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by Linda Martin

Travel diary: the bureaucracy continues

May 20, 2012 in Travel diary

Our fourth week in A Coruña was certainly an improvement on the third. But we are in Spain, after all, so it still contained a fair bit of bureaucracy.

Monday 14/5: After a couple of hours of ITP work, I headed out to the supermarket and library, then made hamburgers for lunch. We both got so caught up with work that we almost forgot to go for our post-lunch walk, and only had time for a short one before I had to go to school.

I’d been planning to come home between classes, but as I left the first one, the secretary told me (dramatically) that I needed to get a Social Security number, and that it was urgent. I asked her where to go to get it and she spent the next 25 minutes trying to find out by searching online, roping in a student’s mother to help her. Eventually the address was found and I could leave, only half an hour after I’d wanted to!

In the evening, Oliva came around for a language exchange — Craig hid in the guest room and worked while she and I chatted.

Tuesday 15/5: Despite the secretary’s vehemence the day before, I didn’t go to the social security office — it’s only open in the morning and I had to be at school from 10-12:30. And it’s a half-hour walk away.

Craig on the beach

Craig on the beach.

After lunch, we went for a long walk along the beach, amusing ourselves by racing the tide around the promontory that divides the two beaches. We both made it, and were still laughing when another wave crashed up further than expected and Craig didn’t get out of the way in time.

Pohutukawa in A Coruña

Christmas is coming! Oh wait, no it isn't.

Yolanda came over for dinner, bringing fresh-laid eggs from her chickens as a gift. I put them to immediate use, since I’d half-prepared a tortilla but hadn’t added the eggs yet. It was almost a disaster, as the frying pan I was using was anything but non-stick, but we switched pans, Yoli came to the rescue when it was time to flip, and it turned out tasty.

Wednesday 16/5: I got up early to head to the Social Security office, where I was seen quickly and issued a number without any problems at all — in fact, it was the easiest and most pleasant bureaucratic experience thus far. The clerk was happy to be able to practice her English and gave me two copies of the official document so that I’d have one to give to my boss — amazing.

She’d mentioned that I might be able to get the NIE card (which the bank wanted) from the police station, so I stopped in there and waited for half an hour before giving up — there were too many people ahead of me. Instead, I went to the bank, where I was told that it was all looking promising, that I probably wouldn’t need a NIE card at all, and that I’d have to come back in the afternoon.

It doesn't look like much, but that promontory is a challenge to get around at high tide.

It doesn't look like much, but that promontory is a challenge to get around at high tide.

Back home, we got some work done then had a tasty chicken stirfry lunch before both heading out for our walk… to the bank. Luckily we didn’t have to spend much time there, the clerk (Nuria) took a copy of my passport and told me to come back on Friday. This left us with extra time, so we decided to walk back along the beach; since it was a beautiful day, there were people sunbathing and a few had even ventured into the water.

Oliva came over in the evening for another language exchange — we’d planned to do them on Fridays, but failed last week and this week she was away for the weekend. After she left Craig and I had soup for dinner and watched TV before bed.

Thursday 17/5: May 17 is a public holiday in Galicia — it’s Galician Language Day. We did absolutely nothing to celebrate the Galician language, but we did make the most of the festivo by working a lot less. We slept in then headed to Amy’s place for a goodbye brunch; her programme has ended and she’s heading back to the States. The food was great (blueberry pancakes!) and the company excellent; we’d met some of Amy’s friends before and she’d also invited Oliva and Guille.

Another view of the A Coruña beaches

Another view of the A Coruña beaches.

After a rest back home, we went on a mammoth walk all the way to the Millenium Obelisk; the weather was a little cool so it was perfect for walking. In the evening we played cards and watched some TV.

Friday 18/5: When I left the house to go to the bank, I optimistically told Craig that I’d be back in an hour. I was wrong.

The bank’s a 15-minute walk from our house, and I had to wait for Nuria to finish serving two other customers before she could get to me. What followed was a flurry of paper-moving and phone calls — she printed duplicates of the twenty or so essential documents and I had to sign most of them. To activate the account I had to put money in it, so Nuria gave me a bank book (!) which I had to take to the counter with me and then insert into a red machine so the transaction could be printed on the first page. Sadly, though, it turns out five euros wasn’t enough money, so I had to repeat the process; the teller who’d first served me was concerned he’d done it wrong, and abandoned his customer to come and ask me if everything was all right: “I’m sure I heard you say cinco,” he said.

Boats at A Coruña port

Boats at A Coruña port.

Nuria set me up with internet banking and explained why I couldn’t have an ATM card: you can get one for free after your account registers an “official transaction” such as a wages. Otherwise it costs €15. Looks like I’ll be waiting a little longer!

After a lentil lunch, we got some work done then I headed to school for a couple of hours. Craig went to meet our friend Dave at the train station, arriving late due to technical issues (the all-important text never arrived) — but they made it home before I got back.

Since May 18 is the Day of the Museums, all of the museums were once again free to visit, so we dragged a tired Dave first to the aquarium and then to the Domus, before heading to the old town for a tapas dinner. We ended the night with a visit to Plaza Maria Pita, where the town hall was attractively lit up and a jazz band was playing.

