Today was day 5 of my long weekend. Frankly, I probably should have gone into work to keep myself busy. I got an e-mail around noon from my supervisor who was at work, but I had dreams of doing some exploring today, so I worked from home for part of the day, setting aside the rest for exploring. Unfortunately, today was probably the ugliest day of the long weekend - both in terms of weather and my mood. I think my mood was directly caused by the gross-ness outside. I woke up to it being both cold and disgustingly rainy.
I was extra crabby about the rainy part because I did laundry yesterday. Laundry here is (a) expensive and (b) requires lots of a coin I don't get very often - the 50 cent coin. The euro coins come in a variety of denominations - 2 euros, 1 euro, and then 50, 20, 10, 5, 2, and 1 cent coins. 20 cent coins are good for me because until I get my bus pass (Dear bus pass, please come tomorrow!), I pay 1,40 euro for each ride on the bus. The bus drivers hate you less if you pay with correct change. [Once I get my bus pass I have unlimited rides without paying - just touching my card.] A lot of places (including the bus) will give you three 20 cent coins for 60 cents of change, rather than a 50 cent coin and a 10 cent coin. So, I have very few 50 cent coins. And each load of wash requires 4(!) 50 cent coins to wash and who knows how many to dry. I say "who knows how many" because I don't. Yesterday I washed two loads of laundry because I had exactly eight 50 cent coins. I decided I'd rather split my clothes into lights and darks, than wash and dry everything. Because I have air! And a terrace! Which is just like a dryer, except free! Except when it rains. I hung most everything around my apartment (that's what an entertainment center, extra chairs, and a mostly empty closet are good for, right?). Except for my jeans, pants, and pajama pants which I hung out on the terrace railing. Which got soaked in the night by the torrential downpour. I know, I know, it's just water, but I was still SUPER crabby about it. Everything is mostly dry now, and my pants are coming inside for the night in case it rains, but still. CRABBY!
I was also crabby because I forgot to put my key in the light switch slot last night and thus had no lights this morning until I hunted down my key and put it in the slot. My key to my place is a lot like most European hotels. The key itself just touches the outside of the door and magically unlocks it. Once inside, there's a slot for your key next to the light switch - it's required to turn your lights on (mostly - some of those plugged into walls don't require this but most do). Your lights go off a few minutes after you take the key out of the slot. But, it's a pain. I'm also SUPER paranoid about forgetting my key, so I have a little note on my door warning me to remember it. If I don't, I can't get into the building or my room and would have to call the emergency number if the desk is closed. I'm sure they'd want to punch me in the head if this happens, so I'm trying to avoid it.
Anyhow, I spent the afternoon studying Spanish, trying to work, and being crabby that everyone in the US is sleeping and it's hockey playoffs and baseball season and very few games happen while I'm awake. Finally, I decided to brave the outside and go for a walk. So, I went down the hill into the town. I stopped by the infamous Chinese shop to try and find a soap dish for my shower (sort of found one - not sure it's going to stay put), and a couple of full-size dish towels (since mine are more washcloth size). I also got enough hangers that now all of my clothing is on it's own hanger (except for the hangers that are designed for four pairs of pants). I also found a cheap power strip until I find a slightly better one so I can plug in my iPad and my bedside lamp at the same time, and a broom/sweeper thing I was hoping would clean my dust bunnies better than the regular broom I have. It doesn't work either. I have no idea what is wrong with these cement floors (not kidding - cement tiles), but they gather so much crap and refuse to give it up to any amount of sweeping. What I really need is a Swiffer. I saw one in the Super Amara, but I couldn't find any of the little pad things that go on it - which defeats the purpose. Any advice? I also tried to find a whisk, tongs, and spatula or turner in the shop, but had no luck. I'm hopeful I'll find one eventually.
I also stopped by the bakery and got some bread, since every other shop (besides touristy gift shops and bars) are all closed still today. I wandered around finding a couple of other shops I want to stop by later this week - one sells yarn, one sells home goods - yay new sheets towels, and something to put under my sink so my medicine and hair dryer aren't just laying around in plain view, and one sells my shampoo that I use! I also found a store which literally made me laugh out loud. So, in El Centro, there are tons of really fancy, posh stores and boutiques. Right in the middle of these stores is a Carhartt store - except they don't sell any of the stuff I typically associate with Carhartt. It's all pretty fancy looking jeans and shirts for guys, with some fancy bags and shoes as well. Apparently, it's very popular here, which I think is hysterical, since they pride themselves on being so fashion-forward (another day I'll have to talk about the fashion in this part of Spain which I ... do not understand).
I strolled around downtown for nearly two hours and then decided that since I was carrying my loot from the Chinese shop, I'd take the bus back to my place, so I wouldn't have to climb the hill. Except I forgot which street the bus actually stops on, and walked on the street parallel to it, walking past the cross street by about 8 blocks before I realized where I was. At that point, it was stupid to turn around and backtrack, so I climbed the hill with all my stuff. The hill is getting slightly easier, but I still want to die ~half way up. The problem isn't the climb so much as how quickly the bulk of the climb happens, after you've already done a fair amount of climbing. I made it home just fine, but still sort of crabby.
I also have realized that I definitely didn't over pack. I have a lot of work appropriate clothing, which is good. I do not have a lot of casual clothing, and am missing a medium warm coat. I have a spring-weight coat, a dressy coat, a rain, and a very warm winter coat, but I need something that's more like a wool coat in terms of warmth. Who knows if/when I'll find something like that since it's now "summer" in all the stores. I also don't really have enough casual shoes or warm casual clothing. I think Pete's going to have to put together a box to ship to me.
