Second Week in Barcelona + Valencia

Monday, Jan 27

Today is the first day of our internships! Lucy, another girl from Mizzou, has the same internship as me so we met at the bus stop 15 minutes early. The stop is only a 10 minute walk from my apartment so it’s super nice that I get a little stroll in in the mornings. We were a bit confused because it is by Arc de Triomf, which a huge landmark, and the bus was not well marked/easily identifiable. But once we confirmed which bus was ours, we boarded it. The bus ride was so cool because the kids were bouncing between three different languages while cracking jokes and asking who we were.

The school’s courtyard.

[Side note: No one is early in Barcelona. Sometimes, people are barely even on time. Most parents drop their kids off at the time the bus is supposed to leave.]

When we got to work, it was very laid back. We didn’t meet with our boss for a bit, so we just sat and talked to the kids and other interns. When we met with our boss, she gave us four very achievable, but exciting, tasks for what she wants from us for the semester. Lucy and I already had a bunch of ideas and our boss loved them, so we can attempt almost whatever we want (and think would be good for the company). 

Our other boss arrived a bit later because she is pregnant and she gave us a few changes to make on the website. It took Lucy and I a little bit to figure it out, but we got it done. We did some other small tasks before having lunch.

Lunch is catered, but it is super healthy, sustainable and organic. That’s what this company is all about. Today, it was pasta, salad and coffee cake. Lucy had some fish too but I wasn’t feeling it. After lunch, we got a tour of the place and chatted with our boss a little more. The building and campus is so much bigger than it appears and it is situated in the mountains. So the view is insane.

Once school was over, Lucy and I took the bus home. After my 10-minute walk, I got home and all my roommates were back from work. We talked about our days and how we were feeling about our assignments and offices. We made dinner and then planned and booked some trips. I specifically booked trips to Valencia, Prague and Budapest.

Tuesday, Jan 28

Today, my nose and throat are a little congested but I still have a ton of energy! We had our first class on Spanish and Catalonian Histories and Cultures. We are at the University of Barcelona’s Mundet campus, which is a bit of a metro ride (about 45 minutes). We were told to meet our professor outside the metro station, but it took him about 15 minutes to find us because the metro had three exits! Once we were all together, we began the trek up to the campus. It is in the mountains so it is very lush and green. There are lots of stairs up to it (which I love, get those steps!) or also a bus that will take you up if you are running short on time.

The view outside our classroom, which looks out on all of Barcelona from the mountains.

Our professor just took us through the syllabus and it sounds very interesting! Some of our classes are regular (learning in the classroom) where we will learn things like Catalan and exercising in Barcelona. However, many of our classes we meet at different landmarks or metro stops around the city and do walking tours . We also have a bunch of guest lecturers so it will be awesome to meet so many people with so many different teaching styles.

After class, we took the metro home and I took a siesta (for 3 hours! Time really doesn’t exist here). All of my roommates work Tuesday and Wednesday, but since I cannot get to school/school would be over, I am off after class. Cece and Natalie work from home (or a cafe) so I am planning on joining them some days to do homework or computer stuff. After my siesta, I was productive in the apartment, filling in information for the trips I had planned and doing some internship applications.

Natalie, Cece and I then went grocery shopping at La Mercadona and fell in love. This place is like (a smaller version of) and American grocery store. They have produce, frozen food, alcohol and cleaning supplies. We ended up getting food for ‘Taco Tuesday’ and I got some salmon instead of meat. After everyone got home from work, all us girls ate before the boys came over for Bachelor Tuesday, our tradition! We also planned our weekend trip to Amsterdam.

Wednesday, Jan 29

Today was our first day of classes with our program director as the professor. The first class at 9 am is a journalism seminar and the second is a women and gender studies class, which I am taking for Spanish credit! She took us through the syllabus and expectations for both classes. They sound super interesting but the WGST is really intriguing to me because it proposes new perspectives and discusses both old and new happenings. I have never taken a class like this and the discussions have already been so thought provoking! [Also: I am receiving Spanish credit because my papers will be done in Spanish!]

After classes, I took another siesta because I still am feeling a bit congested, as is Natalie. After I woke up, I bought some Barça tickets for tomorrow because they were cheap! Cece and Judy, another girl in our program, are going to go :) After this, Natalie and I went to the pharmacy to get some medicine. I talked to the pharmacist all in Spanish and he understood and said I spoke better Spanish than he did English. So hey, little wins. Before we all went to sleep, we made our spring break plans and I will be going to Greece (Athens, Santorini, Milos) and Switzerland with Jojo and Natalie. After all the planning of flights and ferries, we all were exhausted and went to bed.

Thursday, Jan 30

Today was my second day at the internship and we work at a table right by where the kids have music class, so it’s a bit loud but so fun because I don’t know how to read music! It was a chill morning with a couple informational meetings before we started research for some tasks. After work, I made some ravioli (from La Mercadona, obviously) and rested a bit before we went to the Barça game. Cece and I met Judy at her metro stop and then we were off.

Here I am with Iñaki Peña (the cutest player) warming up in the goal (even though he didn’t get any game time).

I knew I had bought good seats, but I didn’t realize that we were literally right behind the goal. Like so close that during warmups a ball was kicked into my hands. We were in the third row with no one in front of us, so the view was great. We got to see Messi score a few times and take in the chants and electricity of the crowd, all for a very affordable price. I grabbed a non-alcoholic beer - which is interesting, because Spaniards will literallt drink everywhere (even at work) but there is no alcohol sold in the stadium. That’s how serious soccer is to them! Barça as a team is ‘more than a club’ because it is a political statement for Catalonian independence. That’s why Real Madrid is their rival, and why people take soccer personally. I also must say that Barça doesn’t trade/commodify players as much as other teams (like Real Madrid and many others in Europe. Once you are on Barça, you will probably be there for your whole career. Oh, and the non-alcoholic beer was decent.

