No K-names in Spain

When I moved to Madrid, I became a different me. The change is only subtle, but regardless, in at least a few ways, I am new.
In order to realize and embrace the change, I have published this blog under a new name.

And there is a little story behind it...

When I first arrived in Madrid, I found that it is nearly impossible for the madrileños to pronounce my name correctly. In fact, many interactions went something like this:
"Como se llama?"
"Soy Kristen."
"krees-TEEN?"
"No, no. Kristen"
"Sí, krees-TEEN.
[uncomfortable laugh] "Kristen."
"Ah! Vale! kree-STEE-nah!"

And--
The few times I gave in and went to Starbucks, the barista handed me a coffee with the name "CRISTINA" scribbled in magic marker.

I like my name. I like the way it sounds, the way it's spelled with a 'K' and not a 'C', or a 'CH', which always made me think of a boy's name or Christmas. I like that towards the end I have an 'E' instead of an 'I' , which to me looks more juvenile. This 'E' that I have, this 'E' is so much more...sophisticated.
I thought about all I had learned as a practicing teacher in New York State--the stories about students who came to the US from other countries and lost a piece of their culture when they were unwillingly given an 'Americanized' name in school. I remember a friend from college introducing himself to me as Josh, when even at the time I knew his name was Josue. "Why is he rejecting his cultural background," I thought.

I was angry that the madrileños refused to call me Kristen.

But then I got to thinking about it. Why do they refuse to call me Kristen? Is it because they don't want to, or because they cannot produce the sounds? I mean, it's not like I don't want to roll my Rs. My mouth is physically incapable.
I developed a new understanding of why a person would change his or her name, or at least let the mispronunciations slide. I can imagine why Josue began referring to himself as Josh. It's annoying having to repeat your name five times, every time you meet someone new.

I didn't come to Spain to live like an American. I came to embrace the Spanish culture. I came to live like a local. Here we go.


Besitos,
Cristina