Fashion, Spain, travel

The beaches of Almeria

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beaches of Almeria

Last weekend, I spent a day exploring the beaches of Almeria here in the Andalucia region of Spain. My English teaching program is an adventure sometimes. Last year was the first year both myself and Amy taught English in Spain. We both got placed in tiny pubelos. However I got lucky as two teachers from my school commuted from Granada and they gave me the option to live in Granada. I of course took it and had a fabulous year living in Granada. Like what? I got to live in one of the most beautiful cities in Spain. It was like a dream all year last year.

Amy, however, got placed to work in a pueblo of Almeria called Albox. She did not have the option to commute from a larger city like I did, so she lived in the town. However from all her stories, it sounded like she had a good year. The teachers from her school were always going out and getting together, so she made some good Spanish friends that way. And when you’re in a pueblo, you’re really forced to speak Spanish as less people speak English.

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Spain, travel

A day at the Real Alcázar Sevilla

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Real Alcázar Sevilla

The Real Alcázar Sevilla. This is the place I’ve been wanting to visit for months. I had seen photos on social media from other people in my teaching program and thought “Sevilla has a fortress, castle-thing?” My only experience in Sevilla had been on my first trip to Spain back in June 2015 with CoffeeShop Spanish. We arrived in the afternoon, wandered the city and went to a Flamenco show that evening. It was simply too short of a trip for such a wonderful and historical city.

What is Sevilla?

Sevilla is a city in Spain. One of my biggest pet-peeves with travel blogs is when they don’t tell you what country the city or place is in. I know that that seems laughable, but I cannot tell you how many times I’ve been reading a post thinking “okay I think this is in the Philippines, but they didn’t say” or “I think this is in the UK … but it could be Ireland too. I DON’T KNOW!!” Travel bloggers just a little piece of advice: always put the country with wherever your post is about. While it may seem obvious to you, not all of your readers likely are familiar with the region you’re writing about. But likely we will want to know exactly where it is so we can make a note and future plans to travel there.

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auxiliar life, Spain, travel

Thoughts on 1 year in Spain

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year in Spain

Today was my last day working at the school that I teach at. It’s such a weird feeling to not be going back there. Today was the last day I ran out of the door at 7:40 a.m. to catch the bus to meet the teachers that I carpool with to then ride an hour (and fall asleep) in the car. It was my last day to take that beautiful, windy drive through the mountains to the little town of Arbuniel and see 40-50 smiling faces greeting me with “hello teacher!” This year went by way too fast.

If you do not know, I work in the Southern Andalucia region of Spain as an English Language Assistant. The Spanish government hosts a program where native English speakers assist in bilingual public schools all over the country. If you have ever dreamed of living in Spain, teaching English overseas or both, it’s a great opportunity to do so!

It was just around this time last year that I received an e-mail assigning me to the primary school in Arbuniel. And I was freaking out …

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Spain, travel

Day trip to Ubeda and Baeza

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day trip to Ubeda and Baeza

When you think about Spain, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Is it Barcelona or Madrid? Is it tapas and beautiful beaches? While I love the big cities, I equally enjoy visiting the smaller towns of Spain. I love to get a different perspective on Spanish life … a perspective that you do not get from a travel book. Ever since I moved to the Andalucia region of Spain, people have been telling me that I need to see Ubeda and Baeza. On Sunday I finally decided to go.

These towns are both located in the Jaen province, which sits just above Granada. The trip from Granada is just about an hour each way, making them the perfect day trip!

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Spain, travel

A day trip to Toledo

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day trip to Toledo

While I love the excitement of arriving at the airport, going through security (total sarcasm here) and boarding my flight to some exciting destination, I also love the fun of a simple day trip. There are so many places that we can explore within a 1-3 hour drive of us, wherever we are. I love taking day trips and where I live in Spain, there are so many!

Over Semana Santa, I traveled in Ireland and England for a little bit. On my way back home, I found cheaper airfare into Madrid. Since I’ve already been to Madrid several times, I decided to take a day trip to Toledo. Toledo is a perfect day trip from Madrid as it’s a one-hour away. And it’s also a city that you do not want to miss. It’s full of so much history and things to see. And the architecture is very unique.

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Spain, travel

My Primark spring dress

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Primark spring dress

I don’t know about you, but I’m quite happy that spring has sprung! I love being able to wear my dresses without tights and I love busting out all the floral prints. So I was happy to find this Primark spring dress for only 8 euros!

As you may have seen on Instagram or my previous post, I spent this past Saturday in Ronda, Spain. Ronda is an adorable small town about an hour outside of Malaga. My friend Karla and I made a day trip out there from Granada. Like me, she also teaches English in Spain.

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