I think the real reason I'm crabby is that, coupled with the weather, the reason I came here to begin with is to work. And I haven't been able to do much of that since everyone took almost all of last week off and we had the conference the week before. Hopefully, this week I'll be able to get started really doing work here, and then I'll feel even more settled than I do now!
Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts
Monday, April 25, 2011
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Thursdays ...
Maybe Thursdays are just going to be the days I'm in a little bit of a funk. I went into work today and a couple of people were there. Unfortunately my supervisor wasn't making it up 'til the afternoon and I was tired of sitting in a silent office, so I went home early. Which was probably a mistake.
I should have stayed there and worked and met with him for a while so I had less time to sit around being crabby. I've tried to keep myself busy, but here's the tricky part. Normally, for me, keeping myself busy involves going out and going for a walk. I got an e-mail from another postdoc this afternoon saying they might be doing something tonight, so I've been waiting around to hear from them. It's now 8 and I've heard nothing (which doesn't mean nothing's happening, but still). I don't know if dinner is being had later, or if I should eat before. I don't even know if ANYTHING has happening later. I don't know these people well enough to harass them to make a solid plan - or to hanging out with me before making a plan.
I think the real problem is that today is SO quiet. Everyone who lives here goes away for La Semana Santa. And the hotels are packed with people who don't live here. Because my neighborhood is super residential it is silent. I've had my door to my terrace open all day, and even then I only hear a car go by every 30 minutes or so. And when I go out on my terrace I can see a few other people out on their terraces. I've seen a couple of people walking and I saw a total of 5 people on the bus today. It's really different than Chicago.
In some ways, it's a nice difference. There's nothing wrong with silence and being alone (although I'm not very good at either). It is easier to rest and relax here. In spite of how stressful the move here has been, I find myself not terribly sleepy during the day and sleeping pretty well at night. I also don't have the sore tension shoulders I often did back home after working (or just living for that matter).
I'm having trouble today with the "patience" part of this whole being patient with myself thing. I want to meet people and have friends now. I want to have new projects started at work now. I want to have friends I can go visit and can have over now. I want to have a cell phone and my residence card and my bus pass now (Soooooooo tired of paying in change every time I get on the bus!). I want to be not afraid of the grocery store and to be more confident about Spanish now. I want to be settled and feel like I have a life here now. And I know I've been here for a week. And I know I'm doing pretty well, considering I've only been here for a week. I spend a lot of my time being not-miserable, which is pretty great. I know logically that I'm doing well here.
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So I'm posting this still, even though since I started writing it I'm feeling better. I'm going out to meet some friends for the evening, which should be good. Before I got that call, though, I turned on some music. Which helped. And then I read some stuff by one of my favorite authors, Anne Lamott. She has some great lines about trying to let go of attempts to be in control all the time (my major problem in life). So, I was reading her as a reminder to, as she says, remove my sticky hands from the steering wheel and let life happen for a while. And guess what? It did. And now I get to go out and have some fun.
To close, let me give you some advice from a graduation speech Anne Lamott gave that literally made me laugh out loud through tears a while ago: "And -- oh my God -- I nearly forgot the most important thing: refuse to wear uncomfortable pants, even if they make you look really thin. Promise me you'll never wear pants that bind or tug or hurt, pants that have an opinion about how much you've just eaten. The pants may be lying! There is way too much lying and scolding going on politically right now without your pants getting in on the act, too."
I should have stayed there and worked and met with him for a while so I had less time to sit around being crabby. I've tried to keep myself busy, but here's the tricky part. Normally, for me, keeping myself busy involves going out and going for a walk. I got an e-mail from another postdoc this afternoon saying they might be doing something tonight, so I've been waiting around to hear from them. It's now 8 and I've heard nothing (which doesn't mean nothing's happening, but still). I don't know if dinner is being had later, or if I should eat before. I don't even know if ANYTHING has happening later. I don't know these people well enough to harass them to make a solid plan - or to hanging out with me before making a plan.
I think the real problem is that today is SO quiet. Everyone who lives here goes away for La Semana Santa. And the hotels are packed with people who don't live here. Because my neighborhood is super residential it is silent. I've had my door to my terrace open all day, and even then I only hear a car go by every 30 minutes or so. And when I go out on my terrace I can see a few other people out on their terraces. I've seen a couple of people walking and I saw a total of 5 people on the bus today. It's really different than Chicago.
In some ways, it's a nice difference. There's nothing wrong with silence and being alone (although I'm not very good at either). It is easier to rest and relax here. In spite of how stressful the move here has been, I find myself not terribly sleepy during the day and sleeping pretty well at night. I also don't have the sore tension shoulders I often did back home after working (or just living for that matter).
I'm having trouble today with the "patience" part of this whole being patient with myself thing. I want to meet people and have friends now. I want to have new projects started at work now. I want to have friends I can go visit and can have over now. I want to have a cell phone and my residence card and my bus pass now (Soooooooo tired of paying in change every time I get on the bus!). I want to be not afraid of the grocery store and to be more confident about Spanish now. I want to be settled and feel like I have a life here now. And I know I've been here for a week. And I know I'm doing pretty well, considering I've only been here for a week. I spend a lot of my time being not-miserable, which is pretty great. I know logically that I'm doing well here.
--------------------------------
So I'm posting this still, even though since I started writing it I'm feeling better. I'm going out to meet some friends for the evening, which should be good. Before I got that call, though, I turned on some music. Which helped. And then I read some stuff by one of my favorite authors, Anne Lamott. She has some great lines about trying to let go of attempts to be in control all the time (my major problem in life). So, I was reading her as a reminder to, as she says, remove my sticky hands from the steering wheel and let life happen for a while. And guess what? It did. And now I get to go out and have some fun.
