July 22nd 2013
Following the three day weekend, the group that went to Portugal and the group that went to Valencia made our way home. That Monday morning we were all sad to leave Valencia, not only because Valencia was beautiful, but because that meant our time in Spain was coming to an end. We took a high speed train at 8 in the morning and made it back just in time for lunch at the dorms. It was great seeing everyone and exchanging stories about our weekends. After that we all got settled back in and enjoyed some down time as we prepared to present our assignments. We had been assigned to approach three different categories of people, older generation, a family, and youth. We were instructed to introduce ourselves... "Hello my name is ____. I'm a student at the University of Washington. I'm in Leon studying youth unemployment. This is my research question. What do you think? Is it relevant?" Granted this all had to be in Spanish. The assignment provided more struggles for some students than others, as the range in our group varied from previously knowing no Spanish and being a native Spanish speaker. Approaching a stranger can be very intimidating, but add a language barrier and the task seems daunting. At around 6 pm we all made our way to the Leon Center. We all sat in a circle and each person had a turn to share their experience. Some of the interviews went really well for people and they found a valuable resource. And other interviews brought a lot of laughs for us. One example being Tarra trying to tell a lady that her yogurt looked good and the lady thinking that Tarra wanted to take her yogurt. This assignment definitely pushed everyone outside of their comfort zone, and it also helped us realize how many valuable resources may be out there if we just ask.
July 23rd 2013
On this day we had our last Spanish class in the morning and then the afternoon free to do research and work on our presentations. Many of us worked on our papers and started making our powerpoints.At 5 pm Julie and Edgar came to the dorms to take us to the cooking class. The cooking class was a 10 minute walk. We got there and our instructor had already started some of the meal prep. She said that on the menu for dinner was Sopa de Ajo, Paella, and Limonada. We all helped by cutting the oranges and lemons then got the juice out. We were all a little taken a back when she added 2 bags of sugar, but we figured we shouldn't question the cook.
We helped with a lot of the cutting and stirring, but she definitely did most of the cooking, which was probably for the best! We asked her a lot of questions about what food was most typical in Leon (paella), what dessert was her favorite (arroz con leche), when she started cooking (around 40 years ago), and overall we really enjoyed getting to know her! She told us about when she was 22 working in a restaurant and there was an international cooking competition in Leon. She entered a few of her dishes just to see how she would do. The competition is set up so that know one knows who cooked what, it is all based on the taste. She was in the park when she received a phone call informing her that she had won. She was so surprised and so excited. She went on to enter the competition the next five years with different plates, and won every time. Needless to say we were all so excited and honored to try her cooking.
All the food turned out incredible and we were so happy to have had this experience!
This tour was particularly amazing because of the mixture of modernity and history engrained in this building. Our tour guide was so knowledgeable about the building and everything that was taking place within the Bundestag and Riechstag. She took us to part of the building that was preserved from the past with signatures. I was amazed to examine the Soviet graffiti and bullet holes on the exterior of the building. One thing that really stuck me was the transparency of the building, not only physically but metaphorically. The building was so accessible to the public and the tours seemed to really want the people to engage with the past and the future. I really enjoyed seeing where Parliament convened, looking up at the sky was really beautiful. In one of the meeting rooms the technology allowed the lighting in the room to convey dusk, evening and everything in between. The building was such an integration of past, present, and future. The view of Berlin from the top of the dome was definitely breathtaking. It was amazing to see the city from a different view. I feel so grateful to have had the opportunity to visit such an inviting and special place.
For our interview assignment, we had to go out to the public of Spain and conduct three interviews. We had to seek out three different types of people, an older generation opinion, a family opinion, and younger generation opinion. While unlike a lot of my classmates I didn't have a huge language barrier, the idea of approaching a stranger and asking their opinion about a potentially sensitive topic was nerve wrecking. I started every interview by introducing myself. "Hi my name is Ileanna Zaballa, I am a student at the University of Washington. I'm doing research in Spain about autism in the classroom." I generally followed that up by asking if they know what autism was.
