Bilingual Barcelona
View over Barcelona
by robokow
This article was written by Global Graduates, published on 6th June 2010 and has been read 4897 times.
Barcelona, Spain - Large, busy, expensive(!), fun, Catalan
There was loads of stuff to do and lots of people to do it with - Barcelona was a really exciting place to live for a year. The biggest difficulties for me were finding a decent and affordable flat, and not really knowing any Catalan when I arrived - I'd recommend finding a language partner ASAP as you'll improve and you might even make a few friends out of it. Whatever you do, enjoy it! Take every opportunity you get to speak the language and meet people. And be very, very careful about rent and contracts and all accommodation-related hazards.
Useful local words: ‘majo’, ‘moltes gracies’, ‘adeu’.
What not to pack: Too many smart clothes!
What to pack: Laptop, heater.
Couldn't have done without: A supply of money saved up for the first month - student loans don't always come in on time!
Word of advice: I’d recommend www.pisocompartido.com and www.loquo.com which are great for finding accommodation. The latter's also great for finding language exchange partners/conversation students.
Anna, Spanish, Oxford University
To find out more about the city, visit our Barcelona homepage and our Barcelona Mole insider's review.
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