soy lo que soy

its 3 pm and i am about to take a nap. i slept for 11 hours last night, i had a 2 hour nap the day before, and i slept for 9 hours before that. i guess i'm still adjusting to jet lag.

id say the 2 most american things about me so far are: my camelpack water bottle (its just as bad a waving an american flag) which i LOVE, i dont think i could live without it. and also, the fact that i get excited when i see chinese grocery stores. haha! apparently only chinese people shop in those...

so, some people here can really be freaks about trying to understand me when i'm speaking spanish. yes, obviouly i have an accent, but when i say "donde esta un phonehouse?" they should understand that i'm asking where there is a phonehouse. the girl stares at me like i am an alien, so i say "para los telefones mobiles..." to try and help her out ( for mobile phones) she just says "no...." and i KNOW FOR A FACT that there were like 5 phonehouses close to where we were because she was working in a shop in puerta del sol which is the most central plaza in madrid and there are seirously 5 if not more phonehouses...so her friend interupts and is like "ya theres one just up the street " (in spanish) some people just dont even try to understand you where as others are able to think ok i'm hearing the words "phone house" so shes probably asking for a phonehouse, even if i dont understand the other words shes saying. which, i know my accent isnt THAT BAD. sheesh.

im really really working hard to improve my spanish. it can be very scary living in a country where you are not fluent in the language they speak! i dont know how people can go to other countries as international students and get a degree! i have a clearer perspective on that now. i always sympathized, but now i empathize.

the spanish accent is hard:
d is pronounced like dth and sometimes like th
t is pronounced like d and sometimes like dth
p is pronounced like b
v is pronounced like B
ll is pronounced like j
y is sometimes pronounced like j
j is pronounced like kh
h is not pronounced
s is pronounced like sh
c and z are pronounced like th
g is pronounced like g and sometimes like gh

so my name here sucks. they cant pronounce shayan so they call me chayang. which is actually chayanne who is kind of the spanish equivalent of yanni...hes a really cheesy singer. so... not only can they not pronounce it but it also conjures up really ridiculous images of this loser. my name has given me hell in the only 3 languages i speak. english=cheyenne / farsi=boys name /  spain=chayanne male freak singer. que guay!

the weather here is very dry, i had a very small nose bleed and my skin is very dry. also its a bit dusty and my contacts bug me a bit but i'm getting used to it.

i cant beleive how many people here smoke!!!!! its so excessive! the other night when we were out for manuel's dinner his friends smoked 4 times THROUGHOUT dinner!!! smoking inside is perfectly acceptable i just cant beleive it. they have smoking and non smoking sections, but really you can smell it no matter what. but atleast you dont have direct smoke wafting into your eyes/nose while youre eating. oh ya when we were out at the irish pub, my eyes were burning from the smoke in the bar.

i walk here SO MUCH!!! everywhere! and even in the metro you have to walk up and down stairs a lot and also the place i am staying here is on the 5th floor (no elevator) i love walking. it feels good and also its fun to site see.

the shoes in spain are amazing! i have my eye on a pair of shoes that i want to buy when i get my first pay check. hopefully they will still be here when i get paid. so far i think this is what my expenses are:
310 for rent and internet /mo
60 for public transport ticket/mo
not sure how much the bills will be for water/garbage/electricity
and my phone is pay as you go. i think maybe i should do 30/month for the phone. i dont want to over use it.

ok i am very tired siesta time!
love you/miss you
xoxo