Albaicin: What Is It Like To Live In A UNESCO World Heritage Site?

What Is It Like To Live In A UNESCO World Heritage Site?  As many of you know we currently live in the Albaicin neighborhood of Granada, Spain, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Albaicin neighborhood of Granada, Spain.

First, how did we end up here?  We retired early (FIREd ... Financial Independence Retire Early) in April 2021, and we obtained our Non-Lucrative Visas to Spain.  We arrived in Granada, Spain in April 2021 in our Albaicin neighborhood.  Want to know more?  Check out our About Us.

What is a UNESCO World Heritage Site?  

From their website, “The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity.  This is embodied in an international treaty called the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural a heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 1972.”

The UNESCO website is pretty fantastic so definitely dive in if you want to know more.

Do you live near any UNESCO sites?  Are you a big traveller?  Which ones have you travelled to?  Or do you want to travel to?

UNESCO sites vary greatly from Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, Brazil’s Historic Town of Ouro Preto, to Norway’s Urnes Stave Church.  These are just three random examples, but the list really goes on and on.  Their website has a great map feature and lists locations by country (and more).  Check it out.  If you are a history buff, traveller, educator, caregiver, or just naturally curious about the world, I don’t think you will be disappointed to learn more about UNESCO sites.

We are from the United States so out of curiosity I wanted to see what was listed.  Right now there are 11 cultural sites, 12 natural sites (not a surprise considering there are so many great National Parks!), and 1 mixed site.  We are from Texas, and there is currently one UNESCO site in Texas: San Antonio Missions.  What sites are near where you live or where you are from?

Why is our neighborhood (Albaicin) a UNESCO site?

The Alhambra, Generalife, and our neighborhood, the Albaicin are all declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

View of the Albaicin from the Alhambra (Granada, Spain).

“The Alhambra, with its continuous occupation over time, is currently the only preserved palatine city of the Islamic period. It constitutes the best example of Nasrid art in its architecture and decorative aspects. The Generalife Garden and its vegetable farms represent one of the few medieval areas of agricultural productivity.”

(Quote taken from the UNESCO website).

Alhambra’s Nasrid Palace (Granada, Spain).

Generalife (Granada, Spain)

“The residential district of the Albayzín, which constitutes the origin of the City of Granada, is a rich legacy of Moorish town planning and architecture in which Nasrid buildings and constructions of Christian tradition coexist harmoniously. Much of its significance lies in the medieval town plan with its narrow streets and small squares and in the relatively modest houses in Moorish and Andalusian style that line them. There are, however, some more imposing reminders of its past prosperity. It is nowadays one of the best illustrations of Moorish town planning, enriched with the Christian contributions of the Spanish Renaissance and Baroque period to the Islamic design of the streets.”

(Quote taken from the UNESCO website).

I am not going to go in-depth into the historical significance of the Albaicin because we are still learning so much on a daily basis in Granada, but I will share our current experience of living in a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

View of the Albaicin from the Alhambra (Granada, Spain).

What is it like to live in a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

A small town within a city.

One of our goals when we moved to Granada was to live somewhere completely unlike where we have lived previously (as a family of four that would be Houston and the suburbs of Houston).  Yes, one can argue probably anywhere in Spain could accomplish this goal, but our neighborhood is uniquely different from the rest of Granada. It feels like a small (ancient!) town within a bigger city.

When we walk down the hill to the center of town it feels much like a big (European) city.  We do love the center of town also, but the Albaicin definitely has a different aura.  We went from most of our more recent time being in the suburbs of Houston (where everyone needs a car) to the Albaicin where most roads or streets are too small for car access, and our walks are often like navigating a labyrinth.  Our feet are our main mode of transportation taking us up and down the hills and passageways.

Walking in Granada’s Center.

We are becoming frequent locals in our small town, the Albaicin, such as at our farmer’s market, panadería, organic shop, favorite tapas restaurant, pizza shop, office supply shop, tourist shops on the little Moroccan street and more.

Farmers Market in Plaza Larga in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Panadería María in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

col & flower in the Albaicin (Granada Spain).

Tapas at Meson El Yunque in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Pizzería La Esquinita Argentina in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Little Moroccan Street (Calle Calderería Nueva) in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Everything is close together in the Albaicin like a small town.  Depending on the temperatures, people leave their windows and doors open.  From our apartment, we can hear our neighbors chatting and walking by and musicians in our small plaza or from the rooftops.

