Category: Travels (Page 1 of 4)

How did I wind up in Spain? And where is the Canary Islands? The entire process actually started February of 2017. My friend had completed the same job in Madrid and encouraged me to apply. The Auxiliares de Conversacion position required one to be a  native English speaker from USA or Canada and a have college degree.

The position provided:

• The ability to obtain a Visa for 8 months (October – May)
• Up to 16 hours of work/ week for 933 euros a month.

A few months later in June 2017, I accepted a teaching assistant job (Auxiliares de Conversacion) from the Gobierno de Canario. Sounds simple enough. What the requisition didn’t provide was all the details of transitioning into Spanish culture. The struggles and the delights. Would I do it over again? In a heartbeat. Looking back on the 8 months, I realize that I have changed for the better, and hopefully that one would think I am, not only an Asian American, but also a little Canarian now.

 How is Canary Islands Different from Spain?

People say it’s the Hawaii of Europe. Islander life- A slow pace, chill lifestyle. How can one be stressed or angry living on an island with beautiful views everywhere?

I think Canarians like to acknowledge that they are friendly than the Peninsula Spaniards. Hospitality unmatched.  Each Canarian I met welcomed me with open arms and went above and beyond to make sure I enjoyed me time here. At first, I resisted. In America, it’s not normal to say hello to strangers on the street. Go to your coworkers’ parent’s home for dinner. I wasn’t sure how to integrate with everyone.

Immersed in the way of life here, I couldn’t help but be converted. Here, I learned to value my time over work. The importance of relaxation and “me” time. Each day after school, I would take a small siesta and relax until 5pm. During that time, I would “get nothing done.” That’s right. Two full hours of me time.

After that mini-me time, motivation would be renewed. Now that rest is over, I had to get up and be productive again for another 3 hours. Some days, I would work on my internet tasks, other days I would practice my Spanish grammar.

The Wages

Is the monthly allowance from Auxiliares de Conversacion enough?

You can definitely “survive” on the 933 euros a month. The rent for a standard studio was about 400 euros a month (mine was a little less expensive). Although you wouldn’t be able to do anything else. Most other Auxiliares gave English lessons to students or online.  I worked online after school for additional income. The price of a coffee here is 1 euro, a sandwich 2-3 euros. A dinner could be enjoyed for less than 10 euros. All my coworkers were always so generous in treating me to coffee or lunch.

What do you need to teach?

“Teaching is so easy and I definitely am overpaid.” Said NO ONE ever.

Teaching requires a lot of planning, interaction, discipline and organization. What’s more mentally challenging? Designing a plane or getting a teenager to try and apply himself to learn? The teenager. With design, I only needed to know the technical requirements. With a teenager, I need to pray to the gods to give me the strength of patience. It would take every ounce of civility in me to be nice and encouraging to a student who couldn’t care less about their future.  It’s embarrassing to say this, but some days if a difficult student’s chair was empty, I would let out a little sigh of relief. This day would be a little easier.  Examples? Well, one day a student told me “Leslie, Son of a bitch.” I pretend I don’t understand. “Sun at the beach? You want to go to the beach? Why?” Then he would say it again. I would repeat the pronunciation of “BEE-CH”. “Beach.” This would go on until he gave up and other students would laugh at his failure on pronouncing a “bad word.” Afterwards, I would ask him other English phrases we were studying to focus on “clean words.” What’s this? A pencil. What’s this? A desk.

In all, there was in fact, only 3 times, where I had to report a student to the teacher for saying/teasing me inappropriately. Whenever I did have to “tell” on a student, I felt embarrassed that I couldn’t handle the situation on my own. I was failing on being a strong authoritative teaching assistant.

Do I have an authority as a teacher?

One of the rules in the program is that the Auxiliares de Conversacion are not allowed to be left alone with the students. We are aids, not teachers responsible for the students. With that being said, I wasn’t sure if I had any authority to impose penalties for misbehavior. No one ever told me the guidelines or what I should do. I couldn’t figure out if my role should be as a friend to them or as a supervisor. My overall goal was to encourage them to speak English. I decided to kill them with kindness. I would be the one to help them. Let them know I was there as an English aid, not a teacher that would grade them. Whenever I would see the students around town, I would always wave and speak in English. “How are you?!” My heart would fill with joy every time they answered” I’m fine thank you and you?”

