Week 2

Today I was a little late in the morning, because I was a bit tired, but I was glad when Antonia came downstairs and told me that the sport lesson got cancelled. She said that we were leaving in two hours, so I used that time to study. I was nervous for the German exam I was taking this afternoon, because I wasn't feeling enough prepared for it.

We chose to ride our bikes to the school, which was actually a bad decision, because we weren't arriving on time, and I wasn't feeling like I had all my energy and strength. Antonia was riding faster than me, and I didn't want her to arrive late just because of me, so I tried to follow her rhythm, but I couldn't any more, and I was going slower every time.

In my favour, I have to say that I didn't sleep a lot and, furthermore, it was freezing this morning.

Anyway, when we arrived at the school, I started to feel really bad, almost like if I was about to throw up and to faint. I think it was just because I overexercised myself. Half an hour later, I started to feel better because I had been sitting in class and that helped me to recover.

The next 2 hours we had Spanish with the 6th grade, which on the one hand was amusing and entertaining, because we did an activity with them. But on the other, they were too loud while they were all talking, and most of the time they weren't paying attention, so sometimes it looked almost impossible to get through. For the activity, they had to ask Roser and I some questions and write down our answers. They were of course easy questions, for example, how old were we, what were our names, where were we from… We also took part in the class by helping the kids when they were writing our replies.

My last two lessons were with Antonia's Spanish class. The topic of the session was 'the cinema', and they had to start by doing a mind map. The Spanish teacher, Olga, asked me if I could do that activity, but in German, so I wouldn't get bored. It wasn't difficult for me to complete it, because I already knew most of the words, and Antonia helped me with the new ones as well. Afterwards, we talked about what a short film is, and then they had to complete the most important information about their favourite film. I liked that time because it's one of the first times that I actually learned some German at the school and the people there were so nice to me.

One thing that is different from school in Spain is that they take a 20-minute break every two hours and a 5-minute break every hour. I prefer this system because, in my opinion, it helps students to stay focused on class, and to rest the mind to have time to reflect on what they have learned.

When the school day was over, instead of going home, we went directly to the next activity that was planned: climbing. I wasn't going only with Antonia, but with Max and Marieke, both friends of hers.

I was really excited about that plan, because it was a new thing for me. Right when we arrived, we rented climbing shoes for me. Then we changed our clothes to sport ones and put our climbing shoes on in the dressing room.

A moment before we got started, the group explained to me the different levels, and they gave me some tips too. The first step was to apply some gym chalk on our hands, so we could protect them and improve the grip. Once that was done, it was I who began at the most basic levels, while they, who had more experience, began at the medium ones.

At first, I was feeling scared of falling down, even though I knew I had a mat underneath me. But it was over time, when I gained more confidence on myself.

I knew we had arrived to the place because it was a huge building, and inside the facilities, you could see many rooms, with a lot of space, colourful boulderings, and a fantastic light, where the people were really sporty.

An hour after, my arms started to feel tired, so instead of trying to climb new boulderings I observed the others, and got surprised at how good they were at it.

They made it seem so easy, but the reality was quite the opposite. Until today, I hadn't noticed the amount of strength and practice you need for this activity.

I loved the afternoon they had planned because I had so much fun, while learning another sport, so for someone like me, who loves doing sport, that's a perfect match.

I knew it was time to leave, when I looked at the hour, and it was 5 p.m.

An hour and a half later, I would have been taking the oral exam for which I have been preparing all week. So we said goodbye to Marieke and Max, and then we rode our bikes back home. We arrived later than I expected actually, because it was half past five by the time, that means I only had an hour for studying hard. That time before the meeting started, I was completely focused on it. 

At 18:30, I joined the meeting by clicking the link. Since the teacher wasn't there, we had to take the exam on our own and record it.  It took us more than two hours to finish it, but at the end, it turned out better than I expected.

As it was dinner time when we finished it, I cooked myself some pesto pasta because the family had already had dinner.

At the end of the day, I video called my friends and talked about how it is all going in Spain and here. And last, after a long talk with them, I fell asleep.

Today, like every other day, I woke up in the morning, but right after getting up, my head and stomach started to hurt. I told Antonia that I wasn't feeling okay, so she could let her mother know and excuse me from school. I stayed all the morning at home. At first, I tried to sleep longer to see if I felt better when I got up. But it didn't work, so I spent the rest of the time tiding up my room because it was a little messy, and also doing homework and writing the diary. When Antonia's mum came home, she made a tea for me, and that helped me a lot.

