As I was thinking of what to post about, I started to brainstorm different lists. Things like, what to pack and leave at home, items that you can find abroad, what to try while here, etc. All of what I have experienced in the first about 2 months, and I thought it fitting to combine lists in my brain to one blog post of random thoughts, tips, and ideas.
- You can pack smart, trust me I did. I came to Spain with a backpack, my camera bag, and one check in. Thats pretty incredible if you ask me! I also packed an extra duffel bag for when I do longer trips and for the inevitable fact that I will be bringing so much more home with me than I could have ever anticipated. But I’m really glad I didn’t bring more than that. I get my laundry done once a week, and lets be real, you generally wear the same things over and over. When I packed, I looked and what I was wearing almost every day and went based off of that. Coming to Spain, I felt very prepared and had probably the least stuff with me out of most people.
- You can literally find anything here. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to, and I don’t know why. But all my body wash, lotion, shampoo, and conditioner comes from stores in the area. You can find all the basics at most supermarkets (lucky for me mine is across the street) and it’s all pretty reasonably priced which is awesome! Plus, it takes off like 20 pounds in your luggage weight. The only liquid I brought with me were contact solution but other than that, I kept away from packing them.
- Thinking you need a hair cut? DO IT! I did. Part of my (what I’m calling) mid-study-abroad-life-crisis. It wasn’t anything crazy, just a few inches and making my bangs actually bangs instead of long pieces of hair in front of my face. So I walked down the street from the University of Sevilla and found a place, 14 euro for a cut and 10 to have it styled after. I had one of the nicest ladies who gave me an amazing scalp massage as she washed my hair (I almost fell asleep) and she was probably the most knowledgeable stylist about my hair that I’ve ever gone to. She understood what I wanted, how to layer it, and how one side had more hair than the other so she had to proportion everything correctly. She was so friendly and since I told her I didn’t speak too much Spanish she was patient with me and explained everything so I understood. I came away with the cheapest and best experience I’ve ever had!
- If you walk around, you probably will find something great. After exploring “La Seta” (a giant wooden structure in the center of town) my friends and I wandered and ended up finding a pastry shop that had 1 euro everything on Wednesday! It was the best find yet, and we always plan on going back! Who could resist! When you find those little gems, it just makes it feel like you know more about the city and it makes it more of your home.
- Even though planning trips is time consuming, it’s worth it. I’m traveling with 4 other girls for the trips we’ve planned. It can be a lot to sit everyone down and try to plan it all and get all the same reservations. But after doing it one day for about 6 hours, we had all of our trips figured out and just had to get hotels in the cities we’re going. But the nice part is that we know we are for sure going, we don’t have to worry about planning last minute.
- If your host family asks you to hang out with them, do it. I really like my host mom and she always tells me that I can do my work wherever I want and hang out in any room, but it was especially nice when one night she asked me if I wanted to continue watching the news in the living room with her instead of the kitchen. We just got to sit together and even if we didn’t talk much, it was nice to know that I could do that with her in the future!
- Send post cards. I remember getting some from friends abroad and it’s just a nice reminder to friends and family you are thinking of them even if you can’t talk to them every day. I found a few places that have 5 postcards for 1 euro. Stamps are 1 euro each, so kind of expensive, but if you think about it, its like 1.20 euro to send someone a bit of your experience. So I have 20 postcards to send now...worth it though!
- Realize when you need you time. I really appreciate having my me time, being able to watch a tv episode and just relax is really nice. But I can also realize that this one episode thing can turn into the entire afternoon. Don’t get too sucked in, plan something in the afternoon with friends and actually go. Even though your bed may be comfy (as mine is very much so) it’s much more fun to be living an episode than watching it.
- Make a spending log. I started the first week I got here and it has been super helpful. If you just log every week how much you withdrew from the ATM and how much you spent on credit card and cash, you can just have a better sense of what you’ve spent and what you have left to spend. That may be me just over organizing, but I have found it super helpful and I haven’t had any surprises financially!
- Grab a map, mark it up, and save the ticket stubs. I’ve been collecting tickets from everywhere we go and if you keep the map you use to mark where you want to go when you visit places, its a nice little thing to look back on and remember the streets you walked and the places you’ve visited (along with the thousands of photos you’ll upload to Facebook!) And take billions of photos. I love bringing my Nikon around town with me and snapping photos. Yes, I look like such a tourist, but I don’t even care because I really like photojournalism so I may as well get used to it now!