Month 2--Friends and Working Things Through

Stephanie... the neighboring au pair and my godsend in making it through the second month of living in Spain.
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The second month that I was living with the Martos, another au pair showed up to live with a neighboring family. Considering our similar circumstances and the unavoidable fact that we both spoke English, Stephanie and I quickly became close friends. We spent many evenings sitting by the pool talking, watching ramantic comedies in English, and walking into San Juan to buy candy and stamps. I always seem blessed in my life to find really fabulous people with whom I quickly and easily become friends, and Stephanie was another perfect example of this. She stayed as an au pair in San Juan only one month, but by the time she left, shed given me not only several evenings of friendship and laughter, but also a permanent invite to her home or uni in England anytime this year. In return, I gave her a shotglass for her travel shotglass collection and promised to visit her the first time I had a long weekend free from Uni.

Juan, originally from Argentina, living for three years in Spain, wanted to spend time with me to practice his (elementary) English.
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Meanwhile, Elisa and I still went out occasionally on weekend, usually to meet up with the three guys, friends, who we found handsome, friendly, and loads of fun. All approximately 23 years old and from Argentina, Juan, Mathias, and Nico made the perfect clubbing companions for Elisa and I. Mathias was jovial and loud, in Alicante only for the summer to live and work as a club bouncer. Nico, handsome and quiet, had spent the last four years working with his father in Italy and so spoke Italian fluenty, a big bonus for Elisa. Juan, my personal favorite, had lived in Alicante for the last three years and recently been rewarded with residency papers. Of the three, Juan worked in a relatively fun, if lower level, pub in the "barrio" of Alicante and, as a result, Mathias, Nico, Elisa and I spent several night there, staying until 4 am dancing, attempting to talk above the music, and drinking for free. More than once, when the pubs finally closed at 4 or 5 am, we would head down to the beach or back to Nico and Mathias apartment to rest for awhile before catching a bus or tram back to San Juan. It took about 20 minutes of that and then another 20-40 minutes of walking to get back home and often Elisa and I didnt arrive home till 8 or 9 in the morning. Talk about an introduction to Spanish culture!

“There are always two sides to every coin; my 2nd month consisted both of glittering, priceless moments and difficult, frusterating ones.”

Carol playing with her two best friends, beside me: Biju and Nube (jewel and cloud in either Italian or Spanish.)
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Along with these glittering and exciting nights, however, were difficult days of working through problems and issues that were, basically, unavoidable. Even with a family as wonderful as the Martos, it is difficult to live for an extended period of time with a family that is not your own. There were days when I made mistakes and had to learn how to deal with being yelled at by people that I still didnt know well and in a language that I still had trouble understanding. After a particularly disastrous disaster of getting separated from Elisa and Carol in the mall and having to find my way home alone on the complicated bus system of Alicante, my keys were temporarily taken away until I could prove again that I was a responsible Au Pair, rather than another teenage burden in the household. Elisas strong and defiant personality ended up clashing with Mariolinas and, rather than choosing to resolve the issue and have her keys taken away, she dropped out of her classes in Alicante and returned to Italy two weeks ahead of schedule. I was so glad to have Stephanie to talk to, who was also dealing with the diffulties natural when one tries to live, day in and day out, with the people who pay you.

Elisa and I in an open-air market in Alicante.
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After two months of living with in Spain, it occurred to me that I was a guest, a worker, and a friend in the Martos household and, with each role, came a different set of etiquette. I had to learn, every minute of every day, to maneuver between these three roles and walk the fine line between houseguest and paid worker. Looking back on it all now (not that its yet ancient history) I feel that I was very fortunate to make it through this second month. After the excitement of living in a new home and country wore off, I had to learn to really LIVE in my new environment. I had to learn to admire and like Mariolina on her bad days as well as her fabulous ones, to spent 7 or 8 hours a day with Carol when she was being a spoiled brat as well as when she was being fun and creative, and how to speak well enough in Spanish to express my thoughts, feelings and desires more advanced than simply what I wanted to eat for dinner. It doesnt help that, thanks to my high-energy and clumsy nature, I cant seem to go two weeks without breaking something or another.

Nico, an Argentinian with the true independent spirit of a cat.
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I dont know what entity or guardian angel I have looking after me, but I dont think I could have made it through this month with many families other than the Martos who were, and have continued to be, kind, just, and incredibly forgiving with me. It also helped that I had lots of time to walks the streets or the beach and think about my life. Theres nothing that Ive come to enjoy as much as sitting on the beach at night and being able to rethink my days, decisions, and future. Theres nothing that can compare to the music of the waves to drive away the noises of the world.