Almost the Weekend

Well it's Friday! Not quite the end of my first week here (I can't believe it's only been 4 days; the days are SOOOO long here! We get going around 8:30 and aren't putting the children to bed until around 11. I have no idea how Laura does it!) but almost the weekend. Tomorrow is the children's graduation from their current grade, and Sunday we are supposed to go to lunch with their grandfather. I don't know if I will usually get the weekends off, or how my free time is going to work. I've had lots of free time because they were in school, so perhaps once summer begins the weekends will be mine. I hope to figure it out soon!

I met another American au pair yesterday at the pool, and it turns out she is from Arizona as well and we have a handful of mutual friends. What are the odds? We exchanged information so hopefully I will now have a friend! Haha, I feel like an elementary school student again, desperately searching for friends. When we first moved to Arizona, I posted flyers around our neighborhood looking for friends; funny how some things barely change!

Today after school we are going to the river with some of Danny and Laura's classmates. We've gone to the pool everyday, which is fine, but it will be nice to have something new to do.

I also bought some colored paper and tape, and am making labels for their bedroom so they can learn English words for household things like "door," "bed," and "closet." I haven't been really teaching them much (an occasional word here and there) because they are still in school and they want to play afterwards, and I don't want to over-whelm them, but Laura, the mother, has asked about it and I want to make sure I'm doing a good job.

It's hard to tell a lot though, because there are a lot of miscommunications. She told me she thought the children like me, which is a relief. I know it's frustrating for them sometimes because I don't always understand what they're saying (I'm understanding more and more Spanish, but understanding children who speak in English can even be difficult, so I often struggle with what they're saying) and we are usually with their mother, who they obviously prefer. However, I feel like they are warming up to me and talking to me more, so hopefully that will continue!

It's also hard for me to organize activities because it's challenging for me to communicate with them clearly. I don't know how to do the things I usually do when I'm babysitting, or say the usual jokes I make.

Anyway, I'm starting to get used to life here. It is definitely different, and I miss the people at home often, but things are fine here. Skype certainly helps, though it often makes me miss you guys even more! Would love to hear from you all! Hasta luego!

Getting Accustomed!

These first few days here in Las Rozas have been challenging for me, to say the least! It's exhausting becoming accustomed to a new way of life, and I think it's really taken a toll on me--especially since I am here alone. But, things are getting easier! I'm starting to get a sense of rhythm (although I do spend some time being unsure!) The children are still in school, so I have a fair amount of free time until Wednesday (which is why I am able to write this now!). Laura, the mother, has been very nice and has been letting me follow her everywhere to help keep me busy. Yesterday, however, I slept a lot and caught up from my vacation. I took 3 separate naps and slept for like 4 hours. They don't siesta this far north, so I'm sure it seemed a little strange, but I think they understood I am still tired from traveling.

Today, I went with Laura to get her hair cut in the mall, and I walked around for a little bit. She took me for a cup of coffee before, which was very nice of her and very much appreciated. I've broken my caffeine addiction, which is extremely exciting, but I still enjoy coffee of course. She also told me where a Starbucks is, which will be a nice treat for me, though I can't buy many because they're extremely expensive (A grande is 4 Euros, about 6 dollars). Most of the stores at the mall were still closed, so I just sat outside and read a little. A man asked me for directions, and I was shocked he didn't realize I was American because usually it can be spotted from miles away (I used to wonder how, but now I understand; I don't know how to explain it, but you can tell when a person is American). I had to tell him I wasn't from here (although, those of you who know me well, know I probably couldn't have given him reliable directions even if I'd lived there for 30 years).

After that, we went to what I think was a Spanish Target (They combine strange stores here, so it's hard to tell. It was either that, or a mall of some sort). I like going to the grocery store because I'm excited by all the food that I don't recognize. They think I don't eat a lot here, but I've really enjoyed everything I've eaten. I'm even starting to like some things I absolutely detested back home, like orange juice and ham. My mom was shocked to hear that!

Yesterday the children and I went back down to the pool, and it was fun. I'm still getting the hang of things (I forgot two of the towels and accidentally set our stuff in an ant hill!) but they are understanding.

They're also beginning to remember the words I teach them. We were playing Wii, and Laura (the daughter is also named Laura) went to give me a high 5 and I told her that's what it was called, so now she says "Toca 5!" instead of cinco. That was very exciting for me.