The most social one in the family, our daughter, knows nearly all the neighborhood cats, and she easily makes friends with the neighbors by chatting across the rooftops.

Local cats socializing in their doorways in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

I would never think of myself as one to embrace a small town with glee, but it is hard to not fall for the UNESCO neighborhood of the Albaicin.

The streets tell a story with every step (and climb ...and descend) you take.

Another one of our goals was to leave Houston for a walking city / city with public transportation.  We wanted to leave the car life and freeway life behind.

Walking in our neighborhood, the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

The historic Albaicin is the perfect walking neighborhood.  In fact, it is probably much easier to walk than to use any other mode of transportation since most of the walkways are not open to cars.  The walkways are also a mix of (for the most part) not so even pebbles and cobble stones.  Some may see that as a negative, but I think it adds to the charm of the Albaicin.

We are in the middle of the Albaicin or hill.  For the most part we can’t leave the house without ascending or descending at some point.  Not only are we in a little walking town within a bigger walking city, but we are getting even more exercise with the hills and steps.  We wanted to incorporate walking into our daily lives.  It is better for the environment and better for us.  Walking also makes it much easier to be able to explore and be a part of the community versus traveling everywhere by car.

Stairs in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

More stairs in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Every step we take in the Albaicin, the streets tell us a new story.  We get to experience a musician, watch an artist painting, hear visitors from France or Germany, and discover new stories when we wander down a street we haven’t explored yet.

Painter in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Wandering through a live art and history museum.

As many of you know, I am an early retired art educator.

One of my favorite places is to be surrounded by art, whether that is an art museum or art murals (and everything in between).  But living in the Albaicin takes that up a notch.  If feels like (and we are!) roaming the streets of (our streets!) a live art and history museum.

From the ancient walls, architecture, to the street design, pebbled walkways, cisterns, churches, doorways, and details, there is always something new to see and discover in the Albaicin.

Arco de las Pesas in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Architecture in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Walkways in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Pebbled walkways in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Church San Miguel Bajo in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Mezquita Mayor de Granada (Mosque in the Albaicin / Granada, Spain).

Door in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Moorish details in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

As much as I love art museums and other art destinations, we are grateful to be able to experience the live art and history museum in our everyday life in the Albaicin.

Experiencing history through your own daily life.

Which brings me to my next point; I love to learn about history through art (not so surprising given what I mention above!).  As much as I love books, learning about history through textbooks or books isn’t the most ideal (or only) experience for me or the kids (or Erik or anyone for that matter!).

One reason we wanted a nomadic life of slow travel was to immerse locally and experience history in person.

We are able to integrate history into our day to day life.  The history of Granada and the Albaicin is very layered, but it is nice to observe little bits of history just walking through our neighborhood.

Aljibes (Arab Cisterns) in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

El Bañuelo in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Palacio de Dar al-Horra in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

Not only do we pass and learn more about historic sites on daily walks, but it is also easy to seek out new sites to visit just in our neighborhood.  We love learning about the history of those that came before us in the Albaicin.  We will continue to supplement what we learn about through books and more research, but living in the Albaicin truly helps bring the history of Granada to life.

Max Moreau was an artist that spent his time living and creating in the Albaicin.  The Casa Museo Max Moreau is in our neighborhood (Granada, Spain).   

Casa Museo Max Moreau (Granada, Spain)

Creating our own story in the UNESCO World Heritage Site streets of the Albaicin.

We are enjoying creating our own story within the streets and neighborhood of the Albaicin; we are able to layer our own history on top of the already complicated history yesteryear.

Our story includes everything from daily errands, to exploring historic sites, strolling along new streets (and getting lost), meeting new friends for tapas, watching the kids play and explore, showing visitors our neighborhood, and soon … walking the kids to and from school (and more).  Our interactions and experiences may range from small (running errands) to bigger milestones (their first day of school in Spain), but they will all pull together to create our own story.

Our kids playing in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

I am guessing our story has at least some similarities to the people that came before us.  Sure they didn’t have our modern conveniences of learning to navigate the streets with GPS, and family expectations and responsibilities may have been different… But I bet they also walked to and from with different errands, gathered with friends, and watched their own kids playing in the same or similar streets.

