Annette Morcos
My name is Annette, director and tour guide of the Spain Cultural Tours. Following years of coming to Spain and particularly to Andalusia, the heart of Flamenco, and living on short term basis each summer in Seville, I decided to share this experience of living rather than simply visiting Spain with others. I did not want to provide a rigid bus tour with guidebook style info. I wanted to take visitors, and not tourists, on a visit to this region of Spain and guide culturally, not just geographically. Since 2005 I have been planning such trips.
My love of travel and traveling in the out-of-the-ordinary style stems from my love to experience the essence of a culture when I visit a country. I love to learn about the language, the locals and their way of living and thinking to appreciate better what I see. Being born of a Mediterranean family and then moving to Canada when young built a sense of adventure in me. Through my travels in Europe, the Middle East and the Far East I got the pleasure of seeing amazing sites and cultures. Before visiting a country I try to delve into the culture by trying to learn a little bit about its language, a window into the mind of the locals.
In Canada, following obtaining an Masters in Business (MBA), I decided to turn my passion for Flamenco into a business and I ran my own Flamenco academy, for over 12 years, and became inadvertently a cultural ambassador of Spain. Apart from teaching this art form, I gave cultural presentations to school children of all ages, to adults through flamenco performance productions that brought artists from around the world and running the Spanish Pavilion at Calgary’s Global Fest. All these activities and more have helped me build an immense knowledge, not only of the important cultural aspect of Spain, but also knowledge of the life and behaviour of the people. Geographically, I have travelled throughout Spain although my focus has been on Madrid and Andalusia. In October 2011, I decided to relocate to Seville where I currently reside.
My passion for Spain keeps me searching for new experiences to share. So, I invite you to come along with me to get know Seville, Andalusia and its people in an intimate way. The tour will provide you with experiences that you would not find on your own.