The GOOD days

The majority of students want to learn. They want someone to pay attention to them. I always liked kneeling next to a student to help them with their workbook or have a little English chat.  The best feeling, for me, was when a student’s face would light up, I could see they linked the English phrase to the Spanish one.  They understood what I was saying. Yes! I did something!

The Boring Days

Not every day can be a winner. There were the days where the teacher needed to explain the grammar or the terms in Spanish. I would sit in the back of class and try my hardest not to fall asleep. I wasn’t sure if the teachers wanted me to contribute more, or not. I wanted to go with the flow and not create more work for the teachers.  Looking back, I wish I had been more proactive about the lesson plans.

Occasionally, I would try to walk around and assist students, but either they weren’t in the mood, or I couldn’t find the strength to force them to participate. When a student hides their workbook from you and only speaks in Spanish and pretends to go to sleep… what can be done to get them to speak in English? The more I pulled the workbook and spoke English, the more resistance I would get. On these days, I would lose motivation and let the student win. But did he really win?  I think he lost the time and opportunity to learn English. Like English- I had the same resistance to Chinese. Like my parents would say- “One day you will regret not learning more Chinese!” How right they were.

CEO Manuel De Falla

The teachers, the administrative staff, the kitchen staff, and groundskeepers are caring and attentive. Unique amongst all other schools in the North, My school included a ethnography exhibit with an entire historic home replica, including a hayloft, gofio mechanisms, cooking area and clothes washing station. In the back of the school there was a vegetable garden for the kids, Orange trees, Avocado trees, donkeys (Cano and Chiquito), rabbits, and goats. The school even had a coffee shop where the teachers could relax during break. (Though the constant rain destroyed some of the electrical in the coffee shop, but thats another story.)

Comparing with other English teaching assistants, I really felt like I won the lottery in school selection. All of the my English teachers were excellent in both English and teaching.  They taught me what it meant to be a good teacher. Other Auxiliares de Conversacion would tell me horror stories of classes out of control, misogynistic male teachers, prejudiced and ignorant teachers. I couldn’t relate. My school contained none of these negative factors.

My school was both a primary school and a secondary school, in a rural area, up the mountain towards Teide. I was the first ever Auxiliares de Conversacion for the school. We had some sunny days, but overall, the majority of my time at school included a down jacket and a scarf. It was a small price to pay for such an interactive school. Finishing school each day, I would start shedding my layers of jackets as the bus descended down the mountain towards the warmer beach weather.  Here are some of the fun activities we got to do during the school year:

• Learn how to make Queso Fresco
• Field trip with 3-5 year olds in Puerto De La Cruz
• Attend an evening at school with local choir/music groups followed by Canarian Food
• Roast chestnuts and ride metal sleds
• Dress up for for Canarian Day (Our School had a Special Boda / Wedding)

Do you need to know Spanish before coming to Spain?

Yes and No. I had about 2 weeks of duolingo Spanish under my belt. The first few months I hammered myself with Spanish TV, Spanish workbooks, Spanish lessons. Each day I would lay down for a siesta and my brain would hurt. I thought I would pick up the language quickly, especially since I would be living in a small town. Nope. Didn’t happen. Learning language through daily life without taking a proper course reminds me of learning to swim. Sure you eventually will swim, but not before you feel like your drowning and swallow a bunch of water. My swimming technique improved 100 times when I joined a swim team. I was foolish to think I could learn Spanish fast. The language takes dedicated time and proper studying. Hindsight, I wish I arrived a month earlier and taken a Spanish immersion course.

Nonw, after 8 months of living here, I can:

• Understand when someone is mad at me
• Tell people (in Spanish) that I’m learning Spanish
• Order food
• Talk about the weather

That’s pretty much it. I originally thought I would fully immerse myself and find Spanish friends and boom! Spanish would seep into my blood. But since I was so lost in the Spanish language, I could not engage anyone above talking about the weather. I grew tired and frustrated at myself. I grew lonely. Not being able to communicate is tough. The social aspect of attending Spanish events and not being able to communicate was too much for me to handle.

