I'm just a small town girl with a love of learning and traveling the world. One day I hope to be a teacher but until then this is my journey into the 'adult world' teaching English in Spain. Join me as I grow old but NEVER grow up!
Well today is the day. In just a few hours I'll be on my one-way flight to Madrid and beginning my year abroad. (AHH THE NERVES!!) I'm down to last minute errands and double checking my bags and packing lists to make sure I have everything I need, or at least what I can remember...
I honestly don't even know what to write now with so much on mind...did I remember to pack everything? Do I have all my paperwork? What if something goes wrong? What if my luggage gets lost? And most importantly how do I say goodbye to everyone I know and love here?
Unlike many people doing this teaching program who know it's only for a couple years at the most before they return to the USA, I don't have that security. I on the other hand, am going over to Madrid knowing that if things work out for my boyfriend and I there, I may not be returning home to Rhode Island. While this could only be a 'see you later,' it very well could be a 'good-bye.' And that my friends, is hard for me to process.
I'm a sentimental person, I get very attached to people, places, and things. I can't help being emotional! But being so attached definitely makes it much harder for me to make this move, even knowing so many wonderful people abroad in Spain who are waiting for me.
This past week I didn't work but instead took the opportunity to spend what little time I had left with all the people I love. And it's been really hard saying my last goodbyes to not only the people, but the places I have to come to love here.
I don't know I'll survive without Legolas...
Instead of trying to process all of these emotions right now, I'm trying to think of all the things I've enjoyed doing this summer that remind me of why I love where I'm from so much. So here's a reflection back on all the great memories I had saying good-bye this summer:
Fourth of July
Aging...I mean my birthday...
Seeing one of my favorite bands live!
Traditional RI food <3
Visiting Boston with my aunt and cousin
Seeing one of my oldest friends
Saying goodbye to my childhood
Learning about where my grandmother grew up
And spending time with my friends
So thank you to all of my friends and family for all of your support and love, you've made it very difficult to say good-bye. I wish anyone else in the same situation the best of luck on your journeys and on your own good-byes, may you have just as amazing people making good-byes difficult for you!
I am an awesome packer. I can squeeze everything needed into one bag perfectly...yet this is still more of a "do as I say, not as I do" because I have yet to fully master the art of packing lightly. Yeah, I can somehow make everything fit...but a 100lb suitcase isn't going to do anyone much good. With each trip I get a little better at packing lightly so hopefully this is the year I take my own advice and can finally transform into a light packer This how I try to pack:
Chances are most places you will go will have some similar, if not the same, products that you are used to using at home. If you’re going on a long trip I would definitely recommend researching what you will readily be able to find in the country you are traveling to. Knowing this will save you the precious weight and space in your luggage.
I know that Spain has almost everything I will need because I’m not picky about brands or particular products (for those with relaxed hair I have heard it can be difficult to find adequate products so bear that in mind).I’m only bringing enough of most things for the first few weeks until I’m settled into my apartment and life abroad.For certain special circumstances, like deodorant and make-up, I did stock up because A) I prefer powered deodorant and B) Make-up is expensive in Spain.And I am not about that.
This is important for trips of any length! The first time I visited my boyfriend in Cantabria it was summer so I figured I wouldn't need a jacket so I only brought a sweatshirt to wear at his house. Well the north of Spain is much milder than what I’m used to for summer weather and freezing, not to mention the stares I got for wearing a sweatshirt in public (at least it was a nice one!).
I ended up finding a great jacket there on sale, but had I thought more about the weather would be like I would have been able to pack more useful items.If you’re going to the tropics it wouldn’t make sense to pack a winter coat, and vice versa.Bringing the right clothes can help significantly cut down on the amount you try to pack.
This probably is where I struggle the most, I can never decide on the outfits I want to bring! I’m the kind of person who still has clothes from high school “just in case” and when I pack for a trip could pull out any item of clothing I haven’t worn in years and still think “well maybe I’ll finally wear it this time.”
Packing for a year in Spain I’m trying to be smarter and only pack things I can concretely plan into an outfit. If I can’t plan it into a suitable outfit, am unsure about it, or can’t wear it with multiple outfits then I most definitely will not wear (no matter how much I try to convince myself I will).
