Reading Books in Spanish

Since starting this blog, we tend to give semi-regular updates on how our Spanish skills are progressing. I thought I’d take the opportunity to give another based on a recent achievement – I read my first book in Spanish. A real book bought from a real bookstore; not something you might read as part of your studies (i.e., a book with a particular skill level in mind – these exist, and I did read one a while back). Here’s how it happened.

We read the local paper, the Diario Vasco, about four times a week. Both to keep informed about local and national events and to keep our Spanish skills sharp. Overall, its level of writing is closer to USA Today than the NY Times. We can read it cover to cover but still have issues with articles about politics and the economy – more on a conceptual level than a linguistic one because there are significant differences between various aspects of the systems here and in the US. The editorial pages can be difficult, but we don’t focus on them much other than letters to the editor.

A few months back there was an article about a new book written by a Basque journalist, Mikel Ayestaran, who is a Middle East correspondent living in Jerusalem. I read the article and was intrigued to see if I could read and enjoy the book, Jerusalén, santa y cautiva – Desde el corazón de la Ciudad Vieja a la eternidad (Capitalization in Spanish has odd rules. “Jerusalem, Holy and Captivating – From the Heart of the Old City to Eternity”). Having lived in Jerusalem for a year (1989-1990) and visited many times, the topic is familiar territory, and I thought it would be interesting to get a totally different perspective on the city.

I downloaded a sample of the book on my Kindle to see if the writing was manageable and it was. I then went and bought a copy from a wonderful local bookshop. The book recounts the author’s experiences and focuses on each quarter of the Old City, its holy sites and history. It was broken up into brief chapters and sections. I gave myself two months to finish it. Lo and behold I finished sooner.

I enjoyed the book for many reasons. As expected, a Spanish, non-Jewish writer (who has not been indoctrinated about Israel in the manner that Jewish-American youth are) provided a distinct viewpoint that was edifying and candid. The writing was clean and easy to follow, an obvious benefit of a journalist author. His anecdotes were entertaining and the details intriguing. His experiences were both familiar and foreign. I had to use my dictionary plenty of times, but less often than I might have expected because the subject matter was known to me. I laughed at some of the Spanish vocabulary – he used “sequéles” for shekels, which confused me momentarily because I read it is sequels.

It was such a positive experience that I wanted to get another book; but how to choose? Non-fiction is the easier option due to a more direct writing style, yet I wasn’t sure in what direction I wanted to go. I went back to that charming bookstore to ask for a recommendation. My new friend, Santi, one of the managers, remembered me and was more than happy to help. He recommended Los senderos del mar, Un viaje a pie (Paths by the Sea, a Journey on Foot) by Maria Belmonte, about the author’s experience hiking the Basque coast and I thought it would be perfect. Once again, a familiar and interesting topic. I’m working my way through it now.

We can read certain books, we can watch some television without subtitles, and recently we have navigated some more complex medical appointments. After nearly four years here, our Spanish is getting there!

Hasta pronto,

Shana 

Officially Traded from Team Placebo to Team Pfizer

Good news: we received our second dose of the Pfizer vaccine on 24 June, so we’ll be “fully vaccinated” as of 8 July. It seems like it took forever to happen, but ultimately it happened much faster than expected. We fully admit to having vaccine envy, especially as all our nephews (even the 12-year-old) got vaccinated before we did. Although the vaccination campaign here got off to a slow start, the pace has definitely picked up, and the national and regional governments get full kudos for getting the job done. We expect that Spain will reach the theoretical 70% herd immunity before the US (on a national basis). So here are a few details of how it all happened.

Because I was participating in the Curevac Herald Study it was initially unclear what would happen if our age group became eligible before that vaccine got approval. The press had been positive on Curevac’s early results and there was a lot of optimism. But our turn came before approval, and now we know that Curevac may not get approval at all. More on that in a moment.

