How I studied English and learnt surfing in the Philippines.
How I studied English and learnt how to surf in the Philippines.
My name is Francesc Lamora, I am 36 years old, and I am from Barcelona. I would describe myself as an adventurous person, I love sports and beach life. But above all, I am a person who loves to travel and to learn about new cultures and learn languages. I want to share my experience of my second travel to the Philippines, this time to the island Cataduanes where I studied English and surfing at the same time. Does it sound like a super exciting and amazing combination? Well, it is. But this is not all. The location is wonderful, the weather is a tropical paradise, the ocean is warm to surf, there are waterfalls and many more things around to do. But let us get to everything step-by-step.
My first travel experience in the Philippines was on the island of Boracay. I decided to change my life routine in Spain and decide to travel around the world during my holidays to learn English and have fun. That experience was fantastic and I made a lot of friends and my English improved a lot.
After my Boracay experience, I really wanted to travel again to the Philippines.
I had the opportunity to travel in March and wanted to visit a new location in this beautiful country. When I checked Top Language Course website I was fascinated by Surf & English school in Puraran, the idea to surf in the Philippines and improve my English sounded almost too good to be truth. I am very grateful to Dima for showing me this magnificent place. Surfing and English is in their DNA.
Every day was filled with lots of fun, a mix of sport, relaxation, learning English, and making new friends. And of course English and surfing are on the schedule everyday coupe times a day. When arrived at school I felt I arrived at paradise. Gorgeous, beautiful, and lovely beach with wooden huts right on the beach ticked all paradise boxes. The single accommodation was perfect, a big bed with a bathroom, a desk, a small wardrobe, and a fan. Double rooms are perfect for couples with a similar setup.
English, Surfing, and other amazing things of Puraran.
After I explored what would be my home for the next few weeks, and a long trip I was more than ready for some great dinner. I had amazing food and it being not only tasty but also healthy was an additional plus. Lunches and dinners every day were simple and healthy consisted of vegetables with meat or fish and a lot of coconut water and rice. During my first dinner, I met people who work at school and resort and had a nice conversation with Conz – the head of the school. They explained to me school rules and routines and gave me a schedule for a week.
The main activities on the Puraran beach were surf, yoga, and of course English. The school day is built very carefully and there is time for many educational and fun activities. The typical day will look like this:
- 06:00 am: Coffee or tea
- 06:15 am: Stretching
- 06:30 am: Surf lesson
- 08:00 am: Yoga lesson
- 09:00 am: Breakfast
- 10:00 am: English lesson
- 12:00 pm: Lunch
- 14:00 pm: Surf lesson
- 16:00 pm: English lesson
- 19:30 pm: Dinner
Trips and excursions are added to the schedule sometimes, and depending on sea conditions you might have only one surf lesson. The great part about this timetable is that all activities are in English. You are surrounded by English and learn it not only during the English classes but in everything you do. It is difficult to cover all day to day situations in the class, but with different activities, you need to talk to different people and use different vocabulary so your English is improving literally every hour you spend in Puraran English School.
The English classes were really good, I did face to face classes with Conz and two girls from the United Kingdom who worked as volunteer teachers at the school. I was really happy because my conversation level improved a lot, and this is my main goal in studying English. With Conz I studied grammar and the afternoon lessons with the volunteers were more speaking and phrasal verbs, and the best part was that all the classes were done right at the beach!!
I loved surfing and yoga, I learned a lot and now I can say that I have improved my surfing skills and I started to know and understand the yoga exercises. I liked it so much that I keep on practicing yoga every day.
Another part I really liked about Puraran Surfing and English School is the place itself. It is a remote location and you can connect with yourself and people around you and disconnect with the word. You are doing a lot of activities and you are at the beach all day and you feel that you don’t need anything else. If you want, you can rent a motorbike and explore the island, but normally the school prepares some trips to visit waterfalls and other interesting places on the island.
I really want to repeat the experience in Puraran, I would like to improve my English and surfing classes there because it’s the best place to enjoy and the same time to be disconnected and away from your daily routine. I encourage you to live this experience in the Philippines, if you like surfing and to improve English, this is the best school for you.
