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La Aventura en España (An Adventure in Spain) - Day One

Jul 28

Written by: Neil E. Traveler
Thursday, July 28, 2011 9:00 AM

NETC student traveler, Kaylyn Blair takes us on a journey through Spain and Morocco as she describes the trip she and her fellow classmates and travelers experienced this past April. I'll be posting her narrative of each day of the trip over the next six days. Happy reading!

When you think of Spain, thoughts of bullfighting, flamenco dancing and the Spanish language come to mind. While these are three very prominent aspects of the Spanish culture, many people overlook the intense history, the passion of the people, and the influence left by the moors, which helped shape Spain into the country it is today. While this may not have been known to the nine Tantasqua students, one parent, and two teachers who embarked on the trip to southern Spain this past April, it was quickly learned due to our mere presence in the eccentric country.

On April 17^th, 2011, Samantha E, Lauren P, Emily W, Melanie C, Zack H, Jerica M, Sarah C, Rebecca R, her mother Mary Jane, Ms. Páez, Ms. St. Jean and myself, embarked on the journey of a lifetime to southern Spain, otherwise known as Andalucía.

Most of us signed up simply for the joy of traveling and the thrill of seeing the world. “We took advantage of the once in a lifetime opportunity,” Rebecca said, beaming with delight. While many of the students had no idea what to expect and were simply excited to see what would happen, Emily and I had more background information. In taking Spanish VI with Ms. Ballard, anything and everything about Andalucía was drilled into our heads, conveniently preparing us for this trip.

Our flight left Boston at 9:40 and we landed in Malaga, Spain around 2:30 the next afternoon. We were greeted by our British tour guide from NETC, Hazel. Her perky personality helped wake us all up and abolish jetlag for the remainder of our vacation. We took a bus back to our hotel, Gran Hotel Cervantes, named after the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes. The hotel was in the town of Torremolinos in the area of Costa del Sol. Each room had a balcony, which was my favorite part as we had a view of the Mediterranean. “My favorite part of the room was definitely the bidet,” Lauren said with a smile. After we were settled in our rooms, we walked down through the shopping district towards the beach, where we played a few games to get to know each other. “Everyone in the group got along really well, they were very patient with each other,” said Ms. St. Jean.

Once we were familiar with our group members, it was time to become familiar with the town of Torremolinos. Following a quick stop for churros con chocolate, Hazel sent us on an informational scavenger hunt. We searched for common things known in the area, such as typical food, the colors of the Andalucían flag, and simple phrases useful for traveling. We were forced to speak with many locals to find the answers. “It wasn’t that hard,” said Sarah, “Everyone was really friendly and welcoming.” The night began to wind down from there, with dinner at the hotel and an early bedtime.

“My first impression of Spain,” said Lauren, “is that it was really old and historical, especially compared to the US.” “Everything was absolutely beautiful,” said Samantha. Everyone was in agreement towards the overwhelming beauty of the geography.

Check back tomorrow for day two of the group's adventures in Spain!

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Hi, I'm Amy! Avid traveler and social marketing guru at NETC. I'm also the editor of NETC's Educated Traveler blog, where you'll find all kinds of information about travel and education, tips, NETC news, classroom lesson ideas and more! Subscribe above!

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La Aventura en España (An Adventure in Spain) - Day One

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