In September, I arrived to Madrid before the sun rose. I was jetlagged, without cell phone service, and didn’t have an apartment to go to. I didn’t know a single person in the city. I waited for a taxi in front of the airport, guarding my three suitcases and my backpack. I had moved out of my parents' house for the first time...and all the way to a new continent. I was stressed, to say the least!
Adjusting to life in Madrid was easy in some ways. Because it’s such a large, multicultural city, I was easily able to find most types of food that I like to eat, and shops that were familiar. The metro system was helpful in getting around, and my ability to speak Spanish fairly well helped me when asking for directions or for help. Many people here can speak some level of English, so that was appreciated when I couldn’t find the words to express myself properly in Spanish. There are lots of people living and working in Spain who are from other countries, like me. Right in my own apartment and throughout my apartment building, I’ve met other auxiliares (native speakers of languages other than Spanish who teach their language for a year or two in Spain) from America.
