So here I am, four months in at the halfway point of my Auxiliaries de Conversáción gig and more than once I’ve questioned, what makes someone give up a comfortable life, country cottage in New Zealand and brand-new bayside unit in Australia to end up living in a single bed, 3×6 room with shared facilities?

In a foreign country on the opposite side of the world, where you don’t speak the language.

Opportunity, adventure or just plain good old-fashioned madness? A combination of all methinks! I’ve certainly gone through moments of questioning what the hell I’m doing. That said, I’ve managed to travel and explore many parts of this stunning region, met some great people, tried the local dishes (good and bad) and drunk mucho, mucho vino, what’s not to love?

It’s certainly been an interesting and oft times challenging experience, particularly as an older language assistant. You don’t tend to make bonds and connections with the other auxiliaries who are closer to my daughters age than mine.

Don’t get me wrong, the ones I’ve meet have all been lovely and happy to include me in their activities. I’ve gone out with some of them a couple of times, but I was always looking for a more immersive experience, living and socialising with the locals.

Here’s my take on the experience so far as a GenX, Auxiliaries de Conversáción, the good, the bad and my Galician life.

The good

Travel, it opens up your world, expands your mind, it tests your mettle and shows you what you are capable of. Hands down the greatest thing is that you are gifted this opportunity to live and work in Spain – it’s all about the visa!

The work of a language assistant in Spain is easy. Of the 12 classes I assist in, six are PE, five are art and only one is an English class. Most of what I do is explain to the students, in English, what they need to do. I have led some of the art and craft projects, introducing Maori art and New Zealand culture and, surprising to me, also enjoy joining into a few games with the older PE students.

The kids are great, like anywhere they can be little shits but overall great kids and the three teachers I work with are fantastic. One has become my personal travel advisor, you can’t beat local knowledge, without his guidance I wouldn’t have visited half of the amazing places I have. Not been steered wrong once!

The locals are friendly and very tolerant of my terrible Spanish, eager to help me improve, helping with pronunciation which is particularly crucial when certain words have completely different meanings or connotations if mispronounced.

The Spanish people don’t take themselves too seriously and have great senses of humour, they go out of their way to welcome you and introduce you to the Spanish lifestyle. Happy to invite you along when going out, and party they do. There are so many holidays and festivals here and the party never starts before 10pm for dinner or 12pm for dancing and celebrations.

Oh, and the food. There is an abundance of fresh seafood and shellfish which I love, great wine, cheese and the best bread I’ve eaten anywhere. It’s cheap, you can easily live off the stipend provided by the government and there are many opportunities to earn addition cash as a private tutor.

The bad

Travelling solo you really need to be okay in your own company, especially when you are in a foreign city and you don’t speak the language. Left to my own devices to organise my TIE and open a bank account was a process of trial and error and numerous layers of bureaucracy. It took me about two months to get everything sorted and issues with my bank account meant it was three months before I got paid.

When you apply as a language assistant in Spain, you have no idea where you will end up. I was incredibly lucky to have been sent here to A Coruña a beautiful city and province in the north of Galicia.

The downside is that my school is 30 miles south of here with no public transport so I’m reliant on teachers to take me to and bring me home from the school. Having to rely on other people is frustrating when you are used to being self-sufficient, it means a lot of waiting around and occasionally being forgotten or left behind.

Some days I feel like I’m living ‘My big fat Greek Wedding’, Albert told me living local meant I would be living in a fishbowl and he was right. Everyone seems to know where you are and what you’re doing and if not, you get questioned constantly, where do you live, how much are you paying? Although for the most part I think that is more about concern whether I’m being ripped off.

Then there are the where you have been, where are you going, did you go home, or did you go out questions from my Spanish friend, perhaps a little too invested in what I’m up to at any given time.

My Galician life

It’s certainly been an emotional rollercoaster at times, while I’m more than happy to sit and watch people going about their daily lives there are times when I feel very disconnected and alone. Even when travelling around I think sometimes it would be nice to have someone to share the experiences with.

I’m not going to lie or sugar coat it, the first few months were hard. It’s not like you can have real conversations when you don’t speak the language. I generally only understand about half of anything at any given time. Google translate can even cause problems, so much gets lost in translation. When you do find English speakers, they’re eager to practice their English and you can have some interesting discussions but it sort of defeats the purpose of immersing yourself in Spanish.

There certainly are cultural differences that can get you not so much in trouble but probably frowned upon. Openness here can be seen as being forward, it’s like you’re inviting guys to hit on you and wow, Spanish men certainly aren’t backwards in being forward!

I get that I’m a bit of a novelty factor, and yes, I’m so often sitting by myself having a wine or a coffee. Okay, mostly wine, but it’s not that unfamiliar a sight here. I’m certainly under no illusions that I’ve suddenly become more attractive to the opposite sex. Am I giving guys the impression that I’m trying to hook up with them? I don’t think so I’m think I’m pretty straight up about that.

To be fair, its not everyone and it does seem to be done in good fun. I certainly haven’t felt uncomfortable at any time and the men here are noticeably more respectful of women then many I’ve encountered back home.

Do I recommend life as an Auxiliaries de Conversáción?

Absolutely! Even given the challenges the benefits of spending eight months in Spain far out-weigh any negatives. We are also very lucky in this digital age where we can regularly Skype, Facetime or whatever to talk to family and friends back home.

Albert and I do this thing when I go sightseeing or touring about. I put in the headphones, turn the camera outward and he gets to enjoy the experience with me and relive some of his time here. It’s also great when dinning alone, I can sit my phone on the table, camera once again facing outwards towards the beach or plaza, depending on where I am and we can chat about life, what’s going on around me and I get the companionship and enjoyment of his company from 15,745 kms away.  

Would I do it again, maybe not in a heartbeat but absolutely, after some careful consideration to what I want out of the experience. I have met some amazing people that I would love to see again.

Sure, I’m definitely up for the opportunity for more travel, or to learn the language a little better and yes, I have reapplied so watch this space!