Tours 

When we first arrived in April 2021, our neighborhood was still very quiet due to Covid-19 and restrictions (including restricting visitors from outside of Spain).  By June some of the Covid-19 restrictions ended, and we started seeing (and continue to see) small and large group walking tours in our neighborhood.

Now on the one hand, if you live here, I can see how you may see that as a negative.  (For the most part, they seem to all wear masks and haven’t really blocked walkways).  But on the other hand, I think it is a good sign for the economy.  And what a unique experience to live somewhere that people actually pay to tour your neighborhood!

Our home in the Albaicin (Granada, Spain).

What do you think?  Would you live in a UNESCO World Heritage Site?  Where do you live now?  What is it like? Do you have any UNESCO World Heritage Sites on your list of places to visit?  Comment below, or contact us at fourtakeflight@gmail.com.

Read Erik’s latest post here on Quality Time In Early Retirement.  We are working towards updating and improving our About Us and Start Here pages.  Check them out!  You can also follow our adventure on Instagram.

Want to take flight to your own FI (financial independence) or FIRE (financial independence retire early) journey? Read how we can help here.

-Tara

How To Enroll Your Kids In School In Spain

Let’s back up a little bit.  If you are new to joining us, we FIREd (financial independence retire early) fully in April 2021 of this year.  We obtained our Non-Lucrative Visas to Spain, and we arrived in Granada, Spain in April (with a short pit stop in Madrid prior).  Want to back up even further and see how we did that?  Read our About Us and Start Here.

We have two kids currently 10 and under.  Despite embracing an alternative learning style unexpectedly during COVID-19 (we started City School in Houston) ...with a strong interest and practice in World Schooling (more on our ideas around World Schooling here and here), we knew we had (and wanted) to enroll them in school in Granada, Spain.  Why enroll them in school in Granada, Spain?  My understanding is even though it is not technically “illegal,” not many Homeschool in Spain.  We didn’t look into this really closely since we knew we were going to go the traditional school route at this time.  But the more important reason for why they will be entering school is for full immersion into the language.  Luckily I am confident we found them a fantastic school.

I’ve been asked quite a few times since we moved abroad from Houston to Spain or even prior (What about school?) so I would like to share our story today.

View of the school we chose (Ave María Casa Madre) from the Alhambra in Granada, Spain (if you look closely you can see two different building complexes with outside courts for playing sports).

First, it is important to know (similar to the Non-Lucrative Visa process!) the school experience may differ or will differ by city, by school, (by family!), etc. in Spain.  Second, some areas of Spain may teach in different dialects. One reason we chose Granada, Spain is because the kids would learn Spanish in school (yes, we know they have a thick accent here).  For example, I believe in Valencia children learn Catalan (Valencian) in school.  I am definitely not an expert on this, but do your research first.  This influenced us on where we would live.  Third, you need to also understand your schooling options in Spain which to me are different from the US (Again this may vary somewhat by area ... some areas may be more competitive or more children than others.  Some areas with a higher expat population or higher population in general, it may be harder to get your children in the school of your choice.). Finally, you need to know what you are looking for in a school for your children in Spain.

Let’s look more closely at the schooling options in Spain and my final point (what did we want in a school in Spain for our kids?  What do you want?).  

Schooling Options In Spain

There are state schools (public), semi-private (colegio concertado) which means they are private but receive some funding by the government, or fully private schools (colegio privados).  It is my understanding that some of the state schools are also bilingual.  There are also International Schools (private).  I found these two links to be helpful Expatica (Schools In Spain: State, Private, Bilingual, and International Schools), and this link on Expatica (A Guide to Education in Spain).

Some of our walk to school (Ave María Casa Madre) would be up a steep hill, but not much of the walk.  It is about a 10 min walk from our apartment to their school in Granada, Spain.

What did we decide on?  Why?  What is best for your children?  

We initially assumed we would enroll them into a public / state school because we wanted a full immersion experience (and it is free).  This was before we knew about and understood some of the other options like colegio concertado schools (semi-private).  We knew we wouldn’t go the private route because of cost and lack of full immersion (International Schools).

