The Girl Who Goes

independent, intentional travel

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7 Reasons Why You Should Visit Sevilla, Spain

sevilla, spain - plaza de espana

From my first visit to Sevilla, Spain

A few months ago, my mom and I spent a long weekend down south in Sevilla, Spain. I can’t even describe how magical that time felt. Even though I was only a few hours away from Madrid, I felt like I’d been transported to an entirely different world.

During a visit to Spain, many travelers think about visiting the beaches of Barcelona or enjoying Madrid capital. But if you’re looking for a more thorough Spanish experience, I can’t recommend Sevilla enough. From Madrid, it’s easy to access – an hour flight or a two-and-a-half hour train ride – and though it’s Spain’s 4th-largest city, it has a distinctive personality that feels uniquely Spanish.

Have I convinced you to visit yet? If not, here are 7 reasons why you should take a journey down south to the capital of Andalucía! [Read more…]

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Hasta Luego, España

To say that my second year in Spain didn’t go quite how I expected would be an understatement. It makes me more grateful for the whole, uninterrupted first year I had. Traveling to another country every month, riding the metro around the city on the weekends, meeting friends at cafes, taking the train or bus to new cities in Spain. [Read more…]

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Coronavirus Update: Madrid, Spain – May 25, 2020

Day 1 of semi-freedom

Another month has passed since my last post, but it seems that May has gone more quickly than April, and MUCH more quickly than March.

In my last update, I wondered how much longer it was going to be until the end of lockdown. Well, just a few days later, I got my answer. [Read more…]

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Coronavirus Update: Madrid, Spain – April 27, 2020

Hi everyone. It’s been over a month since I last wrote something, and I think that may be the longest time I’ve ever gone without posting. As of this month, I’ve been writing as The Girl Who Goes for three years! (A fact I was reminded of when I was prompted to renew my domain registration.) So, it looks like I’ll be the girl who’s going for the next three years, at least. 🙂

Obviously, Spain has been in the news a lot over the past couple of months. It’s the second-most affected country in the world after the U.S., and third in number of deaths after the U.S. and Italy. That being said, as I begin Week #7 of lockdown – honestly, it’s more than just quarantine – I have seen a lot of changes over the past 6 weeks and glimmers of hope for the next weeks to come. [Read more…]

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Coronavirus Update: Madrid, Spain – March 20, 2020

coronavirus quarantine

Day 1 of coronavirus quarantine in Spain

It feels a little bit like end times, doesn’t it? A month ago, even though we knew that coronavirus was happening *elsewhere* in the world, we didn’t anticipate its spread to be quite this serious and far-reaching.

My mom came to visit me the last week of February into the first week of March. We traveled down to Sevilla, in Spain’s southernmost region of Andalucía. Spain’s coronavirus cases at that point were around 100. We didn’t notice really any change in daily life; all we did differently was be more vigilant about washing our hands. [Read more…]

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How to Spend 24 Hours in Florence, Italy

24 hours in Florence - feature photo

We would have loved more time, but here’s how we spent 24 hours in Florence, Italy.

When Matt and I decided to visit Rome for New Year’s during our holiday trip, our main motivation was meeting up with a couple of friends — Emily and James. But it was a little too expensive to fly back to Madrid from Rome, so I started checking out other airports in Italy. About four hours north of Rome is Bologna, which ended up having the best ticket prices. And halfway between Rome and Bologna is Florence.

After hearing about Florence as one of Italy’s must-visit cities for years, it was the perfect opportunity to check it out myself. [Read more…]

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A Review of ÖBB Nightjet: Overnight Train from Munich to Rome

nightjet train

ÖBB Nightjet Train

Our holiday trip through Germany, Austria, and Italy included my third-ever overnight train experience. A couple of days after Christmas, Matt and I rolled up to the Munich Hauptbahnhof to catch our overnight train to Rome. Our ticket was hard to read, because it was all in German, but I was 90% sure I’d managed to book us seats that would convert into beds.

I was also at least 90% sure it was going to be my best overnight train experience so far. Operated by ÖBB, which is the Austrian Federal Railway service, I couldn’t imagine things would be anything short of perfect.  [Read more…]

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Top 5 Things to Do in Munich, Germany

Despite many prior trips to Germany, the ever-elusive Munich was one major city I’d never visited. But when you think of Germany, many people imagine Oktoberfest, beer steins bigger than your head, and lederhosen. All of these are images of traditional Bavaria, a region in Germany’s southeast, of which Munich is the capital.

So when it came time to plan a holiday trip for me and Matt, and I found out that we could fly from Madrid to Munich for $22 each, it was a no-brainer. Germany’s always going to have a special place in my heart, and Matt had always wanted to visit. It was perfect! [Read more…]

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Holiday Trip Review: Germany, Austria, and Italy

A couple of weeks ago, I returned back to Madrid after the most ambitious Eurotrip I’d planned in years. I think the only other one that comes close was when I went to Dublin, Stockholm, Copenhagen, and Amsterdam with friends over 10 days while studying abroad. This time, while Matt was visiting for the holidays, we spent nearly two weeks traveling through Germany, Austria, and Italy. [Read more…]

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Top 5 Things to Do in Valencia, Spain

things to do in valencia - feature

Plaza de Arzobispo, Valencia

Hi, friends! Do you ever lay in bed, late at night, when you’re supposed to be sleeping… and decide to creep on your own Instagram? Like scroll way back? Well, I was doing that a few days ago — looking through all my posts since I got to Spain. And I came across a post from Valencia! And then it hit me… I never wrote a post about my time in Valencia.

It was in April, on the same trip I went to Palma de Mallorca with my friend Morgan, but it’s not hard to remember! Valencia was a great city, so I thought it would be fun to finally write about it now. Better late than never, right?

So… here are 5 of the best things to do in Valencia. [Read more…]