A Semester in Salamanca

By Rachel Fischer

Rachel Fischer in Salamanca, Spain

Studying abroad is arguably the most life-changing experience that college can offer. Whether it’s learning a new language, living in a city for the first time, traveling alone, or trying new foods, it presents you with a constant string of opportunities to learn, have fun, and try new things. By the end of it all you wonder if any of it was real, even if you were pinching yourself every second along the way.

For me, studying abroad was something that I always wanted to do. I’ve been studying Spanish for nine years, which is nearly half of my life. I don’t remember ever consciously making studying abroad a goal of mine, but it was a goal nonetheless and it felt amazing to achieve. After all, while I may have only been abroad for one semester, it was the cumulative effort of nine years of practice and hard work. All that time paid off in what turned out to be the most important experience of my life thus far.

Now, don’t be deceived. I was terrified to study abroad. On my last day in the states, I could hardly function. I wasn’t driving across the state for another semester with my friends at Fredonia. I was about to hop on a plane and fly across the Atlantic Ocean to a foreign county with a bunch of people I hardly knew to live with strangers and learn a second language. I considered backing out more than a handful of times. I didn’t though and, before I knew it, I was in Spain. 

More specifically I was in Salamanca, a small town two hours west of Madrid and home to Spain’s oldest university, La Universidad de Salamanca. It was there that I spent my semester. I took classes with fellow international students at the university, I lived with a host family, and I experienced life as a Spaniard.Living with a host family was definitely the most impactful part of my time abroad. I had my worries about living with strangers, but from the very first moment they were nothing but friendly and welcoming. I had a host mom, a host dad, and two twin seven-year-old host brothers. They were all very patient in the beginning as I became accustomed to the new customs and speaking Spanish. My parents would help me with my homework and my host brothers would always ask to play games before dinner. I was so lucky to be able to live in a home with children. They’re enthusiastic and playful and they never shut up. My house was always lively and full, and as a result I was constantly using and being exposed to Spanish. I didn’t have any trouble speaking, but I had a lot of trouble comprehending my family. It is one thing to hear a language in a quiet classroom setting, but it is a whole other thing to try to understand your host mom shouting from upstairs as she’s vacuuming while you have two seven year olds throwing paper airplanes around the living room. It got easier with time, though, and by the end of my semester I had no problems communicating whatsoever.

My classes were also a major part of studying abroad. After all, I was in Spain to learn! I took classes at the university with other international students. At first, I was sad that I wouldn’t be able to take classes with Spaniards. However, taking classes with international students proved to be an unforgettable experience. My peers were not only from all over the United States, but they were also from Korea, Japan, Taiwan, China, Russia, Poland, England, Quebec, and Brazil. Studying with them allowed to me make global connections and friendships that will last a lifetime as well as learn about other cultures. I was also able to meet Spaniards through university-organized language exchanges. The majority of the time, I didn’t even feel like I was studying. My classes were refreshing, engaging, and conversation based.  And, when class was over, the lessons continued. That’s the great thing about learning a language abroad: the entire country is your classroom. 

Besides living and studying in Spain, I was also able to do a lot of traveling on the weekends. During my semester abroad, I visited the Spanish cities of Madrid, Seville, Toledo, and Grenada. I was also able to travel to other countries such as Italy, The Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, France, and England. On the weekdays, I was falling in love with Spain. On the weekends, I was falling in love with the rest of the world. Traveling is such a rewarding experience. There isn’t anything quite like walking into The Coliseum for the first time. Nothing can compare to touring the Anne Frank House in The Netherlands. I will never forget having a quiet lunch in a pub in Ireland and I will cherish the selfie that I took with the Mona Lisa forever. It’s impossible to choose a favorite country or experience from my time abroad, because each country I saw and each moment I experienced was so incredible in its own way. Studying in Spain not only allowed me to experience Spanish life, language, and culture, but it also allowed me to take a glimpse into life all over Europe.

At the end of my semester, the last thing I wanted to do was go home. It was true that I missed my family and friends, but I felt like Spain still had so much to offer me. The semester flew by and only left me wanting more. There was still so much to do, so many places to see, and so many people to meet. If there is one thing that studying abroad taught me it’s that my study abroad experience didn’t end when I returned the United States. It is something that I will carry with me forever and apply to my friendships, classes and career. I learned so much more than Spanish when I was in Salamanca. I learned how to adjust to new customs and norms. I learned how to interact with others from vastly different cultures. I saw the world from a different point of view, and I learned that hard work truly pays off. I know that these are lessons that I will never forget, and I’ll use them for the rest of my life. Studying abroad was the opportunity of a lifetime, and I will cherish the memories I made forever.

