¡Hola Yessica!

Are you thinking about moving to  Barcelona? You’re certainly not the only one who’s been lured in by the Catalan capital’s charm. The city is home to a thriving international community with plenty of people who decided to make the move here. Still, even when you’re moving to a place as exciting as Barcelona, it can be hard getting everything set up. It’s not easy moving to a new country where…

10 Things You Have to Do When you Study Abroad in Barcelona

Studying abroad in Barcelona is a really special experience. Who knows – you might even end up staying for a few years like someone I know! 🙂 No matter where you go in the world, a semester abroad is the perfect chance to get out there and try something different. Even if it doesn’t end up being a life-changing experience, it can be a lot of fun.  A whole semester or year might sound like a lot…

Here’s something I bet you don’t know about me – I play soccer. Yep, even though I never talk about it on my blog. Until now, that is! That’s because I’ve recently rediscovered my love for the beautiful game and finally worked up the courage to go play again. I’d toyed with the idea of joining a team here, but never actually got around to it. I also wasn’t quite sure how to go about finding a…

Barcelona is a pretty popular place these days! With visitors from every corner of the globe paying visits to the Catalan capital, things can get busy – especially at the height of the tourist season. Still, there are plenty of places where you can go to get away from the crowds and still enjoy some impressive sightseeing. This is also helpful if your first choice pick is full…which does happen.…

Recently, an invitation popped into my inbox I couldn’t resist – a night of painting and wine in a brand-new place that had opened up: ArteBar Barcelona. I’d been curious about wine and painting classes, but hadn’t had the chance to try one for myself. So, off I headed for an evening of painting one of Barcelona’s most iconic sights: the Sagrada Familia. If you’re not familiar with the idea of…

“Come hungry :)” said the text I got on in the morning from Marwa, one of the founders of Wanderbeak food tours. I’d been invited along to try out the tour, and I was definitely looking forward to it. Even after living here for five years, each time I take a tour I learn something new about Barcelona. Still, I was surprised at how much I learned on the wonderful Savor Spain tour – and how…

There are plenty of great things to see in Barcelona – but there aren’t many that are as spectacular as La Pedrera, officially called Casa Milà. This gorgeous building is one of the two houses famous architect Antoni Gaudí designed on the grand Passeig de Gràcia. Though there are plenty of pretty buildings on the street, this one stands out immediately. But though you can get a wonderful view…

“Barcelona,” Don Quixote exclaimed, is a “fountain of courtesy, shelter of strangers, hospice to the poor, land of the valiant, avenger of the offended, reciprocator of firm friendship, a city unique in its location and beauty.” – Miguel de Cervantes, 1605 In other words, people have been raving about Barcelona and how incredible it is for centuries now. It’s consistently ranked as one of the…

L.A. is perhaps the most frustrating city I’ve ever been to. A permanent snarl of traffic in an endless sprawl of a city, with many areas that are ugly and others that are flat-out dangerous, Los Angeles isn’t exactly the easiest city to get to grips with. But there is one place I feel like I get a bit better these days – and that’s Downtown L.A. While by no means have I gotten to grips with the…

One of my very favorite things about living in Barcelona is that you can do a lot of stuff here while still sticking to a fairly strict budget. As I’ve mentioned before, with the way the economy is, it’s just as well  – but still, it’s definitely something that’s much appreciated! Upon request on my Facebook page (thanks for the suggestion, Kristin!), I’ve picked out ten of my favorite cheap…

New year, new you – right? This time of year, lots of people are busy making New Year’s resolutions. One that I’ve made a few times has been to improve my Spanish. Over the years, I’m proud to say that I’ve managed it! Unlike other resolutions…er, let’s not mention those! Anyway, in the spirit of the New Year, I’d like to share some of the tools and tricks I actually use to translate Spanish to…

The 7 Most-Read Posts Of 2016

2016 is drawing to a close – and what a year it’s been! I think it’s probably pretty safe to say that it’s been a strange year, right? But Last year, I rounded up my best Barcelona and best travel moments of 2015, which was a pretty good year. This year, I thought I’d do something a bit different. My friends over at Viaje Con Escalas (a great online travel magazine in Spanish) put out a list of…

The holiday gift guide for your expat or traveler

Easy to pack presents for anybody coming home for the holidays from far away. – – – It’s always a tricky thing to buy gifts for somebody who lives far away. It’s not quite the same as buying presents for somebody who’s always on the move. After all, they’ll probably appreciate cash or a practical travel accessory most of all. But you’ll also want to give your far-way person something that’s…

It’s been a while, hasn’t it? I think this is probably the longest I’ve ever gone without updating my little blog! Good intentions and planned posts just haven’t been happening over the past few weeks, and that’s for lots of different reasons. So before getting back into the swing of things, I thought I’d share a bit about what’s been going on in my life. It’s been a busy past couple of months!…

Looking on the Bright Side on Route 66 in California

These past few months I’ve learned quite a few lessons, often ones that I should have learned the first time or recognized a lot earlier on. And some of that came to a head while I was on a road trip along classic Route 66 in California. I’ve never been one for spending lengthy periods of time in a car, but I’d also never had a road trip  – or any kind of trip – that actually reduced me to tears…

Barcelona’s top modernist sights are usually pretty obvious to anyone passing by – the colorful buildings with incredible design details and unusual shapes are fairly hard to miss!  But, despite the eye-catching nature of these buildings, lots of them are still hiding little secrets behind their walls. I went on a Gaudí-inspired treasure hunt put together by Marriott International to discover…

When I meet someone new, our conversation almost always goes like this: what do you do, where do you live, how long have you been there. “Five years”, I reply, which is (incredibly) how long I’ve been in Barcelona at this point. And at that point, their response usually goes like this: “Wow! I bet you love it there, huh?” “Yep!” I always say, and laugh a bit. The truth? It’s a bit more…