Fred

Hi Guys, <BR><BR>I have just (FINALLY!!) finished uni and have decided to go to Spain for a couple of months (to learn language and to see it!! ), before I meet a couple of other friends in the UK.. <BR><BR>Anyway, this is my first trip and just wanted some advice. <BR><BR>Since I was going to be by myself in Spain, I was thinking of going to Spanish classes first to meet people and also to pick up the language. (Honestly, I think I'd be able to pick up the language myself - know a little - but I'm a bit worried I'm going to spend the 3 months by myself!)<BR><BR>Has anyone done one of these courses? I've read a couple of other posts and have gotten the impression that Salamanca is the best place to go to learn the language, with which institute would you recommend though? <BR>- I'd guess most are good, but was also interested in things to do outside of classtime..<BR><BR>Also, would people recommend a tour like contiki for the rest of Spain - done a small one before and was heaps of fun - or travelling about by myself??<BR><BR>I'm planning to leave Aust mid-September. Any help would be really appreciated.. <BR><BR>Thanks!<BR>Fred.. <BR>

Deb

Fred, You might have better luck getting responses on the lonely planet board which caters to a younger crowd than the fodors board. My opinion is that if you are staying in hostels you will automatically meet people but the Spanish classes arent a bad idea also. If you are a tour type person then my understanding is that contiki tours can be a great drinkfest but the cost will be higher than going on your own. Good luck.

fred

Thank Deb, <BR><BR>Yeah that's what I thought, that' why I was looking into the classes. <BR><BR>Just had a look on www.LonelyPlanet.com, where is the forum? I did find a 'Talk 2 Us' part, is this what you meant?<BR><BR>Thanks, <BR>Fred..

lena

Fred, <BR>look under the Thorn Tree icon on lonely planet site to see the forums. My friend went for a study abroad in Madrid and she loved it. From what I heard, Salamanca is a great university town but it's kind of secluded. My favorite place in Spain was Seville, that's where I would go for a couple of months, very enjoyable town and lots of daytrips from there. I also think that if you stay in hostels you'll meet a lot of people. I don't recommend a Contiki tour. I really think they cater to inexperienced set of travellers, their tour to Italy was very rushed, the tour manager was useless, for example, all he could recommend in Florence was this "great Aussi bar". I went with two friends and we agreed later that we would've done better to go on our own.

Fred

Thanks Lena, I found it. <BR><BR>I' know, from what I've read from these posts Seville sounds awesome so will definately give it a go. <BR><BR>Wanting to go to slamanca cause apparently that's the best place to learn castillan spanish, hopefully i'll meet people there and i'll drag them down to Seville. <BR><BR>Salamanca isn't so bad is it? On one hand I hear it's a university town with lots of bars etc, on the other I hear it's confined and very city like?<BR><BR>Fred. <BR>

kate

I can highly recommend language courses as a way to travel on your own - even if it's just a week in a longer trip. They'll give a little structure to your day, you'll learn about the region, you'll meet people to hang out with, and you'll likely acquire friends from other countries (useful connections for future travel) - oh, and you'll stretch your brain a little (and you can put the course on your cv).<BR><BR>Another type of tour to consider (better than a Contiki drink fest) is a hiking or adventure tour for a week or so. I spent a week on a guided hike in Andulacia in April, and it was great. Earned my dinners through 4-5 hours walking, saw small towns and met some interesting people. My trip was a little "quiet" (4 women in their 30s-40s), but you can find programmes that attract a younger and more adventurous crowd. Check out exodus.com and look at programmes, for example, like their Andulacian Adventure (mixture of hiking, climbing, rafting, biking, etc.) Some of these trips combine activities with tours of cities (although watch out - the less activity, the older the participants).<BR><BR>You could start your trip with one of these adventure weeks, then add a week of language classes, and then travel on your own (possibly with the people you met in your language course).