I'm writing this update a little earlier than I anticipated because I still have a few days left before term starts and so lots more will hopefully happen before then, but I suppose that's a good thing, as I might forget everything before I write it down! Last night I attempted to charge a clock, phone and power pack through a multi-adaptor (because there is only one socket in my room - first world problems I know), and to stop the fuse from blowing, my clock kept running perfectly, but my phone and power pack which I need for sightseeing today have remained uncharged.
Anyway... I'm now going to ramble and give a summary of the best bits of my last few days that spring to mind whilst writing - so much to tell, I'll try not to write too much!
Monday - shout out to my parents right at the start of my journey for not crying when I left them at the airport terminal - good job guys. No problems with Ryanair! No striking and no delays, with my flight arriving on time, I'm taking that as good karma. Arrived and met my landlady who seems lovely, and my flatmates who were already here. 1 Brit, 2 Americans and a Peruvian all speak/want to practice their English which is a good thing, but it means I've had to look elsewhere for practice speaking Spanish. They also seem nice enough, but I've hardly seem them over the past few days, so I guess they're going to be flatmates rather than friends - but we'll see how that develops. Went shopping at Mercadona, found quite a lot of what I'd get in the UK (soya alternatives and milk free cereals etc.) and there's quite a bit of choice so I don't mind walking the extra few minutes to get there. Also, for anyone wanting to buy tins of beans in Spain, they come in jars, so don't spend half an hour trying to look for tins. They are located near the pasta.
After a very hot and noisy first night (guess I'm just going to have to get used to that), I spent Tuesday getting to know Tetuán a little more, which is where I'm living. General thoughts: not very pretty, a little bit run down, but I can't complain too much; I'm a stone's throw away from the metro station on línea 1 which is the north-south line in Madrid, so I can get to Sol (the centre) in about 20 minutes and to my train/bus connection for uni in 10. And there are so many fruiterías! Every 10 metres you walk past a shop dedicated to loose fruit and veg - heaven. The fruit here is to die for. So sweet; I don't know how I'm going to go back to eating English fruit again. In the afternoon I went out for lunch at Hakuna Matata Veggie (on my list of vegan places to visit!) and had a massive and Spanish egg-free tortilla (labelled as a starter) served with pan (of course) for eight euros - amazing. Went on a walk to the nearest green spaces in the area, Parque de Villaamil and Cuarto Depósito. Nice areas, but both at least a 20 minute walk to get to each which is a shame. In the evening I went to my first Spanish intercambio de idiomas (language exchange) with a group I found on MeetUp. I was thoroughly crap but I enjoy myself and definitely want to go back! 30,000 steps by the end of the day, absolutely shattered!
Wednesday was my first day at uni. I managed to catch the right bus and got to campus an hour before my intro talk from the Faculty of Law. The campus is so big! 4.7km in perimeter, with quite a lot of greenery and loads of redbrick buildings - a lot like UoB actually, just more spread out. There is also a car park covered by solar panels to keep the cars cool and create electricity at the same time - how cool is that! Before my talk I met a girl from POLSIS who I recognised but didn't realise was coming here, so that was nice to see a friendly face. I understood a lot more than I thought I would in the intro talk but it was mostly information we had been given and so I recognised the vocab etc., but still, pretty pleased with that. A minor hiccup finding the bus stop to go home (different bus) but got there in the end.
Thursday - got to uni pretty early to register and sort out all of the bureaucratic paperwork nonsense (Autónoma is far more organised than I thought they would be, they're just a bit slower than we are). Got sent my invoice from my landlady for my rent and realised that I can't do bank transfers with the money I'd already pre-loaded onto my Caxton currency card i.e. all my student finance to date - nightmare. Paying her cash this month, but hopefully be using Caxton's free international payment system next time after uploading some money onto their separate account. Had my intro talk from UAM and the Erasmus Student Network and then met a lovely Canadian girl on the campus tour who as it turns out also wants to go and watch the last stage of La Vuelta as well - so may have found a friend? Free veggie-paella for lunch? - yes please thanks very much. Just before catching the bus to go home, a guy walked up to me after hearing me saying Erasmus and started talking to me in Spanish. An hour later, we'd taken the bus home together speaking Spanish (his was a lot better than mine) the whole way, because he was from Holland and didn't speak much English/wanted to speak Spanish. He's doing his whole degree here, so I may see him around again, but that fact that we had an actual conversation and mostly understood each other for an hour led to the epiphany that I can do a bit more than I think. In the evening I explored Lavapies. What can I say apart from my new favourite place in Madrid! It's so pretty, especially at night time, with loads of lights. The atmosphere is phenomenal! Loads of little gastrobars and restaurants with people out everywhere just enjoying life. This is when Spanish socialising comes alive. Walked past about 6 or 7 of the vegan restaurants I'd bookmarked on google maps before coming, and they all look amazing! So I'll definitely be coming back. I also went to check out Planeta Vegana, a vegan whole-foods shop - I was so surprised by the amount of vegan things you'd typically find in England, from nutritional yeast, to tofu, to linda macartney, quorn, and lots more. So, vegans worrying about Madrid, do not fret! Also check out the Alternative Travellers guide to eating Vegan in Madrid, it's everything you'll ever need to know. I finally reached my actual destination for the night, Cambridge Soho Club near Plaza España. It looked like such a posh club for a meet and speak, and I most turned away at the last minute as I was dressed in shorts, a t-shirt and had a backpack on. But this intercambio de idiomas organised by CityLife Madrid is apparently one of the biggest in the city! There must have been about 400 people across 2 floors, all socialising and practising languages. It happens every Thursday, so a great place to meet people and I'll definitely be back. Just maybe with a nicer shirt next time.
So that takes me up until now, waiting for my phone and power pack to charge (70% for those mildly interested) before I go out sightseeing for the day. I've just realised I've written a lot more than I thought I would. Next update should be Sunday, just before term starts. Hasta luego!
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