Later on, I decided to rest a little and see how I would be when I woke up. I fell asleep, and one hour later, when Antonia came home, we had lunch together. I wasn't feeling hungry, but since I didn't have breakfast neither, I knew I had to eat something. So I had a piece of toasted bread with some fruit. 

During the afternoon, I wasn't in the mood to go outside, so I preferred to stay at home. I cheered myself up a little when I saw the sun was shining slightly. That's a thing I'm really missing from Spain, the sunlight. 

Because I was bored and wanted to keep my mind busy, instead of sleeping or being on my phone, I decided to review my German notes and study a little.

We had a friend of Antonia come to our home a few hours later. She arrived by 8 p.m. and we had dinner half an hour later. We baked two vegetarian pizzas and prepared also a salad. When we were finished, we were craving dessert, that's why we have made up our mind and went to a café. The name of the place was Bar Celona, which I have found it very creative and funny. There, the three of us have had an amazing time together because while we were drinking coffee and hot chocolate, we were talking about us and our hobbies. We have spent a long time, sharing our thoughts about books, and have recommended each other our favourite novels. I have loved the quality time we have spent I have felt completely relaxed and comfortable, even though I had just met Jette, Antonia's friend.

The only bad thing was that when I had to pay for my drink, I found out how expensive it actually was. But well, I could do nothing but pay it.

We left the bar by 10:30 p.m. and walked around the neighbourhood, but it was freezing, so we have changed our mind and go directly home. 

When I was about to say goodbye to Jette, she decided with Antonia that she was going to stay over. We have sat in my bedroom and continued the talk we were having, absolutely forgetting the time. And when we realized how late it was, they both went upstairs to sleep, and I have got ready to do the same.

Even if the day, specially the morning, haven't gone as I would have liked to, I still wouldn't say I have wasted the whole day because I reckon the last part have fixed it.

My day started at 10 a.m. because I had to get ready for a meeting we were having with Antonia's exchange organization. Thanks to that organization, she could stay the entire last year in South Africa. It was a Christmas meeting where they wanted to talk to the exchange students who are now doing the exchange in Germany for this year. 

So while Roser was still sleeping, I started getting ready by taking a shower and dressing up. I didn't have anything for breakfast because I wasn't feeling hungry, and after getting all my morning tasks done, I tried to wake up Roser. By that time, it was approximately 11 a.m.

She went to her house an hour after. Since I knew I had to be at 2 p.m. where that Christmas meeting was taking place, I used that time I had left to continue the diary and have something quick for lunch then.

Later on, I have caught the train for a 30 minutes way, and when I arrived there, I met Antonia. The room was quite spacious, and one could see some tables adorned with Christmas decorations and families around them, as well as another table adorned with freshly baked cookies prepared by the people in there.

At first, I was having fun because I was meeting new people, not only from Germany, but from other countries. For example, I made friends from Finland, Thailand, and from the Czech Republic, and all of them are staying here for a whole year as exchange students. It was nice to talk to them, but after almost half an hour, I had to go with them to another room.

 There we talked about how were the things running here since they arrived, and then write a poster about how they celebrate Christmas in their countries or some other typical festivity things that they have found different in Germany. Honestly, that part was really boring, because all of them were talking German, except from one girl, who couldn't even speak English. At that point, all I wanted to do was to leave and find another more interesting thing to do, because I was having the feeling that I was just wasting my time. So it may sound bad, but I was actually glad when they were finished. But now came the worst part of the activity for me. We had to stay in front of all the families, holding the paper poster, and then explain to them why did we write each thing. In my opinion, I had nothing to do there, because I'm not part of that organization, but I have still stayed. 

Afterwards, we moved on to the part where we have eaten the cookies and talked to the people. That was a little better, and the cookies that the families brought were more than delicious.

The last thing was planned in that meeting, was to sing a couple of Christmas song while Antonia and another girl were playing the violin and the piano. Okay, maybe it didn't sound perfect, but it wasn't that bad. Half an hour later, all the people were leaving, except from the volunteers. My partner said to me that I could go back home whenever I wanted to, but I chose to help them to tide up instead. It didn't take us more than 20 minutes to get all the stuff done, and then I left and went back home. 

