I took another 3-month sabbatical in spring 2024. I spent most of it in Barcelona with my boyfriend. Normally we spend our time together traveling but this time we mainly stayed put. We got a furnished apartment a few steps from the beach. It only cost 1300 euro per month which is about $1400 USA.
It’s pretty cheap in comparison to being a few steps from Miami Beach which would easily double or triple the price. The bathroom is a bit too small for my taste, but that’s European living. I was actually surprised at how much we could fit in the apartment if you organize well.
The apartment also had a rooftop terrace (since we were the last floor), which was nice to get some outdoor space. It had views of the water and far away- La Sagrada Familia church.
I ended up getting private health insurance during my time in Spain because it’s cheap – only costs $68/month. I took advantage of my free time to do my annual physical and labs, dental exam, and try acupuncture. I will detail my experiences with these in a future post.
We enjoyed going to the beach, going for long walks, and doing everyday life things (shopping, cooking, errands etc). I worked about 12 hours a week doing telemedicine so I could have something productive to do. I read books on my ipad using the Liby app, which allows you to read books for free through your home library. We also went to the zoo, a Cirque Du Soleil show, concert, and a soccer game.
After 1 month, I started to get “cabin fever” being in Barcelona. I was tired of seeing the same streets, eating the same tapas, and being around a lot of tourists. Our travel time was limited due to my boyfriend’s work schedule. We had already been to most of Spain, but we decided to spend a few days in the Basque country of Spain.
I had always wanted to go to Bilbao and San Sebastian but they are pretty far from Barcelona (in European standards). It takes 6 hours on the high-speed train to get there. I do enjoy the comfort and convenience of European train travel.
Bilbao was a cool artsy town. I don’t typically like modern art but have always wanted to go to the Guggenheim museum there. The architecture of the museum itself is incredible. Bilbao is lodged in the mountains so it was pretty cold. The tapas there are called Pintxos, which was interesting to try.
I preferred San Sebastian because it is a beach town and the water was really nice. This was in April so the water was too cold for me to get in, but many others braved it. San Sebastian is a popular spot for vacationers including the famous Ernest Hemingway. I heard a lot of people speaking French, so seems like the French love going there as well.
I expect my boyfriend to move to the USA at the end of this year. Interestingly, I thought we would settle down in one place. But this sabbatical showed me that I am incapable of living long-term in the same place. I have been a travel nurse practitioner for 9 years now, and I am too addicted to the nomadic lifestyle.
I like novelty. I like being in new places, to see new things, learn new things, and try new things. I wouldn’t mind having a home base somewhere but I know after a couple of months I would just get cabin fever all over again.
Lastly, I met up with some friends in Asia for a few weeks in May. I will write about that in a future post. It was more convenient to travel there from Barcelona than Eastern USA. The flight time is shorter and it’s easier to find business class award flights.
I enjoyed reading about your travels. With the time difference was it difficult to work?
I imagine that its difficult to give up nomadic life to stay pt in one place. Will your BF be able to move around with you?
I would like to hear about booking flights to Asia from Europe.
Cheers!
Haha yeah sometimes I worked until 1am which was a bit hard. Yes my bf will move around with me when he moves to the USA later this year.
Actually it’s way easier to find flights to Asia from Europe on business class with points than from the USA!