Victoria Carvelli: A French Major

Victoria Carvelli in Annecy, France

Meet Victoria Carvelli, junior, studying French from Jamestown, New York. Her interest of languages dates back to when she was little. She fondly remembers reading The Royal Diaries series , which depicts a fictional diary for various female figures as a child throughout world history.  While reading this series, Victoria became fascinated with Marie Antoinette who was Louis of France and was later executed during the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution. 

As Victoria’s interest in French progressed, she began to teach herself French with an old textbook she found. Starting her senior year of high school, Victoria started taking French classes. When it came to choosing a major in college, Victoria chose French because of her love of the language. 

As any language learner, Victoria has faced some challenges in learning French. In particular, thinking in French has been a challenge. Victoria believes that in order to speak well in French, you need to be able to think in French. Victoria experienced this firsthand when she studied abroad.  By thinking in French, speaking the language becomes easier. One cannot truly immerse his or herself in another language even if he or she is surrounded by the language if he or she is thinking in English. A language is like an onion, it has a lot of layers.

During her time studying French, Victoria has had the opportunity to study abroad in Annecy, France. Annecy is located on the eastern side of France, about an hour away from the Swiss border. It is nicknamed the Venice of the Alpes because it has canals running through its Old Town. The water is so clean in Annecy that you can drink it without filtration. Victoria described Annecy as beautiful with delicious food. Victoria’s tip for being abroad is to remember that you need to think differently when you’re abroad. This is your chance to experience another culture. This is the time to go outside of your comfort zone and outside of yourself. If given the opportunity to return to France, Victoria would like to visit Paris, however, she would also like to see the country in its entirety because each region is so uniquely different.

When asked what advice Victoria would give to someone studying a language, she said immersion is essential. You need to get yourself into the language as much as possible by reading, listening to music, watching movies or listening to the radio. Thinking in French will also really help improve your skills. In French, pronunciation is difficult so it is extremely important to use these tools because mispronouncing something can change the entire meaning of the word. 

Victoria’s favorite French class at Fredonia so far has been French Masterpieces. In this class, she has read intriguing and dark folklore such as La Barbe bleue and Rose d’or. She has also had the opportunity to read Tartuffe, which is a comedic play written by Molière. If Victoria could recommend any book to read in French, it would be Le Petit Prince because it is simply beautiful.

Like Water for Chocolate (Como agua para chocolate)

The film, “Like Water for Chocolate” was screened Monday, February 16th as part of the 2014-2015 Convocation Series, “Voyages of Discovery: Finding Family and Self in Film,” hosted by the Cross-Cultural Renga. Fredonia professor of Italian, Dr. Chiara De Santi, and chair of the World Languages department, Dr. Juan De Urda introduced the film. The movie is based on a novel in 1989 by first-time Mexican author, Laura Esquivel. De Urda stated that although he has both read the novel and watched the film, he is unable to determine which he did first due to the storylines of the film staying so close to the novel.   

The story of Tita, a young Mexican woman, is set around 1910 during the Mexican Revolution calling for change to political and social structure of Mexico. At this time American and French culture were being syncretized into Mexico and the film truly captures that, incorporating culture of both sides of the Mexican border. During this time gender roles played a huge part in society as it was customary and traditional for the oldest daughter to be married first regardless of who is in love, as well as the youngest daughter to never marry but stay and take care of her parents until they passed. Tita finds herself stuck in the limelight of this tradition although she is passionately in love with a man named Pedro. The style of the film is magic realism and several “supernatural” components come together to illustrate a beautiful forbidden love story.  The focus is on 3 main components throughout the film; food, love, and culture.

The film begins with Tita's birth where it is explained by a narrator that Tita cried a lot in her lifetime. Tita lost her father as a young girl and therefore the tradition of the youngest child taking care of the parents is very much emphasized and with a very strict mother, Tita knows she is a victim of the tradition. Subsequently, as she grows up, a man named Pedro falls in love with Tita. Pedro shows a passion for Tita that she cannot help but accept and desire to be with him. Although he is quite pushy and blunt with his love, Tita’s mother will not break tradition and instead offers her eldest daughter, Rosaura. Pedro accepts the offer, claiming that his love is strong for Tita and the purpose of the marriage is solely to live under the same roof as Tita and be closer to her. Tita is crushed about the marriage regardless of what Pedro says his intentions are, and the heartache takes a toll on Tita’s health and wellness. However, things do not go according to plan and after Rosaura and Pedro get pregnant and move away, Tita is left motionless and mentally unstable. Tita’s mother is consistently criticizing Tita until she finally stands up to her mother and moves in with a Doctor John, who she slowly becomes close with and almost marries. Tita’s mother dies and Tita opens her secret box to find that her mother was also frustrated by love and she feels like she and her mother were alike in that sense.

