasn't yet seen the interior because we haven't heard wonderful things about it and it's a fee of twelve euros per person to enter.