Newbie to Salamanca

Hola! My name is Mária and I come from Slovakia. I’ve been asked to write a few articles for this awesome Tía Tula blog. First of all, I think I feel I should tell you a bit more about myself and so my first post will be about exactly that but don’t worry, I will keep it short. I am still less than a quarter of a century old and in my ‘relatively’ short life I’ve managed to live in Slovakia (big surprise), Thailand and The Netherlands and I’ve visited a few more, mostly across Europe. I love old but vibrant cities such as Prague and that is also one of the reasons why I chose Salamanca as a place to improve (or actually ‘start learning’) my Spanish. Before I arrived I could say ‘¡Hola!’ and now after a few days I can add a bit more to it so it became ‘¡Hola! ¿Qué tal?’. But more on my Spanish language skills later. People say I sound (almost) like an American when I speak English which is probably due to the unimaginable amount of hours I spent listening (and sometime watching) Friends and Two and a Half Men. 

As the title of this post suggests, I am a newbie to Salamanca. I’ve never been to Spain before so I was noticing everything (for example the nice scent of the toilets at Madrid airport – really nice, I am not being sarcastic here). Once I got to Salamanca’s bus station I took out my Google Maps printout and started walking to my apartment. Until I noticed I was supposed to go ‘southeast’ and I had no idea whether that was right or left. So I asked. In English. And I found out I was supposed to go left, in the direction of city centre. As soon as I saw Salamanca’s two Cathedrals (at that point I thought it was just one cathedral), I knew I am going to like it here. But when I saw the buildings in the city centre I fell in love. So once I managed to get my things to my room (which is 2 minutes from the 2 Cathedrals) I decided to get lost in Salamanca (some people prefer to use the word ‘wonder’ or ‘explore’, I say ‘lost’ because that’s how I usually start in a new town). Once I finished my ‘lost in Salamanca’ session I decided to meet up with a friend at McDonald’s at Plaza Mayor which is one of most stunning squares I’ve ever seen. I was surprised by the amount of people everywhere at such a ‘late’ hour. Now I laugh when I realize I thought 11pm is late. I guess I am getting used to the Spanish life style. I can’t say more about it now as I’ve just arrived but if you would like to know more about Salamanca, Spain and Spanish culture from my point of view please stay tuned for more stories! 

To sum it up, my name is Mária, and you will read more posts on this blog authored by…me. My first impressions of Salamanca are positive: it’s full of people, stars some beautiful old buildings, has an awesome garden with an amazing view of the Cathedrals, and there’s always something going on. As I told all my family and friends, you definitely have to come and visit! 

¡Hasta luego! 

¡Hola!

I am Liane and last week I started at Tia Tula as an intern for the administration and marketing department. I will keep you informed, at least for six months, about Tia Tula, Salamanca, the language and different activities during these months.


Why Tia Tula?

After I finished my Master in Science: Strategy and Organization, I thought it would be a great experience for me to apply my knowledge in a small company as an intern. I have been interested in the Spanish language since I was young and this combination of working and learning Spanish was a perfect opportunity for me. After reading numerous reviews, which were all very positive, I decided to apply for this internship at Tia Tula.


Why Salamanca?

Salamanca is a small city with loads of language schools and many students as a consequence. Salamanca has many bars and restaurants, which are full of life and sociability. Due to the small size of the city, every attraction and activity is close and the whole city can be explored by feet.


First impression

My first impression is in line with the expectations I had before I came to Salamanca. Tia Tula is a mid-sized school, and because of that, they provide a very personalized attention. They offer the possibility to get to know many students (even from other levels) by offering daily activities in the evenings.
Tia Tula attracts students of many nationalities. My class consists of students from Germany, Italia, Scotland, China, Korea and the United States. Here groups are kept small (with a maximum of 10 students). There is also a great diversity in ages, this makes the school qualified for everyone. I assume that my time on Tia Tula and in Salamanca will be great and full of new experiences.


Liane, student of Tía Tula

Come and work for us!

Hi all, I am a French student studying the BTS Trilingual Executive Assistant course and this is my story of my internship in Tía Tula.

When I arrived as a student intern in Tía Tula, I felt a little lost. I was afraid of not being up to par. However, there was no need to be, as the team at Tía Tula very quickly put me at ease! I immediately felt like part of the school, as if I had always worked for them.

The team all have different characters, but their greatest trait is undoubtedly the ‘joie de vivre’ they breathe, their good humor and attention they carry them as well as towards all the students.

In addition to the pleasant and friendly atmosphere, working as an intern at Tía Tula allowed me to put into practice the skills I acquired during my years as a student: classifying and archiving documents, using computer software, creating and organizing extracurricular activities, putting information in a database, and so on!

You’ll never be bored as the tasks are varied and they are entrusted to us according to our abilities. So do not panic, you will never be given anything insurmountable to do.

Work with Tía Tula is also an opportunity to meet people from all over the world and with a one common goal: to learn Spanish in a good atmosphere and discover the country. You quickly become friends with the students and build relationships that are kept even when you leave. In my case, I had the chance to meet a Taiwanese student. We shared the same apartment and we went to school together for only one week, but she quickly became my friend. Today, even after her return to her country, we talk on Facebook and sometimes on Skype.

The icing on the cake is quite possible the fact that you can take Spanish classes while working in the school. This option gives you a 50% reduction on the course fees. In addition, this is the best way to gain a full understanding of this wonderful school!

If you want to work in the administration and would like to gain some experience first, then Tía Tula is just what you need! I recommend this experience to all because it’s very rewarding.