First, why full immersion?  We are in Spain ...why not?  Some parents want a “softer landing” for their kids (again this choice completely depends on the child, family situation, and other factors), but I think for the most part, the majority of kids would do fine with full immersion.  Our children are currently 10 and 8 so I think they will adjust well.  They also had 4 years (for our oldest) and 2 years (for our youngest) of Dual Language in Texas (50 percent of their public school day was in Spanish).  And half of their class (supposedly) had Spanish as their first language. This past school year we did pull them from public school due to COVID-19, but we kept up with practicing Spanish the best that we could (including with live 1:1 classes with Homeschool Spanish Academy).  We are not sure how long we will be in Spain, but one of our goals ideally would be for the children to become fluent and bilingual (and for us adults to get as close as possible to that).  A school offering full immersion would be a great first step in that process.

What type of school did we decide on in Granada, Spain?  Initially I thought we would send them to a local state school in our neighborhood (Albaicin) that seemed to be constantly recommended by other expats.  But I am grateful another expat told us about a colegio concertado, Ave María Casa Madre.  We are confident it will be a great fit for our kids.  First, we like that few expat kids go there.  I think it is great to meet other expats kids and families, but if there are too many at a school our kids may rely or gravitate more towards the English speakers (and therefore not be as fully immersed with Spanish).  But beyond that we heard of many other great things about the school including a quality education, smaller class sizes, and more unique approach to education including a priority on outside learning and integrating nature.  After everything I’ve learned over the past year or more through City Schooling, spending time outside has definitely become a priority (including learning about nature).  And finally, you can’t beat the location, beautiful campus and surroundings (and like I mentioned previously they integrate the surroundings into the education).  Ave María Casa Madre is at the foot of the Alhambra along the Darro River.

Erik’s favorite pull up park is less than 5 min from their school.  It is also at the foot of the Alhambra.  Erik is carrying my Tortuga Day Pack (Granada, Spain).

Alhambra in Granada, Spain.

On Carrera del Darro ... we would take this street up to their school along the Darro River (Granada, Spain).

What is best for your children?  I certainly can’t answer that, but I think knowing what is best for them, what you are looking for, how long you may stay in Spain and so on will help you make that decision.  I would also join Expat groups (I am in several on Facebook), and ask around to get as much information as you can about the school options in your area.

What was the process like to enroll them?  

This Garden is right down the street just a few steps from their school (Granada, Spain).

I was told we would need our padron to enroll them (read the link for more information), but our particular school didn’t even ask for the padron.  Of course I would still try to take care of that ASAP when you arrive though (we are still waiting to finalize ours!).

In early May (school ends mid to late June here) we visited the campus of Ave María Casa Madre.  A friend told us exactly where to go so that was helpful considering the school is kind of “hidden” behind walls and you can easily miss it!  The main office was labeled and easy to find when we entered on the left.  I had what I wanted to say translated prior in Spanish so that was helpful.  The Administrative Assistant only spoke Spanish.  She gave us paperwork to fill out for next (2021 - 2022) school year, and she asked an (what I assume was) Administrator that spoke some English to talk to us.  He was very kind to talk to us about the school and showed us around a bit.  The campus is huge and beautiful.  We happened to run into an English teacher, and she was also very kind and took over our “tour” and showed us around even more.  It was definitely a great first impression.

I filled out the paperwork right away, and I believe we turned it in the next day.  What else did they need?  One thing I have learned about Spain is if we have any kind of appointment or situation where I think we may need paperwork, I carry all our paperwork in my handy Tortuga Day Pack (it has an area for laptop and papers).  I should have written it down since I can’t recall exactly what they took copies of (I always have extra color copies too).  But I believe it was our Passports / Visas and copies of the kids Birth Certificates (and everything else that goes with them).  The Administrative Assistant or Office Manager asked us to return a specific day the following week to see if they were accepted / enrolled for next school year.

What was the paperwork?  It seemed like some of it was for the city / region (Junta de Andalucia) and some of it was for the school.  Most of it was just basic information about the kids and parents such as birthdate, address, and so on.  Luckily it wasn’t too difficult to figure out.  I did use Google Translate to get through it so that made it more time consuming.

Another thing I’ve learned in Spain is you often visit a place multiple times before you get what you need accomplished ...we’ve often heard come back tomorrow, or make a new appointment and so on.  I am not complaining, but I am just sharing our experience.  Luckily since we FIREd (financial independence retire early) we have the time to visit multiple times!  This was definitely the case with getting an answer with the school.  I believe we visited 2 - 3 times to see if they were enrolled before we finally got an answer.  Sometimes I feel like things are literally lost in translation, but it seemed like the kids were accepted.  And we were asked to come back between June 1 -8 to fill out more paperwork.  (Yes, more paperwork!).