We monitored the news as the Basque health service started vaccinating the 50-59 age range. After vaccinating the elderly, healthcare workers and other high-risk groups, Spain is using an age-based approach. My discussions with friends indicated we would be eligible as May ended. On Monday (31 May), I called the vaccine “hotline” for those having trouble using the electronic appointment system. Because we are not eligible for the public health system, we us private health insurance. However, the entire vaccination process is being run through the public health system, so we needed help. When I finally got through, I learned that we needed to go to the local clinic to have a profile created in the public health system first. That afternoon an extremely helpful clerk not only set us up, but also called and got us appointments to get our first shots on 3 June. We were so grateful.

In San Sebastian, most vaccinations are being done at the former bullring/current basketball stadium. We arrived and were stunned at how quickly it transpired – we were in an out in just over 15 minutes (including the mandatory waiting time after the shot). The second appointment is automatically set for the same time three weeks later. Here’s a look at how the arena has been transformed.

Thankfully, the side effects after both shots have been minimal.

Before the first appointment I contacted the study to confirm that I had been given the placebo, and as I suspected I was on “Team Placebo.” Because our area was still experiencing a high number of cases, I was released from the study to be vaccinated. While receiving the placebo seemed disappointing back in February/March, things sure have changed. First, the expected approval in late May/early June did not occur as anticipated. Second, on June 16 Curevac announced disappointing preliminary results – a 47% effective rate at preventing the virus, far below the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines. As a result, tt now appears that the vaccine may not get approval at all. Although the new variants may have played a role in the poor results, some believe it could be the dose or the fact that Curevac relied on natural mRNA. (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01661-0) All in all, getting the placebo was the lucky hand in this game of chance. My friend who received the vaccine has since gotten a first Pfizer dose, but it is unclear whether a second dose will be given as well. That kind of uncertainty and the mixing and matching of vaccines, even of an ineffective one, seems potentially risky.

Having now been vaccinated with an established vaccine has been a relief and we are starting to make plans to travel again, which could lead to more blog posts in the future.

That’s it for now.

Shana & Jeff

May 2021 Update: The Proverbial Light at the End of the Tunnel?

Well, May is almost gone, and overall things have not changed much here. While the “state of alarm” ended on May 9, allowing us to move more freely throughout the city, province, and country, ultimately that hasn’t impacted us much. We can stay out past 10 p.m. and travel anywhere we want within Spain, but we are not “painting the town red” just yet because we haven’t been vaccinated, and while the case numbers have gone down, they still aren’t great. There is however light at the end of the tunnel as we expect to be vaccinated early next month. (If I really am on Team Placebo, I’ll drop out of the study and get one of the approved vaccines.)

We’ve started making plans despite the fact that disappointment is still looming large. We’ll be celebrating our 25^th wedding anniversary on June 2^nd and we planned a little getaway to “exotic” Hondarribia, the coastal town that is across the border from France (about 10 miles from here). We have reservations to stay at the Parador Hondarribia, which is a former 10^th century castle converted into a hotel. The Spanish and Portuguese governments have repurposed these types of medieval and other vintage castles and forts to luxury hotels, and we’ve always wanted to stay in one. We figured this was a great chance as it is before the high summer season making the prices affordable. Unfortunately, many of the things we want to do next week may not be available at all. The best restaurants are not open mid-week currently and the small boat that runs between Hondarribia and Hendaye, the first French town across the border, is not operating due to COVID related border restrictions. We were hoping to rent bikes in Hendaye and cycle north perhaps as far as Biarritz. Knowing that we can’t take the easiest and most charming route to Hendaye and that the restaurants we wanted to reserve were going to be closed, we are seriously considering canceling and rescheduling for another time. While it would be nice to get away, if you can’t do the things you want, what is the point? Instead, we would go out to a nice lunch in San Sebastian to commemorate the special occasion. We’ll plan to make a few other local excursions once we’re fully vaccinated. 

We also made plans to return to the US in late September. 22 months will have passed since our last visit in November 2019. We’ll be in California and will also get to Kauai, one of our favorite places in the world. It will be good to see family and friends in person. Zoom and Skype have proven their value, but let’s face it, there’s nothing like a nice warm hug from the people you love.

We’ll keep you posted as things evolve.

