This past month of living in Ourense has been wonderful, overwhelming, inspiring, difficult, and everything in between. But now I feel that the initial settling in phase has ended and normal life is taking over. Now that I am working full weeks at a local high school, I am enjoying the opportunities to plan lessons and teach my students. I teach English classes and work with students ranging from the Spanish equivalent of the seventh to twelfth grades. As I try to create some structure to my life here, I'm enjoying finding a rhythm in Ourense.
One aspect of Spanish life that has been the most difficult for me to become accustomed to is the meal schedule. Spaniards usually eat lunch around 2:00 p.m. or 2:30 p.m. and dinner anytime from 8:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Lunch is usually the bigger meal and can take an average of two hours, while dinner is usually a smaller snack right before bed. Spaniards even refer to lunch solely as comida, or food, demonstrating how they view lunch as the main meal of the day. While this has definitely been a big change for me, I now find myself settling into the new schedule and getting hungry at Spanish meal times.
The siesta, or rest time, is taken very seriously in Spain and usually takes place from around 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
