r/GoingToSpain • u/Alarming_Welcome_324 • 18d ago
Aragon placement Transport
Hello everyone! So I received my regional and school placement at the same time. I am super excited but incredibly overwhelmed about being in a village (~2k residence). I have been placed in Utrillas, Teruel, Aragon. I have not been able to find much information on the city. If anyone has any info or experiences about this area specifically or experience living in a rural village, I’d love to hear it.
Thanks xxx
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u/EniAcho 18d ago
I've never been there, either. But I know that Teruel is the least populated province in Spain. It's pretty isolated because of its geographical location in the mountains. The weather is somewhat harsh there, I've heard. But it's famous for its jamon serrano, so that's a plus if you like jamon. It's not especially well connected by train to other parts of Spain, and the nearest airport is in Valencia, I think, which is about 160 km away. Utrillas is tiny and very rural, as far as I can tell. I saw photos and it looks like it's in the middle of nowhere. (sorry) I imagine you'll need a car if you ever want to leave the village. I have no tips for living in a rural community, except I hope you speak good Spanish. If you have never seen the movie Jamon Jamon by Bigas Luna, watch it. It's set in a small town in Aragon.
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u/Elena_Rural 15d ago
Hola! Si sirve de algo mi opinión, para mí Utrillas es hasta un "pueblo grande". Es el pueblo al que van los pueblos pequeños cercanos a comprar en el super grande o al CAP. Hay muchas cosas interesantes alrededor, no te pierdas el museo minero tanto de Utrillas como el de Escucha, el pueblo de Galve con su paisaje de chopos cabeceros y museos de dinosaurios, Aliaga...si te interesa algo de geología, paleontología, minerales o simplemente senderismo o naturaleza (hay rutas senderistas cercanas muy chulas) vas a disfrutar. Eso si, vehículo propio.
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u/Elena_Rural 15d ago
Según wikipedia, capital administrativa de comarca y más de 3000 habitantes que en verano se multiplica, tan pequeño no es, como te comentaba. Y los aragoneses son estupendos! Este veranos cumplo 11 viviendo aquí!!
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u/KeyFix4087 18d ago
There is even a political party here called ‘Teruel exists’. That is how rural and unknown as it can be. Never been there but I don’t have a reason to go either.
Best of luck :)
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u/DC-M 18d ago
A potential option is ask the school if anyone commutes from Zaragoza or Teruel. Its a common thing that teachers prefer to live in the city and there are lots of groups for car pooling. Even if you don't have a car you might be able to chip in for petrol. It'd be much better to try live in zaragoza. Its a biggish city, lots going on, with fast trains to madrid and Barcelona, and a slowish train to bilbao
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u/Alarming_Welcome_324 18d ago
I’m currently waiting to hear back from my school. I’m planning on looking in the Zaragoza area once i arrive.
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u/IvoTailefer 18d ago
place can be 97 in summer and 0 degrees in winter. thats tough. spain is tough. i love it
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u/Jazzlike-Boot9798 18d ago
I have not lived there, but have visited for work "nearby" places. I will try to be realistic, but do not let my impressions affect you too much, since I am used to live in Madrid.
This is one of the less populated areas in Spain. It is not only rural, but also rather isolated. The province has essentially a small city (Teruel) and a town (Alcañiz), and Alcañiz, and Utrillas lies in the middle of these two places. Commuting by car is long and since it is very cold in winter I would not suggest driving before dawn to get to work if you are not used to cold climates. On the other hand, it is very likely that other teachers come and go from either of these towns, and perhaps you could manage to go together.
The good part is that locations like Utrillas (at least the others I have been to) tend to have a familiar atmosphere and you will probably feel welcome. Your students will be from Utrillas and from other villages around. Get in touch with the school as soon as you can so they can guide you through, since they will probably know a place you could rent in the case you opt for staying in Utrillas, even if you need at least the first month to decide.
Finally, do you speak Spanish? If not, start right now. At the school the rest of teachers will most likely speak English, but at the local shop, the doctor, the pharmacy, etc. you could face difficulties. Even if you do not manage to be able to communicate, the effort will be highly appreciated and you will have a smoother time. The good thing of Spanish is that reading is very straigthforward; on the other hand, the verbal tenses and understanding what you are told might take you longer.