Hasta pronto,

Shana & Jeff 

Team Placebo

To put it politely, Europe is struggling to get its population vaccinated. So, when the opportunity to participate in a vaccine study came along at the end of January, I thought it might be worth pursuing. If you had asked me six months before that to participate in such a study, I would had said “no way, Jose!” But with the success of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, I figured that this could be one way to get vaccinated before I might otherwise, and well, “for the science,” and all that.

I signed up for the trial and initially didn’t hear anything. It turns out that many people were willing to participate, and they had more than 1,500 volunteers for 1,000 spots here. In the end, everyone was invited to participate because enough people were disqualified or chose to not to enroll after all. The study will last for two years and requires five in-person appointments, plus three telephonic follow-up calls within the first year, and four more the following year. Participants who receive the placebo will be entitled to receive the vaccine if it is approved. I knew going in that the proposed vaccine is an mRNA project (like Pfizer and Moderna) by a German company called Curevac.

I was excited, and then I was a bit intimidated. First, because I had never done anything remotely similar, and second because I would be doing this all in Spanish. I admit I was nervous, but I was lucky that my friend Carol had her first appointment the day before mine, so her description of what would happen and where to be was super helpful. I carefully reviewed the 15-page informed consent and description of the study, which took a long time to review in Spanish!

At the first appointment (February 24), I checked in and was promptly asked to take a pregnancy test because pregnant women are excluded from the trial. While I explained that I knew with absolute certainty that I was not and could not be pregnant, I still had to take the test. It was negative. I then met with a doctor who reviewed the consent form with me, which we then signed. The next step was a blood draw. After that, a nurse took my vital signs, and I received an injection. As this is a “gold standard,” stage three, double-blind study, no one knew what I received. I then had to wait 30 minutes to see if I had any adverse reaction, after which I met with the nurse and had my vital signs taken again. While I was waiting, I was given instructions on how to use the study’s “app” and provided an oral thermometer as we need to monitor our temperature and report it, along with any symptoms, twice a week. After all that, which took about two hours, I was free to go.

I had no symptoms or adverse effects from my first shot, not even a sore arm. This was disappointing, but not unexpected since everyone had a 50% chance of receiving the placebo or vaccine. But since many people have no effects after a first vaccine shot, I could not be sure what I had received. I dutifully recorded my lack of symptoms and my temperature using the app twice a week. I have now taken my temperature more times in the past several weeks than I have in my lifetime. It is somewhat interesting how it varies from day to day.

The second appointment (March 25) was practically identical to the first, only there was no blood draw. The physician meeting focused on my lack of any reaction to the injection and lack of any COVID symptoms. I received my second injection, dutifully waited, and went home hoping I would soon feel like I got hit by a truck – a sure sign that I got the vaccine. Only I felt fine – perfectly fine. Again, not even a sore arm. Thus, I’m nearly certain that I am on “Team Placebo.” How disappointing. But that was obviously possible and is part of the process.

My third appointment (April 8) was a quick and easy follow up in which a nurse took my vitals, I again explained to a doctor that I had no adverse effects after the second shot and no COVID symptoms, and had my blood drawn. The next follow-ups will be in June and September. In the interim, I’ll keep monitoring for symptoms and taking my temperature twice a week.

Since my first appointment I’ve done a bit of research on Curevac and am keeping track of its progress in the approval process as much as possible. The good news is that so far things are looking promising and that the company has been submitting data on a rolling basis to the European approval authorities to speed things up. It is unclear when the approval process will finish, but this week they confirmed that they hope to be approved by May or June. If you’re curious about the company, which happens to be the one that Trump supposedly wanted to buy, here’s a link to the best article I’ve read so far:  https://www.irishtimes.com/business/health-pharma/how-vaccine-laggard-curevac-hopes-to-come-out-on-top-1.4493799

While it is possible that we could be “eligible” to be vaccinated before the vaccine is approved, perhaps at the earliest late May (although there seem to be new delays on a daily basis), my plan is to stick with the study. Because we are not part of the Spanish national health system, getting vaccinated is going to be one of those “fun” challenges as the regional health services are responsible for administering the entire vaccination program and we are not on their radar. I’ve checked with our private insurance carrier, which is a Spanish company, who confirmed that are not involved and have no control over the vaccination process. We’ll be figuring it out for Jeff when the time comes. I’m sure it will make for an interesting future blog post.

