Monday, April 17, 2006

As enthusiastic as I felt about Spanish school last week, I felt much less so when the alarm went off at 6:30 a.m. But I got up anyway, and we were out of the room at 7:30, as planned. Because we didn't reserve places, we wanted to get there nice and early in hopes that they would be able to accomodate us. (At La Union in Antigua, unclaimed teachers would show up on Monday mornings anyway, in the hopes of snagging last-minute students like us.)

This was the first time we'd been out in Cuenca this early. Everything was closed. We didn't expect to see every shop open, but we had assumed there would be somewhere to get coffee on the way to school, if only that lady on the corner with the thermos. There was not. And when we got to the school, the big wooden doors were locked, so we had time to search some more.

Around the corner was a glass-walled restaurant that looked like it was having a breakfast buffet. We've been accustomed to just assuming we can afford any restaurant that's not obviously a swanky spot. So we were a bit surprised when we found that the buffet was $8. Technically affordable, but realistically not so much.

We settled for a cup of coffee for Michael and a pineapple juice for me, while the crowd of fancy older gringos in coordinated slacks sets chowed down on bacon and eggs and pancakes and yogurt and some kind of yummy-looking potato croquette thing. Our drinks came to $3.66 which, for us, here, is mindboggling.

Back at the school at 8:00, we found the doors open. Two teachers were signing in, and Michael told them we were looking for the "jefe" ("boss"). Ah, Fausto, that's who we wanted. Fausto gets in at 8:00. Great, we thought. Then he should be here in just a few minutes. We sat down to wait.

Then someone else told us that Fausto would not be in today, but we could talk to Gabriella, who comes in at 9:00. Ok, fine. We left and strolled around for a few blocks and found an open restaurant called Cafe Olé, where we went in for another breakfast.

That's where we met Richard, a solo backpacker from L.A. He had a little American flag on his table because that's the restaurant's little gimmick, asking people where they're from and then putting a flag on their table. How embarassing. Richard was Asian-American, which probably puts him in some frustrating situations in a land where Asian = Japanese. Or maybe Korean. (In Guatemala I recall someone from our school being asked, "Hey, Japon! Japon o Corea?")

Breakfast Number Two - eggs (cooked in the shape of little hearts!), bread, cheese, juice, fruit, custard, coffee (for Michael) and tea (for me) came to $4.20. Then we went back to school. I'm not really comfortable asking for la jefa, because it sounds too much like la heffa, which is not good at all. So we asked for Gabriella.

It turned out we were talking to Gabriella herself, and she told us that she'd have to speak with the teachers at the break and see if someone was available to take us on. She said that we should come back after 11:00 to find out the verdict and that if the teachers were found, we could study in the afternoon for today and then switch to mornings tomorrow.

So we had to leave again. "Do you want to get some more breakfast?" I joked as we walked out. We planned to go back to the room, but on the way, we found a bookstore with an enormous selection of used books in English, so that distracted us for a while. But eventually we got back to the room.

With each of the three times we'd walked away from the big wooden doors of the school, I had been feeling less enthusiastic about classes. It's a bit stressful at times, sitting face to face with a complete stranger for four hours. One-on-one tutoring is very hard work and I wouldn't be able to get any projects done in the afternoon if I had homework. I tentatively probed the idea of forgetting the whole school thing, but Michael still wanted to go.

"You don't have to go just because I am," he said.

"No... I guess I don't. And I could get so much work done while you're at school."

"But will you work?"

It was a legitimate question, and I considered it seriously. I am one lazy person. Between the chance to sleep late, the television, and all the new books, would I really get any work done? I could, I knew, but would I? Maybe I'd be better off at school. I still have so much to learn. My Spanish is not nearly as good as I'd hoped it would be by now. (*cough*WE GAVE YOU FIVE DOLLARS*cough*). But a week of school would cost me $180, including the registration fee, and I'm running out of money. Also I had planned to do a lot of writing on this trip and these twenty hours alone would be great for that. But Gabriella would be getting a teacher for me, a teacher who would most likey be disappointed that she wouldn't get work, aka money, after all. I hadn't signed anything, but it would be lame of me to back out now.

I agonized until time ran out at 11:00. The final choice was literally made with Michael's hand on the doorknob. After making him promise we could go over his work together, I let him go back to the school alone. He signed up and came back with a cute little notebook and a photocopied workbook in a sturdy plastic cover. I was a bit jealous - workbooks are cool - but pretty much content with my decision.

And this afternoon while he is in school, I'm actually working. So far so good. The trick now is to keep it up and not fade out by Wednesday and start watching TV all morning.

 

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Cuenca doesn't like the TLC either.

Cuenca.

Lazy... this one does not even make an acrostic. Cuenca.

We noticed this graffito once we managed to get out of the room before ten. Doesn't look too good... can anyone translate?