TEACHERS WILL ALWAYS BE WITH YOU

Watch this video and don't forget that we are close to you 😊

I miss you all 💚

A NEW STAGE

"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players"
 William Shakespeare

I love this quote. It's so true. I know it has been long since the last time I wrote here. The end of the academic year is always hard but last year it was even harder. It was my last year at the CEPA Joaquín Sorolla, where I had been the Head Teacher for four years and where I left almost all my energy. Then I was obliged to be a member of the board in the competitive exams for English teachers and then I tried to enjoy my unforgettable  Summer in Ireland with my family and my Irish friends for more than twenty years.

My professional life has changed lately. The destiny has brought me back to the high school where I studied a long time. I am a teacher this time an I take part in the bilingual programme for Secondary education, which sound so exciting. I need aims to give some sense to my life, I need to follow a lighthouse. Teaching Literature and working in this project is an interesting goal that makes me feel alive.

This is a new stage in my life. I am ready for that but the memories of those four years there and in other schools since I started teaching in 1996 will be with me forever giving me strength and wisdom.

Hook lighthouse, Ireland

BACK TO SCHOOL

Dear friends, students and other followers. I'm alive! I'm sorry for my long break but I needed holidays more than ever. Summer is over, another Summer in my village, in the almost forgotten village where my mother lived her childhood, in the Pirinees, a little bit of France and Portugal, sailing on the most beautiful river in Spain: Duero and visiting the most beautiful city in Spain: Salamanca.

I can't complain at all but the best thing of holidays is not the places but having time to spend with the people you love.

We are back to school at difficult times, more than ever. It's being hard, more than ever but I will survive. I feel like that Chinese mother in Amy Tan's novel. The Joy Luck Club who wants to say to her daughter: "This feather may look worthless but it comes from afar and carries with it all my good intentions. And she waited, year after year, for the day she could tell her daughter this in perfect American English".
I have a feather from the most beautiful swan for you all. I'll give it to you during this course but be patient. I'm busy at the moment but I promise to keep on working on this blog with ALL MY GOOD INTENTIONS.
Welcome back everyone.

THE TRAVELLING COINS

This is the story I have written for my course Drama & Storytelling. I hope you like it!

THE TRAVELLING COINS

She could not believe they were there again. This time it was not a dream. It was real, the mess of trolleys and bags, the uncertainty of tourists, the tired look of residents, and people speaking Italian all around, the language that sounds like music to her.

They rented a car at Fiumicino airport and drove to Tuscany. They enjoyed the sunset and the sparking lights of little villages. They arrived at Rodellosso country house.  The hostess received them with a smile, a homemade cake and a bottle of red wine.

 “Isn’t it a dream, really?”, she thought.

The next morning after the sun and the rooster songs entered their room softly, they went to Pienza. They saw a telephone box and they decided to phone the family. Sergio got the receiver and inserted a coin. Somebody answered the phone on the other side and the line went off, and so did the coin. Surprisingly, he got mad about it.

“How can I make a complaint to recuperate our coin?”, he said furiously.

“I’m afraid it’s impossible. Forget it and enjoy. Let’s have an espresso!” answered Lucía. He stared at the telephone box promising revenge.

They went to Siena the next day. They escaped from the pigeons in the piazza walking along the narrow streets. Suddenly a telephone box stood opposite them. Sergio challenged it and went straight into it with a bright euro coin in his hand. But the same thing happened again. His face turned red and his look bitter. Lucía could not help laughing and a battle started. So they decided to ignore telephone boxes during the whole holiday.

And the last day came. They were driving to the airport when suddenly they had to stop at a toll road. There were several coins outside the basket. Sergio stopped the car, got out and picked his two coins. He had a triumphal smile when he entered the car.  He explained that the Italian Tourist Board offers this service to travelers who wasted their money on telephone boxes before leaving the country. Lucía did not say a word. She sighed and started missing Italy.

Written by ANA Mª HERNÁNDEZ DOMÍNGUEZ

10,000 PAGEVIEWS!!!

I can't believe it. This was a real challenge. I started this blog on a course to get my credits for sexenios two years ago and I must confess that I was very suspicious about it. Then little by little I became hooked. I decided to have a unique blog for my students, my friends, my kids, my likes instead of sepatate ones. I am a single person and I am a mixture of all the bits of me. That's why my blog tries to represent myself with all those bits.
I just want to THANK all of you from the ones who have clicked only once to the ones who have followed this blog from the very beginning, those of you who have helped me to create it, those of you who have given advise to me or have made proposals, those of you who have inspired me with your work, your ideas and your love, those of you who have shared experiences with me that are reflected in some posts and those of you who are obligued to enter for homework.
You can see a view of Howth in Ireland in the background of the page.
I feel very happy. THANKS A MILLION!
I feel like dancing this songs which reminds me so many parties in Madrid, Cogolludo, Dublin and Massachusetts: Donna Summer, Last Dance (from Youtube) for U all because "I need you by me, beside me, to guide me, to hold me and even to scold me":

BOSTON

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Boston, Massachusetts

I lived in the US for one year. I got a scholarship at William College as a Teaching Assistant for Spanish. Williamstown is a beautiful university town in the middle of the purple mountains in Massachusetts. The capital of this state is Boston, which is said tio be the most European America city. I agree with that: The only skyscraper is the Hancock Tower, there are lovely residential areas like Beacon Hill There are many places of interest such as the Prudential Centre, which is a meeting point for Bostonians and tourists, the Boston Common, a peaceful park in the middle of the city full of squirrels, the romantic port where Europians arrived in the country to fulfill their American dream, the bay, impressive brigdes to cross the river Charles or the river Mystic, the famous bar Cheers. Boston is a very warm and cosy city. It's not the cold American city one can think of. The River Charles separates Boston from Cambridge, where Harvard University is set. Cambridge means to me peace and wisdom. There are beautiful buildings on green fields with trees full of colourful leaves and students going to and fro on their bikes or walking. The most intelligent brains of the States study at IT in Cambridge.

