Best laid plans
This month I have 2 programs back to back in different venues; or so I thought. I decided that I would take my 'proper' camera with me to Salamanca, spend the weekend in Madrid then the following week in Gredos and get three locations shot, that was the plan.
However I arrived at the tapas meet only to find out that I was going to Gredos for both weeks, AND this that week is the Young Adults program! Damn it, so much for preparation and planning.
The Young Adults were in high spirits and seemed very much up for the week. The Spaniards on the other hand seemed daunted and sleepy at first, but they soon came round.
There were a few issues during the week. We had a couple of complaints at night from guests. The problem is, people are going to socialize (an important part of the program) but in order to do so they need to be able to have somewhere to do it without disrupting others. There is little point in expecting 8/10 people to 'chat' quietly.
It would have been nice if the facilities were made more available by the hotel, as they are already there it is of no extra cost to them.
One of the participants left the program at the beginning of the week after finding it too difficult. Vaughan Town is hard and daunting enough, you really need to have at least a basic level of English to feel comfortable. I think that age is also a factor and 17 is too young; Vaughan Town is not a summer camp.
I must admit though the Young Adult programs are more work then most typical programs and they do get tiring after a while, which is why if the group do as they should, you can relax off and not 'mother' them so much.
We had an accident during the improv sketch which put a downer on the remainder of the evening; luckily she is ok, nothing broken.
Surprisingly it took the party over an hour to get into full swing - and no, it had nothing to do with my music! Marisa did a good job of keeping them together and focused.
Well I have another week to prepare for but this time with adults, lets see how that goes.
The photos of the week can be found below - enjoy ;)
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| Vaughan Town - Gredos - Program 166 |
Quick tip: I found something out recently which may be of use to you travelers. Don't bother buying a return ticket for the train. Firstly it is not like a return in the UK. There if you buy a return ticket you pay one fixed price, keep your ticket and use it to return, simple. Not so simple here. If you buy a return ticket you pay (lets say 35 euros) for the ticket and you have to buy another ticket when you actually return which is slightly cheaper (perhaps 28 euros). The ticket itself does little. It doesn't guarantee you a seat or offer that much of a reduction. However the Renfe (train) are now offering last minute tickets, which are considerably cheaper from 35 euros to 18 which is a big difference. So if possible hold out until the day before if possible it could be well worth it ;)
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