Spanish Frustrations

Yesterday we went to church at la Iglesia de Christo which is actually right next door to the building in which we live and study. ACU and the church have a working agreement for the ownership of the entire building itself (which I’ve been told is complicated, and I haven’t pushed for more information). “Casa ACU” and the church are actually located in a refurbished coffee and tea (café y té) factory, which I’ll try to impart more information on that later when I give you a picture tour of the place. Stay tuned on CCCC2008 for that…!
But what I really wanted to talk about was some of my Spanish frustrations. It’s been rough not being able to communicate with anyone outside of our little “compound” here at the Casa. Even buying bread and meat is more of a chore. I guess I should have tried harder to study some Spanish before taking the plunge into a 4 month study abroad experience! (Mom, that’s your cue to say “I told you so…”) The grocery is the place that I’ve found is the most frustrating because it’s loud and busy and I feel that if I try to stumble through some Spanish, I’m wasting peoples’ time. Garrrr!
Going back to my first statement though, I had a much better experience with attempting Spanish with the people at church. People there were really understanding and willing to talk slower and repeat themselves. We all had to get up and say who we were and a little about ourselves and I felt like I did okay: Me llamo Colter. Soy de Montana y tengo una hermana. Se llamas Larkin y tiene 17 an(~)os… etc. The biggest question they ask all the girls is: “Tienes uno novio?” (Do you have a boyfriend?) and everyone laughs!
Then we started class today and we went to Spanish. I’m so excited to be in this accelerated learning environment and really picking up a bit of Spanish. I just have to get over my fear of messing up or seeming obtrusive as I develop my Spanish skills.