TEFLees in Spain

A wise woman once told me, ¨You only get one shot at this life, so live it up while you can. This ain´t no dress rehearsal!¨ That was pretty much the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. Okay, Madrid – here I come! And here I am. I came here for a change. I came here for an adventure. And most importantly, I came here to learn how to live like a Madrilleno. That was and is the ultimate challenge.

Like I said before, coming here you have to expect some challenges and frustrations. But as I think about the petty culture shock annoyances – 4 hour midday siestas, slow walkers on the street when I’m in a rush, the language barrier in general - I look at these things and instead of being beaten down, I’m determined to beat them back.

And trust me, after just a couple months here, I feel like I can face anything. I don’t feel like I can remember feeling stressed out in this city, but I know it’s happened. I don’t remember the small annoyances or miss some of the creature comforts from home. But I’ve faced many trials already, and each trial has been a lesson. Every time, it makes you a little stronger. You get another step closer to becoming a citizen of this city.

And the greatest help, of course, are all the great people you’ll meet along the way. The trainers at TT Madrid have done nothing short of bending over backwards for us since we got here. And the other students and graduates from the course have turned out to be great friends as well. Trust me, after four weeks of lesson planning and teacher training together, these people will become your family. We look for jobs together. We go to the bar together. We share our working hours, our hardships, and most importantly, lots of laughter over the many blunders we’ve all made along the way.