Latest Articles

Pudding Café Barcelona Spain
Pudding Café – Barcelona, Spain
Enjoy one of the best coffees in Spain in this completely Harry Potter themed cafe! And don't forget to try some Butterbeer while you are there!
By Leigh Ann
Chök Chocolate Kitchen Barcelona Spain
Chök – Barcelona, Spain
Chök Chocolate Kitchen, arguably the cutest dessert shop in Barcelona. Featuring picture perfect truffles, brownies, cakes and their famous Kronut (a croissant donut). Let me know if you can get through this post without drooling over your screen a little bit 😉
By Leigh Ann
Mür Café Madrid Spain espresso coffee
Mür Café, Madrid, Spain
One of my absolute favorite cafes in all of Madrid and top 3 on my list of best coffee in the city!
By Leigh Ann
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Travel Bloopers

Slide We were at a family camp on Catalina Island and were doing a quick hike up the canyon. On the way down my little brother said we needed to hurry up because he really had to use the bathroom. We start fast walking and then he just goes into a full on sprint down the mountain. I go sprinting after him and find him about 50 feet later sitting over the edge of a low-hanging tree branch unable to wait any longer. I walked around a corner to give the kid some privacy and a few minutes later he comes walking out from behind the tree and calmly says we can continue the hike back down. He struts off walking in front of us as casually as possible and we bust up laughing at the huge brown streak down the side of his pants... Slide "While living in Madrid, Spain I would occasionally notice other Americans who were unfortunately as rude and impatient as the stereotypes portray them. Sometimes I would be so embarrassed by their behavior that I would pretend I was from another country and didn't speak English so that I wouldn't have to talk to them" Slide "While living in Madrid, Spain I would occasionally notice other Americans who were unfortunately as rude and impatient as the stereotypes portray them. Sometimes I would be so embarrassed by their behavior that I would pretend I was from another country and didn't speak English so that I wouldn't have to talk to them"

Introduction

W

elcome to Countries & Cultures with Lili! A travel blog dedicated to sharing my personal experience with living abroad, traveling, learning languages and being in an intercultural relationship. My name is Leigh Ann, but friends call me Lili. I’ve spent a year living in Spain teaching English, playing professional soccer, learning the Spanish language and traveling to neighboring countries. Now I am back in the states with my Persian fiancé, learning Farsi and traveling every chance I get!

Living in Spain sprouted not just a love for traveling, but a deep passion for learning about other cultures and learning new languages. For me, travel is more than spectacular views and mouth-watering cuisines, it’s experiencing a lifestyle outside of the one I’m used to and allowing this to open my mind to different ways of living and incorporating those lessons into my everyday life.

I’m not here to say what the right or wrong way to travel is, but rather to share my viewpoint and hope that maybe my insights and experiences help give you practical information as well as a different perspective on travel that you may not have had before. So thank you for giving me a piece of your time, I hope you find it was worth it!

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