To close, let me give you some advice from a graduation speech Anne Lamott gave that literally made me laugh out loud through tears a while ago: "And -- oh my God -- I nearly forgot the most important thing: refuse to wear uncomfortable pants, even if they make you look really thin. Promise me you'll never wear pants that bind or tug or hurt, pants that have an opinion about how much you've just eaten. The pants may be lying! There is way too much lying and scolding going on politically right now without your pants getting in on the act, too."
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
1 week
Today was my first true full day since I got here. First I had the conference, then it was running around like a crazy person yesterday for all my papers. Today I got up and headed into work. I left my house at ~8:40 and got to work just before 9. After years of hour long commutes to Evanston, that was pretty great! The one problem is that I do not have a key to my office (which is locked) or to the main office (which is not usually locked on days the building is open). The problem is that the machine that programs the keys (they are combination electric smart keys and keys that turn in the lock) ran out of batteries. And it's a special battery the center doesn't have. So, like many things in my life, I was told "after Easter."
I put in a pretty solid work day - I had a lot of setting up to do getting the IT guys to install things on my computer (Praat, R, etc.). About halfway through the day, I realized that I have a real grown up job. People dress pretty casually, but in general, they dress like grown ups. Also, the office is super quiet. Because people work when they're there. There's very little messing around (though I did get an e-mail in the middle of the day asking if I wanted to place a small "purro" [bet] on the Madrid-Barcelona game tomorrow night). At first, I thought it was just because I share my office with two faculty-types and another post-doc. So I stealthily walked past the pool where the grad students sit (they don't get offices but rather cube sort of things) and the pool where the research assistants/interns sit. And they were ALL doing work! No Facebook. No e-mail. No PhD comics. Just Praat, EEG analysis tools, fMRI scans. It was sort of spooky, but no wonder this place is productive! I think I'll like it there - I got a ton done today, which made me really happy.
Then I came home and ran to the market for some more food. I feel like there's no way I can make it through this weekend with the amount of food currently in my kitchen. So, tomorrow, I'm venturing out to the big grocery store. This store is pretty scary to me because you can't just go up and pick out your meat. And often not your fruits and veggies either. Someone is there who you have to talk to in Spanish and explain what you want. I might try to get some fish tomorrow ... but I'm not sure if I'm brave enough for that yet. Regardless, I need to stock up. I'm sure the place will be mobbed tomorrow (imagine pre-snowpacolypse this past winter in Chicago) because no one's going to be able to get much after tomorrow night!
I also think I'm going to try out a church that's right up the road from my house - it looks like it's about 10 minute walk and that it's a pretty small church. I'm a little scared to go, since I'm sure it will be intense ... and in very fast Spanish. So I'm planning a walk by on Holy Thursday ... if I'm too chicken to go in, I'll probably go back for Good Friday, etc.
I'm starting to get used to the city, which is great. I walked downtown today to get a hairdryer (finally I can stop looking so disheveled!). I knew where I was walking and what order the streets went in, which surprised me a lot. It was really warm today so the beach was packed as was the boulevard. It was really nice to walk around and people watch for a while. I got a little cup of gelato to reward myself for making it a whole week here.
I sort of can't believe I've been here for a week. It simultaneously feels like I just got here yesterday and that I've been here for months. I hope that I continue to become more and more acclimated to my life here. I keep checking things off my "things I need to be comfortable in this place" list. I still feel really wildly emotional - swinging from being really happy to really sad almost every day. I find that going outside helps. Unfortunately, it's supposed to rain tomorrow starting at around 12 and continuing through the evening. It's also supposed to rain on Friday, and showers are possible on Saturday and Sunday. So, I'll either be exploring in the rain, or enjoying my apartment this weekend. I'm hoping I can get out to do some exploring as long as the rain isn't too drenching! I know I've been lucky to have no rain for a whole week, but I'm a big baby about walking in the rain (especially up Old Giant Hill [it needs a better name]).
I put in a pretty solid work day - I had a lot of setting up to do getting the IT guys to install things on my computer (Praat, R, etc.). About halfway through the day, I realized that I have a real grown up job. People dress pretty casually, but in general, they dress like grown ups. Also, the office is super quiet. Because people work when they're there. There's very little messing around (though I did get an e-mail in the middle of the day asking if I wanted to place a small "purro" [bet] on the Madrid-Barcelona game tomorrow night). At first, I thought it was just because I share my office with two faculty-types and another post-doc. So I stealthily walked past the pool where the grad students sit (they don't get offices but rather cube sort of things) and the pool where the research assistants/interns sit. And they were ALL doing work! No Facebook. No e-mail. No PhD comics. Just Praat, EEG analysis tools, fMRI scans. It was sort of spooky, but no wonder this place is productive! I think I'll like it there - I got a ton done today, which made me really happy.
Then I came home and ran to the market for some more food. I feel like there's no way I can make it through this weekend with the amount of food currently in my kitchen. So, tomorrow, I'm venturing out to the big grocery store. This store is pretty scary to me because you can't just go up and pick out your meat. And often not your fruits and veggies either. Someone is there who you have to talk to in Spanish and explain what you want. I might try to get some fish tomorrow ... but I'm not sure if I'm brave enough for that yet. Regardless, I need to stock up. I'm sure the place will be mobbed tomorrow (imagine pre-snowpacolypse this past winter in Chicago) because no one's going to be able to get much after tomorrow night!
I also think I'm going to try out a church that's right up the road from my house - it looks like it's about 10 minute walk and that it's a pretty small church. I'm a little scared to go, since I'm sure it will be intense ... and in very fast Spanish. So I'm planning a walk by on Holy Thursday ... if I'm too chicken to go in, I'll probably go back for Good Friday, etc.
