A-100 week #2: Yo hablo español

Week #2 of A-100 is over and I didn’t only survive this week but I actually had some fun. Last week I was sick and dealing with the overall transition of leaving Nicaragua and moving back to DC without my husband.  But week 2 was much better. I’ve started to get to know some of my classmates, which are all very impressive people with diverse backgrounds. My typical classmate knows multiple languages (or one very difficult language), has traveled or lived overseas, and is extremely nice to boot! But what impressed me the most was all the unique hobbies and experiences that everyone has. Saxophone playing, candy making, cruise ship directing and lots of marathon running. After you scratch the surface, you definitely won’t find any cookie-cutter classmates.

This week I was tested on my Spanish. I was completely exhausted after the 2-hour exam. My brain was a bowl of Spanglish mush for the rest of the day. But Friday morning I found out the results: 3+/3+. The first 3+ is for speaking, and the second 3+ is for reading comprehension.  Click here for more info on what the numbers mean. All Junior Officers must pass a certain level of language competency before receiving tenure. Until you do, you are on “language probation.” So with this exam I’m off language probation, freeing me up to learn another language if I need to. Even though I took the Spanish phone assessment a year ago I was curious how I’d do with the full exam.

Sorry for the lack of photos in these posts. I haven’t taken a single photo since being back. I’ve been busy and it’s been way too hot to spend much time outside!