I stayed in Orio at Hur’s place. I finally got some sleep from 3:30am to 10:30am. (Jet lag can be hard on the body.) I walked into the dining room and Hur was already dressed. He was leaving to get some croissants and chocolate covered pastry. I logged on to the internet to check email and work on my blog.
The pastry he brought back was delicious and the espresso he made on his machine was very good. After we finished eating he said," we better go to the beach to play paddle ball and swim to work off our breakfast." So, off we went to the beach again. We played paddle ball for about 30 minutes and had one rally where we hit it back and fourth 110 times without a miss. This worked up a sweat on both of us so off to the water. The waves were not as big as yesterday, but just as refreshing. The temperature was around 75 degrees. After swimming we washed off the sand and salt in the outdoor showers. We found a place to dry off a bit before heading home. Hur had to get me back to Donosti so Chris and I could get the cafeteria ready for the Reunion event.
Hur drove me to the SUSA office where I met Chris. (I would have to do alot of driving to get use the the roadway system.)We went to the University Cafeteria to set up the screen for the slide show around 2pm. We hung it from the second level railing.
I went back to the apartment,not knowing if anyone would be there. No one was there to let me in. So, I went to the Marugame Bar Café below the apartment. This was the first time I was going to ask someone for something without an interpreter. I was starting to get a little anxious. I went up to the bar and said in a pathetic voice, “Coke.”
The lady behind the bar looked at me and said, “Koca-Kola.” I said, “Si.” Then I remembered it should have been in Basque, ”Bi”. Bi means “yes” in Basque. I did not ask her how much it would cost. I just handed her a 5 euro bill and she gave me 3 euros in coin. So I said to meyself,"Ok, it costs 2 euros for a Koka-Kola."
I sat at a side table next to the bar and fumbled with my back pack to get my journal to start to writing about today’s events. After about 15 minutes, I must have looked like a lonely, out of place American, a server (who I believe may have been the owner) walked by and casually slid a plate with a pintxo on it. He said something like, “don’t worry about it.” I immediately said, “muy bien.” I should have said, “eskerrik asko” which means thank you in Basque. If he did not know I was an American, he now knew I was a confused American. The pintxo was like a tuna salad topping, the meat was crab, on a baguette slice. It was just what I needed because I had only a banana and water for breakfast.
The Reunion was outstanding. This is the first time SUSA has attempted a fall Reunion. The purpose was to bring together the students and their families to celebrate their trip, meet some of the American families who hosted and for the staff to say a big thank you for entrusting us with their children. We were expecting around 80 people and 100 people showed up. The slideshow of students with their family and adventures in the USA was a hit. There were refreshments and an opportunity to send a video greeting to their American family. Students hugged their new friends they had seen since camp and celebrated together as one big family. Many students said they would like to return and bring friends they talked to once they returned.
That is the primary way families hear about Summer in the USA, by word of mouth. A teacher, of one of the students, said he would give us a letter of recommendation to other schools who may be considering SUSA to make a presentation in their school. SUSA is known in Basque Country as a quality program in providing English fluency, having fun, making friends and becoming family.
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