becoming a honorary Jordan!

Beccas parents and sisters came to stay during what was half term back home which was so nice as it was our first visitors and although it wasn’t my family, I definitely felt like they were and fitted into family life with them. When you are away from home for so long it is nice to have people around you who remind you of home. We spent lots of time wondering the little side roads and going in and out of the countless boutiques and shops and cafes, and just spending time people watching. It was a really nice few days and gave me and becca an excuse to do a bit more in the city and have someone to show it too. It has definitely made me excited for when my parents come!

feeding the 5000!

cooking for ourselves inset something we would normally find difficult as both me and becca are more than capable or cooking food and looking after ourselves and so we have been cooking and eating together as it makes it easier. since being here though we seem to have found it increasingly difficult to put together a proper meal and leave the supermarket with any productive ingredients to be able to cook anything. we have even spent over an hour in a massive super market and all we have left with is toilet role and water! when what we really needed was real food! i think we are finding the supermarket very over whelming as it is full of unfamiliar items and its very difficult to find things we would normally cook with so we are having to search every isle for something we recognise and with my spanish as bad as it is it is very hard. but some how we are surviving and managing to rustle up food from time to time. but we seem to be struggling with quantity! both being from large families, cooking for two just isn't normal and so we seem to over cater every time! as you can see her becca went a little be over the top on the amount of peas she put on! we both managed to eat them though! lets hope our eating habits improve!!

good food, good friends!

this is my first experience of living away from home and to be doing it in another country is a bit change but one i am really enjoying. being here with such a close friend definitely makes this so much better and i am loving the experience so far. i don't think you realise how close your are to someone and how well you get on until you spend 24 hours of your day with them so thats really nice. we are also really lucky with the people we live with. they are a very random mix of people from all over the world which names me and becca find too difficult to pronounce and so we have taken to referring to them by their country of origin! thankfully they think this is really quite funny and so don't seem to mind.
as a flat bonding thing we thought we would cook everyone dinner and seeing as me and becca were really missing roast dinner we decided that would be a good english meal to cook for everyone. it was really nice to get everyone together and eat and socialise as a group and although the roast wasn't quite the same as my mums, it was a really lovely evening and i feel like i got to know everyone a lot better and they are a lovely group of people!

a surprise visit!

A very close friend of mine turned 21 whilst I was here and she was having a birthday party for it last weekend. I had told her a long while ago that I would be here and it wouldnt be possible for me to come which I was sad about as it was something I didn't want to miss but know it just wasnt realistic for me to go. However a few days before the party it was upsetting me a bit that I wasn't going to be there and everyone else would and it made me feel a million miles away from home and all I wanted to do is go back so the night before I found a last minute flight and went home for the weekend. I turned up to her birthday having prewarned her mum but keep it a secret from Jess and surprised her. Was the best decision I made as it made jess's night but also meant I could be part of it all and not miss an important event in her life. Being home also allowed me to pick up all the things I had forgotten, which turned out to be quick alot as I filled a whole other suitcase! But the best bit was that I returned with everything I needed for a proper English cream tea! So even though it was late when I got home, me and Becca sat and enjoyed scones and tea and brought a little bit of home to Spain! And excellent weekend! 

the start of uni

After what has felt like an endless summer it was finally time to get back to reality today and go to university, the reason I am here in the first place. Having spent a year getting settled at Chelsea it was weird thinking that I will be walking into a completely new university where everything is different and no one is familiar. This is when I am happy im not doing this alone and have Becca by my side as a security blanket. It was a welcoming talk for all second and third years and I felt like we were the only new people and the only ones who didn’t have a clue what was going on, mainly because the talk was is Spanish and very broken English! Im just hoping it isn’t all like this, as my comprehension of Spanish is limited to not much more than ‘hello’. Its definitely something im going to have to work on! 

the city of chocolate

Barcelona is a city of amazing beauty and full of architectural wonders and yet somehow I ended up in the museum of chocolate. Was an interesting experience with the added bonus of the ticket being made of chocolate, and although I didn’t get to see and experience the city for real, I had the unique opportunity of exploring the chocolate version of the famous landmarks. Now I have seen the chocolate sangrada familia im not sure I need to worry about seeing the real one! Definitely an interesting way to familiarize myself with what Barcelona has to offer but it has just increased my desire to get out there and start appreciating the city for all its glory. 

living like a local...

Living in a new city and county is a big change and something I am really looking forward to and embracing. Since being in Barcelona I have really tried to go about things like this is my home and tried not to treat it like an extended holiday. The thing I have found hardest to adapt to is there timing and how late they do things. Having dinner before 9 is rare and with shopping centres and supermarkets open until midnight people stay out socializing and shopping. The streets are alive with people into the small hours.

With a city the size of Barcelona it is going to take me a while to know my way around but I think that is exciting. I have tried to limit the use of a map and instead set off, wondering the endless streets and seeing where I end up. Once you do this a few times you start to realize its not as big as it seems and I actually feel like I can find my way which is very satisfying. One place I have loved exploring is the maze that is the gothic quarter. With endless narrow streets occasionally opening into little squares and amazing boutiques, this is by far my favorite part of the city so far and is probably the best place to get lost and lose yourself in its charm. 

the start of an adventure

The opportunity to take part in an exchange was a key factor that drew me towards the course at Chelsea and when informed that we could apply and take part I was keen to sign up. Barcelona is a city I had visited on several occasions and I had fallen in love with the architectural charms that surrounds the whole place, and so for that reason I jumped at the chance to study there. Now as I sit in my room, on my first night in a city I temporarily call home I cant believe how the time has flown by. Its such a surreal experience being here and ‘living the dream’. So this is the start of my big adventure and now it has come round I don’t know whether to be excited or scared. Many changes are ahead so I just hope im ready for it! Bring on Barcelona!