Saturday 19/5: After a long sleep-in, Craig and Dave spent the morning working while I read my book. After a late lunch we headed to the art gallery, which is free to enter on Saturday afternoons, then decided to wander around the port. In the art gallery we’d seen a cool painting of a fortress on an island in the A Coruña bay, and we came across the fortress itself more or less by accident. It’s no longer on an island — the land between the ex-island and the coast has been reclaimed, so that we had no trouble getting to it. It now hosts the (free to enter) history and archaeology museum; we had a cursory wander around without really looking at the exhibits too closely.

By the time we got home it was after 8pm, so we prepared an early dinner and spent the evening chatting.

Sunday 20/5: Another lazy day. I slept in then chatted with Oscar for an hour or so while Craig and Dave worked; I eventually joined them and we spent a companionable couple of hours tapping away at laptops in near silence.

Dave and pulpo.

Dave and pulpo

At about 2.30pm we headed out to the pulpería in Plaza de España, where we enjoyed very very tasty octopus, potatoes and red wine for lunch. Afterwards, we went for an incredibly long walk: along the beach and around the coast to the Millenium Obelisk and the Monte de San Pedro. We caught the panoramic elevator up the cliff after waiting 20 minutes or so for it to descend, then wandered through the maze and around the park before heading slowly home again.

Linda and pulpo

Linda and pulpo.

After a simple dinner, we all opened our laptops again, and spent another couple of hours tapping before bed.

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by Linda Martin

Quad Biking on Kangaroo Island

May 18, 2012 in Australia

There’s a lot more to see on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, than just kangaroos. Sure, these are not in short supply, but other wildlife includes seals, sea lions, pelicans, penguins, raptors, snakes, wallabies and koalas among many other examples of Aussie wildlife.

However, you don’t want to miss out on the kangaroos, and one of the best ways to see them is to do a dusk tour by quad bike with KI Outdoor Action.

You’ll need your own vehicle to get there, as there is no public transport on the island, but cars can be hired if you book far enough in advance. Once you’ve arrived, though, the Outdoor Action team will sort you out with all the equipment and knowledge that you need to drive a quad bike through the dunes of Vivonne Bay — with kangaroo sightings guaranteed. Kangaroos are most active at dawn and dusk, so an evening tour is a great way to see them in action.

The Dusk Kangaroo Tour starts two hours before sunset, and riders receive a comprehensive lesson on how to use the bike before setting out. This will take between thirty and sixty minutes and you’ll get at least an hour on the bike. Almost anyone can join in, as there are smaller bikes available for kids as young as six, and if you’re not keen to ride you can go as a passenger in the larger guide vehicle.

For more on Australia, check out our Australia page.

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by Linda Martin

Travel diary: the honeymoon’s over

May 13, 2012 in Travel diary

The honeymoon is over. While we still love A Coruña bureaucracy and various other issues got to us this week, making it quite a challenge. At least the weekend was awesome.

Monday 7/5: I had to make a couple of phone calls, first to make an appointment at the immigration office, and then to return a call we’d received from DHL the previous Friday. Neither went well. I called the number I had for the immigration office, and was told I had to call another number, and was told I had to call the first number. I eventually managed to make the appointment, but the woman at the other end of the line sounded doubtful that that was the right thing to have done.

DHL was worse. I couldn’t call using Skype because the number was blocked, so I called expensively on Craig’s cellphone; of course I was put on hold for ages. I was finally transferred to the correct person, who told me that a package had arrived for us (Craig’s replacement Kindle) and that we had to pay €110 in taxes on it. That’s 60% of its value. I was literally dumbstruck, and when I could speak again I couldn’t marshal good enough Spanish to argue with the woman, who wasn’t interested in understanding me anyway. I hung up and got very angry and very upset, and decided to go for a walk to calm down.

A Coruña beach

A typical dinner

I visited the library and did the shopping, and after lunch Craig and I recorded the podcast and worked on the ebooks. I had to head to school for the afternoon, but we had a pleasant evening reading and watching TV.

Tuesday 8/5: I seemed to get out of bed on the clumsy side, and spent the day dropping things, knocking things over, and walking into walls. My classes went well though, and lunch was tasty, but after I finished cooking we noticed that the sink was blocked. Craig searched online to try to learn how to unblock it and we tried all sorts of things, but to no avail. Eventually he texted the landlord (who lives downstairs), who fixed it the next day.

We headed out for a walk along the beach and through the city, and spent the afternoon working before blobbing in front of the TV. At least we were watching something in Spanish — Españoles en el Mundo. It’s about Spanish people living in different parts of the world, in this case first Philadelphia then Kenya.

Wednesday  9/5: While chatting with my Chilean friend Moroni, who’s now living in the Czech Republic, he told me that as the wife of an EU citizen I have the right to residency here in Spain. I couldn’t believe it — first that he hadn’t mentioned this earlier, second that I didn’t know. I’d assumed that I’d have to get residency in the UK to be able to benefit from Craig’s citizenship, which is a long painful process, but apparently it’s a lot easier here. I was incredibly frustrated — had I wasted a lot of time and money getting my working holiday visa? At least having it has taken the stress out of the application process, but arghhhh!

After a quick visit to school, where I met the last of my students, a lovely woman called Ana, I headed to the immigration office with Craig to hand in the documents for my work permit and ask about this new residence possibility. The poor woman who was helping us had to get up twice to go and ask someone else what the story was (a running theme, it seems), but she eventually gave me my all-important NIE number and a copy of my application and pointed us in the direction of the comisaria to register Craig as a resident. We couldn’t find it and were incredibly hungry, so we admitted defeat and headed to the shopping centre for kebabs for lunch.

