The Girl Who Goes

independent, intentional travel

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7 Best Things To See in Madrid, Spain

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Puerta del Sol at puesta de sol (sunset)

In the first nine months that I lived in Madrid, I had my fair share of visitors. First was Carson and Natalie, then Matt, then Morgan, then Matt again! After all that, I felt like I had a formula down when it came to knowing all the best things to see in Madrid. I knew exactly where to take my tourists so that they had the opportunity to really experience the city.

So I put it all together into a list. Some of these are “duh” items; some of them are just my personal opinion of things that make Madrid special and interesting. This list also is great for anyone planning a visit to Madrid, even if you’re not showing tourists around!

Here are the seven best things to see in Madrid.
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Side Trip: Madrid to Valladolid, Spain

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A bright side street I saw during my trip from Madrid to Valladolid

Valladolid was a city I’d been hoping to visit, sooner or later. It’s the city where my favorite Spanish professor, Heidi — the one who had the greatest impact on my Spanish history, culture, and language education — had studied abroad during college, and she’d always talked about it during class.

Well, guess what? Heidi’s husband, Tony, also a Spanish professor, is leading a study abroad group in Valladolid this summer! Which meant that Heidi, Tony, and their 5-year-old daughter Rosalie would only be a few hours away from me for the entire month of July. I hadn’t seen Heidi since my graduation 4 years ago, so I knew we needed to meet up. Also, I’d been telling my friend Sarah — who is about to start a Master’s program to become a Spanish teacher — about Heidi all year. Heidi told me she’d be happy to meet the two of us in Valladolid and give us a tour! [Read more…]

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Morocco Trip Review: Fez, Chefchaouen, and Tangier

Matt and I when we first arrived in Chefchaouen, Morocco

After many visits to Europe and a trip to Asia, (and living in North America most of my life), I set foot on the continent of Africa for the first time when I was 26. Matt came to visit me in Madrid, and together we flew to Fez to spend 5 days in Morocco! It’s so close to Spain and I’d really wanted to go for a long time. Since Matt was here, and I felt a bit more secure traveling with him, it was the perfect opportunity. I booked our plane tickets and Airbnbs a couple months before the trip, but other than that, I didn’t make any other plans.

I wasn’t sure what awaited us in Morocco, my first African country — I had some ideas, but I’ll talk about the differences between expectations and reality in a future post. But we ended up having a really amazing time. [Read more…]

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5 Things to Know Before Visiting Palma de Mallorca

Passeig del Born / Paseo del Borne

After almost 8 months of living in Spain, I’ve finally taken my first trip off the mainland. (Yes — in case you didn’t know, Spain has lots of islands!) During Semana Santa, or Holy Week, my friend Morgan came to visit and we went to Valencia and Palma de Mallorca. Palma is the largest city on Spain’s largest island, Mallorca, also known as “Majorca” in English.

We spent about two full days there, and even though I’ve visited 10+ other cities in Spain, Palma was very different than anywhere else I’ve been. Here are some important things to know if you’re planning a visit yourself! [Read more…]

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How to Get to Valle de los Caídos, Spain

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A view of Valle de los Caídos

Funny story: a half-baked version of this article about Valle de los Caídos has been sitting in my “drafts” folder since April 29, 2017. That was only a week or two after I started this blog. I knew it was a topic I wanted to cover — it fits well with my theme of independent, intentional travel — but I couldn’t remember all the necessary details from my trip to write the article that I wanted.

So, now that I’m in Spain full-time, I recently had the opportunity to go back to this interesting place. Since I was bringing friends with me this time, I was wishing I’d finished the article two years ago so I could go back and read it. (Didn’t want to get us lost.) But once again, the trip was successful.
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A Review of FlixBus: My Trip from Wrocław to Berlin

The last time — and only other time — I tried to take an international bus trip, it didn’t turn out very well. That was when I wanted to go from Brussels to Amsterdam. After waiting for the bus to show up for two and a half hours, in the pouring rain and freezing cold very early in the morning, I gave up and took the train.

So I was a little nervous about my plan to take a bus from Wrocław, Poland, to Berlin. I decided to use a different bus company than the one that had failed me (I’m looking at you, OuiBus). My friends Carson and Natalie had used FlixBus for their trip from Paris to Madrid, and their bus clearly showed up, so my standards were pretty low. But I have to say I really enjoyed my FlixBus experience! [Read more…]

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ALSA Bus Review: My Trip from Madrid to Granada, Spain

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For better or for worse, Spain’s ALSA buses are a topic I’m all-too familiar with. Every Tuesday and Thursday at 1:15pm, I would board a big green ALSA bus from Buitrago del Lozoya, where I worked, to get back to Madrid, where I lived. Occasionally I had to catch the 6:45am bus to work — but I don’t like to think about that because it was truly the stuff of nightmares.

Anyway, I don’t know what ALSA stands for, but I do know that it’s the largest Spanish bus company for more long-haul trips. So when I went to Granada for the weekend with my friends, that’s what we used. Here’s how the experience stacked up. [Read more…]

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7 Reasons Why You Should Visit Granada, Spain

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Granada, Spain, was a city that I’d always heard about while living in Madrid, but never gotten around to visiting. Its location — isolated in Spain’s deep south — requires visitors to have sufficient time to not only enjoy the city but travel there as well. Situated in a mountainous region of Andalusia, Granada didn’t even have a high-speed railway station until mid-2019! Which meant that my transportation options were limited to flights, cars, or buses.

One of my friends in Madrid, Ellie, had studied abroad in Granada during college. Along with our friend Sarah, we planned a weekend trip, traveling via bus. It was 5 hours each way, which was a lot, but it wasn’t horrible. From the time I set foot in Granada, I fell in love, and I think it’s my new favorite city in Spain. Here are 7 reasons everyone should visit Granada! [Read more…]

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The Truth About Living in Spain

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Portrait of the author recovering from tonsilitis on a Wednesday

You know how people will post photos like “Instagram vs. Reality?” I don’t really see myself as someone who highly curates my image or digital presence, but to anyone who doesn’t talk to me on a regular basis, it may just look like I’m living the dream all of the time in Spain.

Which is totally true. This is my dream! But there are also lots of parts that aren’t easy; parts that are unglamorous and hard work, and I don’t talk about them much. So I wanted to share an inside look as to what it’s really like living in Spain. Here are my realities! [Read more…]

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Side Trip: Madrid to Salamanca, Spain

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A view of New Cathedral in Salamanca

When my friends invite me to do something, I try to say “yes” as much as I can. You Only Spain Once. (Maybe.) Anyway, my friends Sarah and Ellie decided to plan a trip from Madrid to Salamanca. With the high-speed train, it was easy enough to do as a day trip — no need to book a place to stay for the night — so when they invited me, I said yes.

Here’s everything you need to know to plan your own trip to Salamanca, whether you go for the day or the weekend. [Read more…]