Here are two other girls with my program who I convinced to come with me because the tickets were so cheap! Plus you can see how massive the stadium is - it’s the largest in Europe!

After the game, we attempted to get food by the stadium to avoid the crowded metro. Barça had won, so everyone was headed to Plaça Cataluña. We ended up having one bite of this nasty food before deciding to head back to the area near our apartments. We ended up at Taco Bell and even that was SOO much better than in America (and I love Taco Bell)! Cece and I walked back to our apartment so we could go by La Sagrada Família at night. It was so pretty and way less crowded than during the day! We went right to bed after getting home.

Friday, Jan 31

Today at my internship took some photos of the kids and their work. We got to talk to the kids more and they were asking us all about the United States and if we spoke Spanish. Once I got home, I cleaned the kitchen and did a load of laundry and dishes. I was the last one to leave the apartment because my roommates were all already either on their way to Valencia, or already there. Then, I put all of that stuff away and packed up my bag for the weekend.

Some other girls in my program and I when we were seated in first class!

I metroed Lucy and Lexie, another girl on the program, at their metro stop because we were all taking the same train to Valencia. Sarah, another girl on the program, was also on the train! We ended up getting to the Renfe station very early. [Also, it looks kind of like an airport!] We weren’t too sure if we had to go through security or what, so we asked a worker. He said to go downstairs to the platform. We were the only people there for a while. Then, when the train came, a stewardess wouldn’t let us board. At first we thought she didn’t like us because we had to wait until everyone else boarded. Then, we were let on to the first-class car, so we sat down. Again, we had no idea what we were doing! They didn’t even scan our tickets to get on of anything. But, when they came around to scan the tickets, we realized that we were in the wrong spot, so we found our individual seats. However, a short time after we sat down, the man scanning tickets rounded all of us up and found an open row so all four of us could sit together! We all talked, slept and listened to music for the ride.

Once I arrived, I met my friends at McDonald’s because it was right across from the station and then we headed to the Airbnb to sleep.

Saturday, Feb 1 - VALENCIA

Holding up dried fruits from the Mercat.

We woke up and got ready for the day in Valencia. The weather was Sunday and 75, but the locals were all bundled up in parkas - this seems to be a trend in Spain and I am not quite sure why! We first headed to the Mercat where I purchased fresh-squeezed tropical fruit juice and and assortment of dried fruit. I could definitely imagine living here and doing all my grocery shopping here. It was massive and the prices were amazing!

A beautiful orange tree just outside our Airbnb.

After we had some fuel in us, we set off to explore. We ended up doing a little shopping (at Pull & Bear, Brandy Melville and Bershka) and I bought a cute going out top. We then got some lunch at La Rollerie, which was very touristy but the I got the ‘weekend menu’ so the prices weren’t bad at all and the food was great!

Then, we stumbled into a cute Plaza and church with a fountain. It was so peaceful and even though there was a lot happening, everyone was just enjoying life. There was also a small little courtyard with a bunch of orange trees, as well as a few lemon trees. I found an orange and took a bite but I would NOT recommend that because it was not like the orange you are used to eating!! But the orange juice is great so please try it (:

Next, we found ourselves at Torres dels Serrans where we climbed to the top and got a panoramic view of the city. The sun was just starting to set, so we decided to head towards the beach so we could drink ‘agua de Valencia’ while watching the sunset. Malabar had good music and a decent amount of people sitting, so we sat there and split a jug of agua de Valencia.

The difference 10 minutes makes - 6:20 pm, 6:33 pm and 6:40 pm.

Donuts and chocolate!!

Then, instead of dinner, Cece, Isabel and I headed to Orxaterja El Callado for desert. Here, we each got ice cream and, eventually, we decided to try the homemade donuts and chocolate (which was similar to churros and chocolate).

The other girls ended up being taken to the wrong place by their taxi, but they had the key to the Airbnb. So, we headed to La Mercadona (yes, they are in Valencia too) and got a few snack to munch on. We sat on the side of the street eating our weird assortment of snacks, high on life, while we listened to some music and took in the city and the fact that this was what our lives had come to, which was pretty cool. 

We went back to the Airbnb where Jojo, Cece and I decided to go out to the bars. A different group of girls from our program was also in Valencia so we met up with them, first going to Unic and then Bolsería. We did not stay out too long as the scene was a little off because it is a smaller, beach my town. But we still had fun and made some Dutch friends!

Sunday, Feb 2

We decided to go to brunch today and, after we packed up all our stuff, headed to The Brunch Corner. I ordered grilled cheese, a pancake, and orange juice. You can’t go to Valencia and not get orange juice!! Trust me, it’s worth it. Here, we also got asked if we were from England - haha, I wish!

My delicious brunch. A mat I loved in our Airbnb. The best motto.

My last agua de Valcenia

After brunch, we wanted to see the ‘Ciudad de las Artes y Ciencias’ and on the way we stopped at the Bridge of Flowers. Also, there was a massive, beautiful park with many families and people working out. This was one of my favorite parts of the city. Once we arrived at the Ciudad de las Artes y Ciencias, we took in the modern architecture and warm sunlight. I spotted a little cafe where we sat outside and got a drink. I picked agua de Valencia because who knows when I’ll have it again!!

We then walked to the city center because we wanted a little snack before the train back so we found a place with crepes and smoothies. I got a mango smoothie, as well as a Nutella and fruit crepe. It had banana and mango on it and tastes incredible. We then got on the train home and somehow Jojo and I had seats next to each other. We looked at photos, talked about life, and shared some of our favorite songs. It was such a fun first weekend trip!

Jojo and I attempting to take a selfie in the train window while the sun set on the other side of the window.