Learning Spanish so far hasn't been very fun. I really don't know any Spanish to start with, so things like making sentences and such are nearly impossible for me. We haven't spent much time on conjugating verbs, and it seems there are things we are automatically supposed to know that I don't, so I've been a little frustrated so far. I guess because I've already learned one foreign language and we did it in a much more structured and step by step manner, this has been very difficult and confusing.
Spanish culture I find interesting though. I am going to Chile for spring break, so I'm thrilled that I'll get a chance to experience some of it first hand, espcially because I'll be in a metropolitan area (Santiago) for a little while, but then go out to the absolute boondocks in a town called Chiu Chiu, which is near the tri border of Chile, Bolivia, and Agentina. Most of the time, we won't even be in a city, we'll be in a geyser field doing research, so I'm betting the people we meet won't have had much experience with Americans. That's the other thing that confuses me. I don't really understand why Latin countries would get mad that we refer to ourselves as Americans. Yes, they are all from a continent with the word America in it, but our country is literally named America, and we are referred to as thus throughout most of the world. I don't call myself a United Statian, I call myself an American. That's one of those cultural boundaries I just don't get. For the most part, I love hispanic culture. I used to live very near Juarez, so I visited Mexico a lot, and I have many hispanic friends. They're all so exciting and energetic, I love it. And they're very affectionate, which I like, because I think Americans can be rather cold sometimes.
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