Yes, that is another thing.  Spain seems to enjoy paperwork!  

Surprisingly I received an email prior to June 1 with the paperwork attached.  I was told I needed to either fill it out and email it back in for each child, or I needed to bring it to the school (by June 8).  Since they emailed it this made it slightly easier for me since it saved me an extra trip to school.  I had the paperwork printed in color (if color was on the original) at our local school supply / copy shop.

What was the additional paperwork?  One was a letter about their parent organization and supporting the school through monetary means (sort of like PTA or PTO back in the US it seemed).  The donation was minimal.  I did sign us up, but they didn’t ask for payment yet.  There was also more paperwork for the city / region (Junta de Andalucia) which again asked for basic information for each child / the parents.  The last two paperworks were for the school.  One was about personal information and permission such as taking photos of your child.  The last paperwork was for either choosing for your child(ren)to receive Catholic education (or the alternative social and civic values).  We chose Catholic education.  That’s another thing ... as you can probably guess from the school name, Ave María Casa Madre is a Catholic school.  This didn’t factor into our decision making too much, but I do like that the kids will be getting religious education also.  They missed going to our church back home (we stopped when Covid-19 hit - a Methodist church; they really loved the kids programs at the church).

Good news!  At that point they said see you on September 10 so all was final!  What a relief because we really wanted the kids in this school.

Walking outside one building for their school (Granada, Spain).

I realized afterwards that I had a few questions for them so I emailed Ave María Casa Madre, and I got an immediate response. My questions were ... 1) Do we need to turn in any additional paperwork to the Education Department (with the city)?  I was told by a few people this may be the case.  Luckily they told me we did not need to do that - our paperwork was complete.  This may differ by school.  2) What uniform or colors did they specifically need (I wasn’t sure if it differed by grade level)?  They told me or clarified to me where to get the uniforms, but they didn’t say anything beyond that.  We will probably go try to look at it soon before things are sold out in August.  3) What school supplies did they need / school supply list available?  School supply lists are a big thing back in the US, and the cost often adds up quickly!  I was told the teachers would give them books and let them know what they needed when school begins.  It doesn’t seem to be a mad rush of things like back in the US.

There you have it.  Our thoughts on where to enroll in school in Granada, Spain (for our kids at least) and how the enrollment process went for us.

What do you think?  If you are abroad with kids, what did you choose for education or schooling?  Or if you moved abroad, what might you do? Comment below.

Read our previous post on a trip to Málaga, Spain here.  Want to join us on your own flight to Financial Independence?  Comment below or email us at fourtakeflight@gmail.com.

-Tara

FI With Kids: How Do You Afford Field Trips And Adventures?

In one of my recent posts I answered the question ... so you Moved Abroad: But What About School?  Be sure to read my latest post here.  I dove into many aspects of learning including how our family has embraced Field Trips and Adventures (and other non-traditional learning opportunities).

How do we make those work in our budget?  We often hear ...even in FI (financial independence) or FIRE (financial independence retire early) groups that kids are so expensive.  We would like to mostly disagree.  Yes, we added two more members to our family, but we can definitely make it work (and have fun Field Trips and adventures too).

Let’s look more closely at the numbers.  What is the financial impact for Field Trips and adventures?  How much do they cost?  Don’t they add up?

The good news is there are many free or low cost Field Trips and adventures (for adults or families!).  And of course there are some that cost money (and sometimes quite a bit money), but the cost can be worth it depending on the experience.

Entrance to the Alhambra in Granada, Spain.

Three key strategies for us ... 1) Keep any Field Trips and adventures within our extra spending budget each month (and plan this out as much as possible), and 2) vary the activities each week / month with a mix of mostly free or low cost and some experiences that cost more (if needed).  3) Take advantage of cost savings such as through Memberships or Free / Reduced Rate days and times.

Now I will go through all the experiences I listed on my previous post: Moved Abroad: What About School?  Let’s see how much they really cost.

We were told photos are not allowed in the Alhambra Museum, but this was taken in the building that holds the small museum (Palace of Charles V).

-Alhambra Museum: This is a free museum located on the 1st floor of the Palace of Charles V.  We visited a separate day from our main and first visit to the Alhambra.  This is a fantastic small museum and definitely worth a visit!