I'm starting to get used to the city, which is great. I walked downtown today to get a hairdryer (finally I can stop looking so disheveled!). I knew where I was walking and what order the streets went in, which surprised me a lot. It was really warm today so the beach was packed as was the boulevard. It was really nice to walk around and people watch for a while. I got a little cup of gelato to reward myself for making it a whole week here.
I sort of can't believe I've been here for a week. It simultaneously feels like I just got here yesterday and that I've been here for months. I hope that I continue to become more and more acclimated to my life here. I keep checking things off my "things I need to be comfortable in this place" list. I still feel really wildly emotional - swinging from being really happy to really sad almost every day. I find that going outside helps. Unfortunately, it's supposed to rain tomorrow starting at around 12 and continuing through the evening. It's also supposed to rain on Friday, and showers are possible on Saturday and Sunday. So, I'll either be exploring in the rain, or enjoying my apartment this weekend. I'm hoping I can get out to do some exploring as long as the rain isn't too drenching! I know I've been lucky to have no rain for a whole week, but I'm a big baby about walking in the rain (especially up Old Giant Hill [it needs a better name]).
Monday, April 18, 2011
So Much Bureaucracy
Today was the day that the administrative assistant at work was going to take me around to get all the various cards and things I need to be legal here (and to get paid, get healthcare, etc.).
I was supposed to meet her at 9:30. So, at 9:30 I headed downstairs. The woman who is sort of in charge here came out to tell me that my contact from work (E.) was running late and would be there in 15 minutes. I asked the woman if she had my contract (lease) signed for me to take with me. She said, "yes", which apparently meant "not really." So about 15 minutes later E pulled up on her scooter. And I realized I was going to be riding around on the back of the scooter all day. She came in and asked the woman for the contract. The woman's "si" to me turns into 5 minutes of a rapid fire Spanish conversation. I understood things like "on it's way" and "the guy has to follow a path." I turns out that of course they did NOT have the signed contract, but were messengering it over - from the building we were about to go to (ugh). So we waited. And waited. It's 10:30, 10:45. We got coffee from the vending machine in the communal living room here [side note: the coffee from this little machine is dirt cheap and they have plenty of decaf options. You also get to choose how sweet your coffee is on the machine. Unfortunately, the least sweet coffee tastes like you're drinking super sweet coffee flavored milk - you get what you pay for, I guess). Finally, the woman came in with a FAXED copy of contract - not the original. The original wouldn't be there 'til the afternoon. Keep in mind, I asked them for this copy 5 days ago. I thought E was going to kill the woman. But she didn't and we headed out to the scooter. She said on the way that she was pretty worried they wouldn't accept the copy of the lease, but it was worth a try. So, she laid out what we were going to do today: register with the census, register for my resident card, open a bank account, register at my health center, get my bus card, and get a cell phone. She said "we might be lucky and finish everything today."
So, we got on the scooter (I have known this woman for all of 5 days and we've talked for maybe 5 minutes before this - but modesty isn't a thing in Spain I guess - on the scooter we went). We zipped down the hill to the area where all the offices were. I needed 6 passport photos (taken in a photo booth) and some photocopies before I could fill out all my paper work. So, we got the photos and the copies. Then we went to the comisario (police station, basically), where we grabbed a number from a machine. We saw there were about 14 people ahead of us, so we ran over to the padron's office (essentially the social security office) to register. This was where we needed the lease we didn't have - and one copy of it was on the 4th floor of the building we were going into. So ... we took a number again (2 people ahead of us) and E got on the phone with the people upstairs. They were completely unhelpful and we our number was called. We sat down with the guy behind the desk, who was not to happy we had a copy. E explained to him the situation and he finally agreed to fill out the paper work. She said after that she knew him from doing this with other researchers, or he might not have been so helpful. I was registered with the census, and we sprinted back to the comisario.
We got there, and there were only 3 people ahead of us. As we were waiting they cut off the line for people taking numbers - it was 12 and everyone who didn't already have a number had to come back tomorrow. We got in, and filed the paper work for my resident card. E explained to me that after 40 days, I'd come back to get my card ... this is sort of cutting it close since I can't leave the country and get back in without it - and I'm going to puerto rico in ~ 44 days. Fortunately, she said that it is often ready earlier since they get shipped in batches. So, then we had to run to a local branch of the bank to make a transfer from my employer's bank account to the comisario to pay for my resident card. We took a number (again) at the bank, got the paper work for our transfer, and went back to the comasario, where we took another number (they make exceptions on the whole "no new number" thing for people making the bank transfer). It took FOREVER to get in this time. We got yelled at once for being impatient and trying to sneak in early. We finally got in and gave them the transfer paperwork. They took fingerprints (because obviously the set I sent the FBI and the Spanish government earlier are not sufficient). Then we decided to go get my bank account before the bank closed (even though my health center is in the same neighborhood as the comisario, etc.).
So, we sprinted back to the bike, and went into El Centro and went to the main branch of the bank. We ran into the bank and ... took a number! Fortunately, no one was ahead of us in line this time. We sat down with the woman and she determined that I would get a "young person's account" since I'm under 30. I also had to open a foreigner's account since I don't have my resident card yet. Once I get it, I get to go to the bank and they will not charge me any more fees (it's 14 € every six months for the foreigner account). With the youth account account I get discounts on group tours and other "young person's events", apparently. The bank is also where you apply for a bus card, so I got a bus card application to fill out as well. After more than an hour there, we left with all my bank account information, and the promise that my bus card would come "after Easter." Then we went to a computer to change my PIN and password to sign into my account online. A guy also showed us that I have a "virtual credit card" I can use online. I have no idea when I'd ever use it, but it's nice to know it's there, I guess. Then E decided it was time for lunch - we'd already been at this for over 4 hours and we were both starved. So we went to a little pintxos bar and had a couple of sandwiches and she had coffee. Everyone around us was enjoying some wine, which made me want some, but we still had a lot to do.