Hasta luego,

Shana

La Copa Del Rey

European soccer (futbol) is weird. Each country has multiple leagues with the top teams in lower leagues moving up (promotion) and bottom teams moving down (relegation) each year. In addition, there are European-wide leagues (Europa League and Champions League) that teams in the top national leagues qualify for each year. For example, each year Spain's top league, La Liga, sends its best four finishers to the Champions League, while its fifth and sixth place finishers go to the Europa League. In essence its wall-to-wall futbol.

In Spain (and perhaps in other countries as well), there is also a national tournament, El Campeonato de Espana-Copa de Su Majestad El Rey or La Copa del Rey. This tournament allows all of the professional teams in Spain (all 126 of them) to compete regardless of the level of their league. Of course, the teams from La Liga dominate the tournament, but there can be interesting upsets by teams from lower-ranked leagues.

So, why are we writing about this now? Well, tonight is the final of La Copa 2020, which was delayed a year due to Covid, and not only is the team from San Sebastian, La Real Sociedad, in the final, but they will be playing their arch rivals Athletico Bilbao in the first-ever final meeting for these teams in almost 120 years of La Copa.

To say this is a big deal in the Basque Region would be an understatement. News coverage has been extensive for several weeks, but the last few days have been crazy. In yesterday's paper (no paper today because of Semana Santa (holy week)), the first 40 pages were dedicated to the game, with additional articles in each major section of the paper -- politics, economics, culture. And, this was the day after they published a 62-page (!) special insert. It is like the Super Bowl on steroids.

Frankly, we really did not understand why this was such a big deal. And, since we are not huge soccer fans we had not been following the build-up closely, although we were aware that Real was in the final. But then, yesterday, The Guardian newspaper out of England published an article that explained why this is such a big deal, so we decided to write about it.

It turns out that the Basque Derby (which is what the Real-Athletico rivalry is called), is more than just a rivalry. Up until 1989, both teams maintained an unwritten policy of not signing non-Basque players. Athletico continues that policy to today. Of the 25 players to appear in La Liga for Athletico this year, 21 are Basque and four are from Navarre, which was historically a Basque territory although not part of the modern Basque Region of Spain. The numbers for Real are 17 Basque players and two from Navarre of 28 who have appeared. In essence, this final is like a civil war. However, it turns out, it is a very friendly civil war with fans of the two teams mixing both in the stadium (normally) and among the population. In the end, the people put their Basque identity above the rivalry.

At the 1976 final, which took place less than one year after the death of the dictator Francisco Franco, and during a time when the Basque flag was still illegal, the captains of Real and Athletico (which won the game against a team from Sevilla) carried the flag into the stadium:

As you can imagine, this relationship goes well beyond futbol.

Given the nature of this rivalry, both teams agree that having their fans present for the game is of utmost importance. So, when the final was first delayed because of Covid, the teams agreed that they wanted to wait to play the game until they could do so in front of their fans (the game is played at a pre-determined site, this one in Sevilla). Unfortunately, the final for the 2021 Copa is scheduled for two weeks from today (Athletico is in that one as well against Barcelona, the most successful Copa team of all time with 30 titles), and the people who organize the tournament said they would not allow the 2021 final to happen before the 2020 final. So, the game will have to go on without fans in the stadium. But, you can bet that almost every TV in the Basque Region, including ours, will be tuned in to the game at 9:30 pm tonight.

We can't wait to see what the post-game news coverage looks like. Especially if Real Sociedad wins!

Hasta pronto,

Jeff and Shana

The New York Times and San Sebastian

Twice in the past few months funny little stories that highlight a little nugget about life in San Sebastian have appeared in The New York Times – well, funny to us at least. How is it that our small corner of the world has had such odd luck? Is it coincidence? Random circumstance? Or perhaps something more? Before attempting to answer, let me tell you about the stories.

