Tomorrow is a day that may go down in the family history as the greatest day ever. Spain, and in particular Valencia, is known for its raucous festivals (hello, Fallas), though almost all of the festivals are religiously-based. La Tomatina is the exception to that rule. Held in the neighboring community of Buñol, about 40,000 people get together on the last Wednesday of August and throw tomatoes at each other. Most people run away from the chaos, which means that we are runni

It's been a whirlwind the past few days and I'm back in Atlanta. My Mom and I had a great time eating our way through Valencia, though now that I'm back I've realized all the places that I wanted to take her that we missed (Loving Hut Valencia and The Vurger are the 2 that come to mind immediately). Most mornings we began with a homemade vanilla soy latte and a smorgasbord of Violife cheeses, baguette, fresh veggies (avocados, tomatoes, cucumber, and olives), and occasionally

Back in November, I met a friend that suggested that I read a book entitled, People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks. The story creates a fictional backstory of a real book called the Sarajevo Haggadah which was written in the mid-15th century, likely in Spain. The book transverses the centuries from the 1400s to the mid-2000s telling the story of how the book came to be hidden by the head Sarajevo librarian during the Bosnian War in the 1990s. I brought the book with me to Sp

The day before I left for Spain, as I was packing, I listened to a webinar about accents and sounding like a local, wherever that may be. It was very interesting, though I realized it wasn't pertinent to my needs as the target audience was voice-over artists speaking English with seemingly native British/So African/N. Irish/Korean/etc; accents. Still, I found it fascinating and thought that I could perhaps use the techniques to improve my pronunciation as I learned Spanish. M

The last few days have been chock full of things outside of my Spanish classes. Yesterday was a trip to one of the schools that we are considering for the boys. Today was meeting up and coworking with a bunch of other expat/digital nomads, and tomorrow is a meeting for female expat entrepreneurs. While I'm not ready to discuss our business idea, I have been sourcing materials and seeing if the idea is viable. It's a very different beast when you speak the language nominally a

Thank you for your kind words and thoughts yesterday--it was a rough one. I realize that this is going to be something that we must get accustomed to, this being a distance from the nucleus of our lives. Over the past 2 1/2 weeks, there have been several methods of staying in touch that I've used, with WhatsApp being the most common. I've also used iChat and Facebook messenger a bit, but default to WhatsApp. During the week, I get done with classes right about 1:00 local time

When I set out to learn Spanish, little did I know that this was going to be a political issue. I'm just learning Spanish, right? What most of us typically think of as Spanish is technically Castilian. This is the national language of Spain and is similar to what is taught in the US in high schools. Though slightly different in pronunciation and a few colloquialisms, it is the language that is used throughout Latin America and Mexico also. As a matter of fact, Castilian is th

I didn't grow up celebrating Christmas and to-date I never have. I remember being confused as a child about how Santa Claus fit into the holiday and if there was some connection between Santa Claus and Jesus. I've not really found a good answer to that more than the Coca-Cola Company's marketing of an icy beverage in the middle of winter. Don't get me wrong, I love Christmastime in the US when houses are decorated with lights and trees, and people tend to both smile and make

Don't have too much time for a long post today, but I did want to update that I found out where I'll be staying in Valencia when I go. The area isn't where C and I hope to settle with the boys, but it is a 25 minute metro ride or 40 minute walk to the school, and not too far from the beach. I am looking forward to learning my way around Valencia's public transportation network, both the metro and the buses, and this will provide a great chance to do that. I've figured out how

We've been talking to our sons a ton about the changes that we can expect to face when we move. There are the obvious: language, location, schools, distance from family, using public transportation.... We've asked them to ask questions and give their input if they have opinions. Boy, do they. Some of the things that we've decided to do based on their input: attending private, English-speaking schools; living in the city-center even if it means a longer commute to school; havi

You know how things are going along then something happens and it takes a minute to get your head around what you just saw/heard/read? That happened this morning. I've been a remote employee for 5 1/2 years, so I didn't expect that moving where my laptop is located to be a big deal. However, it is, and I'll be finishing up my time here prior to leaving for my Spanish immersion class in January. It's not going to change any of our family's plans, but it was a bit shocking to s

I have never been to Valencia and neither has C. We've been to Spain, and we loved it. However, deciding to pick up and move across an ocean to a city that we've never been to is, admittedly, a lot of crazy. But it isn't insane. Albert Einstein is widely attributed with the quote: "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result." We have a great life in Atlanta. My family is here, we have good friends, great jobs, the kids are in wonderf

I've been asked a few questions several times, and thought I'd put together a quick answer sheet. Eventually I guess I'll create a FAQ page: Q: Are the boys moving with you? A: While I think this is an odd question, it's been asked more than once. So, the short answer is yes. Longer answer is, child #1 will be moving to Israel to enlist in the Israeli Defense Forces and will not be living in Spain with us. However, before he leaves for Israel in July, and will visit u

Today is the day that we go public with our news to our extended friend circles. Our families have known for months, our kids knew before that, but we've kept a pretty tight lid on the news past those folks. This morning, I spoke with my boss and in about an hour C is speaking with the CEO at his office. When that is done, this will be a public and open conversation...and the butterflies are swarming! As happenstance, I also had my quarterly appointment with my oncologist tod

Just because we're excited doesn't mean that we aren't scared and sometimes sad. The emotions come in waves and I've found that it's usually the small things, not the big ones, that turn me into a weepy mess. I've been struggling with the thought that this is going to be our last Thanksgiving celebrating as a family, both immediate and extended. Between our oldest son graduating and starting his military career, and the other 4 of us being in Spain, I cannot think of when we

Spaniards are very proud of their heritage, and Spain is not looking to dilute their culture or language when allowing people to become citizens. To make sure that new citizens are on their way to becoming ingrained in their new homeland, applicants must pass a Spanish culture & civics exam (CCSE) as well as a language proficiency exam (DELE 2A) through the Cervantes Institute which is endorsed by the Spanish government. Growing up in Sandy Springs, Georgia in the 70s and 80

It's a long story, but my sons and I are eligible for Spanish citizenship through my Dad's side of the family. I will share the hoops and traps I've stumbled across during the citizenship process at some point, and will let you know where I am currently (almost done, with one BIG hoop to jump). The truth is that as we've been sharing this news, most folks don't really care about the hows though, they're interested in why we are making this move. The short answer is because we

You may have already heard, and then again, maybe you haven't. We are moving y'all, and this time it isn't just ITP. Our family is packing up and heading off for a grand adventure to Valencia, Spain. My stomach is in knots just putting it in writing because it is much more real than just saying those words and having them evaporate into the air. C and I have an amazing opportunity to live in Spain, and we are taking full advantage of what that means for us and our family. I'l