How to Learn a Language

In 5 not-so-simple steps. A frank guide to language learning by someone who barely speaks two…

“How much does it cost to backpack South America ?” (GBP)

Ahhhh the question that drove me up the wall prior (and during) my viaje! I raided all the blogs that have written on the subject, but of course things were turned out differently for me. I discovered it is not as cheap as it used to be, and if you’re a poor ol’Brit like myself the fallen value of the pound will bite you in the ass. So just to add to the pool resources, here’s how much three months in South America cost me…

Back to School

It is six years since I arrived at Royal Holloway to start my degree in Classical Studies, and after three epic years of travel for some wild reason, I’ve decided to go back to school…

SUMMER OF TEFL

The story of how I got to teach in five countries in one season.

Throwback: Athens 2011

Is it really 6 YEARS since I came back from Greece!? Read the second travel post I ever wrote, originally published in my old hunting grounds: Nobodysaknowitall. As with my throwback to Beijing, please bear in mind that this was written by a naive and inexperienced 17-year-old – just looking at the giant suitcase is making me blush!

April 14th, 2011

Finally, I travelled to those sites I have been reading about! Although I didn’t get to do a full tour of Greece, given the small amount of cash I had, I think I did pretty well. Not as much of a culture shock a Beijing, but an eye-opening experience nonetheless.

The Story Behind… La Puerta Azul

It was one of my last days in Cusco, and another volunteer and I decided to explore the San Blas neighbourhood. On our way up the steep Cuesta de San Blas, we walked past a stray dog with shaggy red hair sat patiently outside a grand blue door. 

Home

This time two weeks ago I was in Co. Donegal, getting ready for a night of country music and jiving to celebrate my auntie’s 50th birthday. Being surrounded by my jolly and inebriated relatives got me thinking about home, and where that is for me.

The Story Behind…

This #ThrowbackThursday I am trying out something new. I was thinking recently how absent my blog is of all the travelling I did in the year before its creation in 2013. Without wanting to traipse through past journals to produce detailed travel guides, I thought it might be nicer to pick one photo a week and write the story behind it: where I was, what I was doing, what I was feeling that day and how I feel now looking back.

This week, I’m throwing back to China…

Guest Post for TEFL Org UK

“Classical Studies graduate turned EFL teacher” reads my Linkedin Bio. A whole 4 years ago I completed my 130 hour combined TEFL course with TEFL Org UK. At the time I didn’t expect it to have shaped my career the way it has, but given the wealth of job opportunities that have been made available to me it has been hard not to get sucked into the ever expanding world of teaching English as a foreign language EFL.

One of those jobs was working as a Language Assistant in Spain. Although the job didn’t necessarily require it, my TEFL course undoubtedly made me a better assistant, so when TEFL Org UK asked me to write about my experience I was happy to put together a post for them. 

South America 2016: D.F, wise Mexicans, & intense revelations.

The final leg of the trip! Having spent 3 months in South America it was time for me to come home. I woke up at 4:30am on the 30th December 2016 in Lima and went to bed at approximately 3:30am on the 1st January 2017 in London, and had a revelation somewhere in between all thanks to a dashing wise Mexican.