I spent the next hour or so looking into residency options (and learned a lot) then headed back to school briefly, coming back with strawberries for a snack. In the evening, we walked along to Kiu Bar, off the Paseo Maritimo, to join a language exchange group that Amy is part of. Unfortunately there were six English speakers and only one Spaniard, but it was a pleasant (if sightly expensive) experience.

Beach of a Coruña, spain

A Coruña beach

Thursday 10/5: As if to compensate for our spectacularly bad week, the weather finally sorted itself out, and Thursday was warm and clear; when we went for our walk on the beach in the afternoon, we both got down to just t-shirts — very exciting!

The rest of the afternoon was uneventful, except for the landlord coming to visit to let us know that the water would be turned off from 10pm. Accordingly, at 9:30, Craig went to fill up a bucket and some water bottles… but it had already been cut off! And of course we didn’t have any water available. Craig wasn’t too bothered (he drank wine instead), but I really didn’t want to have to brush my teeth with orange juice — I managed to get a little out of the shower hose.

Friday 11/5: I was dozing in bed when I suddenly heard the sound of running water close by; I’d forgotten to turn off the shower the night before, and the water had come back on. Not the best start to the day, but at least I heard it come on and hadn’t wasted too much water.

The rest of the morning was spent in bureaucracy. First we went to the town hall to do the empadronamiento, or register as residents of A Coruña. We took a number and waited our turn, and were given forms to fill out. The clerk took the forms, our passports and the apartment contract, and was starting to make copies and do the data entry when she realised that the contract didn’t have the house number written on it. The street name, yes, and the apartment number as well, but the house number was noticeably missing. We all stared at each other in disbelief for a few seconds, Craig and I envisioning an extra hour of stuffing around, when the clerk asked if we had the landlords’ phone number. After a quick call to them, the problem was resolved by the clerk neatly writing the number in the space left for it on the contract; we got our copies of the application, and we could go.

Immigration office

Immigration office

After that, we walked to the bank that Amy had recommended, but as the person who helped her wasn’t at her desk, I talked to another employee instead. I didn’t envision any problems with opening an account as I had all the documentation I needed: a job contract and the all-important NIE number. Apparently not; she wanted an NIE number card. This was the first I’d heard of such a thing, and I learned later that they aren’t being issued anymore. Despite the teller talking to two or three of her colleagues, it couldn’t be resolved; she’d have to talk to someone higher up and I could come back on Monday.

Next, we headed to the comisaria, where we had a longer wait and another failure to achieve anything. As a citizen of the European Union, Craig has the right to residency, but has to register with the police within three months of arrival. He should get a certificate, which I use for my application — which also has to be submitted within three months of entering the country. Unfortunately, the immigration laws for EU citizens changed two weeks ago and now nobody knows exactly what’s going on, and they aren’t issuing any certificates. The clerk suggested that we fill in the application form for the certificate and use that in my application — it probably wouldn’t work, she said, but we just needed to submit something before the three months were up.

So we went back to the immigration office, and talked to a very grumpy official, who gave us the forms we needed and wrote a list of the four documents I need to submit to get residency: the unobtainable certificate, an actualised copy of our marriage certificate (such a thing does not exist), a photocopy of my entire passport (possible), and the empadronamiento certificate (hypothetically on its way). Not very promising really, but we’ll give it a go with the approximations that we have.

I was at school for most of the afternoon, and in the evening Oliva and Guille came over for dinner.

Saturday 12/5: Being the weekend, we were free from bureaucracy, and we headed out of the city to enjoy our freedom. Sadly, Oliva caught our bad luck — first she got a parking ticket, later she almost lost her SD card, and finally Guille dropped her phone and scratched it.

This didn’t stop us having an awesome day though. Alba had planned a fantastic route for the five of us, which took us even further north than we already were. We started our journey by wandering along the sand dunes and admiring the lagoon at Valdoviño, then checked out a couple of viewpoints before stopping for lunch in the wind in Cedeira.

After that, we visited the monastery of San Andrés de Teixido, which has a really interesting architectural style and which is obviously a tourist attraction because it abounds with stalls selling souvenirs, bread and honey. There’s a saying that everyone in the world will visit San Andrés, if not alive then dead, and if not dead, then reincarnated — probably as a snake or lizard.

Monasterio de San Andrés

Monasterio de San Andrés

Next, we visited Cabo Ortegal to see its lighthouse and the division between the Atlantic and the Cantabrian seas, before driving on to Punto Estaca de Bares to walk out to the northernmost point in Spain. The wind was fierce and the cliff high; the others piked out 50m before the end of the path and watched worriedly as Craig and I continued as far out onto the promontory as possible. (It was a wide path, not dangerous at all, really.)

Windy day

Oliva, Alba and Linda in the wind

We we all cold after the chilly wind on the point, so we decided to make our next stop a cafe. We got a little lost finding one, but eventually parked in Viveiro and wandered its charming streets until we found a bar, where we squeezed into a back table to drink our hot chocolates (well, us girls had hot chocolates, Craig and Guille wanted to be different).

After that, all that remained was to drive the hour and a half back to A Coruña, where Oliva dropped off Alba and Guille and completely failed to find a park near her house (it really wasn’t her day). Luckily, the walk back was along the waterfront, which is always pleasant.