Pedro comes back into the picture with a new child with Rosaura and plot becomes complicated again. Tita cannot control her feelings for Pedro and in the end chooses him over Dr. John. The ghost of her mother appears and haunts Tita, accusing her of being an evil person and once Tita admits her detest for her mother, she finally gets closure and the ghost ceases haunting her. Meanwhile, Rosaura has made her intentions clear that she plans to not allow her only and thus youngest daughter to marry so that her daughter can take care of her, and the tradition is continued. Tita refuses to allow it and claims that she, herself, will be the last one to have to experience the terrible tradition. The story ends with a tragic Romeo and Juliet type scenario.

Throughout the film there are countless scenes of Tita cooking that seem to end in a bizarre turn of events. Tita bakes the wedding cake for Rosaura and Pedro and as she cooks she is crying. A tear falls into the batter and the guests at the wedding end up very sick from a type of food poisoning. When Tita makes a quail dish with passion she is feeling for Pedro and it is transferred into her sister Gertrudis who becomes overcome with lust and rides off with a passing revolutionary soldier. Food is a vital part of this culture and in Tita’s cooking the magic realism is portrayed.

"Like Water for Chocolate" is a romantic magic realism film that depicts a young woman's search for her identity in her family and herself.

The Joy of Discovering Proust

       On February 12th, 2015, a panel which included faculty members with a love of Marcel Proust from five different disciplines, presented the event: The Joy of Discovering Proust. This event was part of the 2014-2015 Convocation series. These panelists included: Dr. Ruth Antosh (World Languages), Dr. Birger Vanwesenbeeck (English), Dr. Jonathan Titus (Biology), Dr. Jacqueline Swansinger (History), and Dr. Robert Dahlgren (Curriculum & Instruction).
        As the panelists introduced themselves, each told their story of how they discovered Proust. Each professor had a similar introduction to Proust, they were in high school or college and decided to challenge themselves with reading Proust. Proust's oeuvre, À la recherche du temps perdu (In Search of Lost Time), includes seven volumes, which proves to be quite the challenging read. Proust's writing style is slow moving but unexpected. Proust writes eloquently, however, this beauty that is present in the French language is shown to a lesser extent in English. It was also stated that Proust's style stands on the border between traditional and modern French literature.
       In the first portion of the panel, each panelist read selected passages in French and English. These passages spoke to them and illustrated the beauty and splendor that is present in Proust's writing. Through these selected passages, the audience learned more about Proust. The workings of memory are an important element that is implemented throughout of his work. There are two different types of memory present, which is more visible in the French language. There is "souvenir," which is the object of memory. There is also "memoire," which is the process of memory. Throughout his work, Proust exams and explores these two different types of memory. 

       A short break was taken, during this time students and faculty had the opportunity to dip madeleines, a French butter cake, in tea. Madeleines became iconic through a famous literary passage of Proust's discussing the significance and discovery of memory and déjà vu as he is transported back in time when he tastes the madeleine.

       The focus of the second portion of this event was on Le Questionnaire de Proust. In 1890, when Proust was still a teenager, he completed an English-language questionnaire entitled "An Album to Record Thoughts, Feelings, etc." During this time, it was popular for English families to complete the list of questions, which would reveal the tastes and aspirations of the taker. Although there are varying degrees of complexity in the questions, each question requires the taker to reflection carefully before answering. There are questions such as one's favorite color and there are other questions such as the principal aspect of your personality. Proust answered each of these questions quite wittily, except for question four (your chief characteristics) , which he left blank. Each panelist and member of the audience was assigned a question at random and was given time to reflect upon his or her response. Afterwards, there was a large discussion about the results and how they compared to Proust's answers. 

       This event allowed students and faculty across various disciplines to discover, learn and discuss Proust. Proust's work is still applicable for readers today no matter their chosen discipline of study. With this discovery, students and faculty alike may have found a new favorite prose author. 

Let's start with excellent news: important national recognition for our Adolescen Ed programs

On behalf of the wonderful and hard working students, faculty and staff from the department of World Languages and Cultures, allow me to welcome you to this blog/newsletter. From these posts, we will on what it is learning a language, studying abroad. We will tell you how involved and dedicated our students and our clubs are.
But let's start with the best news: our French and Spanish Adolescence Education programs received last year National Recognition status through ACTFL and NCATE (currently being replaced by CAEP). You can read the note included in Fredonia's website and the press note that appeared in a newspaper of the area.
I want to emphasize that the recognition is a big achievement since only few programs in the nation has the status. It places our programs in a selected group. It acknowledges the high quality of the programs and it was possible through the very hard work of the program coordinator, Dr. Kate Douglass. Kudos to Dr. Douglass and to the department!