Making friends as an adult is already a nightmare. Making friends in a foreign country, where your grasp of the language is questionable at best and your social skills have been worn down by years of selective introversion? Impossible. But I was determined. Spain is a country built on socializing. People have entire friend groups […]
Author: aerielle
I Signed Up for a Yoga Class to ‘Find Inner Peace’ and Immediately Wanted to Die”
There are two types of people who do yoga: the ones who glow with inner peace, bend like human pretzels, and sip green tea after class while discussing mindfulness, and then there’s me—a person whose body was not designed to fold in half and whose brain only understands chaos. But I live in Spain now. […]
“I Went for One Drink and Woke Up in a Different Town”
This was not supposed to happen. I left my apartment with good intentions. Just a quick drink, maybe two, like a responsible person who has a healthy relationship with alcohol and decision-making. I had planned for an early night. A calm, quiet, sophisticated evening. Cut to 4 AM, and I am standing on a beach […]
I Tried to Cook a Traditional Spanish Dish and Nearly Burned My Apartment Down
Some people move to Spain and immediately integrate into the culture. They learn to roll their Rs, drink vermouth at lunchtime, and develop an opinion on where to get the best jamón ibérico. I am not one of those people. I thought I was. I thought I could be. I thought, “You know what? I […]
I Tried to Take a Siesta and Woke Up in a Different Time Zone
I don’t nap. I never have. I come from a culture that associates mid-day sleeping with either toddlers or people on the brink of a breakdown. But Spain? Spain says sleep whenever you want, wherever you want, with zero shame, because life is a long dinner and you need to pace yourself. And honestly? That […]
How I Accidentally Became a Tour Guide for German Tourists and Lied the Entire Time
I don’t know how it keeps happening, but I have an uncanny ability to stumble into situations I am wildly unqualified for. Some people accidentally sign up for gym memberships they’ll never use. Others buy a plant thinking they’ll be responsible enough to keep it alive. I, apparently, pretend to be a licensed cultural expert […]
I Was Attacked by a Spanish Pigeon (Again), and I Think It Was Personal
At this point, I feel like I need to file some kind of official report. Maybe go to the police, explain that I am being specifically targeted by a feathered psychopath with a personal vendetta. Because this was not my first run-in with The Pigeon. The first time, I wrote it off as bad luck. […]
I Said Yes to Everything for a Month and Now I Need a Nap (And Possibly a Lawyer)
There’s a point in every expat’s life when they realize they have no social life and have two choices: be alone forever or say yes to literally everything until someone adopts you. I went with option two. It started harmlessly. A casual “hey, we’re getting drinks later” from a woman I met in a language […]
I Moved to Spain with No Plan and Now My Life Feels Like a Sitcom
There’s something about stepping off a plane with no return ticket that feels equally thrilling and dumb. I thought I’d have a grand epiphany the moment my feet touched Spanish soil—some cinematic, life-altering realization that I had made the right decision. Instead, I got smacked in the face by the heat, tripped over my own […]