All quiet on the western front

Things have been quiet here on the blog for the last few months but let me explain why. Besides the fact that Jose and I haven't been on any big trips since our last one to Istanbul, life here in the south of Spain has been a routine of work, studying and trying to get through the winter (which is admittedly much milder than what the folks back home have been suffering). When you get right down to it, we have been boring lately, in a bit of a rut. Why you might ask?

First because since October I have been completing the CELTA (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) offered by Cambridge University. A bit of background: English is very important to people here in Spain. It seems like everyone wants or needs to show their English level whether for job prospects, for University or even as a young learner in primary school. Most people study and prepare some kind of exam and official Cambridge exams are incredibly popular. In any case, native English speakers are in high demand for teaching positions which has worked out well for me.



Let's get back on topic: the CELTA course that I just completed. Yay! There are two options for this course, one is a month long and is intensive. The other (the option I chose because I am working simultaneously) lasts four months and is part online and part in-person. For those of you who aren't familiar with this certification, the CELTA course is incredibly time consuming. For months I would come home from work, have a coffee and immediately start studying and planning since besides the online units we also had to teach a class and be observed each week. I decided to do this course because I felt the need to have an official teaching certificate and on the plus side, now I could go basically anywhere in the world to teach ESL. And the best part? I received the highest grade awarded in the course: Pass A. I guess my hard work paid off.

Now that I have finished I feel like I have my life back. I still have work but the flu season seems to have passed which is a blessing since lots of my kids were sick this year, not to mention fellow teachers. We have been catching up with friends who we didn't see often over the past few months as well as spending time with family. Jose's grandpa passed away recently which has also contributed to our funk. On the plus side, we went to Portugal last weekend and are headed to the Alpujarra region over our holiday weekend starting this Friday. So things are looking up and this blog should start revving up again!


Here's a picture of Cooper and I enjoying a beer at our favorite dive bar in Portugal. Unfortunately the BEST Indian restaurant that we love and visit every time we are there was closed. We are seriously praying that they are only on vacation and have not permanently shut down. It would be a tragedy! Check back soon for more updates...

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