We were able to walk to the museum from our home in the Albaicin so transportation was also free.

-Cost: $0

The Alhambra in Granada, Spain.

-Alhambra: Not including our visit to the Alhambra Museum (see above), we’ve been to the Alhambra once so far.  We will definitely be back multiple times since we live in Granada.  Unfortunately as far as we are aware, there are not options for Membership otherwise we would definitely get a Membership.

There are many different options and price points to visit the Alhambra.  For our first visit we chose the General Ticket option which included Alcazaba, Palacios (Palace) Nazaries, Palacio Generalife and Gardens, and Palacio de Carlos V.  Not only was the cost worth it, but I think it was priced more than reasonably for what you were able to see!

Transportation again for us was free since we walked from our neighborhood (Albaicin).

-Cost: 14.85 euros per Adult and Kids Free (For the tickets we chose).  Total Cost was 29.70 euros ($36.24).

Children’s Museum Houston Outdoor Space 

-Children’s Museum Houston: We’ve mentioned before the huge benefit of Family Memberships / Memberships to Museums and other cultural institutions in your area.  Often times the Membership is paid for in just a few visits.  And Memberships and other experiences make great gifts!  With that said, we did have a Membership to the Children’s Museum.

Once we moved into Houston for our unexpected City Schooling time, the Children’s Museum Houston was right next door.  Our transportation was our feet so ... free!

-Family Membership Cost: $135 for a Family of Four (Note, there are different Membership levels).

Market in Plaza Larga

-Farmer’s Market in Granada, Spain: Daily life can definitely be seen as an adventure especially when you move to a new area and maybe even more so when you are in a new country.  Some of those every day experiences are the best experiences.  We’ve definitely seen different fruits and veggies that we’ve never seen before here in Spain.  But even back home in the US, sometimes those every day experiences were a fun adventure...especially for kids.  You can read more about our grocery cost in the link below.

This is less than a 10 minute walk for us so no transportation cost.

-Cost: See more information on one month of groceries in Granada, Spain.

Houston Arboretum 

-Houston Arboretum: When we lived in Houston, we frequently visited the Houston Aboretum for our nature studies or just to visit!  Visiting nature is great for kids (and adults), and it is often free or low cost.  It was mostly free for us to visit the Houston Aboretum and Nature Center with the exception of parking on most days (like many large cities and some parks, there is paid parking to help support the park or city).  Note, the Houston Aboretum (like other parks and nature centers) does have a Membership option that offers perks, and of course you can help support a great institution that way.  If we would have stayed in Houston, I would have considered a Membership.

Incorporating nature into your Field Trips or adventures is a great way to lower costs for activities (plus everyone benefits from being in nature).

Transportation for us required a car so not technically free, but once we moved to Houston only about a 15 to 20 min drive depending on traffic.

-Cost: Less than $5 for Parking (Approximately)

Lab at The Health Museum.  This was not the Cow Eye Lab mentioned below (Houston).

-The Health Museum: We decided to get a Membership at this Museum since we were literally next door to it in Houston for approximately 9 months.  Plus it doesn’t hurt to support your local museums and cultural institutions (and they definitely have needed more support during COVID-19).  They started up Homeschool Labs shortly before we moved to Spain.  You did not need to be Members to participate in the labs.  We were able to participate in one lab before we moved: Cow Eye Dissection.  

I felt like the experience of the lab was worth the cost, and I was right (this time at least!).  There was a 1: 4 teacher to student ratio, and two of the students were our kids.  There is no way they would have had this type of opportunity in a public school at their age (at least not in TX).

Transportation was free since we lived next door in Houston’s Museum District (yes, we were strategic about this move and location).  We were temporarily renting a place during COVID-19 and City Schooling.

-Cost (Cow Eye Dissection Lab): $18.00 per child / $32.40 Total (Slight Membership Discount ...Note, different Membership levels may have different perks and discounts).

Note, our Family Membership was $85.00 total (there are different Membership Levels).

The kids are working in their journals at a cafe in the Holocaust Museum Houston.

-Holocaust Museum Houston: In our previous post, we mentioned seeing a Nelson Mandela exhibition at a local museum in Houston.  The exhibition was at the Holocaust Museum.  For this museum I did not get a Membership.  If we would have been in Houston longer term, I would have considered it.

Transportation was free since we lived nearby in Houston’s Museum District.