Older Generation
This interview turned out to be far less scary than I imagined. I decided to interview the cleaning lady in the dorms. A very sweet grandmother that I got along with fabulously. When I asked her if she knew what autism was, she only broadly recognized it. She apologized for not being able to be of more help, but she said she didn't know anyone who had autism or who had a child with autism. Even though she didn't know very much about my topic, that didn't mean she wasn't opinionated. She said private schools would be the best route because class sizes are smaller and the student could get more 1 to 1 attention. From my interview with the cleaning lady I found that autism seemed a lot less prevalent in Spain, or perhaps just less well recognized. Some of the quotes that she said really struck met. " Those kids.. it's a pity... But we all hope it doesn't happen to our kids.." "Those poor parents, the child will always be dependent on them.. What will happen after the parents die?" The last question particularly got to me because that is actually a common concern, parents worry about the welfare of the children after they pass, especially if they have a special needs child. When I asked her about employment resources she said there really wasn't any, which didn't surprise me because the state of the economy has eroded resources.
Family:
This interview was rather serendipitous, Tarra happened to be buying a plate from a street vendor and I went over to join her. Fet de Vidre- Centro especial de empleo. The vendor and her family were part of the employment center for individuals with disabilities. When I told her about my research and my career aspirations she really commended me and said that a person had to have something really special inside of them to want to go into that field. She said it was an injustice that there were no resources for special needs students. And injustice that "God would right." She told me about her center and how the state had only given them money 6 times since 2011, granted the state was supposed to be giving continuous and constant support. She also told me how autism is less well known in Spain, it is often more broadly categorized as a psychological disability. She also informed me how special needs students often go to trade schools that better capitalize on their abilities and prepare them to potentially enter the work force.
Youth:
On my train to Valencia I found myself sitting next to a young man who was reading a book about medicine. 30 minutes before the train ride was over, I worked up the courage to ask him about what he was studying and then I worked into the conversation my research. He was a medical student studying to be an ER doctor. When I asked him about whether he knew what autism was, he said that he recognized it, but didn't know exactly what it was. He said that in Medical school there was no formal training to work with individuals with autism. He told me about his encounters when he was younger. He said that at his school he had some high functioning special needs students (like students with ADD), integrated for some subjects like art and gym, that were taken out for the basic subjects like math, language, and science. He explained that the moment in which the students were taken out of class, it created a divide between the two groups. Having a disability or special needs became a social stigma.
Overall in all of my interviews I was so surprised the willingness of people to have a conversation with a stranger. I also realized how many people I pass on the day to day that potentially are such valuable resources that I have overlooked. All the people I interviewed were greatly astounded when I told them that 1 in 88 children in the United States are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
Leaving Berlin is so bittersweet; while I am looking forward to adventure that lies in Spain. I can't help but feel sad to be leaving Berlin, a place that actually reminded me a lot of home! The days initially went by so slowly, but as I acclimated to the city and started forming friendships the 2 weeks flew by before I knew it. On my first day when I arrived in Germany, I guess I was feeling rather ambitious because I decided to take public transportation, transfers in all, to the hostel. I remember feeling rather overwhelmed, especially hearing all of the stops said in German. I remember thinking how out of place I felt and how I didn't think I would get the hang of the U-Bahn, S-Bahn, or anything else. Luckily two weeks later I can definitely say that was not the case. Berlin kind of felt like a second home. I knew my way around the city, enjoyed getting a little lost, and even found a favorite (and cheap) dinner spot. I feel very lucky to have had the privilege of studying at the prestigious Humboldt University, a school that has such a rich history. The atmosphere of Kreuzberg was so laid back. I would often see people walking around at 9 in the morning with beer in their hands surrounded by friends. There was a lot of music played on the streets, even the U-bahn, which would always brighten my day. While I was initially intimidated by the stern faces, I learned that if you just approached them, people could turn out to surprise you. One of my most memorable experiences in Berlin was the interview I had the opportunity of conducting with a young teacher. It was so profound to hear his experiences and how that differed from what the EU claimed Germany's education system was set up. I got a glimpse into the German class room and was honestly amazed by how hard teachers work, but I was not surprised. I was also taken aback by the way people described autism. I found it interesting that people still said "suffered from autism" because that conveys that a person is suffering if they have autism, which is not the case. I have traveled through Europe with my family before, but being in a foreign country by myself was such a different experience. I have since realized what a good planner my mom is!On last thing that really struck me about Berlin was all the street art. It was everywhere, it was beautiful, and it really reflected the culture of the people within the city. A lot of the art has political meaning which made me wonder whether the art reflected the sentiment of the public of the sentiment of perhaps one radical individual. I'm sad to be leaving, I'm curious to see if Spain will be able to top my experience in Germany. Berlin has set the bar high.