Anyway, I just wanted to let everyone know that all is well here. I know I've seemed blue on Skype, but it makes me sad to see everyone I miss sometimes. Especially with the time difference, I feel lonely because everyone at home is sleeping during the day so it's hard to communicate. I miss you all very much and will be so happy to be home in August, but life is going well here!

I love you all!

PS, Mom. I think I fixed the settings so you can comment if you like!

First Au Pair Post

Well, I'm finally an au pair! I've been so busy traveling before this that I haven't been able to post. Brenda and I toured Lisbon and Madrid for a week and seriously had the best week imaginable. The only down-point of our trip was a less-than-delicious calamares sandwich, so we consider the entire vacation a massive success!

However, she left for Arizona this morning which was much sadder than I could've anticipated. We've been attached for 8 days (almost literally; we even went to the bathroom at the same time most of the time!), so watching her leave was really sad. Plus, it's scary to be in a foreign country alone, and I really underestimated that. We met a lot of backpackers traveling through Europe alone for like 8 weeks, and I can't imagine doing that. At least here I'm with a family, although I'm sure I will still get lonely.

Anyway, Brenda's flight was at 7am, so she had to get a taxi at 4:30am. That's usually what time we were getting home from the clubs because things go so late here, so we decided to just stay up. Besides, the hostel we were staying in didn't have any windows in the dorms so it was SO easy to sleep late every day and we were nervous we'd over sleep. However, the hostel had so many rules about where you're allowed to be late at night, so we had to hide in hallways and bathrooms until it was time for her to go, since there were people sleeping in our room.

Laura, my au pair mom, was set to pick me up from the hostel at 10:30, so I took a quick nap, and got up and had some coffee and tried to Skype some people from home. I was way too nervous to eat anything. At 10, I checked out of my room and brought my luggage down and was waiting in the lobby. But, as 11 rolled around I started to panic and think she wasn't coming. I was wondering what kind of scam this was to ask an au pair to come and then never get her, and I was wondering how much it was going to cost to go home tomorrow, and beginning to feel very stupid. I was Blackberry Messaging Devin at the time (because it's the only free way to communicate here with my phone), telling him I might need him to call my mom and wake her up so she could get on Skype and help me figure out what to do. I was so scared! Then, at 11:05, Laura came in and said there had been so much traffic and our street was closed off so she'd gotten lost. She'd called the hostel to tell them, but I had never received the message even though I was sitting three feet from the desk look petrified and holding back tears. :P

So, sorry Mom for all the frenzied BBMs from this morning!

She picked me up and brought me to their house in Las Rozas, which is about 15-20 min outside of the city center. It's a really pretty area, and the house is nice. I'm so happy to have my own room and bed after a week of hostels!

The children are at school until 4:30, and Laura and her husband took the day off on my behalf, and because their dog Tripi is at the vet. I'm sure it's been very stressful for them preparing for my arrival and taking care of the dog's health issues.

I unpacked my bags, Skyped Devin so he could see me not in tears (I was so nervous this morning I couldn't stop crying!), and took a nap since I only slept three hours last night. Brenda and I also have done so much this week, that it finally occurred to me that I'm so tired! I can't wait to go to sleep tonight and get the first good night's sleep in so long. Hostels are nice for a sense of community, but sharing the room with strangers with different plans who come and go at all hours is not the easiest.

I'm still a little nervous, even though the house is very nice and Laura and Angel are both extremely nice. I'm excited to meet the kids this afternoon. There's just still so much unknown and so much to adjust to (and I just found out my Netflix account doesn't work here, which is a bummer because I was looking forward to watching a movie at night). Devin was planning on visiting at the end of my stay, in the beginning of August, but I think I will be traveling with the family to Northern Spain during that time, so now we aren't sure if he will be able to. Saying goodbye is so hard, it's almost better, but I really wanted to show Devin Spain because I like it so much here. Plus, I miss him very much.

It's definitely nerve-racking having so much unknown ahead of me, but I'm extremely excited for the next two months of my life!

I'm still a little too sad to post about the adventures of me and Brenda because I already miss her, but I will try to recount them soon, and post often!

Take care, and miss you all back home!

Hola, Lisboa!

