Anybody in BCN?????

[virginiamary23]

Hi, I\'m leaving this week for BCN to take the Oxford House College TEFL/TESOL course.  I\'m trying to find anyone else who is already living in Barcelona or maybe even other people who are taking the same course in February.  I have friends there already, but it would be nice to talk to or maybe meet up with someone who is going to be in the same boat as me.  



Also, I\'m going to be trying to find work teaching English in Barcelona after the course is over.  I want to do it the legal way, so I\'m going to have to return home to the US to go to the Spanish consulate in N.Y.C. to obtain all the necessary documents (what a pain!).  Anyway, I\'m scared about the prospect of possibly not finding work in Barcelona.  I love the city (been there twice before) and it\'s where I want to stay, but I\'m seriously frightened that I may not find a job there.  I have a BA in English and Communications and obviously I will be receiving TEFL certification in February, but I don\'t know what the job market is like there.  I\'d love to just talk to anyone in the same position as I am or someone who once was in the same position.  



Please e-mail me at: [!-- BBcode auto-mailto start --][a href=\"mailto:virginiamary22@hotmail.com.\"]virginiamary22@hotmail.com.[/a][!-- BBCode auto-mailto end --]  



Wish me luck!!!!!

Virginia

Philadelphia, PA, USA [IMG SRC=\"modules/phpBB_14/images/smiles/icon_worry.gif\"] [!-- BBCode Start --][A HREF=\"mailto:virginiamary22@hotmail.com\"]virginiamary22@hotmail.com[/A][!-- BBCode End --][addsig]

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[mcelhinney]

Hi, i am in a similar boat, but dont plan to go over to Barcelona until September time. I am going out at the start of the summer to San Sebastian in the north to hopefully save some money working and learnging spanish there (i can stay there rent free). My main reason is my girlfriend is Spanish and i am going over there to live. I have been to Barcelona and i just love it. I know i need to go there. What are the chances of getting an ordinary kind of job, or one of the TEFL jobs?

I just would like to know what the market is like over there for getting any kind of job, big or small, im willing to start at the bottom and work my way up. Can anyone tell me what my basic chances are? I would also need somewhere to stay there, can places be rented quite cheaply, but still quite close to Barcelona itself? Any help would be much appreciated. This move is firm in my mind and im sure i am going to go.

Going out for the summer hopefully will give me the right preparation needed for a job in Barcelona, or will it? I would just like to know from people who know what they are talking about! By the way, im 20 and im living in Ireland, and im Irish (funnily enough). Thanks in advance for any advice you folks can give me,

Andy[addsig]

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[tjnguyen]

hi Andrew,



I\'m also considering moving to BCN in July \'03.  I heard from a pretty reliable source that it takes about 4 - 8 weeks to find a teaching job there.  here\'s a link to find housing in BCN.  good luck!  [!-- BBCode auto-link start --][a href=\"http://www.barcelonaconnect.com\" target=\"_blank\"]www.barcelonaconnect.com[/a][!-- BBCode auto-link end --][addsig]

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[dkmarsh]

Finding accomodations in BCN is a pain.  The real estate agencies have the market cornered.  On top of paying two months rent deposit, you may have to pay an additional months rent for commission to the agency.  And I thought extortion was illegal worldwide!  However, many EFL programs provide housing for at least one month.  Pisos can be rather expensive in BCN given the average wage (thanks to the Olympics). When you meet friends that you think you can live with, you can find a place.  



One of the best resources is the youth services office that the Ajuntament de Barcelona (city government) has on the corner of C/Ferrán and C/Avinyó in the old city (I forget the exact name of the office).  It is an office that has job and housing resources for youth in Barcelona.  In fact, it should be one of the first places that you go to.  There are many announcents hanging up for people looking for roomates.  There are also annoucements for language exchange or "intercambios", as well as jobs.  If none of the above work out, there are many pensiones in BCN that rent rooms on a monthly basis.  They are decent and all your basic amenities are provided (shared kitchen, bath, living room).  I hope this helps.



Cheers,

Dahshi [addsig]

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[magnolia3]

How hard (and expensive) is it to find a studio or one bedroom apartment in Barcelona?  Madrid?  As much as I\'d like to get to know people well, I have been out of college for over 10 years and am not too sure I could go back to sharing a place....any idea how much it will be?[addsig]

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[Mel328]

I\'m most likely going to be in Lloret de Mar (Girona) from June-September working a hotel job that a friend is hooking me up with over the tourist seasons. I\'m still torn over whether I should move on to Barcelona in the fall or down to Madrid where it\'s easier to find work/apartments. I like Barcelona MUCH more as a city and I\'m closer to my friends in the north than my friends in Madrid, but it\'s the whole apartment thing that scares me more than work. I also think I\'m going to take a certification course, even though I have a year\'s teaching experience. I just started teaching in October with absolutely no experience, training, etc and since I\'m volunteering to teach undocumented immigrants, I\'ve only had experience with adults and I would have no idea how to teach children. If you\'re planning on going to Barcelona this fall and want to talk, feel free to email me.



[!-- BBcode auto-mailto start --][a href=\"mailto:hannahmel@yahoo.com\"]hannahmel@yahoo.com[/a][!-- BBCode auto-mailto end --]



Melinda[addsig]

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