Sunday 13/5: We’d planned to head out on another excursion (to walk a bit of the Camino Inglés) but were tired after our big day the day before. Instead, we slept in, Craig brought me breakfast in bed, and we spent the day relaxing. I chatted with Oscar for a while, read my book, and did some research into working visas; Craig played games on his phone and read a bit too. We only left the house for lunch; we had a menu del día in a cafe near our place, which was delicious and incredibly filling, much better than last week’s offering.

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by Linda Martin

Six weeks of the Via de la Plata [video]

May 11, 2012 in Spain

The Via de la Plata is one of many Caminos de Santiago, pilgrimage paths that weave their way across Spain (and into the rest of Europe), towards Santiago de Compostela. In March and April 2012, Craig and I walked the 1000km from Seville to Santiago as an outside-the-box way to celebrate ten years of marriage, arriving on our anniversary after six weeks on the road.

The Via de la Plata differs from the other Ways in that it mostly follows an old Roman road, so the religious imagery present on the other Caminos is supplemented by Roman bridges, waymarkers and other structures.

Week one

We left Seville on Tuesday morning, after attending two masses and having our pilgrim passports stamped. The path took us past an old Roman city, which we visited before continuing on to our first stop of Guillena.

The rest of the week was characterised by shortish days, Craig developing enormous blisters and me not being able to talk because of my cold. There was a fair bit of road walking but some beautiful paths through forest and farmland as well.

Week two

Although we were starting to find our stride, week two was marked by challenges — my shoes bit the dust and Craig continued to battle his blisters. We walked through both Merida and Cáceres, which abounded with awesome Roman architecture, and had private rooms almost all week — which you appreciate when you’re usually sharing with eight other people.

Week three

It was a week of changes of plan: days that were going to be long that ended up being short, short days that ended up long. Plus, the longest leg of the whole walk at 40km, and one of the shortest at 11km. We passed through the old Roman city of Cáparra and increased the average length that we walked each day to a much more-respectable 26km.

Week four

After three weeks of slightly-chilly sunshine, the weather turned on us, pelting down and leaving us wet on arrival almost every day. We passed through the beautiful but impersonal city of Salamanca (where Craig bought some walking sandals which changed his life), we got off-track, slept in freezing conditions in Santa Marta, and walked through snow. Easter day was one of our favourites of the entire walk, involving mass (with procession), great food, an interesting walk and a warm albergue.

Week five

Week five was a fantastic one, full of interesting walks and great food. Late in week four we’d turned off the true Via de la Plata, taking the north-westerly Camino Sanabrés rather than continuing north to meet up with the Camino Francés, and we found the terrain much more to our liking: hills to climb, rivers to cross, deers to spot bounding across the path in front of us.

Week six

Despite one terrible day weather-wise (which we carefully planned around and mostly avoided), week six was amazing. Five days of shorter hikes, good food and well-maintained albergues culminated in our arrival in Santiago, in time to attend the midday pilgrim mass. We were in luck, the priests swung the huge incense burner known as the botafumeiro, a dramatic end to our long walk.

Some pilgrims experience disappointment on arriving in Santiago. I did when we finished the Camino Francés four years ago, so was expecting a bit of a let-down. But on the contrary, arriving was as satisfying and exciting as we could have hoped. The entrance to the city was more pleasant than the one we’d entered by last time, seeing the botafumeiro swing was an unexpected bonus, and we also rewarded ourselves with a very nice hotel room and dinner in a good restaurant. Throughout the weekend we met up with some of the people we’d met on the walk, and took advantage of the free pilgrim meal offered by the parador hotel, having a great lunch with pilgrims who’d walked or cycled some of the other routes.

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by Linda Martin

How to work while travelling

May 9, 2012 in Money and Finance

Travelling long-term isn’t as expensive as most people think, but it does require funds. While saving hard before you leave might garner enough to pay for the whole trip, many travellers find it convenient to work while they’re on the road.

Volunteer

The easiest way to work on the road is to volunteer. You probably won’t make much (or any) money, but accommodation and sometimes food is often included, which considerably reduces your travel costs. Organisations like WWOOF match volunteers with hosts who require help on their farms. Some organisations are free to use (or just require a small joining fee) while others charge astronomical amounts — somewhat negating the idea of trying to save money!

Volunteer

Volunteer

Where to work

If you want to work, not just volunteer, first consider what kind of work you can do. If you can continue doing your existing job on the road, excellent — you probably won’t need a visa and will just have to talk to your boss or clients to make it work. It’s not recommended that you start a business while you travel, it’s just too stressful. Instead, start well in advance and see if it’s making money before you go. Otherwise, you’ll just have to choose a job that requires your presence in person — popular choices are bartending, office work or teaching English. If you aren’t skilled in one of these areas, a short training course before you go might strengthen your chances of finding work.

Then, decide which country you’d like to work in. You’ll need to do a bit of research to see how hard (or easy) it is to work in your destination of choice.

Visas

Work visa passport page

Check if you need a visa to work

Firstly, do you need a visa or work permit to be allowed to work in your destination? In some cases, the answer is no — for example, New Zealanders and Australians can work in each other’s country without any form of visa, and Europeans can work in other Schengen states. If you’re travelling further afield though, you’ll probably need some form of paperwork — and there might be more than one option to choose from.