After lunch, it was back to the scooter, and back to Amara where the health center is located. The health center looks really new and convenient. After taking yet another number, we talked to a lady who got my account set up. She assigned me a doctor who "speaks more or less the English," who is in every afternoon. If I need an appointment, I call or go online, show up and go to the office number I'm given online. The health center is completely free and covers everything except for dentistry, chiropractic and a few other miscellaneous things. Hopefully, I won't have to visit them often (if at all), but it's good to know they're there. I get my permanent health care card in 2.5-3 months.
After the health center, we went back downtown to get my phone. E decided I should get a phone with a contract, because they give you the phone free (or cheap), whereas a pre-paid phone you have to pay for the phone and the plans are more expensive. So, we asked the woman at the store who insisted that I need my official residence card to open this kind of account. I decided to just wait on the phone until I get my resident card - it's not like I'm calling tons of people in Spain and I have a phone I can use for emergencies here.
So then it was almost 4 o'clock (6.5 hours after we started all of this), so rather than going into work, we headed home. We decided we WERE really lucky because we didn't have to wait too long for anyone or anything. Now I have to wait 40(ish) days for my resident card to arrive to the comisario. We'll call in a month or so and see if it's there. When I get it, E and I go back to the comisario to retrieve it, then we'll get my phone and change my bank account to a non-foreigner's account. Now, I just have to wait for my ATM card, my bus pass, and my permanent health card to show up in the mail!
I'm pretty relieved all of this is done - though I wish the resident card would come sooner! I'm ready to finish these other things now! I also have to say I am SO lucky to have an employer who helped me take care of all of this. Bureaucracy is hard enough in your own language and country, let alone a new country with a new language. I would have been totally lost today and it would have been way, way more stressful than it was.
I managed to get some grocery shopping done this afternoon. I know I still have at least one more big trip to make before this weekend to make sure I have enough food - my local market is totally closed from Wednesday at 9 until Tuesday at 9.
I'm struggling a little with cooking here (especially with coming up with stuff to take to work for lunch ... I'm hopeful I'll have decent leftovers tonight, but we'll see). It's hard to cook for one person, especially with limited ingredients since I have yet to go to the real supermarket! Hopefully, I'll be brave enough to go this weekend. I'm also hoping I can get ahold of one of those great carts that everyone here has, so I don't have to haul my stuff by myself. My supervisor and I are both working on Thursday - apparently we can get into the building. So I'm feeling pretty good about that - I'll only have 4 days to fill instead of the dreaded 5. I'm trying to look at these days as an opportunity to relax a little and be really refreshed to start work in earnest next week.
Saving the best news for last, I managed to go a whole day yesterday with NO tears. I knew it would happen eventually, but looking back to last Tuesday (it's hard to believe I've been here almost a week), I thought it wouldn't. I remember saying to someone "I wish I could just see a week or a month from now and know I'm okay." And I am. Okay, that is. It's not easy. And it's still not particularly fun (especially at night, and especially being away from Pete). But it's okay - and that's all I'm asking for right now.
Congratulations if you made it through this novel. I'm happy to have this as a chronicle of my time here, and I'm sure I'll be glad I have it to look back on in the future. Hopefully, it's not too tedious to read!
I was supposed to meet her at 9:30. So, at 9:30 I headed downstairs. The woman who is sort of in charge here came out to tell me that my contact from work (E.) was running late and would be there in 15 minutes. I asked the woman if she had my contract (lease) signed for me to take with me. She said, "yes", which apparently meant "not really." So about 15 minutes later E pulled up on her scooter. And I realized I was going to be riding around on the back of the scooter all day. She came in and asked the woman for the contract. The woman's "si" to me turns into 5 minutes of a rapid fire Spanish conversation. I understood things like "on it's way" and "the guy has to follow a path." I turns out that of course they did NOT have the signed contract, but were messengering it over - from the building we were about to go to (ugh). So we waited. And waited. It's 10:30, 10:45. We got coffee from the vending machine in the communal living room here [side note: the coffee from this little machine is dirt cheap and they have plenty of decaf options. You also get to choose how sweet your coffee is on the machine. Unfortunately, the least sweet coffee tastes like you're drinking super sweet coffee flavored milk - you get what you pay for, I guess). Finally, the woman came in with a FAXED copy of contract - not the original. The original wouldn't be there 'til the afternoon. Keep in mind, I asked them for this copy 5 days ago. I thought E was going to kill the woman. But she didn't and we headed out to the scooter. She said on the way that she was pretty worried they wouldn't accept the copy of the lease, but it was worth a try. So, she laid out what we were going to do today: register with the census, register for my resident card, open a bank account, register at my health center, get my bus card, and get a cell phone. She said "we might be lucky and finish everything today."
So, we got on the scooter (I have known this woman for all of 5 days and we've talked for maybe 5 minutes before this - but modesty isn't a thing in Spain I guess - on the scooter we went). We zipped down the hill to the area where all the offices were. I needed 6 passport photos (taken in a photo booth) and some photocopies before I could fill out all my paper work. So, we got the photos and the copies. Then we went to the comisario (police station, basically), where we grabbed a number from a machine. We saw there were about 14 people ahead of us, so we ran over to the padron's office (essentially the social security office) to register. This was where we needed the lease we didn't have - and one copy of it was on the 4th floor of the building we were going into. So ... we took a number again (2 people ahead of us) and E got on the phone with the people upstairs. They were completely unhelpful and we our number was called. We sat down with the guy behind the desk, who was not to happy we had a copy. E explained to him the situation and he finally agreed to fill out the paper work. She said after that she knew him from doing this with other researchers, or he might not have been so helpful. I was registered with the census, and we sprinted back to the comisario.