Giving Up and Speaking English

To combat loneliness, I became friends with a few of the other Auxiliares de Conversacion. It was such a reward to spend time with them after a long of day of incomprehension.  We all had similar problems. Culture shock.  Language struggles.  Spanish Bureaucracy. Words would roll off my tongue. I finally realized now why most of the Chinese foreign exchange students in California would always hang out with each other than assimilating. Sometimes you need that in order to find sanity in living in such a different world. I didn’t want to be judged, I only wanted someone to understand what I was experiencing. I could tell them about my struggles and vice versa.

Challenges with Gobierno (Spanish Government)

The process of obtaining a TIE/ Visa in Spain felt like an epic 20 year Odyssey journey. Each time I felt the finish line was within reach, something would happen and I would need more paperwork to complete the process.

The first Visa

In June, upon accepting the Auxiliares de Conversacion position, I gathered all the necessary paperwork and sent it to the Spanish embassy. This included:

• Multiple Passport Photos
• Background Check Request
• Finger Prints from the local police station in Seattle
• A background Check Letter from the DOJ of California
• An apostille verification stamp on my Background Report
• My Auxiliares de Conversacion Employment Offer Letter

All this information and my passport was sent to the Spanish Embassy in San Francisco. Processing time stated on the web was one month, but really it took a week before I got an email of approval.  This first visa is only valid for 3 months. All the paperwork was supposed to be returned to me, but the embassy kept it. The rule for the next visa requires the same paperwork, but depending on the day, you may or may not be requested for it.

Achieving a Visa and a TIE card

In Spain, I had to do the following to get my Auxiliares de Conversacion Estancia Visa:

• Go to an Estancia Office to get an official letter to document my job as a Auxiliares de Conversacion
• Get a bank account (that took three attempts at different banks)
• Request 2 different appointments at the police station (first one to fill the paperwork, and the second to pick up the card)
• A trip to a bank account to pay for the TIE card
• A local Spanish SIM card / telephone number
• Provide an Empadronamiento from the City Hall confirming my new residence and lease
• Provide the Official Job Offer from the Gobierno for the Auxiliares de Conversacion

All of the above was completed in my most unfortunate state of Spanish.  The struggle was real.

All businesses close by 2pm for Lunch/ Siesta. Even when I went get my SIM card, the phone company would say the lines are down, so come back tomorrow. Nothing was easy. Each day after school it was a rush to try to get things completed in time before the businesses close.

In fact, I didn’t receive my permanent Visa until the end of December. From there, it was only valid until the end of May.

Spanish Bureaucracy

If you first don’t succeed, hang up and call again.  I learned that your day could go fast or slow depending on the person working that day. Need a bus pass? Depends on who is working. Need a rental car? Same answer. Want an arepa from the girl at the bus station? Get ready for the worst service of your life.  The workaround to frustration, for me, was to realize it’s all chance. Be nice. Plead. Beg. Smile. Keep asking for what you want, until someone has mercy on your soul and will help you.

My day could change like the weather… one minute everything would be great. The next, cancelations, missed buses, closed stores. My day would be a catastrophe. The good news is that I learned in Spain – everything has a way of somehow working out.

No pasa nada.  – My favorite phrase in Spanish. Don’t worry about it.

Conclusions

This has been an experience of a lifetime. I wish more people knew about being an Auxiliares de Conversacion -España.  Immersed in a totally different culture than my American and Chinese background. I could never have expected the influence it would have on me. I’ve made life long friends, countless memories and maybe even learned a little Spanish.

You mean “Gua Gua.”

“Huh”

“That’s what we call a bus…”

Living in the Canary Islands, I’m repeatedly told by the locals what is Spanish and what is Canarian. Light hearted differences to set them apart from the rest of the Spanish speaking regions. Spain, like America, has many unique areas with their own heritage. Based on what I’ve seen so far, San Andrés, the Spanish Canarian Holiday, is the ultimate demonstration of their beautiful culture.

San Andrés Holiday – Wednesday November 29 2017

Starting in the fall, my school starts to collect all the chestnuts from the chestnut trees around the campus.

In the last week of November, the north of Tenerife holiday spirit comes alive. San Andrés time! Posters around the north make note of the upcoming celebrations in Icod and La Orotava.

Roasting Areas are set up in the city central plazas. Large metal smoker bins in the corner of sunny hot coastal plazas. Some days I walk by with a tank top, shorts and flip flops with a disbelief that people would be roasting anything in this heat.

