Before we dive right into the laughable nature of my Spanish, I’d just like us to take a moment to appreciate the extent of my cleverness with this title.

Thank you.

So, my Star-Spanglish banner is the flag I proudly wave as an American living in Spain, getting by with the simple trick of mixing the little bits of Spanish I’ve learned with the easiest language on the planet English.

While Barcelona is home to one of the biggest international communities in Europe not to mention all the eye candy in the world, everyone seems to get by with just knowing basic

ES-PAN-YOHL. Up until I moved here, the “basics” to me were “hola” and “adios”. I mean, if we’re talking basic-basic here. All the while, I’m representing a country where most people tote their *insert cowboy accent here* “If you want to live in America, you need to learn to speak American” (but I’m guessing they mean English) flags around. So I wouldn’t dare come to live here with the expectations of Spanish natives accommodating to my unfortunate unilingual status. And I’ve got this sentence down-packed because of it. “Disculpeme, tengo una pregunta, pero lo siento, hablo muy poco espanol.” Translation: Excuse me, I have a question, but sorry, I speak very little Spanish. I usually follow up saying my question in English while throwing in a Spanish/Catalan word or two to make it look like I’m at least trying, which some most times, is really the case. And then they follow up with a warm smile, a shared laugh, and then the answer in Spanish at a Speedy Gonzalez pace. To which I laugh and plead “Ay! Despacio si us plau”. (Translation: Oh! Slowly, please). “Si us plau” is the Catalan way to say “please”, FYI. The Catalan dialect is an interesting one, and it’s a very common language in Barcelona and surrounding towns.

From what I’ve been told, it’s a mix of Spanish, Italian, and French, but is most similar to Spanish, of course. The more words I learn in both Catalan and Spanish, the more direct connotations I can make cross culturally with root words of other languages. Because clearly I was a linguist in another life.

On the contrary, it’s been a pleasant surprise to not only meet people who know a basic level of English, but go ahead and add on three other languages on top of that. It’s amazing. Like, why are you so cool and can you share some of your awesome???

And while it’s safe to say the biggest thing I’ve done since being here is tasting pig tongue (which, the judgements can stop here, because BACON, that’s why), in actuality, my shamelessness in learning as much as I can about the Spanish and Catalan language in just the 10 days, has been overwhelming, fun, and the greatest challenge I’ve had to encounter in my overseas adventures. So many things I’ve learned through trial and error, but it helps having new Spanish friends, language exchange groups, and a host family willing to correct me at any and every chance they get, haha. And why did no one tell me that that ‘v’ sound is actually the ‘b’ sound? So the word green, verde, is actually pronounced berde. Cool. I guess that’s not confusing at all for someone who’s practiced otherwise for 24+ years. Also, the ‘c’ sound is a ‘th’ sound. Otherwise known as the “Spanish lisp”. Although I’d much rather say Gracias as it’s spelled, if I hear everyone around me saying “grathias” then I really have no choice but to fit in and succumb to peer pressure. 

Catalonia, which I’m learning more and more about every day living with a Catalan family, used to a be a nation of its own almost three centuries ago until the Spanish government broke down their walls and forced rule over their territory. Ever since then, Catalan people hang their independence flags outside their window, cars, and balconies (as displayed in the picture above) to show their longing desire for freedom from the Spanish government and their pride for the people and four provinces that make up the Catalan community. Barcelona, being one of the biggest cities in Spain, has a very large Catalan population. And even with the small phrases and sentences I’ve learned in that language, when I use it, as a non-native, African-American, horrible-accent-having person, they gleam with joy because it’s a symbol of their culture being passed on from one person to another. It’s beautiful.

While I can be found most days slurping down gazpachos and dabbling in local tapas, in between that, I’m usually searching, practicing, and pronouncing several different Spanish phrases with the offline Spanish dictionary I conveniently downloaded from Google. It takes up a TON of space on my phone, and while I had to sacrifice an ungodly amount of selfies delete several files, I think I will survive. RIP to the Santorini Selfies.

Living with my Catalan host family has given me some of the best laughs I’ve had in a long time. It’s funny how communicating by switching between three different languages makes things so much funnier. Things usually sometimes get lost in translation, but I’ve learned to speak slower to help minimize that. I’ve also become a master at Charades because of this. Body language is everything and some actions are incredibly awkward pretty fun to act out!

Here’s a small list just to share a couple funny phrases from my host parents between what they said versus what they meant:

Planification >>> Extended plans/schedule

Sentence: “So what are your planifications for this weekend?”

Kiwis >>> Queues (a British word for lines)

Sentence: “There are two kiwis, but don’t worry, we are next!” Please try to imagine this one being said with a serious face. Oh, how I die.

Have a luck! >>> Good luck!

Sentence: “Ok, bye! Lucky-lucky! I mean -- have a luck!” *insert laugh* “Wait, is that right?”

Sausage >>> Sauce

Sentence: “You should try and dip the potato in the sausage too!”

Sensation >>> Feeling (this might be the funniest, just because we joke about this at least 5x a day). Although it was an honest mistake, I have a “sensation” about this doesn’t quite mean the same thing as having a “feeling” about something. Oh, the laughs. So plentiful.

Sentence: “I have a sensation that this might be a good idea.” Although, it took a few minutes after for her to finish her statement, because we cut her off at sensation with our “sensation” of laughter.

There were sooo many more and I kick myself for not starting to write them down sooner, but I’m sure they’ll give me a novel full by the time I leave. And while I help them improve their English by first laughing, and then correcting their mistakes, they too, poke fun at my horrific Spanish, so the ridicule most definitely goes both ways. They correct me just as soon as my Americanness takes over; which is quite often.

I’d also like to add that this siesta life was made for this creature. My goodness. Every day at 3pm on the dot, you can find me siesta-ing it up, back in my PJ’s, under the sheets.

It’s sometimes the best part of my day, and knowing that most nearby restaurants shut down during this time too, is all the more comforting. Imagine living in a place where everyone takes one long nap together. Like, can you imagine how much happier people would be? This is also a good reason why their discotecas and night clubs don’t open until midnight. Lord have all the mercy. I took one for the team last weekend and soon realized #iaintboutdatlife and that the midnight to 7am weekend lifestyle is something you need to train your mind, body, and soul for. I think my body everything still hurts. And it’s been five whole days since.

So while I wave my Star-Spanglish Banner in hopes of one day becoming fluent in this ever-so-colorful language, the best I can do until then, is nod my head every five seconds and go “Ahhh, si, si!” and hope that anything and everything I’m ever asked is a yes or no question. But here’s to the art of trying, and the majestic skill of failing over and over, but still wanting to try again. My Star-Spanglish Banner, I wave thee loud and proud.

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