We got there, and there were only 3 people ahead of us. As we were waiting they cut off the line for people taking numbers - it was 12 and everyone who didn't already have a number had to come back tomorrow. We got in, and filed the paper work for my resident card. E explained to me that after 40 days, I'd come back to get my card ... this is sort of cutting it close since I can't leave the country and get back in without it - and I'm going to puerto rico in ~ 44 days. Fortunately, she said that it is often ready earlier since they get shipped in batches. So, then we had to run to a local branch of the bank to make a transfer from my employer's bank account to the comisario to pay for my resident card. We took a number (again) at the bank, got the paper work for our transfer, and went back to the comasario, where we took another number (they make exceptions on the whole "no new number" thing for people making the bank transfer). It took FOREVER to get in this time. We got yelled at once for being impatient and trying to sneak in early. We finally got in and gave them the transfer paperwork. They took fingerprints (because obviously the set I sent the FBI and the Spanish government earlier are not sufficient). Then we decided to go get my bank account before the bank closed (even though my health center is in the same neighborhood as the comisario, etc.).
So, we sprinted back to the bike, and went into El Centro and went to the main branch of the bank. We ran into the bank and ... took a number! Fortunately, no one was ahead of us in line this time. We sat down with the woman and she determined that I would get a "young person's account" since I'm under 30. I also had to open a foreigner's account since I don't have my resident card yet. Once I get it, I get to go to the bank and they will not charge me any more fees (it's 14 € every six months for the foreigner account). With the youth account account I get discounts on group tours and other "young person's events", apparently. The bank is also where you apply for a bus card, so I got a bus card application to fill out as well. After more than an hour there, we left with all my bank account information, and the promise that my bus card would come "after Easter." Then we went to a computer to change my PIN and password to sign into my account online. A guy also showed us that I have a "virtual credit card" I can use online. I have no idea when I'd ever use it, but it's nice to know it's there, I guess. Then E decided it was time for lunch - we'd already been at this for over 4 hours and we were both starved. So we went to a little pintxos bar and had a couple of sandwiches and she had coffee. Everyone around us was enjoying some wine, which made me want some, but we still had a lot to do.
After lunch, it was back to the scooter, and back to Amara where the health center is located. The health center looks really new and convenient. After taking yet another number, we talked to a lady who got my account set up. She assigned me a doctor who "speaks more or less the English," who is in every afternoon. If I need an appointment, I call or go online, show up and go to the office number I'm given online. The health center is completely free and covers everything except for dentistry, chiropractic and a few other miscellaneous things. Hopefully, I won't have to visit them often (if at all), but it's good to know they're there. I get my permanent health care card in 2.5-3 months.
After the health center, we went back downtown to get my phone. E decided I should get a phone with a contract, because they give you the phone free (or cheap), whereas a pre-paid phone you have to pay for the phone and the plans are more expensive. So, we asked the woman at the store who insisted that I need my official residence card to open this kind of account. I decided to just wait on the phone until I get my resident card - it's not like I'm calling tons of people in Spain and I have a phone I can use for emergencies here.
So then it was almost 4 o'clock (6.5 hours after we started all of this), so rather than going into work, we headed home. We decided we WERE really lucky because we didn't have to wait too long for anyone or anything. Now I have to wait 40(ish) days for my resident card to arrive to the comisario. We'll call in a month or so and see if it's there. When I get it, E and I go back to the comisario to retrieve it, then we'll get my phone and change my bank account to a non-foreigner's account. Now, I just have to wait for my ATM card, my bus pass, and my permanent health card to show up in the mail!
I'm pretty relieved all of this is done - though I wish the resident card would come sooner! I'm ready to finish these other things now! I also have to say I am SO lucky to have an employer who helped me take care of all of this. Bureaucracy is hard enough in your own language and country, let alone a new country with a new language. I would have been totally lost today and it would have been way, way more stressful than it was.
I managed to get some grocery shopping done this afternoon. I know I still have at least one more big trip to make before this weekend to make sure I have enough food - my local market is totally closed from Wednesday at 9 until Tuesday at 9.
I'm struggling a little with cooking here (especially with coming up with stuff to take to work for lunch ... I'm hopeful I'll have decent leftovers tonight, but we'll see). It's hard to cook for one person, especially with limited ingredients since I have yet to go to the real supermarket! Hopefully, I'll be brave enough to go this weekend. I'm also hoping I can get ahold of one of those great carts that everyone here has, so I don't have to haul my stuff by myself. My supervisor and I are both working on Thursday - apparently we can get into the building. So I'm feeling pretty good about that - I'll only have 4 days to fill instead of the dreaded 5. I'm trying to look at these days as an opportunity to relax a little and be really refreshed to start work in earnest next week.
Saving the best news for last, I managed to go a whole day yesterday with NO tears. I knew it would happen eventually, but looking back to last Tuesday (it's hard to believe I've been here almost a week), I thought it wouldn't. I remember saying to someone "I wish I could just see a week or a month from now and know I'm okay." And I am. Okay, that is. It's not easy. And it's still not particularly fun (especially at night, and especially being away from Pete). But it's okay - and that's all I'm asking for right now.
Congratulations if you made it through this novel. I'm happy to have this as a chronicle of my time here, and I'm sure I'll be glad I have it to look back on in the future. Hopefully, it's not too tedious to read!
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Things are looking up ...
