WHere?! Nomad Local Blog

When I made my first euro making a Spanish meeting in Slovakia, it felt like if I had won the jackpot, because it meant that if I could make one, I may get two, and that would let me extend the travel soon.

But looking how people got involved in this meetings and bacame my friends was more vaulable; I was not just doing something to help myself in this journey but for everyone as a community too.

When you start a Cultural Travel, there are two things you have to learn to live everywhere without problems: first is how to make it sustainable, having the capacity to create work somehow.

The second one is how you can get immersed with locals to avoid isolation. In other articles I have given you other methods to make friends around the world. And here I will tell you one more.

This can be working in something in order to you make feel productive, and being able to pay, at least, flights or sometimes food. Besides, if it’s possible, a thing that can help you get talk to people.

And the first skill that can help you is your own language!

Spanish Meetings during a Cultural Travel

As I mentioned before, you don’t need much money to start traveling, although it’s important that you look for an activity that can help you to keep you on the way and protect your mental health.

When I arrived in Slovakia, I wanted to help at a friend’s Cafe in the bar as a volunteer at least to get some food. And that is a good help. But normally they are full of employees, so helping in this way was impossible.

Although talking with the owner about how I could help I realized that she liked Spanish, and could speak some phrases as well. She was certainly excited about practicing the language with me. And that was green flag!

“You have to learn two things to live everywhere without problems: how to make it sustainable… and how to avoid isolation”

I heard in the town I was living (not pretty big), there was a special interest in Spanish. Likewise, there was a high-school with couple of Spanish lectures.

So I asked her if she would like to let me hold a Language exchange meeting in Spanish for the costumers and people, and she agreed.

That became the first opportunity to share my language and earning some coins on the way. It was a win-win.

Also on WHere?!: Nomad Lifestyle: Fostering Gratitude, Love and Service Through Cultural Travel

Later on, my friend said that there weren’t language events around because, first of all, there were not native speakers to lead them, and, in adition, because this thing about language exchange just started to become more popular in the previous years.

Then it was time to try it once more again, and after some days of designing advertising, posting content on Social Media, printing some flyers, paste them in other restaurantes and cafes, we hold the first Spanish meeting in the town!

Creating a community through language exchange

When I started the meetings few prople showed up. In adittion, I didn’t earn much money, and I reinvested for the food and the material used; nevertheless, the gave me something even mor valuable: their presence and conection.

To be honest, it was difficult to learn how to invite people; eventually they arrived. Some of them came without knowing a Spanish meeting was hold that day, and decided to stayed. Others because missed the language after not using it for years.

Likewise, I met a girl who was accepted in an international anthropological expedition in South America, and wanted to practice before leaving. And finally, a really kind-optimistic girl who helped me always to make the meetings amazing.

“Cultural and language exchange events got more popular in the last years”

Even though everyone came for different reasons, we shared great conversations. However, this also helped me to get to know better some locals and to create a small but meaningful community of Spanish learners.

It’s important to know that the Cafe members and myself had to put more effort and money to make this possible, i.e. for fliers and food for some Mexican dishes I made for the guests. Although, it was worth it; they loved this international experience, and that’s a payout as well.

If you don’t know how to start getting involve with the local community your language could be a first opportunity to create your family, and if you don’t give up it might help you with some expenses to prolongue your travel more than you expect.

When you do something with love, people will give you the love back twice.