Gathered together to celebrate the fourth of July!
On Wednesday (7/4), we all headed over to the Merendero Dos Caminos (a restaurant just a couple miles beyond the edge of town in the countryside) around 9pm to begin the evening's celebrations. Host families, instructors and students all gathered 'neath the old red, white and blue to get a little taste of America (albeit with a healthy dose of Spanish flare).
***
The host families sat at long tables in a semi-circle around the two central tables (covered in American flags and sodas) where the students got together to eat and celebrate.
To start the evening, there was a lot of mingling -- we instructors wandered around, talking to students as we waited for everyone to arrive.
It was, of course, also a time for pictures.
A small group photo, as people were still trickling in by 9:15. Those of us who were there already were pretty hungry by now, since the last meal we'd eaten was in the school cafeteria at 2:15. (Although knowing some of the students, I'm sure many had stopped by the ice cream parlor near the school for a snack after class... :-) )
Pictures being taken all over the place. Everyone wanted to get a shot with the American flags. The restaurant really went all out for our celebration.
Almost everyone's here!
Oh say can you see... (We actually did sing the Star-Spangled Banner for the host families once everyone had showed up -- some people knew the words, and those who didn't hummed along!)
It's funny -- Sofia doesn't mind other people taking her picture. Is it me? Gosh. Food for thought...
A stylish look on Ben there.
One of the host families brought along an American flag they bought years ago for students in the program, and it got a lot of use!
A couple students managed to persuade their host parents into the chaos for pictures.
Here's Juan, joining in on the fun.
There we go! That's the smile I've been looking for, Juan!
Selfie time!
Most of the rest of us were just hanging out, waiting for the picture-taking to end and the food to arrive.
Ah. Time to get everyone together for a group picture!
Cheese! Or, as we say in Spanish, patatas!
Here's everyone gathering to sing the Star-Spangled Banner at long last. It took a lot of convincing on Juan's part to get everyone to agree to give it a shot.
A couple host parents shot footage during the singing. There was a nice round of applause once the students had finished, too!
Another student-host parent photo!
Finally, it was time for the food! Look, there's even American flags on the cups and napkins!
Is this someone else who didn't plan on being photographed?!
You too, Hannah? C'mon guys! It's for the blog.
It was around 9:45 by the time the food finally started coming out, and dusk was upon us.
A typical American meal of hamburgers, fries and chicken fingers. Wait, do those three usually go together? Ah well, chalk it up to that bit of "Spanish flare" I mentioned earlier.
Ha! I got a picture of Jennifer smiling, rather than trying to duck away from the camera! Although I don't think she realized I was taking the picture...
The drink choices included Coke, Water, Lemon Fanta (basically carbonated lemonade) and Orange Fanta. The Lemon Fanta disappeared quickly -- many have said it's their favorite Spanish beverage.
***
Once the meal had ended, there was time for a couple more pictures before we turned up the music and the dancing begun.
Now, time for everyone to hit the dance floor!
Some of the songs the students knew from the Farewell Show preparation. The rest were student suggestions that we had gathered together. The dancing carried on until close to midnight -- almost two hours of it! Luckily, we instructors had anticipated this, and class didn't start the next morning until 11a (so everyone had the chance to sleep in a little)!
I wasn't able to get too many pictures, given all the movement and the low lighting. Everyone is just a blur of dancing and movement.
***
The host families sat at long tables in a semi-circle around the two central tables (covered in American flags and sodas) where the students got together to eat and celebrate.
To start the evening, there was a lot of mingling -- we instructors wandered around, talking to students as we waited for everyone to arrive.
It was, of course, also a time for pictures.
A small group photo, as people were still trickling in by 9:15. Those of us who were there already were pretty hungry by now, since the last meal we'd eaten was in the school cafeteria at 2:15. (Although knowing some of the students, I'm sure many had stopped by the ice cream parlor near the school for a snack after class... :-) )
Pictures being taken all over the place. Everyone wanted to get a shot with the American flags. The restaurant really went all out for our celebration.
Almost everyone's here!
Oh say can you see... (We actually did sing the Star-Spangled Banner for the host families once everyone had showed up -- some people knew the words, and those who didn't hummed along!)
It's funny -- Sofia doesn't mind other people taking her picture. Is it me? Gosh. Food for thought...
A stylish look on Ben there.
One of the host families brought along an American flag they bought years ago for students in the program, and it got a lot of use!
A couple students managed to persuade their host parents into the chaos for pictures.
Here's Juan, joining in on the fun.
There we go! That's the smile I've been looking for, Juan!
Selfie time!
Most of the rest of us were just hanging out, waiting for the picture-taking to end and the food to arrive.
Ah. Time to get everyone together for a group picture!
Cheese! Or, as we say in Spanish, patatas!
Here's everyone gathering to sing the Star-Spangled Banner at long last. It took a lot of convincing on Juan's part to get everyone to agree to give it a shot.
A couple host parents shot footage during the singing. There was a nice round of applause once the students had finished, too!
Another student-host parent photo!
Finally, it was time for the food! Look, there's even American flags on the cups and napkins!
Is this someone else who didn't plan on being photographed?!
You too, Hannah? C'mon guys! It's for the blog.
It was around 9:45 by the time the food finally started coming out, and dusk was upon us.
A typical American meal of hamburgers, fries and chicken fingers. Wait, do those three usually go together? Ah well, chalk it up to that bit of "Spanish flare" I mentioned earlier.
Ha! I got a picture of Jennifer smiling, rather than trying to duck away from the camera! Although I don't think she realized I was taking the picture...
The drink choices included Coke, Water, Lemon Fanta (basically carbonated lemonade) and Orange Fanta. The Lemon Fanta disappeared quickly -- many have said it's their favorite Spanish beverage.
***
Once the meal had ended, there was time for a couple more pictures before we turned up the music and the dancing begun.
Now, time for everyone to hit the dance floor!
Some of the songs the students knew from the Farewell Show preparation. The rest were student suggestions that we had gathered together. The dancing carried on until close to midnight -- almost two hours of it! Luckily, we instructors had anticipated this, and class didn't start the next morning until 11a (so everyone had the chance to sleep in a little)!
I wasn't able to get too many pictures, given all the movement and the low lighting. Everyone is just a blur of dancing and movement.
That just about wraps things up for the Independence Day party. Everyone danced until their legs were sore, sang until they needed more Coca Cola, and no doubt had enough sugar and caffeine in them when they headed home that it took a while to fall asleep. But come Thursday (7/5), things were back to normal, and everyone was just about ready for our excursion to Madrid. I'll be posting pictures tomorrow from that trip, as well as a quick update of plans for our final week (it's already here. Crazy, right?!) here in Ciudad Real.
Thanks for dropping by!
-M