Cacharros y Castananas – Tins and Chestnuts

What are Cacharros? Somewhat reminding me of the tin cans strung on a “Just Married” car, the Northern Tenerifian residents create these loud tin strings for their kids.

CLINK & CLANK!

The louder the better.

In the past times, it wasn’t uncommon to see people pulling old washers and bathtubs through the street.

CLINK & CLANK!

Icod, La Orotava, and Puerto Del Cruz -The North of Tenerife

Even more unique to the North, are the traditions within each city.

La Orotava – cacharros. A noise maker you can run with. Tins + String.

Icod, las tablas.  Flat wooden boards waxed for kids to slide down cobblestone streets. The North echos loud sounds of tins and boards.

Parents pass down the wooden tables from their youth to their children. Or, they help build faster ones.

Dangerous? Yes. Exciting? Very.

Mouth Open in disbelief. Its striking to see children doing dangerous activities in the streets while parents casually relax nearby.  At one point I see a blind kid go down a table with a someone sitting behind him slowing down the cart towards the bottom of the street. Anyone and everyone gets a turn for glee.

The one safety measure is a pyramid of tires to catch the out of control, fast and furious table sliders.  Sporadically, I see tires bouncing up into the air.

Chestnuts Roasting

During the day of San Andrés, our school cancels afternoon classes and instead roasts chestnuts for 3 hours. All the children make cones to hold the hot and smokey chestnuts.  I spend an hour peeling chestnuts for 3-4 year olds. In the background, older children run around with their cacharros.

In the evening in La Orotava, families take it to the streets. Adults and children all tow their loud noises makers through the cobblestone streets.

Louder than a recycling center.

Clinking and clanking.

3 year old with a string of coca cola cans almost trips over herself. Another family walks together with a large wooden bar followed by oil drums bouncing loudly. Every person in the town is smiling.

Where Does it all come from?

I am not a historian or have any real knowledge of San Andres. My Canarian friends each tell me similar, yet different stories of San Andrés for La Orotava.

Version 1 of the story – Pots and Pans

When harvest season came around people wanted to celebrate. Wine makers would roll the large wine barrels throughout the street and the metal rims would hit the cobblestones and make these loud noises we replicate today. Kids would run around with pots and pans banging around to signal to others it’s time to party.

Version 2 of the story – Corre la Cacharros

In prep of new wine, winemakers would need to clean the barrels. So they would take the old barrels out and roll them down the hills all the way to Puerto De La Cruz for a good washing.  All the barrels would go through the entire town and make the loud noises we hear today with the cacharros.

Version 3 of the story of San Andrés Cacharros

This is the version I was most confused about. When asked what San Andres had to do with chestnuts and wine… I got many different answers. One person said its just because he’s the patron Saint of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.  Another stated that this  Another said that San Andres came to the island got drunk and kids tied pots and pans to him.

My theory is that the harvest coincided with All Saints Day – so San Andres was the lucky one to receive this tradition.

Do you need another Reason to Visit La Orotava, Tenerife?

Besides the weather. Besides the views. Besides Me… I encourage everyone to visit this island to witness unique culture and traditions. Come now before its too late.

It’s sad, but this tradition is fading. Older folks are quick to tell me that decades ago, you would see sinks, tubs, washers, all day banging around the town. Now its only in schools and then about 2 hours in the evening.

Thinking of somewhere to go next Thanksgiving?

Come to the Canary Islands for the warm weather, and stay to eat chestnuts while kids run around with loud cacharros and slide down the streets and crash into tires.

Last but not least, here’s another video of the homemade table a kid brought to school. As you can tell, I am newbie scardy cat. Please let me off of this thing!

From Thailand to Seattle. Another great stay in the books. Summer is over in Seattle and it’s my queue to find a new home. I sell everything in my studio apartment and pack my belongings into 2 duffel bags, 1 carry on suitcase, and a couple of ikea bags.  The fun exciting part of working online, is being able to explore new cities while working. It’s always fun to tell a story about going to Austin, Texas on a whim or deciding to move to the Canary Islands.

The Biggest Downers of Nomadic Life

Work anywhere. Anytime. Freedom. No one tells you about the downers of being a digital nomad. You only hear about all the different cities you can live in and the flexibility in schedule. Over the year I have appreciated all the benefits of being a nomad, but I have yet to acclimate to the downside.

