Moved to Cadiz

[Cadiz chica]

HI all,
I´m returning to this great site after two years in Asturias teaching mostly privately, with a little Academy experience thrown in - I couldn´t continue to post here during that time as I was based in a small country town, a long bus ride to an internet cafe and I didn´t have a car! I was so busy teaching, living, exploring and sharing time with the incredibly hospitable Asturianos that I was usually very short of time, even for sleeping!!  But, I´ve just relocated to gorgeous, sunny,friendly Cadiz, after 4 months back home in England and am now looking for work, even though it´s completely the wrong time - until the Summer courses and camps kick off!

So, I´d love to share my forthcoming experiences and to join in any discussions re. Asturias - the Oviedo westwards area - if others here would like. Right now, we´re in the midst of the Semana Santa fiesta, complete with massive processions to and from the Cathedral - leading up to a grand climax on Sunday next - I am now effectively locked out of my neighbourhood till after midnight tonight, as has been the case every day since last Sunday, until the last participants have processed through!!
 
Of course, it´s a priviledge to be here at this time and to witness the whole event, but it´s very difficult getting back home from the supermarket  and moving my bags from the hostal to my new room in a rented flat was a nine hour exercise, on foot - most of the time I was trapped at the end of a blocked street, complete with luggage, blasted by the loudest drums and horns I´d ever heard!!  My fault, entirely, I know, for not appreciating exactly how wholeheartedly the Caditanos would celebrate this fiesta!! Anyway, tonight´s promising even more of the devotional activity alongside yet more partying in the streets and squares, so, as you can see, it´s tough for this new resident, but I´m planning to sit it out at my newly favourite tapas bar - and as I was advised by my Spanish landlord, Cadiz is probably the cheapest city in Spain and, normally, extremely tranquil!!   

Besos,
Cadiz chica - formerly Zorrasabia´´ on this site - till I was told of the colloquial significance of the first two syllables!!

[samma]

I lived in Cadiz for a summer, it was amazing! I went to playa Caleta as much as possible and ate a lot of gelato at the heladeria in Plaza Mina. I lived right next to the Plaza de Espana in the old city. You will love it!

[Cadiz chica]

Hi Samma,

great to know there´s some-one here who´s experienced Cadiz, too!

Right now, I´m in an Internet cafe and bar on Plaza Minha -it´s almost midnight, the place is buzzing, the music´s fantastic and the tables out in the Plaza are filled with people of all ages, enjoying the warm night air, eating ice cream and waiting for tonight´s only Semana Santa processions to pass, between 1a.m. and 4a.m! Lots of kids, too -the concept of ´babysitter´certainly does not exist here - so different from my home in U.K!
Luckily, I love the late night culture here in Spain, so tomorrow´s full day and night´s fiesta climax should be a breeze, LOL!   
I´m still finding my way around the old city centre, as yet, but the relaxed feel of Cadiz has proved to be a wonderful change from London, where I´ve just spent 4 months catching up with my family - I can´t think why more people on this site don´t consider this city -it´s certainly cheaper than most and the coast is only ever two or three blocks away!
I visited La Barrosa Playa last week, past Chiclana -it was absolutely magical - golden sand which went on for miles - all the way to Tarifa and very clean -I wish the similar beaches in Cornwall, England were swept daily, as are beaches here! I´m certainly looking forward to getting to know Cadiz much better - if you had favourite haunts, please feel free to share them with me - the Gaditanos are proving to be as friendly and helpful as were the Asturianos, so being on my own here is no problem!  I do need to find work quickly, though, so will be calling on the local academies mañana, after their fiesta holidays!
Are you still in Spain and how did you come to be in Cadiz that Summer - I´m told it will be very, very hot - but that suits me fine!
Cadiz Chica

[samma]

I went to Cadiz for a study abroad program. It is really hot in the summer. But you can go to the beach every day and it isn't so bad. Cadiz is such a great city but a lot of people don't visit. It is pretty out of the way though, not too easy to get to other places in Spain.

I really loved going to Playa Caleta in the evenings. In the summer all the young people hang out there, play guitars, and have a great time. There was always good botellon at Plaza San Francisco on the weekends. The one place you have to go is the restaurant La gorda to da de comer. It is the best tapas place I have ever been and the food is incredible!

[RebeccaG]

Hello Cadiz Chica!!

Welcome back! You know, just the other day I was thinking about zorrasabia and was going to send you a message to find out what you were up to. Glad to know that you haven't forgotten about us! 

I can assure you that your posts and information sharing, both for Asturias as well as Cadíz will be warmly welcomed. I think that most people don't consider Cádiz because information isn't as readily available on the area as say, Madrid.

I certainly look forward to hearing more about that part of Spain !

As far as babysitters are concerned, I concur with you. Spain is vastly different in it's attitudes towards children compared to the USA. I am so used to toting my son about with me here that when I went to the USA for a visit my friends thought it a bit odd that I didn't leave him with his grandparents more frequently when I went out. 

Anyway, just wanted to drop you a note to let you know how happy we are to see you back here!

Take care,
Rebecca

[Cadiz chica]

Hola Rebecca,

so nice to get your ´welcome back ´message -thankyou!
 