To make my packing criteria all the pieces I pack must be versatile and can be easily layered/”traded” to make multiple outfits with as little items as possible.Let’s face it if you haven’t worn something or can’t see it in a concrete outfit then you won’t wear it wherever you may be going.Now if only I could only decide so easily on all of my shoes…
After someone first told me to pack this way, it has become the only way that I pack now. It’s amazing how much more you can fit in when you roll your clothes instead of fold them flat! Not to mention it helps keep items from wrinkling during your travels. This is how I packed for my boyfriend when he moved to Madrid last September for his Master’s and we fit about 90% of his wardrobe into one large suitcase (and he has A LOT of clothes). You just have to be careful about the weight you might have from being able to fit so much more.
Along with rolling your clothes I also recommend simple things like for smaller items, like storing your socks and underwear in your shoes.It may sound weird, but it will give you space for the small stuff and it will help your shoes keep their shape during any rough handling your suitcase might endure on its journey.
Use Space Bags
Don't think they could make this all fit.
This is one piece of advice I would use cautiously because often with the space bag you may fit more, but you also may over pack the weight of your luggage.I generally find the bags the most useful in my carry-on, as they don’t generally check its weight (always try to pack your heaviest items in here for that reason!), or for bulky things that are quite light, like my puffy winter jacket.
I just bought some bags that are roll-up versus vacuum sealed so I can use them traveling abroad even when I don’t have a vacuum readily accessible (like trying to fit more stuff into my Ryanair sized suitcase, winning).Again, don’t overuse these bags because at some point you could be stuck with an overweight bag or no means of fitting the unsealed clothes in your luggage.
Take Out Anything You Don't Absolutely Need
My stowaway thinks he's necessary...
Yet another piece of advice I should really take to heart this year.I’m a very sentimental person and I’m very attached to the seemingly meaningless, little things I’ve collected over the years.I have to go through and decide what I feel attached to versus what I need.The best advice I’ve gotten from my family from traveling is to pack all the things you want, and then take out half.
Now it doesn’t necessarily have to be half, but take out anything you don’t absolutely need or could find wherever you’re going.Chances are you’ll want to purchase cool things you find along your travels and if you brought too much stuff with you to begin with you’ll either have to pay extra to ship it all back or leave things behind.
I picked up my Spanish visa in Boston yesterday and am all set! There was no line and took all of five minutes. You just need a photo idea and have to sign a paper saying you received. Now the move to Spain is officially official! Feels great to have some stress taken off what seems like incessant waiting for Spain!
Have you mastered the art of packing lightly? What advice do you recommend for anyone packing for a trip?
So this past Tuesday I had my visa appointment at the Spanish Consulate in Boston at 11:15 am. My advice to all you visa seekers, DO YOUR RESEARCH!! Trust me, you will save yourself time and stress upon your appointment.
I need this...
For those also going through Boston here's how my appointment went down: I live in RI so I took the train up from Wickford Junction. It's $22 round-trip and parking is free for the rest of the year (Winning!). Because the 9:10 am train would have gotten me to Boston just around 11 am we took the 7:42 train to get to the city and have enough time to walk to Consulate. We arrived at South Station around 9:40 and it's about a 20 minute walk going directly to the Consulate. The Consulate is at 31 St. James Ave., and it looks like just a regular office building if you didn't know any better. We actually walked right past it at first and had to ask to find it! Once you enter, you go up to the counter and check in with your ID. The Consulate is up on the 9th floor, to the right. Even though it was only 10:30 I went in anyway because: I was already there it, it was so hot and humid outside, and I was too anxious to wait any longer.
To get here!
When you go in it's a tiny room and you stand in the line at the left-most window for visas. I waited for about 15/20 minutes in line because all the people in front of me were unprepared in some way. When it was finally my turn they took my documents asking if I had copies of everything (which I did, two copies of everything actually) and the woman told me to use the orientation date as when the program starts. Because I had all of my documents and copies this only took about 5 minutes and they asked me to sit until someone was ready to review the documents with me.
This was where I had to wait the longest because they had to review the documents of everyone in front of me, and like I said before they were all missing something. I waited for around 45 minutes because the people called up in front of me didn't have everything they needed or didn't know the fact that the visa costs MONEY!? So I waited while everyone in front of me had to fill out new forms, make new copies, and run to get money orders (GUYS YOU CAN ONLY PAY BY MONEY ORDER!! There were five people in front of me, one had a money order...).
The Consulate is right near the Beautiful Public Gardens
Once my name was called they gave me back my originals saying I would need them in Spain for the TIE, my visa would be good from Sept. 1, I had to apply for my NIE within 30 days of being in Spain, and to email them back August 2nd to see if it was ready to pick-up. And that was it. I waited about a hour and fifteen minutes, but if everyone had been prepared it would have gone much quicker. So please go to the consulate page and make sure you have everything (seriously one guy applying to study abroad didn't even bring anything to pay for the visa, he didn't know it cost anything). It was so frustrating waiting so long, but the workers at the Consulate were very friendly and understanding.
