21 February - back in Blighty

Lynne says...

I was beginning to crawl up the walls by the end of my second week in Salamanca. My tiny, basic bedroom and constant frustration at my inability to understand a word anyone said on the telly had begun to drive me crazy; the television is a universal Spanish obsession - it was on all the time. My last language lesson was great though - I now know how to say terrible things in Spanish. Will no doubt come in useful in the months ahead.

I was tempted to stay in on the last night but ended up going out with some of my new German friends from the language school. We attempted to speak Spanish all night - with English and German thrown in to the mix - and it was great fun. Spain really is ridiculously cheap; we drank beer or wine and ate tapas in about five different bars and went to two clubs all for around 15 euros. Bizarre though - babies and toddlers in smokey bars at 10pm in the evening - can't be good for them but they didn't seem to mind and the parents didn't seem bothered at all. Now there's a cultural difference for you.

10 February 2006 - Que?

Lynne says....

Hola amigos!

Well, I've managed one week of language school in Salamanca and I feel very very old. Average age of the students here? No se, pero probably around 24. The girls seem to enjoy flirting with the male teachers which is very annoying. The only way to compete is to interrupt with my pigeon Spanish - a method that is actually starting to work.

Speaking continues to be the biggest barrier but the one-to-one lessons are helping. I can understand a fair amount as long as I'm not watching the television where they might as well be speaking Russian.

ChildLine and the daily routine of London life seems very far away now and I'm just enjoying the thought of the months ahead. Que suerte!

4 February 2006 - Life as a lady of leisure

Lynne says...

Scarily, I'm enjoying life as a lady of leisure. The flat is lovely and tidy, dinner is on the table every night and I even managed to cook a three course meal for our friends Jessica and Gary last night - a very rare occurance indeed. Matt is loving it.

Tomorrow I'm off to Salamanca for two weeks of intensive Spanish lessons - the theory being this will help us out during our trip. Six hours a day for two weeks is pretty full on and I will be living with a local family so I'll be speaking, eating and breathing Spanish. Having done this before, I know how tough it can be. At least my basic Spanish is okay so I'll be able to speak to my host family instead of grinning needlessly at them with a manic look in my eye. Wach this space.