I’ve just finished 8 incredible weeks staying with a host family in Barcelona. I met them through culturegogo.com. I’ve never used a site like this before so I was a little apprehensive, but it all worked out great 🙂

4 Months Ago…

So I made contact with a few host families, but I had a really good feeling with Cristina, Jordi and their 2 kids through during a Skype call I arranged with them. We were all a little nervous at first, but after a few minutes I felt like we clicked. Their English was quite good and I was also keen to practice my Spanish.

After further calls and another Skype, the date was set: 2nd August. We agreed to 8 weeks. I was on such a high, so excited to going over to Spain for the first time.

August 2015

Cristina and her daughter Maria picked me up from Barcelona–El Prat Airport. They gave me a massive hug! Being British I wasn’t used to this type of greeting but it put a massive grin on my face. Maria had made me a ‘Welcome to Spain’ sign in English – so cute!

So with Culture Go Go you teach English in exchange for room and food. We had already agreed on a rough timetable and I’d be helping out Maria for 1 hour a day, and general conversation with Cristina and Jordi some evenings. They also wanted to teach me a little Spanish and often did so at meal times.

I had a lot of fun helping Maria in English. We generally played games (it was hot so we could go outside), sports and arts & crafts. There were times when Maria got a little tired, but I learnt to mix things up so she wouldn’t get bored.

Cristina introduced me to her niece; Ana who is only a year older than me. This was such a great way to meet people as she introduced me to all her friends. We often went out in Barcelona and she took me to see the Gaudi Park. I felt like I really bonded and my Spanish definitely improved.

One weekend Cristina and Jordi took me up near the mountains with some of their friends. It was Cristina’s sister’s birthday so we celebrated with a BBQ washed down with some local wine! I met everyone in their extended family, from grandma to second cousin. After a few glasses of vino they were all happy to give some English a go.

September 2015

September was a little quieter but the weather in Barcelona was still awesome. Maria went back to school, but I continued to help her in the evenings and I would often go through some of her English homework. Jordi started playing padel (it’s like squash and tennis together) so I joined him. I think he really appreciated English practice at this point and seemed a lot more enthusiastic (I think he was a little nervous at first). I also went to yoga classes with Cristina (where I got a little confused in Spanish). I feel like she became my Spanish mum!

I really don’t get some Spanish ways though. Dinner is so late and every restaurant insists on putting tuna on every salad – yuck! I was there to help my host family speak English but I could see they got tired sometimes. There were a lot of mis-communications at first but we often just laughed things off. I just learnt to be as open as possible and accept somethings are just cultural differences.

So overall…

Would I recommend Culture Go Go? Yes, I had an awesome time and made lifelong friends. But do your research and get to know your host family first before you make any commitment. I think it’s important to know what you will be doing with them and find out their general timetable.

I’m off to Madrid to stay with another host family. But I have high expectations! I look forward to comparing my experiences.