Arriving At My New Home

Carol and I during that first week together.
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I arrived in Alicante properly rested and nervous. Once again, I somehow managed to haul all of my luggage off the train on my own. (So much for meeting a tall, dark, handsome and helpful stranger on my first day.) Faced with a whole train station full of strangers and no idea where to wait for my new family, I chose a convenient and inconspicious location to lean against the wall and wait. While I searched the crowds for someone who looked remotely like the vague memory I had of the pictures Mariolina had sent me, I practiced looking calm, composed, and in control. Meanwhile, my thoughts were racing around, trying to decided what to do if no one came to meet me at the station. In the midst of elaborate back-up plans for living on my own in Alicante, I saw a mother and a young girl enter, scanning the crowds. I hesitantly stepped forward and was rewarded when the mother broke into a smile and hurried forward to meet me. I stuck out my hand for a handshake (typical polite American style) and instead of a handshake got a friendly rebuke: Youre in Europe now! No one shakes hands here... Yet another lesson learned the embarrassing way: When in Europe, kiss on both cheeks to say hello; attempting to shake hands makes one look very foreign and very foolish.

Carol.
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Next I was introduced to the girl, Carol. We hugged, stiffly. I believe we were both thinking approximately the same thing, "I have to spend most of my time this summer with this person. What will she be like? Will she make my life miserable, or will we become good friends?" Finally, outside the station, I met Antonio who was waiting with the car. It quickly became apparent how much help I needed with my Spanish. I hardly understood Antonio (born and bred Spanish (Valencia region)) and Carol only a little more. I had a lot of trouble making myself understood, both for lack of words and because of my heavy American accent. "You speak Spanish like George Bush!" said Antonio, to my great (and immediately expressed) dismay.

It quickly became apparent how much help I needed with my Spanish...

Elisa
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Once at the house, I was shown my room where I unpacked and surveyed my new surroundings. Over the next week, I took several naps, learned how things worked in the household, and finally began my "work" with Carol, which consists of spending the day playing with her and helping her both with English and piano studies. Everything was new and exciting and I had very little difficulty adjusting to my new environment. I was relieved to discover, as I slowly got to know them, that Mariolina and Antonio really were the good, generous and happy people that they had seemed through their emails. The day after I, Elisa (a 20 year old cousin of Carols) arrived from Italy. She was to spend the next two months with us as well, taking Spanish classes in Alicante. She seemed fun, outgoing, and happy and I was glad to have a built-in friend of my own age.

Antonio.
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I was very happy, although at times it was difficult and frusterating to have to speak Spanish all the time; I often felt at a loss to communicate how I was feeling or even what I wanted. I overcompensated by watching a movies (in English) on my laptop before I went to sleep every night. My favorite part of my new environment was the beach, only a fifteen minute walk from the house. Almost every day I walked down to the beach simply to relax and watch the waves. At these times, I forgot the earlier frustrations of the day and felt the luckiest person in the whole world.