Many countries offer working holiday visas to travellers aged 18-30. If you’re eligible, it might be a good option, although you can usually only work in each place of employment for a limited time (such as three months). If you’re planning to stay in one place for a longer time, you could consider a work visa, but that usually requires an offer of work, which might be hard to come by. Some student visas also allow you to work part-time while you’re studying, so if you’re planning to go to school while you’re away, this could be a good choice.

Make sure to look through all the options carefully and choose the visa that suits you best. If it’s expensive, weigh up how likely you are to use it before forking out.

Wages and cost of living

That’s another thing — how much are you actually going to earn in your destination? Do some research online to find out what the average wage is, and what people in your line of work can expect to earn. We didn’t do this when we went to Malta, and were surprised at how low the wages were — and how high the cost of living was. Six months of work funded our day-to-day lives, but we only saved enough for about another month of travel after that. If we’d done some research into what wages we could expect to receive, we would have chosen another destination.

Money

Will you make enough money?

In contrast, the wages in the UK were more reasonable — but we still didn’t save much, because of the cost of living. Once we’d paid the rent and bought food for the week, we didn’t have much left over. Luckily, we found a happy balance in Australia — although the cost of living was high, our wages were even higher, and we managed to save a substantial amount.

Hit the internet

Next up, you need to find a job. How hard you look will depend on how committed you are to working. Either way, do a search on the internet to get some ideas about possible employers, and either make contact with them before you go or make a note of their details so you can drop in after you arrive. If you’re interested in a long-term contract, apply in advance as they might be able to help with (or completely organise) your visa. This is often the case with English-teaching jobs.

Of course, if you’re not too worried about what kind of work you do, you can just show up and see what work is on offer. It is worth making sure you do it legally, though — although under-the-table work is sometimes available, it’s not worth the stress of being caught — the punishment could be severe and there’s always the chance of being ripped off by an employer who takes advantage of your illegal status.

Working while travelling is a great way to make a bit of money and also get immersed in your destination. It just takes a bit of preparation.

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by Linda Martin

Travel diary: settling into A Coruña

May 6, 2012 in Travel diary

We’re well and truly settled in A Coruña now — we have internet access at home and I have a library card. Although the weather has been extremely changeable, we’re definitely enjoying our new base.

Monday 30/4: Since Tuesday was a holiday, we decided to do a few errands, such as getting me a sim card for the phone Oliva had given me. Unfortunately though, after waiting in line for twenty minutes and going through the interminable process of registering the sim (in Craig’s name, apparently I’d already bought too many sims), it turned out the phone was locked to another company.

Next, we headed to the library to pick up my library card (yay!) and enjoy the free wifi. Unfortunately, though, so many sites were blocked as to make the connection completely useless.

Instead, we went on a hunt for cafés with wifi and found one not far from home, where we worked for a couple of hours until our computer batteries were flat. After a bit of shopping and choripan for lunch, we found a bar just around the corner from our flat, where we spent another couple of hours.

In the evening, Oliva came around and we had burritos for dinner.

A Coruña views

A Coruña is gorgeous

Tuesday 1/5: Being May Day, most of the shops were closed, including the bar we’d discovered the day before. Luckily though, we found two cafés to work in, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. In the middle had nachos for lunch and went for a long walk along the beach, across the isthmus and through the port.

In the evening, our neighbours came to visit to let us know they were happy for us to share their wifi for the next month, which is a huge relief for us — apparently getting the Internet set up will take at least two weeks and we were getting a bit sick of working in cafés.

Wednesday 2/5: I was all set to head out the door for my first English class, when my boss called to say the student had cancelled. Instead, I spent the morning at home with Craig and we went for a walk in the afternoon. I did have to teach my afternoon class, but luckily that went well.

In the evening, we worked on the Buenos Aires guidebook, sticking post-it notes all over the wall to get our heads around the different sections.

Thursday 3/5: My classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays run from 10am to 12:30, so I had to get up at a reasonable hour to get there on time. After work, we had a lentil lunch then went for a long walk around the paseo maritimo, with a visit to the Tower of Hercules halfway around.

Craig at the Tower of Hercules A Coruña

Craig and the Tower of Hercules

Friday 4/5: I’d set an alarm in the hope of setting up a regular wake-up time, but the attempt failed miserably and we both slept in. When we eventually got up, we did some work before lunch, then headed out for a walk on the beach. Although the skies were blue when we left, they suddenly clouded over, and we were nowhere near shelter when the rain started.

Craig headed home for a Skype conversation with the BsAs guidebook author and I went to school to teach three classes, and in the evening we finally got around to watching Slumdog Millionaire, which we really enjoyed.

Saturday 5/5: A Coruña’s museums were having an open day with free entrance, so we took the opportunity to visit the aquarium, which with an entrance fee of €10 is by far the most expensive. We met Amy and Oliva outside the entrance and spent three hours wandering around enjoying the fish and learning some new Spanish vocabulary (my word of the day was rodaballos).

A Coruña Aquarium

Seal at A Coruña Aquarium

We all headed to our own homes for lunch, but I met up with Oliva again at 4pm to go to the Domus museum, which is all about human beings. It was really fun and interactive; we tested our ability to jump, stretch and throw balls into holes, and measured our height, weight and blood pressure. We also saw a 3D movie all about African animals; it was very well done and I enjoyed being able to understand it.

