Learning Spanish Abroad

Packing for your Spanish language travel

Many people who are going to be learning Spanish abroad ask us what they should take with them. It’s obviously not the same when you’re going to study Spanish in Spain or in Guatemala, but I’ve just come across a website that has information for you wherever you’re going for your Spanish studies (in fact it’s a website that I used to know, but under a different name):
One Bag (all about packing, luggage and travelling light)

Don’t worry, you don’t have to go so far as to use one bag only, but you’ll find some very useful advice on preparing for your trip and good links to web sites with practical information.

And, to decide which Spanish language school you want to attend, just go to our home page:
Spanish Courses Abroad

Learning Spanish in Buenos Aires: Good Restaurant Guide

Last week I spoke about the cultural events that were on offer for students who decided to study Spanish in Buenos Aires during these summer months. This week I came across a very useful web site that will help you choose where to eat there. So, if you want to study Spanish, and be well fed, just visit the following page:
Buenos Aires’ Restaurant Guide

As always, to choose your Spanish language school in Buenos Aires, look at our page on Spanish Schools in Argentina.

Learning Spanish in Buenos Aires

Now is a very good time to be learning Spanish in Buenos Aires. It’s summer, and that means there are lots of things to do after your classes.

As well as the usual, permanent sights, museums, tango shows, etc., there are a few very interesting temporary exhibitions:
The Borges Cultural Centre, in the centre of Buenos Aires, is celebrating its tenth birthday and perhaps the most attractive exhibition is a show of three sets of engravings by Marc Chagall based on the Bible, the seven deadly sins and Nikolai Gogol’s novel “Dead Souls” (until 5th March);
For free outdoor events you can try Palermo’s Rosedal park, with concerts throughout the season; the amphitheatre in the new Puerto Madero park complex will show the best of Argentine cinema on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays; and six theatre groups will also present works at different locations in the city on Saturdays and Sundays;
At the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes you’ll find a remarkable photography exhibit this summer, with more than 30 portraits of local and international figures, taken by different well-known international photographers.

These are just some of the offerings available - Buenos Aires is, after all, considered by many to be the cultural capital of South America. So book your Spanish course quickly and escape from the Northern winter!

If you’d like to see which Spanish language school(s) we recommend in Buenos Aires, visit:
Spanish Schools in Argentina

Special offers for learning Spanish in the Dominican Republic

If you’re wondering where to go for your Spanish language course abroad, you might be interested to know that our recommended school in the Dominican Republic has two offers available at the moment.

The school has two campuses for its Spanish language courses: Santo Domingo and Sosua. Santo Domingo is recommended for students looking for a cultural-type stay, and Sosua for a more sports-centered stay.

The special offers are available for Spanish language courses taken in the months of May and September. In May you get one week of Spanish group course free for any course of 3 weeks or more, and in September you can save 25% on all Spanish language courses.

For more details of the school and its campuses, visit our webapge:
Spanish Language Schools Dominican Republic

Learning Spanish and Swimming with Dolphins (Playa del Carmen)

Learning Spanish in Mexico can be very pleasant indeed - especially at a location like Playa del Carmen. Playa del Carmen is a town about 50 km from Cancun, so it’s easy to get to (via Cancun airport), but still reasonably undeveloped and Bohemian (compared to Cancun). While learning Spanish there you can enjoy lots of out-of-class activities, especially discovering the ancient Maya sites of the Yucatan Peninsula and all kinds of watersports. One of the major attractions of the area is Xcaret aquatic park, which has an underground river and a “Swim with the Dolphins” attraction. For more information on the park, and on the area in general, you’ll find the following sites interesting:
Xcaret Park
Welcome to Playa del Carmen
And for your Spanish course, just have a look at our Mexico page to find which Spanish language school(s) we recommend in Playa del Carmen:
Spanish Language Schools Mexico

Learning Spanish in Valencia

One of the most popular tourist destinations in Spain at the moment is Valencia - it even seems to be catching up on Barcelona as the most popular city destination. But there don’t seem to be half as many schools for learning Spanish in Valencia as in Barcelona.

If you were thinking of coming to Spain to study Spanish, Valencia has just about everything you could ask for - it’s a small city, with great cultural and entertainment facilities, and above all a wonderful climate throughout the year. If you’d like to have a good look at what it has to offer, I recommend the following article and resource:
Valencia Spain Travel Information

And although there aren’t as many Spanish language schools in Valencia as in Madrid or Barcelona, there are some top-quality schools. Check our Spain page to see which school(s) we recommend there:
Spanish Language Schools Spain

Study Spanish in a cloud forest

It’s perfectly possible to study Spanish in a cloud forest. An excellent place to do this is the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, in Costa Rica.

If you’re not sure of the difference between a rain forest and a cloud forest - or if you have no idea what a cloud forest is - I recommend the following article:
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, Costa Rica

One of our recommended Spanish schools, CPI, is in Monteverde, and it’s possible to combine a Spanish course in the Monteverde school with a course in one (or both) of CPI’s other schools, in Heredia, near the capital San Jose, and at Flamingo Beach.

To see our recommended Spanish schools in Costa Rica, please visit Spanish language schools Costa Rica.

Wi-fi spots for Spanish learners abroad

Another of the most common questions asked by students who are going to be learning Spanish abroad is whether they should take their laptop with them. Until now we’ve always advised them to leave it at home - most students on a Spanish course abroad stay with a family, and most families in Spain and Latin America don’t have broadband connections. In this case you’re better off using the computers that are usually available in your Spanish school or, outside school hours, going to an Internet café.

Now, however, wi-fi hotspots are becoming much more common so it may be time to revise our advice - perhaps you should take your laptop with you on your Spanish course abroad after all! Before you leave home you can check to see where you’ll be able to find a wi-fi hotspot in your Spanish study destination by going to the following page:
JiWire: Search for Wi-Fi Hotspots

It’s not a complete list by any means, but at least you can get some idea.

Plugs and sockets

Perhaps one of the most difficult things about travelling, in general, including learning Spanish abroad, is to know whether your electrical appliances are going to work abroad or not. First you have to know whether your appliance works at 110 or 220 volts, whether the plug will fit into the sockets of the country you are visiting, etc.

Because this is such a complicated subject, and so many different countries are involved in the field of learning Spanish abroad, just take a look at the best page I’ve found on this subject - I think it covers just about everything:
Electricity around the world

The only thing it doesn’t tell you is where you can buy an adaptor if you need one during your learning Spanish abroad trip. In my experience, the best place is your departure airport - you can usually find what is called a “universal adaptor”. You’ll only need one particular part of the adaptor for the trip you’re beginning, but you’ll have an adaptor for all future journeys.

Happy Spanish learning!

How do you learn Spanish?

I’m often asked which is the “best” Spanish language school in a particular city or country - and people think I’m trying to dodge the question when I say “It depends on the student”.

And when someone says to me “I just can’t learn Spanish”, I usually say, “Perhaps you haven’t used the right method”, or “Perhaps you need to go to a different school”.

Basically, what works for some people doesn’t work for others, and this is due to the fact that we all have different learning styles. If you’d like to see a good treatment of this subject, just read the article What’s your learning style?, by Gerald Erichsen. He explains how knowing what your learning style is, and adjusting your studying accordingly, can bring great results in your Spanish learning - and in learning other subjects too.

So, next time you begin a Spanish course and don’t get very far, don’t blame yourself. Just try a different approach!