No pasa nada. A literal translation of the Spanish phrase yields a strange result: nothing happens. But if you spend a day in Spain, you’ll likely hear this motto. It means “no worries, it doesn’t matter.”
After the first few days of my semester in Spain, no pasa nada had become ingrained in my everyday vocabulary. I quickly learned that the expression epitomizes the nation—Spaniards don’t take life too seriously and enjoy the world’s unlimited simplicities.
This laidback country is the perfect place for young people suffering from wanderlust. You can explore Spain’s many regions without feeling judged or pressured. Plus, you’ll never be bored—there is a vibrant mix of complex cultures, languages, cuisines, and landscapes. I should know.
In the winter of 2022, a day after I received the glorious email that my student visa application was approved, I flew from Asheville, NC to Charlotte, NC to Miami, FL—where I took an uber to the consulate and picked up my visa—to Paris, France to Valencia, Spain, where I was greeted by a tiny dorm room, my home for the next five months.
All that stress, all that travel, all those sleepless hours—they were worth it. This
issue of Nomadic Student Magazine is special to me because Spain remains the source of my best college memories.
As you turn the following pages, I hope you’ll enjoy a mini expedition to bizarre Barcelona, vibrant Valencia, and tranquil Tenerife.
So, pour yourself a glass of sangria, whip up some tapas, kick back, and relax (but no siesta yet). You’ll soon be taking your own Spanish adventure.
No pasa nada ,
Amanda Blake 514-678-0043
ablake@nomadicstudent.com
Managing Editor
Amanda Blake 514-678-0043
ablake@nomadicstudent.com
Photo Editor
Amanda Blake 514-678-0043
ablake@nomadicstudent.com
Columnists
Amanda Blake
Amanda Blake
Amanda Blake
Hert Nicks
Marcelo Assreuy
Sonnie Hiles
Aleksandar Pasaric
Gabriel Trujillo
Julio Irrazabal
Christina Gottardi
Nomadic Student Magazine
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Nomadic Student Magazine España edition is available on newstands nationwide and through certified travel partners in Arizona, California, Colorado, United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Brazil, and Japan. To order copies and for additional travel planning information, visit nomadicstudent.com.
Fallas in love with Valencia
Discover how to spend the perfect day in Spain’s most colorful city.
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Learn how to navigate Spain as a student . . . from a former student!
Flamenco into Andalusia, where Spain meets Morocco.
Game of Thrones, Star Wars, Money Heist—all filmed in Spain.
¿ Qué escuela? 15
Spain’s top 10 schools for international students.
Our Cheap Paradise
For students, planning a trip to Spain’s second largest city can feel overwhelming—Google searching “things to do in Barcelona” yields far too many results. But there’s no need to worry!
Barcelona’s vast and diverse offering of activities is exactly what makes it so pop ular and whimsical. All visitors must do is follow their hearts, eyes, and noses. History buffs may immerse themselves in ancient Rome while wandering the Gothic Quarter. Art aficianados may spend hours studying famous paintings in Museu Picasso de Barcelona (1) and street art (3) dispersed throughout the world’s largest free gallery: Barcelona itself. Foodies may wander between world-famous restaurants—like Eat My Trip (2)—tapas joints, gelato shops, and churro carts.
When it’s time to leave, whether by ship, train, or air, they all wave and whisper, “Te adoro, Barcelona.”
eat well, live free, love artPhoto by Aleksandar Pasaric Illustrations by Amanda Blake
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Begin your day in Barcelona’s central square where you can witness great architecture, chase pigeons, and find the perfect breakfast pastry.
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Take a bus to Antoni Gaudi’s masterpiece: La Sagrada Familia. The bizzare church has been under construction for over a century.
Park Güell
Hop back on the bus to one of the city’s largest green spaces. Also designed by Gaudi, this park has become an icon of Barcelona.
Although invented in Andalusia, flamenco is a dear tradition for Barcelonians. There are a myriad of shows to choose from!
Don’t worry. You’re not going crazy. Many first-time visitors to Barcelona are shocked when they first notice a street sign. It’s not written in the Spanish they know. Instead, it’s written in Catalan, one of the official languages of the autonomous region of Catalonia and an important part of northeastern Spain’s culture. Tourists who have spent hours, days, or even months studying Spanish to prepare for their trip to Barcelona might be taken aback, but there’s no reason to fret! Spanish is still spoken nationwide, and locals are almost always willing to help. Most menus will include a Spanish and English section as well. But, hey, while you’re in the city, learn some Catalan! The locals will love it.
What began as a fishermen’s kitchen is now a world-renowned restaurant known for its paella and seafood.
Looking for a classic, lowrisk tapas bar? The famous La Plata has been serving the same four delicious tapas since 1945.
It’s the only one in Spain! This modern eatery encapsulates the city’s vibe perfectly.
You’ll forget all about IHOP after a trip to this breakfast joint. Be prepared for lines!
Fresh food? Check. Cultural flavor? Check. Restaurants even the locals enjoy? Check. This market gives you a lot of options, and they’re all good.
Valencia looked different on fire. It felt different, too, somehow more personal despite the thousands of people roaming its streets. The chaos was palpable, drifting through the air on clouds of smoke and soundwaves launched by kids with too many firecrackers. I’d thought I knew the city. I’d toured it with professors, read its history online, shopped there, ate there, wandered from landmark to landmark
in search of the perfect Instagram photo. But it wasn’t until that moment, as I was standing in the epicenter of La Cremà, the finale to the city’s most famous and fiery festival, that I realized Valencia was alive. And I was in love.
Each year, from March 1 to 19, the coastal city of Valencia is transformed as its people and thousands of tourists celebrate a 300-year-old traditional holiday known as Las Fallas. Some believe Las Fallas originated when Valencian carpenters would welcome the spring equinox by burning pieces of wood that had held their oil lamps during long winter nights. Others claim the carpenters burnt wood they didn’t need before St. Joseph’s Day (March 19).
Either way, I doubt any of those ancient woodworkers foresaw what their festivities would become. Now, Valencians construct and display ninots , gargantuan statues made of papier-mâché, cardboard, wood, and plaster, throughout the
city. The ninots are often taller than the buildings around them and display bawdy, satirical scenes inspired by pop culture and politics. My favorite depicted a Poseidon-like figure and other mythical warriors and animals.
On the last night of the festival, each statue, except the winning ninot indultat , is set on fire. Kids and adults sprint from flame to flame, throwing and stomping on firecrackers. The noise, the smell . . . it’s overpowering. Dangerous. Awe-inspiring.
My sister, who had come to visit me in Spain during the holiday, and I walked among the burning statues. Earlier in the week, we’d experienced La Mascletà, a firecracker show in the city’s central plaza that reaches 120 decibals—we had to keep our mouths closed to avoid damaging our ears—and Nit del Foc, a fireworks show unlike anything I’d ever seen.
But La Cremà was something else entirely. My sister described it as “other-worldly,” but that adjective didn’t sit quite right with me. While I was staring at the flames, ears ringing, I felt strangely at home in Spain for the first time. The commotion . . . it was human. And I loved it. I plan to go back one day, but maybe next time I’ll bring some ear plugs.
Wh ile I was staring at the flames, ears ringing, I felt strangely at home in Spain for the first time.Photo by Amanda Blake Photo by Amanda Blake Photo by Marcelo Assreuy
Desperate for a personal refresh after her first year of college, American Meg Ermer began studying in Sagunto, Spain in the fall of 2021. She started as a novice student nomad, but by the time spring rolled around, her classmates considered her an expert in Spanish travel. Thrifty and daring, Ermer had ventured to the five largest cities in Spain and several smaller villages. Now, she’s back in the states and loves telling her story, especially to those eager to learn how to navigate Spain as young, broke, inexperienced adults.
Q: What aspect of Spanish culture surprised you the most?
A: I was very surprised by siesta. It was frustrating because once classes got out for siesta at about one o’clock, then that’s when you’d want to go grocery shopping or do something fun in town. But places were always closed, no exceptions.
Q: What is the most affordable city in Spain?
A: Affordability is one of the great things about Spain. I’ve heard it described as Italy but on a budget.
Price-wise, I was very happy in Valencia and Seville.
Q: And the least affordable?
I think Madrid.
Q: If you were to move to Spain right now, where would you settle down?
While I’m young, in my 20s, and just wanting to live life? Definitely Barcelona. Seville’s my backup.
Q: What are some thrifty traveling methods you would recommend to students in Spain?
The methods I used in Spain are the same ones I used everywhere in Europe. Look on Skyscanner for cheap flights. Also, be flexible with your dates. Explore different options, and don’t be afraid to be a day late or early to classes. Look at trains, especially in Spain and Italy.
Q: What is the best Spanish dish?
I like paella. I not only love the taste of it but also the whole process of creating it. For family day at my school, they brought in this huge dish the size of a small pool, and they had people with huge rakes making paella in it. It was an all-day event, and it was just really fun.
Q: What are some unexpected Spanish phrases someone traveling to Spain should learn?
I don’t know if it would save your life or anything, but “ no pasa nada .” It’s a good way to summarize the Spanish lifestyle: it’s whatever, no big deal. If you want to sound like you really know what you’re doing, say “ porfa ” instead of “ por favor .”
Q: Anything people shouldn’t say?
When you’re in a restaurant, “puedo tener” (can I have) is not a thing. Don’t say it.
Q: What’s your favorite memory made in Spain?
About six of my friends and I went to Barcelona for the weekend. It was a cheap bus, backpack, hostel situation. One of my friends Googled random things to do at night, and she saw this war bunker on top of a mountain. When we got to the top, there were just a bunch of teenagers and 20-somethings hanging out, playing music, just vibing. We joined in, and I remember just sitting and looking out at the city. We listened to Ed Sheeran’s “Barcelona.” It was just a really fun night—very carefree, very happy.
Q: What’s your advice for someone considering studying in Spain?
Don’t worry about your classes. Don’t worry about graduating in time or falling behind. Do it. It’s so worth it.
I remember just sitting and looking out at the city. We listened to Ed Sheeran’s “Barcelona.”
It was just a really fun night—very happy, very carefree.One of Meg’s favorite places in Barcelona is La Sagrada Familia.
Córdoba became a cultural hub after the Moorish conquest in the eighth century A.D. Its most famous landmark is The Great Mosque, considered by some to be the most emblematic monument of Islamic religious architecture in the world.
Seville is the capital of Andalusia and fourth largest city in Spain. Its most famous attractions include the Real Alcázar de Sevilla, Seville Cathedral, and Torre del Oro. Many proclaim it to be the most beautiful city in Europe.
If you ask the average American to describe Spain, they’ll likely mention bull fighting, chili peppers, deserts, and, of course, Madrid and Barcelona. What you won’t hear about—likely because they don’t know about it—is the country’s southernmost region: Andalusia.
Andalusia is a gorgeous land known for Islamic architecture, blissful beaches and exuberant people. It is Spain’s most surprising region, the birthplace of flamenco, and what many locals consider to be the perfect blend of Spanish and Moroccon culture.
Located on a hill overlooking the charming city of Granada, the Alhambra (meaning “red castle” in Arabic) sees hundreds of tourists passing through its doors every day.
The castle is the most impressive surviving piece of architecture from the Islamic Golden Age. It was built in the ninth century as a military citadel and became a royal home 400 years later.
By Amanda Blake
Parts of the fifth season of HBO’s hit fantasy drama Game of Thrones were filmed in The Alcázar of Seville.
The alcázar is a 700-year-old palace and UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is the oldest royal castle in Europe still in use the Spanish royal family still stays in its upper quarters!
In Game of Thrones , the alcázar houses one of the story’s most intriguing and powerful families: the Martells.
The Martells rule Dorne, the southernmost region of fictional Westeros. The alcázar resides in the heart of Andalusia, Spain’s southernmost region, making it the perfect location for Dorne’s own royal family. Well done, writers!
Naboo is real!
In 2000, George Lucas chose The Plaza de España in Seville to film what would become one of the most beautiful shots in Star Wars
When Jedi Padawan Anakin Skywalker and Senator Padme Amidala first arrive on the planet Naboo in the saga’s second episode, Attack of the Clones , they stroll through the plaza alongside Anakin’s trusty droid R2-D2.
The shot doesn’t last long, but it excites viewer’s imaginations. The colorful and bright surroundings exemplify the wonderfully strange planet, the homeworld of Padme and Sheev Palpatine, the saga’s primary villain.
Money Heist, known by Spanish-speakers as La Casa de Papel (House of Paper), follows a group of robbers who coordinate and execute a heist within the Bank of Spain, appropriately located in Spain’s capital city of Madrid.
Fans might be surprised to learn that the Money Heist film crew did not shoot within the actual bank. This was not for lack of trying—their permit application was denied for “security reasons.”
To recreate the house of paper, the set crew designed painfully elaborate sets. Several scenes were also shot just outside the ginormous building’s sturdy doors and in other streets throughout the capital, skillfully adding to the illusion.
By Amanda Blake
We weren’t supposed to be there. Face-to-face with a warning sign on the base of the hill, my American brain sloppily translated the threat to: “Trespassers will be prosecuted.”
But the view was so beautiful. Serene. Enchanting. I quickly joined my three schoolmates in scampering up the trail.
Surrounded by tropical mountains, we were queens of a vast kingdom. To our right lay a mild ocean, softly illuminated by coastal homes. To our left, vibrant aqua waves ran up the shores of Santa Cruz, their backends stretching into darkness, to Gran Canaria. If I squinted, I could see the sister island. At least, I convinced myself I could.
For four young women who had ventured to Tenerife just yesterday, this lush terrain, tinged by bizarre purples and
reds that appear only when the sun sets, was theirs to command. It was ours to cherish for one weekend. We were on top of the world.
And . . . it . . . was . . . cheap. Each of us paid €20 for a round-trip plane ticket from Valencia to Tenerife, another €20 to spend the first night at a hostel in El Médano, and €25 for two nights at an Airbnb in between towns dispersed along the edges of the Anaga Mountains— essentially the middle of nowhere. We bought groceries in town for taco salads, sandwiches, pasta, and french toast. I spent less han €120 in total.
On our first day in the largest of Spain’s Canary Islands, we explored Playa del Médano, took naps on Playa de la Tejita, and climbed La Montaña Roja, where we watched the sun set below the island. I tried vegan pistachio gelato, and (sorry
Italy), it remains the best gelato in Europe. We traveled north the next morning to our Airbnb, where we ate a hearty taco salad dinner and decided that the next logical step was to climb the hill behind our temporary castle to catch yet another sunset. Julia was the speediest. She strode up the bank as if going down the stairs. Sydney
and Chloé followed at a reasonable pace. I was the slowest, not because the sign scared me but because I had my camera, and everything was the perfect shot.
I arrived at the peak of the hill seconds before the purple-red haze disappeared. A shadow giant loomed above the island: El Teide, an active volcano and the largest mountain in Spain. To its right, closer to us, stationary fireflies: the city of San Cristóbal de La Laguna.
We talked for an hour, maybe two. Similar to how a campfire makes strangers reveal secrets, Tenerife drew the four of us closer. We were all studying at the same college in Sagunto, yet most of us had met only two months prior.
“ What do you wanna do with your major?” “What’s the most beautiful place you’ve ever traveled to?” “Why Spanish?” “Do you think we’ll get arrested if we stay here any longer?”
We forced ourselves to leave the star-lit sanctuary. We needed sleep. Tomorrow, we would hike through the 3,000-foot Anaga Mountains and down to the ocean, an easy task by no means, except maybe for Julia.
We started early. With a few sandwiches, fewer euros and no cell service, we trekked up the highway and into a laurel forest. As I wandered among the trees, coated in mist and neon moss, I could imagine the landscape 1,000 years earlier and somehow knew not much had changed since then.
The ceiling of twisted jungle soon opened to reveal a different landscape, one characterized by dragon trees, cacti and vividly purple flowers beneath a cloudy sky. We shuffled carefully up and down ravines. Every once in a while, we’d pass another hiking group or a farm, but an air of tranquil solitude still managed to permeate the land. At times, I’d forget about everything but the biodiverse paradise I’d become one with.
The ocean’s appearance startled me awake. I suddenly remembered that we had an end goal, an Airbnb to get back to, and a flight the next morning. Julia led the way as we made a steep descent to the rocky coastline, where we found a grass oasis to sit and eat lunch.
A couple weeks later, I was in Barcelona, then Salzburg, then Venice, checking off city after city on my European bucket list, my wallet getting lighter and lighter. I wouldn’t give up my study abroad experience for anything, but, at times, the constant plane rides and draining of funds threatened to overwhelm me. Then, I’d remember Tenerife.
Heart and mind racing, I’d be studying a bus route or taking an unplanned taxi when cyan waves would gently crash into my memory. Warm sand enveloped my feet, frozen pistachio melted on my
tongue, sea salt and the sharp, delightful aroma of tropical flowers wafted beneath my nose.
Tenerife hadn’t even been on my bucket list. I’d planned the trip with Chloé, Sydney, and Julia on a whim—tickets were cheap! We weren’t supposed to be there. We weren’t supposed to get away with it. Yet, Tenerife became the beating heart of my European experience, the trip I now describe to friends who ask me, “Where was your favorite place? London? Athens? Amsterdam? . . . ”
No, Tenerife. Or, more specifically, the top of the forbidden hill behind our Airbnb in the middle of nowhere. Our cheap paradise.
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La Universitat de València
This university has three campuses in Valencia, Spain’s third largest city. It offers fantastic language programs and easy access to the beach.
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Universidad Pablo de Olavide
Established in 1997, this modern university is located just outside the gorgeous city of Seville. It hosts the largest library in the country.
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Universidad de Granada
World-renowned for its diverse student body, this university’s five campuses offer a plethora of language and art courses.
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This school has only 4,000 students, but its smack dab in the center of Madrid! The campus offers the perfect mix of local and international students.
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Also located in the capital, this prestigious university is not for the faint of heart. For the rigorous academic, its paradise with its huge library and first-class faculty.
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Universitat de Barcelona
Who doesn’t want to study in Barcelona? Students at this university have easy access to the city and an esteemed research center.
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Universidad de Salamanca
If you’re searching for a smalltown feel, complete immersion, and uncrowded lecture halls, this school is the perfect choice.
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Universidad Deusto
As the oldest private university in the country, this school is great for history and language students. Located in Basque country, students are likely to learn some French as well.
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Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
This university rests at the heart of the city and offers classes in Spanish, Catalan, and English to facilitate a variety of language learners.
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Universidad de Cádiz
This university is located in Western Europe’s oldest city and is only half a mile away from white, sandy beaches. Few Spanish schools will immerse you more in the country’s history than this one.
THE HIGHEST STANDARDS
THE TIME IS ALWAYS RIGHT FOR A HOLIDAY