Sharks at A Coruña aquarium

Shark at A Coruña aquarium

Oliva’s parents were sitting in the row in front of us; after the movie I got to meet them. As we all walked back along the paseo maritimo together they gave me advice about what we should do in A Coruña while we’re here, and exhorted me to make their daughter speak more English. After that, Oliva and I spent another hour together enjoying the sun and laughing at a passing stag party, and I made her speak English.

In the evening we watched a Spanish TV show about Las Vegas; I regarded it as work since we’re currently working on a Las Vegas guide book.

Craig at work in A Coruña

Craig at work

Sunday 6/5: Craig brought me breakfast in bed after another glorious sleep in. Really, we are going to have to work out a sleep schedule but at the moment late nights and late mornings are working fine.

We spent the early afternoon working then headed out at around 3.30 to find a menu del día lunch. The first two places we went into (both with menu del dia signs outside) told us that they’d finished serving the menu since it was so late in the day, but we finally found a restaurant to eat in. The caldo gallego was a bit cold but my fish was tasty and at least it was good value for money.

Later on, we watched Spanish gameshows on TV and were amazed at how long the commercial breaks were, and how abruptly they start and finish — it was very strange.

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by Linda Martin

Keep yourself clean while travelling

April 30, 2012 in Travel

Although we’ve all met travellers who don’t see the point in having a good wash, it is important to keep yourself clean while travelling. Unfortunately, toiletries are heavy, and you’ll have to make some sacrifices in order to cut down your luggage weight and save your back.

Keep it simple: soap and shampoo

I used to carry body wash and a shower puff, because that was what I used at home. The body wash was heavy and got used up quickly, leaving a large almost-empty container cluttering up my bag and demanding replacement. And the shower puff was always wet; even when I wrapped it in two plastic bags, the water still managed to leak out and get into my clothes.

I also carried largish bottles of both shampoo and conditioner, reasoning that you got more value out of bigger containers. And my toiletries kit was full of bits and pieces that I hardly ever used at home but “thought I might need.”

You’d be surprised at how little you need to keep yourself clean. Soap still works well, and a two-in-one shampoo will not only keep your hair clean, it’ll double as body wash when you run out of soap. If you want to cut down to just one item, Lush makes a shampoo soap, which comes in a handy reusable tin — although we ran out of the shampoo soap after a week or so, we still use the tin to store regular soap in. Although the shampoo soap was fantastic, replacing it was a bit of a problem — it seems they don’t have Lush stores in small town Chile.

Lush soaps

There's a lot of soap to choose from

Now, if I’m staying somewhere for awhile, I’ll buy a full-size soap and put it into the tin when we leave (sometimes force or a knife is required). I also usually have at least one individually-wrapped hotel-sized soap lurking at the bottom of the toiletries kit for emergencies or to use as a hand-washing soap.

Even if you’re exclusively staying in hotels and expect soap to be provided, it’s a good idea to have a small one to hand just in case — I’m surprised at how often I’ve had to pull out my reserve soap in a niceish hotel.

Deodorise

Deodorant is another essential. Choose a roll-on anti-perspiration in a plastic container: it’s less likely to break, leak or explode than other options and is usually under the 100ml carry-on allowance. Choose something with a light fragrance rather than something overpowering.

deodorant

Roll-on deodorant is a better option for travel

Cologne or perfume?

Speaking of fragrance, sometimes you do just want to smell good — and fair enough too. But don’t pack an enormous bottle of your favourite scent — the glass is heavy and you’ll never get through it all. Instead, find a trial or tester-sized container and use that while you’re travelling. I found a tiny bottle of perfume with a handy roll-on applicator, which takes up almost no space in my bag but can be pulled out when I want to smell good.

However, bear in mind that some insects are attracted to strong fragrances, so use your secret stash sparingly.

Hand washing

It’s not just your body that needs to be clean — you need to think about your hands as well. Obviously, washing your hands before eating and after going to the toilet is basic hygiene, but sometimes this is easier said than done.

Your solution will vary depending on your destination. If you expect to get very dirty, a pack of antibacterial wet wipes might be a good option. However, they can be heavy and aren’t easily replaced, so a small bottle of hand-sanitising gel will probably be more useful. Keep it in an easily-accessible part of your bag, in a small ziplock bag to prevent leakages.

Of course, it’s not just you that gets dirty, your stuff needs to be cleaned too. Check out our article on washing your clothes while travelling.

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by Linda Martin

Travel diary: Setting up in A Coruña

April 29, 2012 in Travel diary

Our first week in our new home of A Coruña has undoubtably been a success. We’ve found and moved into an apartment, made new friends and hosted a small party, and I’ve found a ridiculously low-paying job. And we’re even on the way to getting all the documentation we need!

Monday 23/4: Since it was our first day in our new city, we decided to take an extensive wander around, keeping our eyes open for apartments for rent. Although our Couchsurfing host Yolanda had told us that it would be better to organise it all privately, we stopped into a couple of property agencies, which were spectacularly unhelpful.

Apartment for rent sign in A Coruña

Instead, we took photos of the many ads plastered on walls and lampposts, and sent text messages to the advertisers in the evening, after returning from a walk of at least 15km — and we thought the long walks were over! We had a menu del día lunch in the old town and visited one of the schools I’ve been in touch with about work. Plus I had an interview with the other one in the evening, which seemed to go well (especially since they offered me a part-time job a couple of days later). In the evening we made guacamole and pebre for a light dinner and chatted with Yolanda before bed.