The first story, published in December, featured “Basque Burnt Cheesecake” from La Viña, a beloved restaurant/pintxo bar in the Old City of San Sebastian, as the “Flavor of the Year.” This cheesecake is world-renowned, from Turkey to Japan to the US. We understand that this local wonder has become a pandemic trend in cities like San Francisco, and we can vouch for its tastiness. We take everyone who visits us to La Viña for a slice of heaven and a glass of Pedro Ximénez sherry. It is so popular that it often sells out. Being generous, the chef has not kept the recipe a secret, so if you’re looking for something delicious to make, here’s the recipe. A very good friend who visited and had the original has confirmed its magic can be duplicated at home. We look forward to getting back to La Viña when it is safe to be back in a packed bar.

The second story, published this week, introduced us to the “Rocket Man of San Sebastian,” the man who shoots off rockets when a goal is scored in the city’s soccer stadium. One rocket for an opponent’s goal, two rockets for a goal by Real Sociedad, the local La Liga team. No joke, an actual feature on this local tradition that started in 1960. We’ve heard the rockets many times, both at a game and if we happen to be in the neighborhood. You must listen carefully to make sure there’s a second “boom” before getting excited for the team, which makes it fun. We’re not that into the team but we follow its trials and tribulations from a distance. They are a typical underdog always trying to overachieve, i.e., “wait until next year” is the proverbial refrain.

What makes these stories amusing is that they result in a feature in our local paper. A “Wow, this is such a big deal that the NYT mentioned us, we must celebrate” kind of piece. San Sebastian is a small town after all. Yet it rates world-class attention on many levels. You do know that we also have the best city beach in all of Europe, right?

When we picked San Sebastian, we knew it offered a lot and it really has delivered. We hope that we’ll have more visitors sometime in the “near” future when all this pandemic chaos is at least partially resolved by mass vaccination.

Take care and stay healthy,

Shana & Jeff

February 2021 Update: Adopting and Adapting to Spanish Habits, Customs & Lifestyle

We’ve lived in Spain now for more than 3 and a half years. While we miss the opportunity to travel a lot, the pandemic has given us a deeper opportunity to appreciate what it is like to live here on a day-to-day basis. While many of these observations aren’t necessarily “new,” they reflect our updated perspective.

Here are some habits that we have whole heartedly embraced:

·         Shopping at small local businesses for most of our groceries. We go to at least 3 different butchers, a fishmonger, and multiple produce stands. Many of the purveyors recognize us and know what we like best. It’s a fun way to shop. It is so easy to support a “kilometer 0” approach here and to have a better idea of where things are coming from.

·         We eat lunch and dinner later here than we did in the US. While we haven’t gone full Spaniard – it makes no sense to eat dinner at 10 p.m.! – we have shifted our schedule later.

·         We used to avoid getting coffee to go. Spaniards drink and enjoy their coffee at a café/bar. Sadly, COVID has made coffee a “to go” item.

·         WhatsApp is essential. No one uses text messaging because it is not included in mobile phone plans like it is in the US. Plus, WA is much more versatile.

·         We like the style of healthcare delivery. Most physicians have an exam room within their office with more equipment available. It is more efficient.

·         Public transportation is efficient. We don’t miss having a car at all.

 

 And a few customs we haven’t accepted:

 

·         Primetime television starts at 10 p.m., after the 9 p.m. news, not at 8 p.m. like in the US. No thanks!

·         While we’ve adjusted our dinner time at home, we still take the first reservation available for dinner – 8:30 p.m. in most restaurants. We are often the first diners, but that’s fine with us. You get better service that way!

 

And then there are the things we are still figuring out. The biggest one is the political system, both locally and nationally. We understand the basic principles behind a parliamentary system, but each region has different political parties, and it is difficult to know which one stands for what. The recent elections in Catalunya required some research to appreciate the results, but we are still novices in this area. We are more familiar with the parties in the Basque region but aren’t exactly sure which party we would support, if we could vote. We’ll keep reading the newspaper to broaden our knowledge.

 

In the end, our lives are not that different from before. People are people after all. And now that we are proficient at and comfortable with Spanish, the intimidation factor has been eliminated to a large extent. We’ve even managed the pandemic and all the chaos that has brought so far, which confirms we are where we’re supposed to be.

 

Hasta pronto,

Shana & Jeff