The First Week

Hello everyone,

I have been here for a week now, but it has been very eventful to say the least!

We haven't really been at the university much this week - we have been for a few hours a day to try out the classes. We have had to change our options so many times because classes didn't fit in the timetable, or we decided we didn't like them, so we have had a bit of a nightmare working it all out! In the end we have decided to take two languages with the Language Centre which means we have to pay, but it will be better for us to do those in the long run.

We have been trying to get used to the differences between living in England and living in Spain - for example, the 'oven' is literally a tiny looking microwave! And the washing line is a piece of rope hanging outside the window which you pull along and hang items as you go! We have mainly been eating salad as its probably the only dinner that we can make, haha! We have also been out for dinner a couple of times and explored the restaurants and bars!

I have also been writing letters home to my family - I posted them on Wednesday night and they arrived by Saturday so its quite quick! 

This weekend has been really busy. My mum and dad went home today, so we went on a long bike ride yesterday. We got a bit lost and ended up at a shopping centre (yesss!), so we went for something to eat there and cycled back. The cycle system is really good here - you buy a card for 5 euros which gives you 5 hours of cycling (you don't have to do it all in one go), and then you can top it up so you can keep using it whenever you like. There are loads of different points where you pick up and drop off the bikes so you don't have to pick up and return them in the same place. We cycled through the park, down the river and around different cycle routes so it was a fun way to see more of the city. Another good thing is that there are specific cycle routes on the public footpath so you don't have to cycle on the road.

Today me, Niamh and Callum, who is also an Erasmus student from Warwick, went to Salamanca. It took an hour on the train, and we met up with Gianluca, who is staying there for his study placement. It is a really nice city and there are lots of pretty buildings. We went to a really nice tapas bar and then visited the Cathedral and looked at the university building there. It was a really nice day.

This week has literally been a rollercoaster of emotions. One minute I'm really enjoying it and the next I just want to go home, but I have only been here for a week so I'm sure I will settle into it once we have a timetable of classes and I get into a routine. Its really difficult at first because its all new surroundings but I do really like the city and the weather is still lovely here too!

Thank you for reading!

Grace