Alquezar - Day 2

Day 2

On our second day in Alquezar, we hiked a sharp descent to the beautiful, Rio Vero.


Photo: Trail head sign for Rio Vero Cultural Park














The pinnacle of the 2 day trip was the waterfalls. The hike had been a little hairy at times -- slippery and steep. When we arrived at the waterfalls, we felt as if we had "arrived." Colin and Kelsey along with many of the SYA students quickly stripped down to their swimsuits and enjoyed the refreshing water and relaxing spirit.

Photo: Hike down to Rio Vero


















Photo: Chase family with waterfalls in background





Video of the scene








Photo: SYA students enjoying the waterfalls


















Photo: Our'polar bear' was the last one out of the water



















Photo: Faculty enjoying a relaxed moment at the Rio Vero waterfalls. (Mari Mar, Urio, Marta, Sole, and Parker













Photo: Kelsey with SYA student, Hannah Brewster (niece of good friends, Toby and Becca Brewster) post hike. Kelsey and Hannah chatted about American Girls extensively over the weekend














When we returned to Zaragoza by the evening, the group seemed closer and more connected after our escape from the city to the postcard-perfect setting.

SYA Trip to Caves and Alquezar

On the weekend of September 17, the SYA faculty, families, and students left Zaragoza for 2 days to hike into pre-historic caves and around the pre-Pyrenees region of Alquézar.

Photo: View of caves (abrigos)



Day 1
-----
We started the day 'early' (by Spanish standards) with an 8:30 a.m. departure on a closed-top, double-decker bus set for a two-hour tour through the pre-Pyrenees with a stop only for the must-have morning decanso (coffee break and snack).

After hiking down the mountainside to the caves, tour guides provided us with archaeological and historical lessons about the area and the pre-historic drawings inside the caves.

Photo: Chases on the cave hike


Caused by natural erosion over thousands of years, the extensive caves are embedded into the mountainside. Even though the tour was entirely in Spanish, we were able to garner the gist. Archaeologists and tourists alike speculate on the significance of the drawings but Parker thought that restless children painted them as a rainy day activity. Unfortunately, we were prohibited from photographing the cave drawings.

Photo: View of caves












Photo: Colin and Kelsey in pre-historic cave











Photo: Alvaro (SYA Art History teacher) giving instructions to students on hike
















Photo: Chi Chi Davis and Chanel Branch (SPS students) in cave















After the caves, we headed for our next stop, Alquézar. Sitting on a hilltop, Alquézar is a charming maize of streets dominated by castle-like church. First named Alcázar when built by the Moors in the late 11th and early 12th century, Sancho Ramírez, King of Aragón later captured the town. The Colegiata or church was rebuilt as a church in 1530.

Once there, we filled our empty bellies with lunch. At SPS or probably any boarding school, the faculty would be required to be present at all meals on such a trip, and they wouldn't dare have a glass of wine with the students nearby. However, in Spain, it's much more relaxed and los adultos can have and did have a relaxed meal separate from the students where wine was also openly served.

Photo: SYA lunch at students' hostel












Photo: At Alquézar. Students listening to Marta (SYA Spanish teacher) giving instructions and 'No Pasa Nada'

As the SYA faculty gave the students guidelines for the trip and an overview of the remainder of our time, a few of the students were misbehaving in the background. The SYA faculty started to scold the students when Ethan, the 4 year old son of the Pauline, the SYA college adviser, spontaneously chimed in with, 'no pasa nada' (roughly translated in this instance as 'but I didn't do anything'). The entire SYA crew, faculty, families and students, all fell apart in laughter as Ethan's innocent comment quickly defused the slight tension. Now, we have a family joke about 'no pasa nada' anytime we're trying to figure out who is a guilty party.



Photo: Meeting with Parker's advisees at an outdoor cafe after lunch. The rain put a slight damper on the outdoor venue




After lunch, we headed to the Alquézar castle. Alquezar was established by the Moors. It name derives from the Arabic al-qasr meaning “the fortress”. The castle was built in Alquézar in the 9th century by Jalaf ibn-Rasid.

Photo: Castle in the distance












Photo: Chelsea and Kelsey walking up to the castle. Chelsea also has a hearing loss and is one of Parker's advisees














Photo: View of the Alquézar village from the Castle
















Photo: View of surrounding area on our way to the castle










Photo: Courtyard inside castle























The four of us bunked (literally) in a hostel room with two bunk beds. While not luxury, the room was clean and comfortable with stunning views of the surrounding area.

Photo: Our hostel











Photo: View from our hostel window

Random Photos

Colin playing soccer with Juan (lives in our apartment building), and friend at Sitios Park, two blocks from our house












Colin and Aidan swimming at Salbuda Pool
















Irish companions -- night of skate boarding. Pictured: Kelsey, Colin, Hannah, Maria, Jude and Lily












Why are these pigs smiling? Picture taken at Mercado Centrale where fresh meats, cheeses, fruits/veggies are sold

Colin vs. The Lunch Ladies

When I was in school, we had a cafeteria dish that we called, "Beef and Barf." Everyone moaned on Beef and Barf days. Last week, Colin had a Beef and Barf day.