If you are about to have your appointment at Boston, make sure you have:
At least this visa gave me a reason
to go to Boston!
2 National Visa forms (at least one needs to be double-sided)
1 Supplement Visa Form
Passport and other form of ID (Driver's License)
Copy of photo page of passport and ID
2 color photos passport sized, white background (they attach it for you)
Carta de Nombramiento in color and with the digital signature
Money Order payable to "Consulate of Spain" for $160
Background check, original and translated with the Apostille of the Hague (I had an Apostille for the original and translated, but I don't know if the translated copy needs it though)
Medical Certificate (does NOT need to be translated or have the Apostille)
If you're doing the Ministry program tell them! They tried to sort through my papers quicker because of it.
Have AT LEAST one copy of everything! They take the copy and give you the original back. Coming from someone who had to wait extra because others were unprepared, make sure you have everything. Overall it went smoothly, just double check and make copies of everything. If you have any more questions about the visa process through Boston feel free to leave comments, I'm more than happy to answer anything to save you the time and anxiety at your appointment! You can even read through my previous post on: Applying for a Spanish Student Visa through Boston for more advice.
Now the Exciting Part!
With the visa debacle finally out of the way I officially bought my one-way ticket to Madrid yesterday! It's a direct flight arriving early September in Madrid. That way I have a few days before the weekend to find an apartment and then I plan on visiting all my friends and boyfriend's family in Santander, before having to be back for orientations starting September 19th.
I went through Student Universe (it was the cheapest flight I saw) and did get flight insurance because even though they said my visa would start September 1st, I'm way too anxious of a peron to pay that much money without knowing for sure. I do plan on checking a second bag on my flight since I think $51 (if you add the extra bag online prior) is much cheaper than what it would be to ship my stuff for the entire year.
Perpetual Waiting...
Even with my flight purchased and my visa seemingly approved (so far so good) I have to wait a few more weeks until I have my visa in hand. Once I go back for my visa sometime in early August, it's off to Spain and more waiting as I'll have to figure out the NIE/TIE process in Madrid. And so the waiting continues, but at least with a little more certainty now! And to keep my eye on the prize while jumping through all these hoops I just keeping looking at pictures of Madrid. So. Close.
61 days until I'm reunited with these beautiful people!
[Update (8/9): The visa waiting is over! Finally picked up my visa, now just waiting for my flight in three weeks! Read more about it in my new post: The Art of Packing Lightly.]
Have any of you gone through the student visa process and have some advice for other new timers? Have you had to go through the NIE/TIE process in Madrid?
Now that I've been accepted into the Auxiliares de Conversación program and have received my school placement, I can begin working on applying for my student visa. The most confusing part of the process for me thus far.
As part of this program we are technically working on a postgraduate grant and as such are considered students, therefore we apply for the student visa. Our visa will be good for 90 days from its start date and once in Spain we apply for our NIE/TIE to get our residence. To start the visa process you must first determine which Consulate you will be applying to. The Spanish Consulate whose jurisdiction I'm under is in Boston. If you claim residency in the states of: Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, or Maine then you also will be applying to the Consulate in Boston.
To apply for the visa you must go to the Consulate in person and then pick it up in person; I have heard that someone else can pick it up for you but they need a notarized letter giving your permission (not 100% sure because I plan on just going myself both times). The point being, Boston does not mail you your visa nor allow you to mail it.
Palacio de Cristal in Madrid
Once you know which Consulate you must apply to then you will have to look at their requirements. While some of the general information may be similar, many of the Consulates have different requirements for the background check and medical certificate. The website for the Boston Consulate lists the requirements you will need for a long-stay student visa (make sure to look at the correct one, the student visa is the last visa type listed). The requirements for applying for the student visa at this Consulate are:
2 color photos with a white background (passport sized)
Passport that is valid throughout your stay in Spain and has at least one blank page to affix the visa; this will be left at the Consulate while they process your visa. Also provide either of the following: US driver's license, US State ID Card, Voter's Registration Card, or valid Student ID.
For non-US citizens only: Alien Registration Card or US Visa with I-20/IAP-66 (except B1-B2), must be valid for minimum of three months past visa expiration date.
Color original of your "Carta de Nombramiento" stating your school placement, monthly stipend, work start and end dates, as well as insurance information. This is very important!
