Jonathan Walls, a graduate from Oregon State University, studied abroad in Oviedo during an academic year and liked it so much he decided to stay and make Asturias his home.
I came to Oviedo in the fall of 2004 to do the yearlong study abroad program with AHA. I had already graduated from OSU with a degree in Geography and planned on doing a post-bac in Spanish. I fell in love with Asturias and after a few months here I began thinking about staying for awhile after the program ended. I felt at home here as Asturias is very similar to Oregon with the mountains and coast nearby, allowing me to practice my favorite activities such as biking, hiking and being outdoors. Going down the Sella River in canoe is a must! I do it every year.
I saved my money and began teaching some private English classes; I also started working part-time in a bar. It was not always easy being alone so far away from home, but luckily I had a small but close group of friends here that helped me through the hard times. My part time job in the bar turned into a full time job. I worked there for three years before deciding to move on to other things.
In fall of 2008 I began working at a school in Avilés as a bilingual assistant, the hours and pay were much better than when I was working in the bar and I found that I actually liked teaching. The first years I mostly worked with the primary school teachers, helping them prepare classes and lending a hand in the classroom; then I began teaching conversation classes in the primary and secondary levels. In 2010 I began a master´s program at the University of Oviedo to become certified to teach Geography and History in secondary school. It was not easy, first of all because the classes were all in Spanish, but also because the education system here is different than the US and I had a lot to learn. Somehow I managed to pass all my classes and do an internship while still working at the school and I received my Master´s degree. The next school year I will be teaching Social Sciences to the first and second year students (13-14 year olds). It has been an exciting experience moving to a different country and learning the ins and outs of the culture. Hopefully I will be here for many more years to come.