Arrival
Last semester was a whirlwind, especially towards the end; with finals and moving out of my house that I had lived in for over a year and half, it all must have left me in a haze. I had to put everything I wasn’t taking with me to Spain away in boxes, I decided to add more stress to an already taxing situation by committing to only bring a carry-on sized suitcase with me for my semester in Seville and a total of six months abroad. As a result, I didn’t really feel any of the nerves one would usually feel when they’re about to depart for a half a year abroad. The day of my departure kind of crept up on me. It didn’t really hit me until I was already in the airport in Madrid. My flight was late and I missed my connection and as nice as Barajas is, I decided to take the train to Seville rather than wait for 10 hours for the next flight - which was quite the journey. (If someone tells you the train station is close to the airport, know that it’s a lie) I guess I was too busy to feel nervous.
All that aside I was excited to get to my apartment in Seville, which luckily was a short walk from the train station. I chose an apartment for the freedom to make the food I want to and to be able to eat out as much as I pleased without feeling obligated to be home, like you might feel in a residencia, or a home-stay. I studied with CEA over the summer in Granada in a residencia, which was a great experience, but if you’re an independent person like me, an apartment is probably a better option.
Settling in
Somehow in my post-22-hour-travel stupor, I was able to make it to a nearby supermercado and make myself a decent first meal. As you would expect the products at the store are much different than in the states, they’re also much more inexpensive.
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| Some products you will see in Spain - San Jacobos are a must try if you love fried things and cheese! |
Cooking with new ingredients has definitely been somewhat of a challenge, but it encourages me to cook more Spanish foods like Espinacas con Garbanzos - which one serving of probably cost me < .70 € to make.
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| Espinacas con Garbanzos |
Another benefit of staying in an apartment is that I am able to do my own laundry. Which is also done a bit differently here. My building has a dryer, but it is very rare for a Spanish household to actually have one, let alone use one. The weather here in Seville is usually nice and sunny so hanging my clothes is actually a nice excuse to soak up a little sun. I have also been enjoying my time inside the apartment. I got lucky with an updated modern place.
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| My apartment in Seville - perfect for studying and resting when I am not exploring the city |
In an apartment housing option I have the freedom to leave and explore the city as I wish without time constraints or obligations. There is so much to see in a beautiful city like Seville.
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| Wandering the narrow streets of Seville you are bound to encounter intricate and colorful architecture |
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| Exploring a new city should alway include sampling the many different coffee places |
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| The cathedral in Seville - too big to capture in only one photo and only a few minutes from my apartment |
My first weeks here have been great and I can’t wait to know more of the city as time passes.
Caitlin M. is the Spring 2017 MOJO Blogger in Seville, Spain. She is currently a Junior studying Spanish & European Studies at Humboldt State University.