Tuesday 24/4: Despite all of our work sending texts and making phone calls, we only had one positive response from our flat-hunting efforts. For some reason, none of the landlords are interested in a three-month let, they’d prefer to leave their flats empty while waiting for someone to sign up for a longer contract. We arranged to see our sole option, and spent half an hour looking around and chatting with the landlords before heading back to Yolanda’s place to think about it. The price was more than we’d hoped to pay, but still a lot less than New Zealand prices. We decided to go for it, and went back to talk to the landlords again.

For rent sign in A Coruña

Later, I met up with Fiona, the owner of Masterclass, for a chat about job possibilities. Although it looks like I won’t be able to work with her at the moment, she might have some work for me over the summer.

In the evening, I finally got to meet Oliva, my language-exchange partner, and we had hot chocolate and pastries in a friendly cafe. We’ve been friends for over a year and it only occurred to her recently to tell me that her name wasn’t actually Maria, as it appears in her Skype account — now I’ve got to get used to calling her Oliva! She’s just as lovely and funny in person as she is online, and I’m looking forward to spending lots of time with her over the next three months.

We had kebabs for dinner on the way home, and I had another long chat with Yolanda.

Apartment for rent sign in A Coruña

Wednesday 25/4: The day started with another visit to the new landlords, who took our passport details and told us where the supermarkets were. While I was talking to them, Craig had an adventure trying to print off his boarding pass, and eventually had success after enlisting the help of almost everyone in the shop.

We walked together to the bus stop, and Craig caught the bus to the airport, where he arrived ridiculously early for his flight to England. The flight was very pleasant, and Kevin picked him up from Heathrow and took him back to his and Gail’s flash new house, where they had delicious home-made curry for dinner.

I, on the other hand, got to have fun with bureaucracy. First I visited the immigration office, where I waited for an hour or so before being called to talk to a typically dragon-like clerk. I explained that I had a visa that allowed me to stay in Spain for a year and was told that that simply wasn’t possible. She disappeared with my passport for quarter of an hour, and returned to tell me to come back the next day.

On the way home I joined the library, and I spent the afternoon reading and getting a bit of work done before having dinner with Yolanda.

Thursday 26/4: My day started back in the immigration office, where the clerk seemed quite happy to see me. She disappeared with my passport again before returning to tell me that yes, Spain has agreements with New Zealand and Canada, and that all I needed to do was get a job contract for three months and fill in a few forms — a process which might actually be a lot easier than I thought it was going to be.

I visited the bank to find out what documents I need to get an account then went in to see my new bosses, who were happy to give me a contract but said it would take a while to get, since we are in Spain after all. The guy I’m taking over from, James, showed me around the school and explained what to do in each of the classes, so that was good. I spent the afternoon reading and chatting with Amy (Yolanda’s flatmate), then headed to the airport to meet Craig.

He’d spent the day at Heathrow, since Kevin could drop him off there before work, and taking public transport would have wasted a good couple of hours. At the airport, he got a bit of work done then met his sister Christina for lunch — she recently moved to London and seems to be enjoying herself. The flight back to A Coruña was delayed by half an hour or so because of high winds, but he made it out of security just in time for us to catch the 8:15 bus back to the city.

Moving day

Moving day

After a light dinner, we headed to my new work, where the bosses (Ben and Jimmy) were throwing a goodbye party for James. It was great to meet all my new colleagues, who I’m sure I’ll see a lot of; they all seem really nice.

Friday 27/4: After a bit of a sleep-in, we packed up all our worldly possessions and walked the kilometre or so to our new apartment. The landlords showed us around, explaining in detail how things work, and we signed a contract and were given the keys.

We needed provisions, so we spent the afternoon visiting the various supermarkets in the area to get everything we needed. Of course we somehow managed to get lost, but that was okay because we stumbled across a well-decorated bar that had a great opening special: a drink and half-portion of food for €3.50. We decided that that would do for lunch and spent the next hour or so there, before returning to our place to prepare for our housewarming party.

We’d invited all our friends (Oliva, Yolanda and Amy) and they all came bearing tasty gifts. After giving them the grand tour of the apartment, we spent the evening chatting and snacking.

Beach excursion with Oliva, A Coruña, Spain

Tiny islands

Saturday 28/4: Although the forecast was for rain, the day dawned bright and sunny — a fact we were alerted to by a text from Oliva, who suggested an excursion. We agreed readily, and breakfasted rapidly before meeting her at her place (a five-minute walk away) and hopping in her car. She’d planned a fantastic itinerary, and we visited various beaches and ports, as well as a castle, before ending up in Sada, where we had a tasty lunch and stopped in at the market.

Linda and Oliva at the castle

Linda and Oliva at the castle

After a rest in the afternoon, we met up with Oliva again in the evening, to discover the wonderful world of A Coruñian tapas. We were joined by her boyfriend Guille (who I’ve heard a lot about) and her friend Alba, and had a great evening visiting a couple of the most popular tapas bars. The boys both bailed early on, but Oliva, Alba and I headed to Valor for hot chocolate and good conversation before calling it a night.

