Jan 17

Visiting the sleepy town of Candeleda and a Bee museum

The hotel that we stayed at was a few miles away from civilisation. All that surrounded us was beautiful mountains, lush greenery and a few nearby farms. One day I took a bike ride to the surrounding countryside and found many charming farms full of cute sheep and goats. I think we were based in…

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Jan 15

Enjoying a BBQ at Sunset and Spanish dancing skills!

The Anglos and Spaniards were no longer strangers, they were friends. I’ve never had such a close bond with such an eclectic group of people before. We were all excited to let our hair down and enjoy a few drinks together at our first party night in Candeleda! Everyone dressed up in their finest clothes…

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Jan 13

Experiencing traditional Spanish Queimada

Fire blazed in the darkness, our faces illuminated in the cool night air. I felt a breeze across my neck and heard faint cackling coming from behind me. I turned aroud at lightening speed to see Witches surrounding us, uttering a Galician spell as the strong smell of alcohol burnt my nostril. No I was…

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Jan 13

Teaching English in Candeleda

So there I was, on a bus full of Spanairds and Anglos from all around the world on my way to a hotel in an isolated little Spanish town. We sat Anglo-Spaniard on the bus. I was sat next to a very chatty Spanish man. Initially I wondered what the hell we would talk about…

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Jan 12

First impressions of Madrid

I arrived in Madrid in the afternoon, clinging on to my suitcase (just in case anyone decided to pickpocket one of my retro dresses from my suitcase!). As soon as I got off the plane I could sense a change in mood, Spaniards are a lot happier and more relaxed than the English! I could…

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Jan 11

My first solo Adventure….to Spain!

I have never really had wanderlust until recently. I have always been fairly independant and I loved going abroad but I preferred to go on holiday with other people.  I felt that it was unsafe to travel alone, I was also scared that I would end up making misakes, missing buses ect and that I…

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Jan 11

2013 is here, and It will be the best year of my life!

I hope that you have all had an amazing Christmas 2012 and I wish you all the best for 2013. May your year be full of travel and exciting experiences! This was the last Christmas that I will be spending at home before my sabbatical. Hopefully next Christmas will be spent on Bondi beach or…

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Jan 11

Coincidence or fate…

I have had so much news over the past 48 hours that will affect my travel plans significantly. Then I looked at the cover of my new issue of Wanderlust magazine. I saw that it featured articles about solo travel, the Great Barrier Reef and Darjeeling. Three things that relate to me because of my…

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Jan 11

Welcome to Pearls and Passports

Hello! I’m Stephanie and I have created this blog to document my sudden desire for travel. I have always been very ambitious with regard to my work life but I have never contemplated long term travel. Before now! I always thought that I would live to work and my desire for a good job has…

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