I´m really enjoying my new start here, tho´I´m receiving very poignant text messages from former Asturian students, every one of which has written; ´´tu tienes casa en Asturias´´´, which is typical of the amazing generosity, both in practice and in spirit, of the wonderful Asturianos!!

 I´m a little sad that none of the American applicants for the forthcoming Teaching programme here in Spain has apparently chosen to opt for a placement in that incredible province!! I do hope that the successful new assistant teachers will visit the Atlantic coastal region of Spain -especially any of them with Celtic ancestry-they´ll be made so welcome and it´s a fantastic area to experience a vastly different Spanish culture - I loved the Gaita music, dancing, the food and the many rural fiestas, but the people were by far the most hospitable I´ve ever encountered - I was the only non -Spaniard in the town where I lived and Asturias has very few expats of any nationality, in any case.
 I was literally welcomed into the town and, indeed, into each of the two neighbouring pueblos, as a long lost family member - albeit as one who´d lost most of her Spanish, whilst away! Still, I had two years in which to catch up, as hardly anyone spoke any English, until I began teaching, LOL
 
Here in Cadiz I´m now circulating my C.V. in the hope of getting some Summer classes here, but I´m also putting up my own notices for classes particulares - I´ve been offered some Business English classes in May with one academy, whilst another´s invited me to visit next Tues. re a job in October, with the possibility of some classes sooner - I was asked by yet another to be available for substitution classes if required, with the potential for some Summer classes too, so it seems there´s a mix of potential work available, at least.  I would love to read your own long ago posts re. charging fees as an autonomo - are they still available? I recall their being very informative when I was still researching the move to `pain from England. Thanks again.

Wishing all those American would be hopefuls the best of luck in their applications for teaching placements this year,
´sa luego,
Cadiz chica - from an internet cafe on Plaza Mina - IT´S FIVE TO ELEVEN AT NIGHT, the music´s great, the night´s warm and people are strolling about, OUTSIDE,  with friends, children, babies and ice creams - isn´t Spanish life fantastic?!!

[Cadiz chica]

Hi Samma,

thanks for the info - I´ll definitely get round to your recommended restaurant - I do envy anyone who´s had the chance to study here - the students certainly seem to be having a great time!

 Today´s been sweltering as was yesterday, so the beach would have been a great option - I´m trying to concentrate on finding work, though it´s so hard, passing all those cruise ship passengers hanging out in Plaza Catedral, eating ice cream and sipping their drinks, when I´d love to do the same!! Still, I´ve discovered a great resource - the Tierra de Todos centre, right next to the Cathedral - it offers free internet and even courses in computing, Spanish and English to ímmigrantes´and to locals looking for work or simply wanting info. via the Net! It´s funded by the Catholic Church, somehow, and is housed in a gorgeous air conditioned building, open from 9a.m. till 10p.m. so is saving me 2 euros an hour on the computers in the locotorios - my own laptop is still in Asturias, sadly.

I´ve also joined a great éntrecambio´ group. meeting each Weds. night in Bar Cardinal - we all were there till 2a.m. this week, with one hour in Spanish and the rest of the night in English - I met others from Italy, Germany, Spain, Holland, Ireland, France and the Ukraine! We´ve arranged an overnight trip to Sierra de Grazelema in a fortnight - in a hostal with a late night picnic by the river and a trek through the bosque - really looking forward to it, and it´s a fantastic way to meet people here - I hope there´re other similar groups gathering in other Spanish cities - I must have spoken lots, ´cos all the next day I was suffering from a very sore throat - or p´raps it was just the combination of the very loud music, (excellent choices tho´by the bar owner!), the extremely loquacious Spanish and the ubiquitous cigarette smoke!

 After 3 years in Spain, I now reckon this country´s at least 10 years behind the U.K on awareness of the dangers of both active and passive smoking - I feel I can comment here as my own father died of smoking- related bladder cancer and I didn´t meet too many smoking enthusiasts for smoking amongst the other patients in the hospice where he spent the last two weeks of his life, nor amongst the incredible team of oncologists who tried to save his life at the Royal Marsden specialist Cancer hospital in London!

Here in Spain, I just try to avoid the worst of it and the gorgeous Cadiz weather means I can always sit outside when having a drink or a meal. I also ask students not to smoke in my private classes - and most of them do request permission - but I know my own voice would dry up- and they are paying to listen as well as to speak!
It´s just that having spent four months back home, till February, I was again so surprised by just how many more smokers there are here, especially amongst women of all ages, even when they´re in very close company with young children and babies!

Anyway, back to job hunting - I´ve been invited to watch some classes at an academy next week, by the D.o.S. - my informal meeting with her went well, so she wants to know whether I would feel comfortable with the teaching methodology there - it´s certainly very well organised compared with some academies I´ve seen here! Any job offer would be for an October start, so I´m still searching for something else for the Summer - probably ´recuperation´classes - such hard work!

Thanks again for your advice - I´ll head down to Playa Caleta tomorrow - Saturday - at least, here, it´s a guarantee that the sun will be shining!
Cadiz chica.