The bus slowed, the wheels span, the back of the bus slid sideways and we stopped. I pressed my nose to the window and my eyes strained to make out something in the darkness. The famously beautiful Colca Canyon was a black emptiness. I could just make out a darker line of a roadside bank and a few stars overhead. We sat in uncomplaining silence. It had already been an eventful trip. I left Arequipa from the bustling bus depot in the company of a student-now-friend. I excitedly squeezed into my seat watching my colourful companions, a motly collection of locals with several bright traditional costumes amongst the plainer jeans and t-shirts. My friend set about pointing out different costumes which differ mainly in the styles of hat worn by the women. There are two main ... read more

Note to self: Before landing in new countries do look up local greeting customs. Bestowing too many kisses on one's new boss is an interesting first impression to make...... I am in Arequipa! Three days of travelling, overnighting in Amsterdam and then Lima I finally arrived in my new home. I stepped out of the tiny airport to the gloomy world outside and was greeted by three figures huddling around a small placard bearing my name. The welcome party certainly gave me an easier start than I had in Mexico, my embarrassing blunder aside. I was shown to my new school and from there my new home whereupon left to my own devices I began to decorate with slightly battered pictures and photos which have now adorned the walls of three homes on three continents! Life ... read more

My visit to Spain is unfortunately short and driven by necessity but that doesn't mean I can't find some time for visiting somewhere new. My friend came to the hostel to pick me up this morning and we drove to Empuries. After all my annoyance over the lost job and having to return to Spain for my things I finally felt that little flash of excitement that meant I was going to a place I'd never been before, to see something I'd never seen before. Added to that despite the January chill the sun was shining and it felt like a warm English Spring day, and I was getting to spend the day with a good friend. We arrived and parked the car and I skipped out to find we were beside a beach with a ... read more

Spain hates me. Really. Even my Spanish friends have now said in confusion, wow - Spain must really hate you. After my disaster in Balaguer I left Spain confident in the knowledge that I had a better job to go to in the new year. I was on a contract of 25 hours, 2 hours of which were paid planning time. I was going to have clases of both children and adults. I'd seen photos of well equipped school without the hated blackboards I'd been suffering in my pevious job. Even better, the job was in a nice looking town in Girona province and in easy travelling distance of my friends. Or so I thought. While enjoying my christmas holidays with my family I received a very unexpected email from the school saying basically that due ... read more

Lleida is the capital of the province by the same name and has probably been my most visited location during my time here - mainly because I have passed through everytime I have gone anywhere in Spain. I have become intimately aquainted with the train station and spent too much time shivering on platforms and wandering around trying to pass the usual hour-long wait between trains. Lleida was once a chief city of an Iberian tribe, the Ilergetes and defended aginst the Romans. Eventually, under Roman rule, the city was incorporated into the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis. During the Great Civil War the Battle of Llerda took place within the city, as in June of 49BCE the Spanish army of Pompey the Great, led by his legates Lucius Afranius and Marcus Petreius, held out against ... read more