-Cost: $19 for Adults (Children are free)

George Floyd Mural in Houston, TX

-George Floyd Mural: As I mentioned in a previous post, when we studied Nelson Mandela we also revisited current events such as the killing of George Floyd (a fellow Houstonian).  I think art (and books!) can be a great way for children (and adults for that matter) to learn about current events and history.

Public art is some of my favorite types of art because it is accessible to all.  Unfortunately there should be no mural of him at all because he should be alive today so I am not trying to make light of that by talking about cost.  But most public art is no charge.

Transportation wasn’t technically free since we did drive to see the murals.

Incorporating public art into your Field Trips / adventures can not only be a great way to lower your cost on activities, but it can also be a different way to learn about history or current events (and more).

-Public Art Cost: No charge.

We loved visiting the McGovern Centennial Gardens rain or shine (Houston).

-McGovern Centennial Gardens: Beautiful city gardens are often (but not always) free or low cost.  The McGovern Gardens are free including parking.  And in my opinion this is one of the best places to visit in Houston.  I may be slightly biased since we lived next door for 8 months or so ...but even before that I really enjoyed visiting the gardens.  Look for some gardens near you as a low cost or free Field Trip!

Again, transportation was free since this was across the street from us in Hermann Park / Houston’s Museum District.  Another tip to save on a Field Trip / adventure cost is to look local!  Do more things local with a mix of possibly further away (since further away usually comes with some type of transportation cost).  Plus it is always nice to get involved in your own neighborhood or community.

-Cost: Free

Community Service in Hermann Park’s Japanese Garden (Houston)

-Community Service in Hermann Park: Community service is a great way to have a free Field Trip experience or adventure while also giving back to your community.  Depending on the age of your children or depending on your community this can be more challenging to find ...but one idea is to try a local park / park system.  I was honestly a little surprised by how much my kids enjoyed it too.

Transportation was free since we lived next to Hermann Park.

-Cost: Free

Archaeological Museum of Granada

-Archaeological Museum of Granada: As you can probably tell I am a big fan of museums and cultural institutions so for the most part I think the fees are worth it (and if you are local the Memberships may be worth it too).  I’ve noticed museum fees in Spain so far seem to be much more reasonable than the US, but I guess that makes sense due to the overall lower cost of living.

Transportation was free since we walked from our neighborhood (Albaicin).

-Cost: $1.50 euros for each Adult / Kids were free.  3 euros total ($3.66).

I always love joining our son at Golf (Timbercreek in Friendswood, TX).

-Golf: In my previous post, I did mention golf.  But I wouldn’t really consider this one for our family as a Field Trip or adventure since our son is an active golfer.  This would be considered more as an on-going sport / passion.  It is difficult to put the cost on this one since back home my Dad would usually pay for a round (9 holes) of golf.  If I just did a bucket of balls for the kids to hit this would typically be less than $10.  I’ll have to revisit this once he receives his clubs and starts playing in Granada (Granada Club de Golf).

-Cost: Unknown at this point, but a bucket of balls is typically less than $10 each.

EcoSchoolers class at Armand Bayou (Houston)

-Armand Bayou: The kids did participate in the Outdoor EcoSchoolers class a few times at Armand Bayou during City Schooling / COVID-19.  These classes were fantastic and obviously a safer option during COVID-19.  I definitely felt they were worth the cost.  They would have been even more affordable if we were members.  This was a little further from us so I didn’t consider a Membership (and plus we had plans to move out of the Houston area).

-Cost: $17 per child / per class so $34 for one class (for both kids).

Albaicin neighborhood of Granada, Spain.

-Moving Abroad to Spain: I would have to sum up the adventure of moving abroad to being priceless (and more complicated than a short paragraph), but you can read more about how we did it here and here.

Also stay tuned.  Erik will recap our May monthly expenses soon.

-Cost: Priceless.

There you have it.  That should cover the Field Trips and adventures I mentioned in my previous post.  It shows a nice variety of the types of Field Trips / adventures we go on.  And as you can see many are free, low cost, or reasonable for what you receive.  Comment below if I missed anything.  What do you think?  How do you fit Field Trips and adventures into your life and budget?  Do you have any tricks or tips?

You can read our last Non-Lucrative Visa post here, and you can read Erik’s previous post here.  And you can even join us on your own FI adventure!

-Tara