Traineeship in Madrid

Accommodation:

All I can say is, I don’t think I would ever have landed on my feet as well as I did, if it wasn’t for the Facebook page which is made to post anything relevant to language teaching assistance and the wider English-speaking expat community in Madrid.

For the accommodation, I personally wasn’t a fan of the idea of living in a hostel while searching for accommodation with a year’s supply of luggage, that’s why joining a group of people to begin searching in the same area saved me a lot of time and money. First things first, I posted up where my work placement was, to see if there were any other people house hunting in that same area. Thankfully, someone informed me that most people in Madrid commute to work.

With this information I knew I shouldn’t restrict myself to look for a place to stay, so I opted to live in “Alcalá de Henares” which is a small city in the East of Madrid. Living there meant I would have a 25-minute commute to work, yet living in a beautiful well-known area, cheaper rent and all better lifestyle away from the chaos of the city centre. Being always just a train ride away suited me. It didn’t take long for some people to write me about house hunting in the same area, so we teamed up and we found a nice flat together where we lived with a Spanish, an Italian and an English. It was a very multicultural household.

Travel/Transport:

I have to give credit to Madrid’s public transport. It is really useful. If you’re under 26, you can apply for the “Abono Joven”, a transport card (Young Travel Pass Fare), which provides you unlimited transport for only twenty euro charge every month. This card allows you to access every way of transport within the community of Madrid (“Madrid Renfe Cercanías”, Metro and buses). I found this system hugely beneficial, especially when Christmas holidays were approaching, as I never worried about public transport to get to the airport on time, because it was exceptionally punctual, which I appreciated a lot! Also, there wasn’t any hassle ordering taxis to get there.

In order to get the card, be sure to apply it online as soon as you can, as its demand is high, and it can take a while to process. You can apply it here.

Besides, due to the geographical location of Madrid, it is very easy to visit the whole country thanks to the numerous transport train routes AVE offers. You'll also find that cheap flights are pretty common. Finally, “Metro de Madrid Oficial” is a handy phone application I really recommend, because It quickly calculates the quickest route for you to get from location A to location B. Travelling couldn’t be easier in Madrid.

Traineeship:

My traineeship in the bilingual school was a brilliant experience from day one to the very finish. Before the traineeship, I was on the fence whether I wanted to become a primary school teacher or not. Well, now it’s safe to say that question is finally answered, and this traineeship has helped me making up my mind. Time went by so quickly, as I was teaching a range of topics focusing on social and natural science, doing arts and crafts lessons with the children through English and giving both grammar and conversational classes. People say that "if you choose a career path that you’re really passionate about, you’ll never work a day in your life".

Children’s brains are like sponges, and the difference I witnessed from October in comparison to June was incredible. The teachers I was working with were always extremely welcoming, inclusive and supportive, both inside and outside of the classroom. As I shadowed them through my placement, I got to know them more. I was going from class to class spending a lot of time with them. Eventually, I gained a lot of experience from their teaching methods, their habits and their overall ability to manage the classroom. I used to tell myself that “the more you make yourself involved in your traineeship, the more you will get out of it".

Activities:

It was quite a coincidence that the Madrid Harps GAA team trained twice a week in the neighbourhood I worked in, so I took it as a sign that I should sign up. It was nice to have a little touch of home when I was working abroad for the year, meeting other people doing the same thing as me. This may be a good idea, especially for those who may find themselves a little home sick, as moving away can be hard at times. The sense of the Irish community abroad certainly helped me. Meeting up at the Vicálvaro's football pitch, having a bit of craic while getting exercise was great. The football team brought me the opportunity to travel the country at the weekends which was a plus! To mention one, I’ll never forget the weekend we travelled to Barcelona for the Iberian Cup Competition when our men’s and ladies’ team won both competitions. The celebrations at the dinner dance that weekend were unforgettable.