After the conference today, I set off with the aim of getting to the electronics store when they re-opened after the 3 hour lunch break/siesta all the stores take every day. I had a lovely walk, but unfortunately, once I got to the store, I realized they (like many other stores) close at 1 pm on Saturday - and don't reopen 'til Monday. That's right - closed Saturday afternoon, and all day Sunday. I am already imagining that this will make running errands tricky when I have to get everything done after work or Saturday mornings! Anyhow, I decided to console myself with some gelato (there are great, plentiful gelato shops all over the city, particularly in El Centro and Parte Vieja). On my way to the gelato shop, I happened upon one of the fabled Chinese shops - the best way I can describe this is a combination between a dollar store and a very, very small Walmart. Basically, they have everything you could ever want for your home, for really, really cheap. Of course the quality is also terrible, but if you need a few things, it doesn't matter so much. My haul today: two trash cans (kitchen + bathroom), broom, dustpan, garbage bags, dish soap, hand soap (X2), storage for my silverware (my apartment has no drawers in the kitchen - design oversight, but now I have a place to put them on the counter), another storage container for the rest of my kitchen utensils (cooking spoons, grater, kitchen shears, etc.), a hamper, 12 regular hangers and 2 pant hangers that hold 4 pairs of pants each (not nearly enough, but makes my closet slightly more organized), a basket with suction cups for the shower, two dish towels, a cheap hairdryer (I'll get a real one once I can get to the electronics shop) and a cutting board. The apartment was supposed to come with a cutting board, but didn't - and I couldn't deal any more without vegetables or being able to cut meat (plus since the counters are brand new, I didn't want to destroy them by cutting stuff up on them). Overall, I feel better about my place. I was able to actually put things away which makes me feel a little bit more like I live here.
I also took out the trash and the recycling (thrilling, I know), but it's very easy and on the way to my bus stop. Basically, there are four dumpsters - glass, plastic/metal, paper/cardboard/styrofoam, and regular trash. The only thing that needs to be bagged is your regular trash - so I carried all the cardboard from the boxes that all my pots in pans came in when I moved in, and dragged them out to the recycling. Not having a closet of trash also helps with the whole "feeling lived in" thing.
I think one thing that's daunting about this place is the sheer quantity of storage space I have. I have never lived in a place where I have so little stuff and so much room to put it! I have a whole closet that is nearly empty - more than half of my entryway "cupboard" is empty - though I might move my shoes in there. I have whole cabinets in the kitchen that are empty, as is the entire entertainment system. I need to either start accumulating things or find cheap/easy ways to decorate ASAP. The empty, white space is part of what makes me crazy.
After I got home from the shopping/trash adventure, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. I had several hours to fill before an acceptable bedtime, and the time 'til I start work on Monday seemed never ending. I also found out that my direct supervisor will be out of the center Tuesday and Wednesday. Since I'm going to get my residence card Monday (fingers crossed my rental company comes through with the lease!), I probably won't be at the office 'til late afternoon, if I go up at all. This means I probably won't be starting new work 'til after the holiday. I have plenty of old work to finish up, but I was hoping to have something new to throw myself into for the 5 day holiday break. I know I already described how much everything shuts down, but what I didn't realize is that EVERYONE leaves town. Everyone I had talked to in the past few days talked about the trips they were going on, and my supervisor told me today that most everyone is taking off the whole week at work. So anyhow, between this news that I was going to have a quiet week, and worrying about the cat (who is slightly better today, yay!), and feeling homesick for Pete ... I was pretty worried about what I was going to do to occupy myself not just 'til Monday morning, but also next weekend.
After being totally pathetic for a while (and having Pete call me on it - one of the reasons he's the best husband ever), I decided to try to make some plans for next weekend. I e-mailed the girl I met last night (who will be out of town for some of the weekend, to see if she wanted to get together this or next week). I e-mailed my Basque teacher from Chicago who is in town for the holiday to see if she might be available. Then I e-mailed two other post-docs. One of them is going out of town for the holiday - but said she'd like to hang out some time. The other said she is going to be around and will be sure to include me in some of her plans - AND she invited me out for drinks tonight. So, even though I'm a little bit sleepy, I think I'm going to go. Hopefully, it'll be fun, and I won't go too crazy being alone next weekend!
Finally, I think I'm going to be in awesome shape with all the walking I'm doing. I know I won't walk quite as much once I'm working more or less full time, but I've been walking over 5 miles a day, most of which is in hills. I need to get a mat so I can add Pilates and yoga to that list and I'll be all set. :)
I promise my posts will shift more toward life here and less about my whiny adjustment as the time goes on! It's been really interesting to observe differences here in how things are done!
I also took out the trash and the recycling (thrilling, I know), but it's very easy and on the way to my bus stop. Basically, there are four dumpsters - glass, plastic/metal, paper/cardboard/styrofoam, and regular trash. The only thing that needs to be bagged is your regular trash - so I carried all the cardboard from the boxes that all my pots in pans came in when I moved in, and dragged them out to the recycling. Not having a closet of trash also helps with the whole "feeling lived in" thing.
I think one thing that's daunting about this place is the sheer quantity of storage space I have. I have never lived in a place where I have so little stuff and so much room to put it! I have a whole closet that is nearly empty - more than half of my entryway "cupboard" is empty - though I might move my shoes in there. I have whole cabinets in the kitchen that are empty, as is the entire entertainment system. I need to either start accumulating things or find cheap/easy ways to decorate ASAP. The empty, white space is part of what makes me crazy.