I was feeling tired, because today I couldn't sleep long, and I didn't enjoy either the afternoon as much as I would have liked to.

Anyway, I still had a plan for today; after dinner, I will have gone to Jula's house. So I have arrived at home and waited until Antonia for Antonia. Then we had dinner with all the family. Her mother had cooked a pumpkin risotto, which didn't look really toothsome, speaking truthfully.

I haven't liked how it tasted, but I still have eaten it because I knew the mother putted so much effort and love on it, even though I haven't eaten too much.

After finishing the dinner and rest a little, Antonia and I left home and went to the supermarket to buy 'Glühwein', and then went directly to Jula's house. There, we met for the first time many friends of Jula. We all had a fantastic time. We have talked, played UNO, and also a regular deck of cards, and the German friends from Jula have drunk beer too. Actually, A LOT of beer. Most of them were also eating bolognese spaghetti.

We stayed there for some hours, and when Antonia and I were already tired, we went back home. I was sleeping on the train on our way home because I was so tiresome.

As soon as we arrived, I have put on my pyjamas and straight gone to sleep. It was almost 1 a.m., so it was definitely time to go to bed.

At half past ten, I heard my alarm going off. Antonia let me know yesterday that today we were going to visit her grandparents. They live a little far away, although it is not a great distance. I think it has been like 40 minutes by train.

So I have woken up and stayed in bed for like a quarter-hour. Then I have got up and fried myself an egg, with 2 toasted slices of bread and a strawberry yogurt. Then I have continued getting ready by taking a shower, braiding my hair and dressing up. Her parents and her brother weren't coming, it was just Antonia and me. So, at noon, when we both were ready to go, we left the house to go to the train station.

We have had to catch two different trains, and at the last stop, her grandfather was waiting for us. He has picked us up and then driven through the town, that it's named Bad Nenndorf, to show me the most important parts of it. That has taken us like 15 minutes, and then we have arrived at the house, which, by the way, I found it really cosy and pretty. It has two bedrooms, one bathroom, a cute kitchen, a great living room, and next to it, a big balcony. And something that has also surprised me, is that her grandparents' house was actually more modern than her parents'.

There I have met her grandmother, she was really pleasant and kind. At first, I have felt afraid because neither of them knew how to speak English. But then, trying to relax myself, I have thought that would help me because the truth is, I haven't practised speaking German as much as I thought I would. Mainly, that's because when I tried to speak German with Toni, she was talking too fast and could understand nothing. But that part was better with her grandma because she was talking at the perfect speed, and also using not that difficult words. I have talked to her a lot while her husband was making coffee for us.

Then we have shared a great time eating a delicious apple pie with some freshly baked biscuits and drinking coffee and tea. The conversation was about the historical part of the German Christmas traditions, and then we have changed the topic to continue talking about me, my family and my life in Spain.

After we had finished eating, we decided to play a couple of boardgames. Her grandpa hasn't wanted to join us, but we still have played. The first one was 'Kniffel', and it was a game of luck. All we had to do was roll the dices, and look at what different combinations you could do with the numbers, and then write down the points you got. Antonia has come in last place, me in second place, and her grandma was the winner!

It has been my first time playing this game and I have found it very amusing.

Next came the other boardgame, that was called 'Triomino'. Basically, it's like a regular Domino, but instead of only having two sides, the tiles have three sides. That's the only difference because the rest of the game works the same. It was cool to play it, but I had found the other game more entertaining.

By 6 p.m. we were already hungry, so for dinner we had something I had never tried before. It was pretty similar to a pizza. They were layers of ingredients where the base was a slice of bread, followed by a layer of ham, a slice of pineapple, and on top of it a layer of cheese. Everything together had been baked in the oven, and it tasted excellent! I have eaten two of them.

We had to catch our train back home at 6:30 p.m., so ten minutes earlier I said goodbye to her grandma, and then he took us to the train station again. It was so cold outside, but we have had to wait there for another ten minutes until the train arrived. We both have taken a quick back on the way because we were feeling tired.

Before getting on the second train, we walked around the Christmas market that is next to the main station, and we bought a small portion of  'Schmalzkuchen', which were delicious.

Those German fried pastries will surely be one of my greatest misses. I wish I could get them in Spain as well.

The Christmas market in Hannover was smaller than the other one we went to, but it still looked pretty cool.

Afterwards, we have caught the other train and then arrived home almost at 8 p.m., which was perfect because it wasn't that late, and I have had enough time to get the things ready for tomorrow's school day. 