Alba and Oliva in Caión, Spain

Alba and Oliva in Caión, Spain

Sunday 29/4: After the early mornings of the Camino, a sleep-in is always welcome, but we took it to an extreme today! We had a light lunch of salad and lentils then got a bit of work done before heading out for a long walk on the beach. On our return, we recorded our first podcast in ages, then had a snack of cheese and crackers.

I headed out to meet Oliva and Alba in the afternoon, and we went for a drive to Caión, where there is a really nice paseo maritimo or seaside walk. We also drove to a couple of other beaches, and managed to get lost in a tiny Galician town on the way back to A Coruña — it was a real adventure.

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by Linda Martin

Iguazu Falls, Argentinean side

April 27, 2012 in Argentina

The Iguazu Falls, located on the border between Brazil and Argentina, are one of South America’s major tourist attractions. The jungle surrounding the falls is a large nature reserve, and in addition to the falls themselves, visitors can get close to the flora and fauna of the area.

On the Argentinean side of the falls, visitors take a train to the Devil’s Throat walkway, which crosses some of the Iguazu River and ends at the top of the Devil’s Throat, the widest stretch of waterfall. You can also walk along the Upper and Lower Trails and see some of the smaller falls up close; or take a boat trip right up into the spray.

For more on Argentina, check out our Argentina page

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by Linda Martin

Why take electronics travelling?

April 25, 2012 in Travel

A friend of mine was heading off on a three-month trip with her partner, and I asked her how she was planning to stay in touch with home during her journey. “We just thought we’d use internet cafés,” she told me. She wasn’t planning on taking any electronics other than a camera, nothing with wifi capability.

This makes perfect sense if you understand that our home country of New Zealand has one of the worst internet connections in the developed world, and that free wifi access can be hard to come by. When you do find it, it’s almost always limited by size, as consumers pay per gigabyte of usage. And they pay A Lot.

However, this isn’t the case everywhere. In South East Asia it sometimes seems like every cafe has wifi, and in Europe some parks have their own connection. Even South America, which we thought would be more backwards, has better internet than New Zealand. It’s easy to find somewhere to connect, check your emails, and move on.

In contrast, finding an internet cafe can be more difficult. Since so many places have wifi, and so many people have devices that allow them to use this wifi, demand for internet cafés has decreased. And when you do find them, the computers are usually old and slow, and opening hours can be erratic. Not to mention the dangers of someone getting access to your passwords.

It’s important to be able to communicate, and the best way to do this is to bring a small device with you. What you choose will depend on your travelling style and who you’re travelling with.

Which device?

1. Smartphone/iPod touch

A small device like an iPhone or other smartphone is a great choice if you’re travelling alone. If the phone is unlocked you can buy a local sim card to allow you to make and receive calls at a fraction of the price you’ll pay for roaming charges. Your family will be able to get in touch with you and you’ve got a way of communicating with accommodation providers without breaking the bank or spending an hour looking for a pay phone (believe me, I’ve done it).

iPhone

An iPhone could be the perfect travel device

The small size of a smartphone means you can bring it out unobtrusively to check for wifi almost wherever you are. And you can do almost everything you need to do: check and send emails, browse the internet and make cheap calls home using Skype. Not to mention the games.

If you’ve already got a good phone, or don’t want to be contacted, an iPod Touch has almost all the functions of an iPhone while being a lot cheaper and slimmer. I travel with one of these, and I keep it in a zip pocket where it can’t be seen.

2. Tablet/mini computer

If you’re travelling as a couple or with a friend, a larger device might be worth considering, as it’s easier to write with a full-size (or almost full-size) keyboard, and you can watch movies on it on rainy evenings. They’re still small enough that they won’t take up much space in your bag, but large enough to have a bit more functionality than a smartphone. Depending on the harddrive space, you could also use it as a storage space for your photos.

Ipad in case

Options include the iPad, a Samsung tablet, or a small laptop like the Asus Eee PC. I used to have an Eee PC, which fit neatly into the top of my backpack, and which was great for writing emails and blog posts, and making Skype video calls. Eventually its lack of harddrive space started to cause a problem, and it died when the charging cable broke: it just couldn’t survive the treatment I gave it.

3. A full-size computer

If you’re planning to work on the road or do a lot of writing, it might be worth taking a full-sized laptop. Of course there’s an enormous range to choose from, but as a general rule the lighter the better. I’ve seen people travelling with four-kilogram beasts, and I can’t imagine what kind of damage that’s doing to their back. Weight was a major consideration when I chose the Eee PC, and was similarly important when I bought its successor: a MacBook Air. Sure, it wasn’t cheap, but it’s light, fast and easy-to-use; and it does everything I need it to do. Usually without having to stuff around downloading extra software for it.

Laptop on beach

Work anywhere with a full-size laptop

Whatever electronics you choose to take with you, it’s important not to flash it around. Petty thieves are everywhere; don’t give them opportunities to practice their art. Keep small devices in a zip pocket and larger devices in a locked bag. That said, depending on where you travel, you might be surprised at how common these types of devices are. As electronics are becoming cheaper and cheaper, they’re more and more within the reach of people with limited means.

It’s definitely worth taking some sort of electronic device with you, wherever you’re travelling — as long as there’s electricity available to charge it, of course. You’ll save time and probably money, you can be contacted and be in contact, and you can keep yourself entertained on those slow evenings when you just want to relax.

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