2013: LAST DAY

It is such a cliché, but so true: time flew by SO fast this year! It is hard to believe 2014 is only a day away. 2013 went incredibly fast, but when I think about it, a lot has happened this year. Such a year deserves a good ending. This will be our first New Year’s Eve celebration in Barcelona!

CATALAN CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS

Let me introduce you to a few curious Catalan Christmas traditions. If you’ve never heard of them, you might think I made them up. They aren’t South Park inspired either (anyone remembers Mr Hankey?). No, this is Christmas, the Catalan way.

SHADOWS AND SUNLIGHT

I just love how sunny it is, here in the south. Fall has arrived in Barcelona; temperatures have dropped (for Spanish people, below 20 degrees means winter has arrived), but most days, it is beautifully sunny and it’s hard to imagine we’re already in December. Barcelona is a very photogenic city by itself, but there’s just something about the afternoon fall sun, drawing long shadows on the walls and streets, and little alleys bathing in sunlight.

MOVING TO SPAIN: HOW TO GET YOUR “NIE”

If you want to live in Spain for a longer period of time (longer than 3 months), you have to apply for a NIE number, which is an identification number for foreigners. It used to be easy for EU Citizens to get this Número de Identidad de Extranjero, but recently they changed the procedure. One and a half months after my arrival and several visits to the Policía later, I finally got my green little paper which allows me to work, sign contracts, open a bank account and more.

QUICK TIP: WORLD PRESS PHOTO AT CCCB

Looking for a cultural activity in Barcelona? If you happen to be in Barcelona this or next weekend, I can highly recommend the World Press Photo exposition in the CCCB.

OBSERVATIONS

The smell of dead animals, closed stores and the mysterious absence of dish washing brushes: a few observations of a Dutch girl in Spain.

WE GOT AN APARTMENT!

As I mentioned in the previous post, we finally managed to find a nice apartment. It was a crazy transition, moving from a tiny 12 m2 room we shared the first two weeks to this ‘huge’ apartment with several rooms, a spacious and bright living room, a balcony –finally!- and an insanely awesome kitchen. And I have pictures! 

APARTMENT HUNTING IN BARCELONA

The last days were, well, intense. I was freaking out a little – we only had less than 2 weeks left to find an apartment. Chris and I were staying in a very tiny room and sharing the apartment with a flat mate, but we had to be out before the 1^st of November.

VIEW FROM TIBIDABO

¡Hola, guapos! I’ve been here for almost 2 weeks now, time goes by fast! The first week was nice, but also quite stressful. We were looking for apartments fulltime, knowing we’d have to leave this place by the end of this month. Luckily, we have found something (yay! a post on apartment hunting in Barcelona will follow soon) so finally I’ve had some time to enjoy being in this amazing city. I’ve only been here for a short time, but in the mean time we have met several friends here already we know from Groningen, Germany and couch surfing, which has been a lot of fun!  And I finally went to Tibidabo, a mountain with an amusement park, a church and beautiful views of the city. 

MY FIRST DAY IN BARCELONA

I did it! I made it to Barcelona! I left from a cold, rainy and cloudy Holland and arrived at night in Spain, where it was still about 22 degrees. I finally saw Chris again after 1,5 months; we carried my suitcases (exactly 41,9 kilos from the 42 kilos I was allowed to bring) to the apartment where we are currently staying. Read here about my first day (not as a tourist) in Barcelona!

MOVING ABROAD | HOW TO GET RID OF YOUR STUFF

One of the first questions people usually ask me after I tell them I am moving abroad, is: “But… what are you going to do with all your stuff?” Although “stuff” is obviously not the most important thing in this process, it is however something that needs to be taken care of...

PERSONAL | THE STORY OF PAULINE AND CHRIS, AN INTRODUCTION

Finally, it’s time to properly introduce myself. I have to admit that the moving abroad plans weren’t officially fixed when I initially started this blog. But finally I have some news!

Chris and me, during couchsurfing holidays in Spain and Portugal.

BLOG | UNDER CONSTRUCTION

And a new blog is born. 

As you can probably see, this blog is currently under construction. 

Soon, very soon I hope, I will write about a new chapter in my life: moving abroad. And not for only six months or a year, no, for real. Why? I’ll tell you all about it soon. 

For now, it's blog-making-time.