Half an hour before going to sleep, I video called some friends of mine, and later on, I have continued writing the diary.

Finally, I fell asleep faster than I expected.

Something that I loved from today's day, is that I have felt very comfortable, and it was so nice to spend the afternoon talking to them, and also improving my German at least for a day.

Yesterday, they let us know that today's sport class was cancelled. So I woke up really late, at 7:30 a.m., thinking that I didn't have to go to school on the first period. But, it turns out, that I have got confused with Wednesday's schedule and today's sport class was actually on the last period.

I have hurried as much as I could, but still arrived at school almost 40 minutes late. Furthermore, it was not just that I have woken up on time, but the train was also coming late. It seemed like everything was going wrong this morning.

When I have entered the Spanish class, I have apologized to the teacher for being late. She said that it was no problem and that I could take a seat. The students, who were like 12 years old, were writing a text, and the topic was clothes. I have helped them with some vocabulary words and also correcting the little mistakes they had made.

Next came English lesson, but the teacher hasn't come today, so I used the whole hour to write the diary, while Roser was watching a series next to me.

In the same room, we had the next lesson: German. Today, instead of continue doing my things, I have tried to follow the lesson and what they were talking about. It has taken me a while to figure out what the topic of today's lesson was, but then I realized that they were talking about Fausto, a work by Goethe. It wasn't easy to understand their words, so despite my efforts, everything was in vain.

When we have heard the end of class bell ring, we went downstairs to the Drama room. I have been thinking that today at school was a waste of time, since we are not learning anything, not even German. But this period was even worse. All we have done is play like little games in a circle on the stage, and then we have played tag for the rest of the lesson! I mean, I would understand it if they were little kids, but they are at the highest grade in school. At the end of the session, we have sat on the stairs of the stage, and they have shared their thoughts on the lesson.

Afterwards, I have had another Spanish lesson, but this time in the same class as Antonia. Mrs. Diez, the teacher, asked us today to do another mind map, but this time related to 'birthday' topic. That activity was done because during the last 10 minutes, we have seen a short film called 'El cumpleaños de Carlos'. We haven't got enough time to discuss it, nor to finish it, so we have left it for the next lesson.

I thought that was the last lesson since Roser had told me that the Sport one was cancelled. But, it turns out, it wasn't. So during the 55-minute break we get to have lunch, Roser, Jula and I have gone to the nearest supermarket and bought something to eat. They both picked some sushi, but since I don't like it, I have got myself a sandwich and a pack of cereal bars.

On today's sport session, we could choose between two different tests. The first one was to run the Cooper's Test, and the other one consisted on a circuit of different strength exercises. I have opted for the second option because I thought I was going to be easier. In each exercise, I had 45 seconds to try my best and some time in between to rest. Since Roser wasn't feeling well, and she wasn't wearing sport clothes, instead of joining the exercise, she has helped me with the scores. When we were done with that part, Roser and I decided to play volleyball, while our classmates were playing football. I wanted to go with them, but they were very loud, and they took it too serious.

Meanwhile, we two had a nice time, and when it was time to finish, we went to the locker room and changed our clothes.

My plan was to go directly home, but Roser and Jula were going to a café, and they asked me to come with them. So the three of us have gone there, and we have met Jula's partner and her friend. I wanted to order a piece of cheesecake, but there wasn't any left. That's why I have asked for a piece of chocolate cake, the same as Roser. It was delicious, and what I liked the most was that it wasn't dry.

After we finished eating, I caught the train back home and then stayed there all the afternoon. At first, I have rested in my bed for an hour, and then I have reviewed my German notes and also written the diary. Antonia and I haven't done anything special today because she was tired, and she has slept almost for 5 hours. By and by, I have taken a shower and then braid my hair, so that tomorrow I don't have to do it in the morning, and finally, put my pyjama on.

Later on, I cooked myself the dinner because the parents were eating out today, and the children were upstairs. I couldn't find a lot of food in the fridge, so I have boiled some pasta. But they were running out of pesto sauce, so I tried to make a tomato sauce from concentrated tomato paste, water, and a little of ketchup. To be honest, I haven't liked how it tasted, but that was better than eat it without anything.

Then I have spent a few minutes on my phone and when I started to get sleepy, I have got my school things done for tomorrow and went to sleep at 22:30.