At JDL, lunch is serious business. They want to ensure that the students are getting enough nutrition, and therefore don't allow them to head to recess until the "Lunch Ladies" have given them the green light.

One day, JDL served fried fish which didn't exactly make Colin's Top 10 list this year. He generally does a pretty good job of eating what's given to him, and according to his version of this story, he had eaten 'quite a bit' of the fish. So, he attempted to get up from the table and go to the playground. All his soccer buddies had already finished their grub and were also on their way out.

In comes Lunch Lady, Numero Uno. She told Colin to sit down since he hadn't had enough of his fish. Colin took a few more bites and then made another attempt to depart. Numero Uno put the kibosh on Colin again. Colin took a few more bites. Then, Numero Uno went on break, but before she left, she told Lunch Lady Numero Dos to 'keep an eye on that American kid.' Third try and Numero Dos sits Colin back down. Colin decides to do the 'cut and shuffle' with his fish. Apparently, that was enough to finally pass inspection. Colin couldn't believe that
he had actually missed 15 minutes of his 1.5 hours of lunch/recess break.

The Lunch Ladies may get him above 70 pounds before they are done with him this year.

Choco Tour

White. Milk. Dark. Very Dark. It's all good. The Zaragoza tourist office offers a "Choco Tour" which provides the opportunity to visit several establishments that demonstrate that chocolate-making can be an art form.




Photo: Aidan and Colin taste testing the different variety of chocolate syrups















Photo: Demonstration of how chocolate is made and the making of lollipops

Over the course of the tour, we tasted chocolate in different textures and flavors: liquid, solid, cold, hot, milk, white, black, with candied fruit (least favorite for all of us). We learned that chocolate has historic roots in Zaragoza dating back to 1520; 2 of the 4 places we visited have been around since the 19th century.



Photo: Kelsey and Colin enjoying the results, chocolate + marshmallow lollipops


We also learned about the process of making chocolate from the picking and splitting of the cacao bean to the drying of the beans to the factories and then the stores. Surprisingly, the early part of the process is highly manual and most cacao trees are grown in Central and South America and Africa. This video is a pretty good example of some of the information we heard. If you're really interested in the history of chocolate, this is another interesting video (although some serious chocolate propaganda toward the end).


Photo: Colin, Kelsey, and Aidan at Haagen-Dazs

Long Live the Mullet and Other Hairy Details

The Mullet is omnipresent in Zaragoza, and from what we understand, many other parts of Spain as well. It not only exists, it thrives in infinite varieties: the full-on mullet, the tentative/wannabe mullet, the mohawk mullet, the dread mullet, and the ever-lovely mohawk-dread mullet. They're considered stylish here, and funny enough, the word for mullet, aka Kentucky waterfall doesn't seem to exist. It's just that hair that's short in front and long in back, and um, part of our 'cultural experience.'

Sort of reminds me of my 80s high school hair style (fur not included in Spanish mullets)





















Speaking of other hairy stories, we had an interesting discovery when getting a haircut. Ellen Wolff and I went to a local salon to get a trim and a fluff and were treated like belles for a day with no less than 4 people each working on us...one to shampoo, one to cut, one to dry and one to style. The hairdresser who did the cutting was the queen bee and gave direction to all the underling hair apprentices. We gathered that hairstyling is considered a trade and one which requires much training. To top it off, they gave us cafe con leche while we were getting coiffed.

Photo: Ellen and the entourage giving her the treatment















Photo: Celia, post coiffing


Colin and Kelsey asked 'why is your hair so straight?' , followed by, 'I like you better with curly hair". That's actually a good thing because I'll never be able to replicate this 'do' at home

Viva Yo

In the book, Iberia, James Michener describes a Spanish phenomenon which we found enlightening, called "Viva Yo."

You won't find Viva Yo in a dictionary. As Michener explains it, some time ago there was a competition for the cartoon which best expressed the Spanish character. The winner, without a close second, was one showing an arrogant little boy urinating in the middle of the street and spelling out the words, "Viva yo." The loose translation is 'hurray for me' but the core of the phrase is the implied second half, 'and to hell with everybody else.'

Understanding Viva yo helps one to understand the Spanish psyche. Michener gives the example of when the little car barrels right down the middle of the highway, forcing everyone else into a ditch, you don't swear at the driver. You say 'Viva yo' and you understand what happened. When you pay big bucks for a seat at a fútbol game and find it occupied by someone else who will not move, you don't punch him (this happened to us at the Barcelona vs Milan soccer game, see blog post Barcelona - Day 3). You say 'Viva yo' and steal another seat; of course, as Americans, we didn't do that but rather had the usher help us out instead. Viva yo can make for some confused looks between us, and sometimes annoying situations -- such as the incessant Spanish habit of cutting lines -- but with a little patience, it can be weathered and accepted.

