The move to Madrid

The move to Madrid did not happen for us overnight. We deliberated over the departure date for weeks, trying to get all of our documents in order while scouring the Internet for a cheap flight we could book. While still in Canada, we ran a thousand scenarios through our head about what our first week in Madrid would look like. Most of them were happy thoughts, but there’s always that fear of the unknown; “Will they have our usual deodorant and shampoo there?” I asked, to which Juliana would respond “They have Amazon prime! Of course you can find deodorant and shampoo”…“Do we need to bring a warm jacket?” I cried, while packing my suitcase to escape the winter in Canada, however the weather in Madrid still brought a chill.

When we got here it was much of the same. We were equally unprepared for the reality of being in a new city by ourselves. After getting through a stressful first night and few days after, we were on the way to brighter days. We rented an apartment in Malasaña and opened a bank account, while settling into our new digs, and securing our jobs. But there was still something missing from our new lives.

That was when we were lucky enough to stumble upon a Spaneasy free trial ad on Facebook. A couple days later we went in for our 2 hour free trial, and never looked back. The community and group of people we have met so far at Spaneasy has been incredible. Everyone is so welcoming and friendly, the social activity calendar is packed with fun stuff to do, and you learn practical communication skills to help you assimilate into the Madrileña culture.

Integrating yourself into a new culture when you’re visiting or living in a city is so important. It helps you build confidence when you’re learning the language, which allows you to open yourself up and experience what life is truly like. Madrid is an incredible city, full of welcoming people and our experience wouldn’t be the same without Spaneasy.

If you’re coming to Madrid or know of anyone living in Madrid that needs to brush up on their Spanish, let us know! The group of people at Spaneasy is one you want to get to know.

Over and out,

Alicia and Juliana

Canuck Collective

Canada