Good News: Part two in an occasional series about how much I love my life

After returning home from a great trip up to the north of Spain with Joseca, I came home and checked the status of my application for a third year of teaching in Andalucía. My stalking payed off.

Application Status: Admitted (3/1/11) 

Which means I have successfully completed the triple whammy of turning this:

Málaga school year calender '09 '10

into this:

2009 - 2010

2010 - 2011

(Calender of Málaga 2011 - 2012 school year should go here but does not yet exist. Use your imagination benevolently and think of a calender full of colored vacation days.) 


Normally the Spanish government lets you have 2 years maximum, but a private American company, CIEE, allows you to apply for a third year provided that you meet their requirements. They are responsible for a number of auxiliar positions in Andalucia. Applicants pay a program fee which covers an orientation, travel insurance, assistants with visa things, optional Spanish classes, and other things that would have been great my first year but kind of redundant in my third year. But I will be getting another year at my same job working for the Junta in a bilingual public school.

I have been really worried these past months from Christmas break onward about the upcoming year. After much thinking, perhaps even reflecting (what a pretentious word), I couldn't produce a single desire to leave Spain yet. I'm not finished here yet. I have more Spanish to learn. I have to be a better teacher. I have to continue my relationship and friendships. I have to keep up with my French and private classes and flamenco and volunteer and tapa outings and everything. I have to travel around Eastern Europe. This is the first time I'll be in an apartment or house of my own for more than one year. I'm thinking about going to Ikea right now and buying decorations for the walls because I'll be here long enough to make it worth it. It just isn't right to leave now. I love my life here and am so excited about it I'm updating my blog at 4 in the morning because I'm too excited to sleep. 

Which means that I am staying in Andalucía, hopefully in Málaga though I don't know yet, for another year as an English teacher! This is exactly what I wanted to happen, my best case scenario for next year, and it came just as the cherry on top of a fantastic week. Love love love love it.