School Year Abroad

Photo: Parker outside of the SYA building




SYA is a small school, taking up one floor of a building, and is roughly a 5-7 minute walk from our apartment. For the 2010-2011 school year, the SYA Spain program has 65 students -- that is a lot of math tests to grade! Parker will be teaching 5 classes and makes up "the math department."




Photo: Parker's classroom


















Around 10 p.m. on September 3, the students arrived from Boston into the Zaragoza Delicias train station. Parker, along with the other faculty members, met them there and connected them with their host families. Orientation started September 6 and classes begin on September 8. On the weekend of September 17, SYA takes its first SYA trip to Alquézar, one of the towns of the Sierra de Guara natural park.

Photo: Kelsey and Colin inside the SYA meeting and student cubby area

















Photo: Ana, the (friendly and extremely helpful) SYA administrative assistant

Ordesa National Park

September 4

Today, we sought green space. We rented a car and drove about 2.25 hours northeast of Zaragoza to Ordesa National Park which is part of the Central Pyrenees, and minutes from France. We were pleasantly surprised to find such an amazing spot easily within our reach.






Ordesa was a real find and is considered by some to be a junior version of the Grand Canyon. The Ordesa Valley is endowed with forests, lakes, waterfalls and high mountain meadows along with protected wildlife including trout, boar, chamois, and mountain goat. Parker aka "the Hunter" was eager to spot a mountain goat but we weren't so fortunate.








A bit hairy, the car ride there took us around narrow, twisty roads and sheer cliffs-- but getting out into nature was well worth it. We all realized how much we had been craving green space after our short time as city dwellers.




We hiked for a few hours, had a picnic on the river, and enjoyed the spectacular views and surroundings.

Visit to Juan de Lanuza - September 1

On September 1, with the Wolff-King family, we visited the kids' new school, Juan de Lanuza colegio (JDL). In all the excitement, we forgot to take pictures of the kids in front of the school (where was Sally Williams?!). We'll have to get one on their first day if it doesn't embarrass them too much.

JDL is a private school, has about 550 students and covers the gamut from kindergarten to high school. Most of the students are natives of Spain but several of the teachers are either Americans or Brits and their children attend the school. At age 3, the students start English lessons such that by the time they are Colin and Kelsey ages (11 and 9), they have a pretty strong foundation of the language. While our goal is for our C and K to learn Spanish and not rely on others to speak English, it is comforting to know that they have a buffer. In fact, Colin's teacher is a native of Massachusetts although she's lived in Spain for 20+ years.

Prior to our visit, we were filled with both excitement and anxiety especially in regards to how JDL would receive Kelsey. We had been corresponding with JDL since early in the calendar year about Kelsey's cochlear implants, and had not reached a common agreement as to whether JDL would offer her a full time slot. It turns out that JDL has a 5 year old boy who also uses a cochlear implant which means that they are not completely unfamiliar with this technology.

Wrapped into our angst was also a litany of questions from the basic, 'when does school start?' (prior, we had only been given an approximate start date) to 'do we wear uniforms?'; 'how does the soccer/activities program work?', and so on, to the more meaningful, "what is their academic load?"; "what classes will be proposed for Kelsey?"; "will Batman be able to defeat the Joker?"

Upon our arrival, we were warmly welcomed by Pilar, the school coordinator, and then given a tour of the facilities. To maximize their capabilities, students are separated into groups according to their abilities for math, language, etc.; these groupings are fluid and are continually reassessed. As Concord has no formal accelerated program (other than at the discretion of the individual teacher), we were delighted to hear this news. The kids will likely have plenty on their plates just learning a language and integrating into a new place but it's gratifying to know that they will also be pushed academically.

JDL classes are roughly 60-40 Spanish/English but Spanish is spoken among the children, on the playground, cafeteria, etc. which gives them plenty of opportunity to learn their new language.

After our group tour with Pilar, we moved to a private meeting with Sophia, the Dean of Studies, along with Elena, the school Psychologist (who is also the person in charge of placement!!). They were both lovely and amiable, and more importantly, seemed to have our children's best interests at heart. Both Colin and Kelsey handled themselves impressively -- they were poised and well-spoken, and comfortable in their own skin (completely objective opinion from their parents). JDL is flexible and open to feedback, and as a starting point, Colin and Kelsey seem to getting the opportunity to begin the year like any other newcomer. Our visit was not only a relief but energizing. Let's get this party started!

The kids' bus will pick them up 2 or 3 blocks from our apartment at 9 a.m. (how sane!) especially since one wouldn't normally put the Chases in 'morning person' category. School starts at 9:30; they have a big break from 1-3:30 and then end at 5:30, getting home around 6pm. During the break, they participate in an activity of their choice such as soccer, dance, piano, etc. What a FULL day!

School starts September 7 and we all can't wait! The kids want to meet new friends and begin activities. Kelsey is literally counting down the days, planning her time, friends, and outfits. Colin is particularly eager to start playing on a soccer team.