Hello friends!
I am so excited to inform you that I have arrived safely in my new home away from home for the next 9 months--Santiago de Compostela, Spain! And while a traumatic yet funny arrival story like the Argentina travel debacle of June 2015 (missed flight & lost luggage) would be entertaining, the trip to España was rather ordinary...long flight, little sleep, and my absolute favorite, minimal gluten free options to consume during transit.
That being said, I can assure you this experience is already far from ordinary...and hopefully will become quite extraordinary. Because while I have done this before (aka, move to a foreign country with new people/culture/language), I have never faced such an independent abroad endeavor--one characterized by apartment hunting, long conversations with bankers refusing to set up my account, and my first real life job. Just two weeks from now, I will begin my work as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in the rural town of Dodro, Galicia (30 minutes outside Santiago de Compostela).
I have no idea what this year has in store for me...and I'm okay with that! It gives me the opportunity to dream up the endless number of immersive experiences I'll be having, beautiful places I'll visit, cool people I'll meet, and things I'll learn. I'm sure that in just a few weeks I'll find those people I can lean on for support and maybe some more americanized restaurants I can go to when I'm in need of a little ~USA~.
In the meantime, check out all my new friends that gathered in front of the famous catedral just for me on the day of my arrival! I'm taking this as a sign that Santiago de Compostela, Spain is exactly where I am supposed to be...right at the end of the Camino de Santiago.
Endless abrazos from España,
Haylie