I can't believe what is going on there these days. People running a marathon were killed in front of their own children, a child died waiting for his father's end of the race, a policeman was shot in Cambridge... What the hell is happening in our world? Do the squirrels know how wild humans are?

Boston

Cambridge

MY WEDDING DAY

I got married on the 10^th  April 1999 in Cogolludo (Guadalajara). I used to be an anti-wedding person but if I had known it was SO FUNNY, I would have done it before.  And if I could, I would marry every 10^th April. Nerves? What nerves? Why should I be nervous having ALL THE PEOPLE I LOVE  around me? Nonsense!!!

It was a kind of “gypsy wedding” since we spent the whole weekend eating, drinking and dancing. That’s what weddings in villages are like. The ceremony started at midday. My brother took Dad and me to the church Santa María in his green Audi (which is now mine, curiously). We married facing La Virgen de los Remedios. María Rosa had decorated the church with beautiful flowers. Then a rain of rice and kisses and more kisses to and fro.

It was the first sunny day after a cold and rainy winter like this one. Olga took me to trhe village in her car. Gema came with us, too. Everybody was glamorous and elegant: high heels, UVA rays tan, suits and ties... Wow! They were all there: the Hernández-Domínguez, the Pérez-Fernández, my friends from school, my friends from University (even Elvira who came from Ireland to two weddings on the same day... and never went back!), our friends from El Escaqueo and four Hendersons: Clare, Ferghil, Ian and Cathy. Wherever I looked at, I saw people I love. That was the best thing!

We ate cabrito asado at Restaurante Hermanos Martínez. El Chuchi (the owner of that excellent restaurant) let us take our own bottles of  DYC as a post dessert. We smoked cigars!!! Can you remember when people smoked in restaurants? What a unique atmosphere!

There was an embarrassing moment: cousin Santi recited me the poem “La higuera”.  And a panic moment: the money from the presents disappeared for some time. Chamari had taken it home in a plastic bag with the sword by accident!!

Then we danced at Discoteca Madison. Adolfo was the top disk jockey so we had all the music we wanted: from the 60s to the 80s, English, American, Irish, Italian and Spanish: From “La chica yeyé” to “La chica de ayer”: “The Irish Rover”, “McNamara’s Band”,  George Michael, Spandau, Tom Jones, Bruce Springsteen, Tozzi,  Rafaella Carra, Los Secretos, La Frontera, Radio Futura, Alaska y Dinarama, La Guardia, Danza Invisible, Los Elegantes, Los Ilegales... and our special song: “Ojalá que te vaya bonito” with Enrique Urquijo’s voice. There was a break to eat something and then disco again till almost the next morning.

We slept a little at Hotel Palacio as well as most guests from Madrid, Ireland and US.

We had breakfast at El Bolas, our friend Arturo’s cosy restaurant (Hospedería Ballestero) and we shared the hangover there with Gema, Olga, Dani, Santi, Mari Carmen, Rudolph, Susi and my cousin Elena. Finally the Hernández and the Hendersons had lunch there too before going back to Madrid (cabrito again?).  It was a LONG WEDDING but it was worthwhile and fun. Unforgettable, indeed.

IRELAND: A LOVE STORY

I first went to Ireland in July 1989. I was studying English Philology and I arranged a trip with some friends from University to practice the language. We stayed with families and I was definitely the luckiest of all since I became the guests of THE H, who happened to be THE BEST FAMILY IN IRELAND. They treated me as a member of the family since the beginning and I felt delighted. My friends & I made trips around Dublin area where we discovered places full of  magic.

We returned the following Summer, 1990, and we met Ian, Garreth and Ronan, who treated us as if we were princesses (Didn't they, Elvira) and showed us the night life in Dublin. My friend María joined us in the following expedition in Summer 1991. I was already the Hendersons's adopted daughter and I'll always be. Since then I have visited them as a family member as well as they have visited me and we have shared very important moments in our lives. This was the longest gap in my visits, more than 5 years and I really needed to go and see them. I hace been to Dublin at La Almudena long weekend. It has been one of those experiences one can never forget. I just wanted a "kitchen therepy" and I brought back with me LOTS OF TRUE LOVE. the biggest piece of my heart is there, definitely. Thanks so much. I LOVE YOU ALL.

Powerscourt Gardens, The Hendersons 25 wedding anniversary, Malahide Castle, July 1991

Killiney Hill, County Cork, July 1995



Slieve League Cliffs, Adare, March 2002

Half Penny Bridge (Dublin), Jerpoint Abbey, January 2004

St. Stephen Green, Dublin's Zoo, Ciara's, May 2007