Okay let’s start at the very beginning. Where did it begin? With a conversation with my sister about a friend who taught English in Thailand a couple years ago.

That got the gears moving. After spending quite some time in Mexico working for a spring break company, I developed a true appreciation for the Mexican people, culture, and heritage. I decided it was time to put what little Spanish I had acquired and try my hand in Europe. I searched the internet for the “teach English” program and found it cost about $5000 to participate…that wasn’t gonna fly. So I researched some more pages in Spanish and discovered the government of Spain actually runs their own program bringing native English and French speakers from all over the world to teach English and French! And best of all, the application is free and first come, first serve.

So I attempted to apply…only to discover I was 1 week past the deadline. I attempted to contact the Spanish consulate but they told me I wouldn’t have a shot after 3 or 4 months of open application, so I gave it up. I watched that website every day for 10 months for the application period to open up for the next year and applied on day 1 with my first choice of locations as Madrid. In May, I heard back that I was accepted to Madrid! However after a heart to heart with my boyfriend and parents, I decided to turn it down.

For the next 11 months I wondered, “what if?” So the next March, lo and behold I applied again, for myself and my boyfriend, round 3. It was a late, last minute decision, only 1 week before the deadline ended and my application number was very high (like 4200+ high). Still, by July I heard back that I would be in Andalucía!

I’m no expert on Spain, but I know Andalucía is an area on the southern coast of Spain along the Mediterranean, and that it’s in high demand for language auxiliares. Unfortunately, the bf got placed in Castilla León, about 6 hours north of Andalucía. I reached out to the Spanish consulate again to see if they could switch him with someone so he could be at least close to me, and this time, they were incredibly helpful!! They put him near me…and now we’re both headed for Spain!

So now that we’ve been accepted, how do we get there? Read on for Step 2: the visa process.