Flight prices are sky high

WHEN you tell people you’re going to Europe, they react with grand excitement.

“How marvelous!” they tell you.

This excitement is carried through when they recall their nephew’s college roommate or their coworker’s daughter or their friend from high school who backpacked through Europe for an extended period of time on less than anyone would think possible.

“And travel is cheap!” they undoubtedly add.

Due to this hearsay of adventure, I was eager to travel around Europe on long weekends – I wanted to see the Eiffel Tower, the canals of Venice, the Irish countryside!

Unfortunately, in my extensive research on many airline and train websites, I have found that travel from what is essentially the southern-most point of Europe to anywhere else is not as cheap as my well-meaning American friends and family described.

The closest major airport to where I live in Córdoba is Málaga, and flights from there to within Spain are reasonably priced, even with my modest private tutoring earnings.

However, to leave the country, it seems, the price increases dramatically if you don’t time it just right.

While my dreams of visiting every European country have ebbed, I have found the Andalucían public bus system quite agreeable and this will make travel within Spain accessible and affordable.

Córdoba has some incredible pieces of history and natural wonders I look forward to seeing – the Alhambra, the Mezquita/Catedral, the caves of Zuheros, the Sierra Nevada…

I will keep you posted.