Check out their Facebook page here. Also, throughout the year there are many fun runs in Madrid. Find out more information about upcoming events here.

Weather:

Do not be fooled, Spain is NOT all sunshine all year round. Madrid had a very harsh winter last year and when spring time approached, we didn’t see much improvement. Pack the winter jackets and boots, do not be deceived. However, one thing is for sure, Madrid is seasonal. In May/June summer time begins to pick up, so be sure to purchase that daily pass for your local pool. Keep in mind that the city is so humid the average temperature can be as high as 29 degrees. You will enjoy cooling down and chilling by the pool.

Language:

I certainly believe that if you want to learn a language, you should immerse yourself in it. Everyday you’re taking in new vocabulary and sometimes it goes unnoticed. From opening a bank account at the beginning of the year to closing your bank account at the end of it, from getting your foreign identity card to going to the doctor… You begin to face formal challenges as you live abroad. Accomplishing errands, like those previously mentioned, boosts your confidence and only enhances your language abilities. At the beginning it can be nerve-racking, but once you’ve got what it was you were looking for, it’s a great relief!

As I was working in a bilingual school, and my job was to teach English I decided to take it upon myself to take some Spanish lessons in the evenings, from Monday to Thursday. At the orientation day, I was informed about La Escuela Oficial de Idiomas, a language school which offers you good standard classes for a very reasonable rate. I thoroughly enjoyed my Spanish lessons there. There are different websites available for each of the individual schools located around Madrid and the website will depend on the location.

Social Issues:

To be completely honest, I never truly felt unsafe in Madrid when I was living there. From my experience, It’s a pretty safe city. However, poverty is a huge problem in Spain and with that comes many social issues. For example, there is one in particular which I fell victim to: pick pocketing. My advice is that you have to be aware of your surroundings, be vigilant. Especially when it comes to the metro and public transport in general. My phone was robbed from my jacket pocket on one of the crowded mid-week metro lines. I didn’t feel a thing. Obviously, I was devastated, and I couldn’t believe it had happened to me. All I could do was report it to security. Poverty can be seen everywhere in Madrid: there are beggars on the streets, on the trains and there are people rummaging through bins for food and clothing. Witnessing such poverty was truly a raw experience for me, although it may not affect others so much… Just be prepared for it, I guess.

Sightseeing:

Although every city has its problems, for me, Madrid has plenty of beautiful sights to offer. To mention a few; take a stroll, “dar un paseo”, through "el Parque del Retiro" when you get some free time, where you can row a boat around the lake, facing the monument dedicated to King Alfonso XII, visit the crystal palace, visit some art exhibitions, watch some street performances, see the wild peacocks, rollerblade down the paths... This large park is a true beauty of nature and one of my favourite places in Madrid to escape.

Templo de Debod: this was a temple donated by the Egyptians. Originally it stood in the Nile Valley but needed to be relocated because of the new "Dam" that was being developed. So, now it stands in Madrid. I’d recommend you to visit the inside of the temple before coming out and watching the daylight turn into night.

Food:

Finally, if you’re a food lover or a drink lover, or both, the Mercado de San Miguelis the ultimate spot. It’s a lively thriving Spanish market home to a wide range of typical Spanish tapas and some traditional Spanish wines and beers. Although it’s a little bit on the expensive side, it still beats Irish rates which is good enough for me! In particular, there’s one drink which I’ve grown to love and I have introduced to my friends when they have visited Spain: El tinto de verano. It’s a wine-based drink (wine plus “gaseosa”, which is a carbonated drink, or wine with carbonated lemonade). Some bars may serve it slightly differently. For example, the bar lady of the bar we used to meet up in after training, would drizzle beer on top of it for an extra kick! She religiously accompanied all of our drinks with free tapas which was a great plus! The suburban pubs are generally more traditional, so you can guarantee a little random Spanish grub accompanying your drink.

Have a flick through the photo album below to discover more about Madrid:

Photo gallery