Boarding House in Spain (2019)

We all had this situation happen to us. We are far away from home and suddenly, we start to miss even the little things, but mostly home cooked meals. The premise of Boarding House in Spain is just that, to provide the traveller with some comfort and it leaks through the screen to your home, wherever it may be.

And oh my, this variety show is very difficult for the hosts. They had so much to do and were quite understaffed (Hae Jin had to get help from on of the on-site producers several times), that I think, if it were any other hosts, they would not make it. All three of them are so hard working, so entertaining and so sweet, I just can't.

The first couple of episodes reflect this. They are all battling jetlag (which they don't mention, but you can see it quite well) and they get to know the hostel and its surroundings. As a European who recently made a visit to Korea, I could totally understand their baffled expressions around some of the differences in produce, but they work around it excellently. Also, hat off to Jung Nam for taking notes on everything and practicing his Spanish enough to get by, and even make fast friends with some of the shop owners. He might be a scatterbrain in the kitchen, but he was very well organised when it came to the though stuff. At first I didn't know what to make of him, since he is a lively person and the dynamic between him and the other two was different than what I'm used to from the other varieties they have done, but he is very endearing and likeable.

After a rocky beginning, the hosts get a much need needed injection of positivity from a great group of pilgrims on the fifth day. After that, I felt that Seung Won became his usual self and he started to be interested in his mischief, and the responsibility of cooking that much every day got a bit lighter on his shoulders.

As for Hae Jin, his job was very varied, plus he had to make some impromptu stuff out of wood for the hostel as well. I admired that about him and mostly because he carried the humour and good spirits around him even when the situation got rough. I just love this man, and the crew adored him so much as well. They just laughed around him all the time and it makes you genuinely curious about what he is up to. Also, he is just so charismatic outside of the format of the show and makes parts of every episode a sort of video diary of his own, when he explores the surroundings during his exercise routine.

To make a kind of summary, the show settles into a nice groove after the first two-three episodes, but as a whole, it's excellent. I wanted to keep it as a casual watch, but instead, I gulped it down in 5 days. You will not regret investing your time into this one, it is worth it.

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