Well, we got into Lisbon yesterday! It was a long 20-some hours of travel--especially being stuck in Miami airport for 9 hrs. We flew TAP Portugal from Miami to Portugal--which was the airline's inaugural flight from Miami. It made it rather confusing since no one at the airport knew where their ticketing counter was, which was alarming. When we finally found someone who had heard of the airline, we saw all sorts of photographers and men in suits at their counter and found out it was the first time they were flying from Miami. There was a huge celebration at the gate with press and a ceremonial ribbon cutting and a bunch of free snacks. Of course, Brenda and I chowed down. When we boarded, they gave us a free gift set which was really cute. The plane was really nice, and they fed us twice, which of course we loved too.

We landed in Lisbon at noon, and got to our hostel at about one. We were confused at the hostel, because we couldn't find the front desk and the directions had said that it was on the first floor. When we used the page button, I remembered in Europe the ground floor is floor 0 and the second floor is floor 1. Oh, the things you learn in Spanish class!

We checked in, and found out we're the only people in our 12 person room, which is nice. There is a construction site right outsie our room, which is annoying, but it's not too bad. We explored all day yesterday, walking around the streets and poked into a church. We ended up at this cute bar where we enjoyed a pitcher of sangria and some local munchies (like these little fruits and snails!). We got a little turned around (and it doesn't help that we don't speak Portuguese) but we found our way back and accidentally fell asleep. Then we just ended up staying in for the night and Skyping.

We're planning on going to the beach and Belem today, and going to a discoteca with the only other guest who's staying here!

Wish us luck! Miss you all!

Want to Au Pair too?

I get asked a lot how I found this amazing opportunity to work in Spain this summer. While it does often take a lot of time (I started my search in November, and didn't secure something until around February!), it is pretty easy! The best way to get started is to register on a website like www.easyaupair.com, www.aupairconnect.com, or www.aupair.com. It's usually free to make a profile; however, you only have limited contact information. Usually, free users can only send pre-written messages, and can't access family's e-mails or phone numbers, so you have to rely on family's with paid memberships to contact you. I made free profiles on each of these, and picked my favorite site to purchase a membership on.

After that, you just monitor the website as much as you'd like for postings that interest you! I tried to keep an open mind, and was at one point talking to families in Hungary and Turkey about spending my summers there.

It's important to be aware that there ARE scammers out there. You should never have to pay the family, or give them any credit information. And be wary of sending out your passport number. Identity theft is a prime motive for scammers, and your passport number is a quick way to do that.

I was also skeptical of anyone unwilling to Skype with me. Video chatting with a stranger can be awkward, but it is reassuring to put a face to the name and verify they're a real person.

Other ways I verified potential families was by google mapping their houses to make sure they were real locations.

One common scam email I got was from families in the United Kingdom (This was a tip-off because most families seeking an English-speaking au pair come from non-English speaking countries. The advantage of having an au pair from another country is improving their children's fluency in another language), offering me thousands of dollars pay per month as long as I send them my passport number. Pretty easy to spot. General rule: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Most au pair jobs are for longer amounts of time, so if you want to do a summer portion like I am, give yourself plenty of time to find one. That was definitely the most challenging part of my search since my availability was so limited because of school.

If you are looking to do something like this, feel free to e-mail me or facebook me. It's kind of a unique process, so it can be helpful to talk to someone who's done it before (One of my professors gave me the e-mail of a former student who had worked as an au pair, and I found her advice extremely useful!).

Good luck!

9 Days & Counting!

I can't believe my last week in Arizona is next week! I keep thinking of all the little things I have to do (and of course, taking care of the little ones like making this blog), and I know next week is going to be crazy! Here is a list of everything I need to get finished before June 6!

1. Clean my room & get all my things packed so I'm ready to move back into the dorms as soon as I get back.

2. Wash my car.

3. Buy a journal.

4. Buy a plug adaptor & voltage convertor.

5. Get my traveler's insurance all squared away.

6. Attend Devin's Mom's bridal shower on Friday.

7. Attend my going-away BBQ next Sunday.

8. Do laundry & pack.

9. Buy all my toiletries & snacks.

10. Have a garage sale tomorrow morning so I can make a few extra bucks & get rid of a few things I don't need.

11. Purchase a new vacation outfit or two.

12. Plot out mine & Brenda's tourist itinerary in Lisbon & Madrid.

13. Spend as much time with family & friends as possible.

14. Work 8-5 Tuesday & Wednesday.

15. Pick up & deposit my paycheck on Friday.

16. Call my bank and inform them of my travel plans so they don't put a hold on my cards.

Whew! Good thing I'm an avid coffee drinker..