After I got home from the shopping/trash adventure, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. I had several hours to fill before an acceptable bedtime, and the time 'til I start work on Monday seemed never ending. I also found out that my direct supervisor will be out of the center Tuesday and Wednesday. Since I'm going to get my residence card Monday (fingers crossed my rental company comes through with the lease!), I probably won't be at the office 'til late afternoon, if I go up at all. This means I probably won't be starting new work 'til after the holiday. I have plenty of old work to finish up, but I was hoping to have something new to throw myself into for the 5 day holiday break. I know I already described how much everything shuts down, but what I didn't realize is that EVERYONE leaves town. Everyone I had talked to in the past few days talked about the trips they were going on, and my supervisor told me today that most everyone is taking off the whole week at work. So anyhow, between this news that I was going to have a quiet week, and worrying about the cat (who is slightly better today, yay!), and feeling homesick for Pete ... I was pretty worried about what I was going to do to occupy myself not just 'til Monday morning, but also next weekend.
After being totally pathetic for a while (and having Pete call me on it - one of the reasons he's the best husband ever), I decided to try to make some plans for next weekend. I e-mailed the girl I met last night (who will be out of town for some of the weekend, to see if she wanted to get together this or next week). I e-mailed my Basque teacher from Chicago who is in town for the holiday to see if she might be available. Then I e-mailed two other post-docs. One of them is going out of town for the holiday - but said she'd like to hang out some time. The other said she is going to be around and will be sure to include me in some of her plans - AND she invited me out for drinks tonight. So, even though I'm a little bit sleepy, I think I'm going to go. Hopefully, it'll be fun, and I won't go too crazy being alone next weekend!
Finally, I think I'm going to be in awesome shape with all the walking I'm doing. I know I won't walk quite as much once I'm working more or less full time, but I've been walking over 5 miles a day, most of which is in hills. I need to get a mat so I can add Pilates and yoga to that list and I'll be all set. :)
I promise my posts will shift more toward life here and less about my whiny adjustment as the time goes on! It's been really interesting to observe differences here in how things are done!
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Day 1 (Take 2)
I took a 45 minute nap today after writing the last post, which was pretty much the best thing ever. I woke up refreshed and took off for a walk to meet my new Michigander friend. Amazingly, she's from Alma (which Michigan people will know is very "It's a Small World"), and has an MA in linguistics. In spite of a large age difference, we got along quite well, plus we both knit and crochet, so even more to talk about. She is going to try to get together with me again next weekend, which is known as "Easter Week" here. Basically, the whole city (include my workplace) shut down from Thursday through Monday. 5 whole days! The Spanish love their holidays, apparently. I'm a little worried that I might go crazy with 5 days of nothing, so I might try to plan something with other friends. If not, I'll plan some adventures to get me out of the house and plan to get some work done anyhow!
And now for some random bullets:
I met a bunch of people at the BCBL today, including a guy who introduced himself to me and then announced that he is the captain of the soccer team. He implied that I should join, which resulted in a hysterical discussion about how the rest of the team is also not great. I pointed out that most of them are European which means they are inherently better at soccer than me. Apparently they are one of the more popular teams among other teams - which, they hypothesized, is because they are easy to beat.
The walk to my bus stop is literally uphill both ways. See, I live at the top of a really, really big hill. A "we don't have hills like this in the Midwest" hill. Actually, it's sort of like the hill I lived on when I was at a music festival in Vermont. Which they called a mountain. So anyway - big hill down to the ocean. Past my house, the hill goes up some more and then starts going down to the street where my bus stop is.
I had to sign a bunch of paperwork today, including a form that said I read the center's emergency plan which states prominently "IN CASE OF FIRE OR OTHER EMERGENCY DO NOT RUN OR SCREAM!!" I laughed for about 10 minutes reading that.
The cafeteria is sort of like a dive bar with pintxos. The women working whipped out their very fast Spanish with me, and when I asked them to slow down because I don't speak Spanish well, they told me that I didn't look like an American. Apparently, my trench coat purchased at the Gap for 10 dollars this winter is the best purchase I've made. I saw several Spaniards in nearly identical coats today, so at least I'm not betrayed as being clueless 'til I open my mouth.
Everyone warned me how expensive it was to live her. Apparently, no one has lived in Chicago. Or Boston, or New York, or anywhere else with expensive things. Wine and food in particular are dirt cheap. I stopped by a slightly larger market today to pick up food for the next couple of days. I bought granola bars, some pasta, some cheese, an apple, enough salt to get me through my whole time at BCBL, garlic, and paper towels for 5€ - a little over $7. REALLY. I was so happy I almost danced up the giant mountain to my apartment (until I got tired and took a break to watch some tiny Spanish children playing). I bought a bottle of rioja wine yesterday for 5€, which was by far not the cheapest bottle in the store, and it is actually really tasty. My apartment is much bigger than the studio I had in Evanston my first few years at Northwestern. And it's cheaper than my apartment was then (4 years ago - I'm sure it's way more expensive now). The bus costs 1,40€ for the full fare, and once I get my bus card next week, it'll be 0,75€. Which is significantly cheaper than the CTA buses, is super clean, and runs fairly reliably. I know hotels are expensive, and fancy restaurants are too. Sure we're taxed a lot, but I also get free health care and a number of other free benefits for that. So, yay to that!
My work keyboard is a Spanish keyboard. Which has most of the stuff in the right place, but lots of stuff in totally confusing places, and I still don't know how to make the @ symbol. Today I resorted to copying and pasting it. The left shift key is also in a weird place, as is the dash, the forward and back slash, and the question mark. The parentheses are on 8 and 9 rather than 9 and 0, which means every time I tried to hit the left parenthesis key, I'd get the right. As a fast typer, this makes me crazy pants. One of the guys I share an office with was totally amused as I was hunting for something on the keyboard, muttering to myself. I doubt he'll be that amused when I have a day when I write for 8 hours. On those days, I'm going to have to bring in my laptop.
And now I'm off to bed since I have to get up crazy early for 11 hours of conference-ing tomorrow!
And now for some random bullets:
And now I'm off to bed since I have to get up crazy early for 11 hours of conference-ing tomorrow!
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