I think that Nike said it best,"just do it".
What's the worst that could happen? You come back earlier than expected? But you'll come back with so much more. THose are my two cents

Ah, my fellow Minneapolitan, the ultimate delay-of-gratification question! Go now, dipping into the nest egg (and potentially delaying the ultimate year-in-Spain plan a bit longer), or wait for the whole enchilada (to mix my nationalities a bit)? TOUGH QUESTION!!

In my opinion, it comes down to HOW LONG CAN YOU STAND TO BE AWAY FROM SPAIN? I would be inclined to go, when fares are great and you can find cheap accomodations, but with a goal...smooth your way later by using this as a scouting mission. Set up informational interviews (are there such things in Spain?) or meet some potential employers, look into places to live (and get a realistic impression of costs, etc.), and spend hours and hours in cafes thinking about how incredibly cool it will be to live there semi-permanently.

But that's just what I would do if I were in your enviable position. Saving up enough to make the year-long trip feasible makes sense, but you can probably justify a mini-trip too.

Good luck, and watch out for the snow we're getting tomorrow!
Tara

Spain: how often to visit -
After you've done the uvas (grapes) thing in Madrid's Puerta del Sol as a New Year begins you stay over for los Reyes (Jan 5th) in the evening (for the parade). Then you go home for a month or so to calculate when Carnaval will be. Looking at it from a year 2002 perspective, martes de Carnaval (AnTroido in Galego) is February 12th. So which will it be: Cadiz or Santiago de Compostela (or if you are looking for something really big, Tenerife, Gran Canarias)? If you do Cadiz this year, then you'll have to come back and do AnTroido in Santiago another year. Then you go home until Semana Santa, which begins March 24th! But ...
Las Fallas de San José (Valencia) end March 19th. So you make it back to Valencia for that fiesta and continue down to Sevilla for Semana Santa. After Semana Santa you can go home and rest for Sevilla's Feria de abril (Apr 15-21). Take a break before el Puerto de Santa Maria's Feria de la Primavera the first week of May and then we may have another conflict (for year 2002): Pentecost Sunday (WhitSunday) is May 19 this year. It is when the Romeria del Rocio (AKA Feria del Campo) is celebrated in Huelva. Last year, more than a million people were there. The conflict? Jerez de la Frontera's horse fair takes place in mid-May and Madrid's San Isidro is May 15. So you may have to choose (or come back another year).

In June there's San Antonio and San Juan (in San Juan playa, Alicante).

In July: los San Fermines in Pamplona (with the running of the bulls - Jul 6 - 14); then Santiago (Jul 25) and Santa Ana (Jul 26). Santiago de Compostela is the 'place to be' for the former, although Santander had its own Santiago festival last year.

August 15th is la Virgen de la Paloma which is celebrated in many places. If you are in the Madrid area, Leganés is one of them. The last Wednesday in August is la tomatina in Bunyol (Valencia). :o

The 15th of September, el dia de Cantabria is very big in Santander.

I haven't mentioned the Bagpipe (Gaita Gallega) competitions in Vigo (Pontevedra) in late May - early June each year; or the concerts scheduled by the Xunta de Galizia throughout the summer.

To take in all these events, you must visit Spain quite often - just to be in the right place at the right time.
Once you get there, if you are looking for where the action is, buy a copy of the bullfight magazine: El Ruedo. If there are three days of bullfights scheduled in a locale, that's where they're celebrating a fiesta.
P.D.
This is not a comprehensive listing of all Spain's interesting events & fiestas. It's just a response suggesting that however many times you visit Spain, there may still be a multitude of stuff you have not yet done or discovered or seen. I haven't even touched on things like 'Año Xacobeo' in Santiago de Compostela or the Camino de Santiago or any other big time religious events that just happen once every six or seven years.

[ 01-31-2002: Message edited by: Eddie ]