Saturday, March 13, 2010

Mush Brain

I don't know if you've heard me say this before, but four hours a day of Spanish is intense. And after awhile, your brain turns to mush. You become incapable of communicating in either Spanish or English.

And boy did I have a moment last night that proves this point well...

We were at a brand new coffee shop here in Arequipa pretty close to where we go to school. It is called Vanilla Coffee, but picture Starbucks and it's pretty close. Except there is only one Starbucks in Peru and it is in the Lima airport.

Anyway, I was waiting to order my drink, but was in the way for someone who wanted to leave. He said "Excuse me," and I moved and responded, "Gracias."

Really, Cailyn? Thank you? That's what just came out of your mouth? Seriously?

But that's not the end of the story. This time, I was at the back of the shop, and one of the workers wanted to get past me. In Spanish, he said "Excuse me," and this time I responded, "Por favor."

Are you kidding me Cailyn? Do you know Spanish at all? Thank you? What has happened to your brain?

The answer is, my brain has turned to mush. I am loving Spanish class, and have made a ton of progress, but apparently my brain has turned to mush. Or I have lost control of what comes out of my mouth. Because I wanted to say "Permiso," but instead said "thank you" and "please." Very polite things to say, yes, but appropriate in this context? No.

Now go ahead, have a laugh at my expense. I sure laughed at myself after this one!

1 comment:

  1. Hey. I just wanted to encourage you. Last semester I studied abroad in Ecuador and I know exactly how you're feeling. I remember leaving Spanish class with my head hurting many days and saying plenty of stupid things. I promise, it gets better! It'll slowly get easier and easier, sometimes so slowly you don't realize it. And yes, there will always be those days where your brain is mush, but they get fewer and farther between. One day, you'll be talking to someone in Spanish and afterwards you'll realize how easy and natural the conversation seemed and see that you really have made progress! Hope that helps some. And yes, I did laugh, but only because I can completely relate :) And it's great that you're able to laugh at yourself. It'll help a lot.

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