Non-refundable money order of $160 made out to the "Consulate of Spain."
Certificate of Absence of Police Records-In Boston you are able to either get a State Background Check of the FBI Background Check, but local ones will not be accepted. It must be no older than three months from the time of your visa appointment, must have the original and translated into Spanish, and must bear the Apostille of the Hague. You also must get a background check from any country you've lived in for more than six months over the past five years.
Medical Certificate-This certificate must be signed by a M.D. or D.O. in a letter-head paper in the following format: “This medical certificate attests that Mr./ Mrs. ……………………… does not suffer from any illness that would pose a threat to public health according to the International Health Regulations of 2005.” It also must not be no older than three months, but it does not need to be translated or bear the Apostille (one of my friends just had her appointment and confirmed this).
Making Your Visa Appointment:
To make your appointment with Boston you can do it over the phone or online (online you must make an account first). If it is possible, you should let the Consulate know when you are making your appointment that you will be "one of the Auxiliares de conversación norteamericanos del Ministerio de Educación in the Comunidad Autónoma de (insert your comunidad) starting this coming September/October 2013." A lot of openings may not appear yet for making the appointment for your student visa, but don't fear. Keep checking back and more will open up for later in the summer. I haven't made mine yet because I have to wait until July when I'm out of work.
MAKE AND BRING MULTIPLE COPIES OF EVERYTHING!!
I have heard from others who have gone through the process that you can get turned away if you do not have the appropriate copies. I'm making two copies of everything to be sure. If your documents are accepted they will keep the copy and give you back the original. You must apply for your visa no less than three weeks before your departure date because it takes around a month to process a student visa.
[Update (6/18): Made my visa appointment today for Tuesday, July 2nd at 11:15 am. I'm making a day out of it and spending the day up there with my family.]
Told them I needed the documents for Spain and then wrote a check payable to the R.I. Secretary of State for $10 (also $5 each). The Apostille took less than five minutes to get done.
Check with your state for the requirement you would need, and also if they can also give you a translation of your background check.
The Medical Certificate:
I have a doctor's appointment Thursday morning to talk with my doctor, but the secretary at the office said that it would be no problem and to just print out what the letter needs to say and they will type it up for me. I'll update you all once I have the appointment done. [Update (6/13): Got my Medical Certificate today. Wasn't charged anything by my doctor and they were really nice about it, all I had to do was bring in the requirements and they re-typed it for me exactly as the Consulate website stated.]
The Supplement Application Form:
As far as I know Boston is the only Consulate to require this form. The first time I looked it over I was a little confused because I couldn't find any information on how to correctly fill it out. Luckily, my internet sleuthing found some helpful links for past study abroad programs to fill out the information. I found a link through Syracuse University for students who are studying abroad. It tells you how exactly to fill out our National Visa form and has a filled in example of the Supplement Form. Our answers are a little bit different, but not by much. For example, I'm not a student so I put my actual job for "Profession." We want multiple entrances, and put our dates as when I plan on arriving to when our school ends. For example, I put September first until June 30th because I'll be in Madrid. Our "port of entry" is Madrid or whatever city you're entering Europe via before going to your actual "Main Destination." Our "Purpose of Travel" is to study and our "Contact Information/Reference Address" is for the school we will be teaching in.
My biggest problem is actually turning out to be the ID because my driver's license expires on my birthday in July so I had to renew it first. I went Saturday and they said I should have it within a month, so worst case scenario I'll have to use another form of ID applying for the visa. I also got my passport sized photos done then at AAA too. I did get extra photos because you will need three to get your NIE/TIE processed once in Spain in the Fall, but I wouldn't get them there because I'm pretty sure our photos are a different size. So I potentially wasted $8 on the extra sets, but not too bad I suppose. I can save them for the future.
My Costs for the Visa Process:
Background Checks=$10 Apostille of the Hague=$10 Passport Pictures=$16 (1st set=$8 and each additional=$4) Money Order=$160 Train to Boston=$52 ($22 round-trip and $4 all day parking, for both trips) Renewed License=$33 Total=$281 [Update (7/2): Had my visa appointment and my visa is set to start September 1st. I can email back in a month to see if my visa is ready to be picked up. Read more about my experience in my new post: Visa in Progress, Flights Purchased, and the Waiting Continues Update (8/9): Picked up my visa from Boston, while I waited the full month my visa took only about 2.5 months. You can read a little more about it in my post about the art of packing lightly.] Here are some helpful links I have found for the Spanish visa process in Boston:
