Uncategorized

5 October 2025 First, the big news is that I’m starting to plan my next visit to the U.S. At this point (no airfare had been purchased), I’m planning to arrive the 9th of December and return to Spain around the 17th of January. Vicente is looking at the possibility of joining me for the…

28 September 2025 Visa and Travel plans Up until a few weeks ago, I had been planning to return to the US in January to file for the new visa application. I have always known that if I change my visa to a Nonlucrative Visa (NLV/ retiree visa) after my student visa expires, that the…

22 September 2025 Not a lot of news this week. The big news is that I have learned that if I apply for my non-lucrative visa (retiree visa) from the US before my current student visa expires in 2 January 2026, I can deduct 50% of my time here (one of two years) towards my…

14 September 2025 Water at home: I am looking for a new apartment  When I leased my apartment in February 2024, there were some issues that needed addressing. The kitchen, my bathroom and the guest bathroom all have damaged tiles.  Biggest on that list was the guest bathroom with numerous floor tiles that were cracked…

8 September 2025 It’s been a while since I posted. When I slow down like this, it’s usually because I’ve been home sick and not doing much to talk about. Such is the case. However, I’m doing much better. After x-rays, blood tests, etc, etc, they determined I had a respiratory infection. It just left…

17 August 2025 My week took me to the south of Spain for a few days, to the town of Vera. My friend, Medi from Paris, had rented an apartment and invited me to join him Tuesday- Thursday, as his “couchsurfing” guest. For all the guests, I have hosted, I had never stayed as the…

11 August 2025 I went to a different beach on Thursday. From the bus stop, I had to walk through a national park to get to the beach. l’Albufera is one of Valencia’s treasures. It was a hot, humid day. And I passed this interesting plant and I had to share it with you. The…

3 August 2025 As July transitions to August in Valencia, things tend to slow to a crawl. Historically, in August the city all but shuts down. You can definitely see the sudden change. When I moved here, I had to adjust to a different daily pace. Stores close at 2 for siesta. They reopen from…

20 July 2025 It’s been a week of guests, celebrations and hot weather in Valencia. On Monday, a Couchsurfer arrived from Germany. Samet is a university student from Turkey and is currently studying on scholarship near Nuremberg. He comes from a conservative Muslim family. So we had lots to discuss about our shared experiences as…

14 July 2025 Just because… I thought you might enjoy this pic of Cooper On Friday, we celebrated the last day of class for my friend Adam (26). He wants to devote his time to finding a real job. He has a Masters in Economics. I hope he can stay here in Valencia. So, the…