My Top 4 Annoyances in being a Wanderer

Traveling Light

Each time I go to the mall, I resist the urge to shop. To buy something fun. Fashionable. If I pick a shirt, it has to have a specific purpose. Does it last? Will it go with multiple seasons? Can I fit it into my luggage? Is it wearable 50 + times in a year? Wouldn’t it be nice to just buy something nice for myself once in a while? The answer is: no. There is no where to place it.

Forget about cute houseware items. Bedsheets. Towels. Only essentials travel to the next location.

Falling out of a Routine

That favorite bar. A beloved restaurant. A muay thai gym. Finding my favorite ice cream shop. Each place I grow to love will eventually turn into a memory.  I try to not to ache for the past when I move to a new location. My routine will change and so will all my “go to” spots around the neighborhood. I’m constantly packing and unpacking.

Anxiety

Once I decide to leave a city, anxiety starts to settle in. Finding a new place to live. A place to work out. Is there Wifi? Meeting new people. Will I make new friends?

As the departure date nears, I am filled with both excitement and fear. Excited to explore, but fearful that I will be lonely and without friends. Did I earn enough money monthly to keep a comfortable lifestyle? I make long checklists of all the items I need to complete before moving.

Saying Goodbye to people

Perhaps the worst feeling about being a nomad is missing people. Friends and family.

After living in Seattle for 6 months, I really had to think hard about whether or not stay. I really loved all my Seattle friends. I got into the groove. Sunday Brunches. Bar Hopping. Chilling at a Park. What if I stayed and made this my home? I tell myself not to do this, because the entire reason I left my engineering job in Santa Monica was to explore. Being a nomad means trying new things. Thinking about friends will only make it harder to move.

The Best Part of Being a Traveler?

New places. New faces. Each time I move to a new location, I am realizing how fortunate I am to have a job that allows me to move anywhere. Sure, there are days where I am lonely and anxious. But that’s a feeling I am willing to have in trade of adding a new experience in life. It’s rare to have the opportunity in my 30’s to be unattached. No Stressful Job. No kids. There’s never going to be a better time to travel.

The reality of moving

First week. New scenery, new places. I feel like I’m the luckiest person in the world. Instagram is on point.

The second week I find myself calling home and FaceTiming my close friends and family. It’s great explaining the new home, new job, new friends. In the back of my heart there is a small pain. I miss them. I miss having that camaraderie. I push the feelings away and replace it with busy work. Each day is filled to the brim with activities. I find a scuba diving shop. I find a new gym. One needs to keep moving to keep from drowning. I know if I stay at home I will miss Seattle. I realize there’s no turning back now.

I’m not going to lie… being a nomad is hard. There are days where I wonder if I made the right choice. Why would I move to a city where I don’t have family or friends?

Is it worth it? 

Without inserting a cliche quote about life… I will say this. I chose to leave engineering and Santa Monica for a reason. I can either embrace it or not.  Right now, I’m embracing it. What’s not to like about living on an Island with great weather, food and people?

Departure

Saturday 23rd of September The itinerary is  OAK -> OSLO -> Tenerife, Canary Islands.

On the first leg from Oakland to Oslo, the flight attendants announced:

“Attention Ladies and Gentlemen, please ring your call button if you are a medical professional.”

Like Little gophers, heads pop up around the plane to see if someone around the area was sick. Nothing out of the ordinary in the Economy Section.
A few hours later, the captain announces:

“Attention Ladies and Gentlemen as you know we have a medical emergency. At this time, we have determined that this a serious issue and will make a diversion and land in Edinburgh. Flight attendants prepare for arrival. We apologize for this inconvenience. We ask that everyone stay seated until the paramedics have left the airplane.”

Within forty minutes, we landed and taxied over to a gate where an ambulance and a police car stood waiting. The next moment, the siren and lights turn on. The ambulance and the police escort take off.

What Happens if your flight has a Medical Emergency

Once the passenger left, I thought we would reverse and take off again. Not True.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, the passenger has exited the plane. The cargo crew is now searching to remove the passenger’s luggage before we depart. Please standby.”

