Before I left for Spain, people would often ask me, “so they have an
apartment over there for you?” to which I would reply no, I was planning
to move to a foreign country without a place to live, not knowing anyone, and
would somehow make it work. Why did I decide to do this again? Oh yeah, tapas.
In all seriousness though, I was apprehensive to say the
least about moving to Spain without knowing even what city I would be living in. Originally I had planned to visit my school in Muros in order to decide
whether to live in Muros or live in the larger Santiago. The decision was
tough. Muros provides the opportunity for a quaint, historic fishing village on
the coast. With exquisite seafood, seaside views, and charming village life. Santiago
on the other hand offered a larger, more international experience as it hosts
not only other auxiliaries, but Erasmus students, and pilgrims finishing the
camino. Santiago is also a university town, with the University of Santiago, offering
an injection of energy into the city through its roughly 30,000 students.
My plan to visit both places went awry. I ended up
immediately loving Santiago and couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. What can
I say, I’m a city person at heart despite my romantic notions of quaint, coastal
living. The reality is I would go absolutely bonkers if I felt stuck in a town
of only 10,000 people every weekend. The reassuring part of my decision to live
in Santiago is that I am teaching in Muros three days a week and will end up
spending a great deal of time there. I won’t have to miss out on beautiful
seaside life because a part of my week is set up around being there on a
regular basis. Living in Santiago however, allows me the freedom to make
weekend plans in the city or to travel from the convenient train station and
international airport.
Although a daunting task, the apartment hunt went smashingly. I ended up looking
at only three apartments and ultimately went with my favorite location. My apartment is a duplex in
Praza de Fuenterrabía, which is a quiet plaza (in the regional language, Gallego, it's Praza instead of plaza) situated on
the edge of historic district but adjacent to the road that splits the new part
of town from the old part. Depending on the direction I walk exiting the
apartment, I can be in either the old town or the new town. The building however, is in the historic district, which gives a rustic charm. Alameda, the park I’ve been referring to as baby central park, is about a block away and I can walk to the cathedral in about five minutes.
Praza de Fuenterrabía
I am living with two Spanish university students. Teresa is studying medicine
and Pedro is studying Environmental Engineering. Both are friendly and
forgiving my inability to understand or speak Spanish before I've had my morning coffee. The vibe of the apartment is relaxed and
cheerful. It feels like home.
The entryway
Salon
Balcony view of the praza
My room
View from the skylight in my room (if you open it and look out)
No comments:
Post a Comment