Another forty minutes. As each minute goes by, the chances of making my connecting flight closes. I look out the window. It’s a cloudy day in Scotland. The rain on the window distorts the view. I try to sleep, but it’s too bright outside.
I get out of my seat and stretch. Passengers start talking about connecting flights. Looks like I’m not the only one that will be stuck in Oslo. The flight map on the screen no longer counts down to the final destination. The globe just keeps spinning and stopping at Edinburgh.

In the next announcement, the captain tells everyone we need to refuel. He asks everyone to stay seated but to unbuckle your seatbelt. Good thought. If the plane catches on fire, I don’t want to be buckled in.

2 hours in Edinburgh, the cargo crew has found the passenger’s luggage, the plane is full up on gas, a new flight plan is logged and we are on the way to Oslo. The flight to Oslo is only 90 minutes away. I click on the flight map and see the location time 16:45. My flight left at 15:30. So much for meeting my co-workers tonight.

Ding. The seatbelt light turns off. People jump into the aisles. It’s a rush to get out of the plane. I feel the American Stress vibe.

We debark the plane and take a long walk to immigration.
The other passport queue has two women working the booth. I proudly show my visa.

OH, yes! I will be living here. Yes! I will be working here. Hello, EU! Hello, free health insurance! Goodbye Trump. Goodbye “Take Back America” people.

I miss my connection. I pick up my luggage and head over to Norwegian customer service.  Here’s my passport. The man at the counter starts typing. A LOT. It’s not looking good.

There are no more flights to Tenerife tonight. There are no available flights tomorrow. Instead, he offers a flight to Barcelona. I can sleep in a hotel there and then fly to Tenerife tomorrow.
He prints out some boarding passes and then casually says, you might have to get off the plane at Bilbao. Bilbao? Turns out, I now have to fly to Barcelona, then Bilbao, then to Tenerife.

I call my new co-workers and inform them of my delay. My amazing new school co-workers had planned to pick me up and take me out to dinner and host me at their house for one night. So much for that. I spend the next 18 hours in a daze. I arrive Barcelona around midnight. Norwegian Air gives me a voucher for a taxi and hotel.  I drag myself to the hotel. Its a NH 5 star hotel. A nice surprise.

The room is a bit smokey despite being a smoke-free hotel. The kitchen is closed because I arrive so late into the night. I order a giant breakfast to be served at 5 am. About 3.5 hours of sleep later, I wake up to room service with a cart full of food. Eat. Taxi. Flight

Travel Insurance

I call Chase Sapphire Reserve and Norwegian Air. I find out that “medical emergency landings” are not covered. If the flight had been delayed by weather, I could have received up to 600 euros in compensation with the EU laws. However, this was caused by another passenger, so the airlines do not have to compensate.
My credit card insurance only refunds and credits pre-paid expenses. So I don’t get any charity there either. I feel a small twinge of anger from the delay. But then again, I don’t have anywhere to be.
European Compensation
What qualifies for a compensation? Let’s say you missed your connection.

Here are the types of delays that do NOT qualify for compensation:

• Medical Emergency

• Weather

• ATC or strike by crew

Other than that, you can get 250 euros to 600 euros depending on the flight.

Priority Pass Lounge

Back to my misery. In the early morning, I fly from Barcelona to Bilbao. My layover is 2 hours. The airport is small and without any shops. I use my Priority Pass card to get into the VIP lounge. Its only 9 am, so I decide to skip the free booze. I must be getting old. I grab some perrier and fruit.
Wifi and all the snacks you can eat makes the two hours fly by. Finally, I am on my way to Tenerife. Three more hours.

Canary Islands

The Canary Islands are part of Spain, but not like Spain. People here pay fewer taxes, have cheaper gas and cheap gas. The lifestyle is even more relaxed than the mainland. I wheel out my baggage and find a bus to Puerto De La Cruz pretty easily. For 13.55 euros, I take an hour bus ride to the city by the sea. Once there, I put on my duffel bag and wheel my two carry-on suitcases and laptop bag around the bus station. Sweat clings to my back. My face is dripping wet, and my sunglasses keep fogging up. I say forget it. I want to the taxi queue. Pension Silene Orotava hotel por favor. 4 men start speaking Spanish trying to figure out the directions.

5 minutes later, they all agree on the route and we hop in. Another 8 euros I’ve arrived at my final destination.

Total travel time…. 36 hours. Was it worth it? Have a look for yourself…