Moving to Madrid
25th October 2015.
Finally - almost 4 weeks after arriving and I am ready to publish this post!
There is actually so much more to moving to another country and settling in that I didn’t anticipate, plus writing applications all day really takes the motivation out of you... hence the delay. I’m also sure there are parts I’ve forgotten to mention, or which I have yet to discover, but anyway - here goes!
We have moved to Madrid, aka la capital de España, or (apparently) La Villa y Corte.
After six months of non-stop travelling around Asia and the South Pacific (scroll through my blog to check out all these posts), we had only a short stop home in England to see family, friends, and get ourselves ready before changing country yet again, but this time to somewhere more permanent.
So what’s my current situation, and why did I move to Spain?
I have moved to Madrid with my boyfriend, who, around a year ago, found out about the Sports Marketing Masters at Universidad Europea, which he decided to apply for and see what happened. At the time I had just started work in an advertising agency in London, so after researching and discovering how many companies had offices in Madrid we decided to just take the risk and do it (after Ed’s acceptance, of course). (Update on the job front: I’m still looking, so if anyone reading this knows of any vacancies, please let me know!!). We were incredibly excited about the thought of travelling and exploring somewhere new (again), while having the added bonus of the Spanish culture and language that we couldn't wait to immerse ourselves in.
And what’s this post about?
I wanted to carry on with my CuriousGeorge blog even though our main ‘travelling adventure’ had ended, with the hope of sharing tips and advice from anything and everything I learn here in Madrid. Below I have covered the key, preliminary things to think about and plan before you arrive in Madrid, then what to do once you’ve landed and suggestions of how to spend your first week. Hopefully it will be useful!
And what will be posted from now on?
I will be sharing photos from my time here - if you haven’t seen already, I’ve been uploading one photo each day through Instagram and will try to keep this going for as long as I have interesting things to show(!) - and write posts whenever I feel inspired / it has been a while. FYI suggestions for future topics or any questions I can try to answer will always be appreciated/responded to!
I am sticking to English for now, as these posts are aimed at newcomers and tourists (plus my Spanish is not quite up there at the moment) but will try to include Spanish phrases and words (in italics) where possible.
So here goes: my first proper blog post from & about Madrid (maybe grab a cafe con leche before you start reading, as I’ve somehow managed to cram in quite a lot of information)...
La Latina
BEFORE YOU ARRIVE
So you’ve decided to move. Now what?
1. Book your flights
Flights from England to Spain were relatively cheap when we booked (2 months before leaving) and we tried to reserve in advance so the price was as cheap as possible. You can obviously get last minute deals online with some companies; it just depends on how comfortable you feel leaving things to the last minute.
We booked our one-way flight with easyJet for around £50 each, but we added an extra hold bag each (£16 each for a bag weighing 20kg) a week before flying, since we weren’t planning on sending baggage by any other means.
(Note: If you have too much baggage to bring on the flight and need to ship items before you leave (although this may be difficult without an address), my friend recommended Seven Seas Worldwide for their speed and affordability, but I can’t vouch for them personally.)
2. Book a place to stay
We wanted somewhere affordable, comfortable and with plenty of space for us to use and base ourselves while looking for own flat; after some research we discovered Airbnb offered plenty of great places.
For £30 a night, we stayed here in Malasaña, one of the central barrios (districts) of Madrid, which turned out to be perfect as it is near all of the major tourist sights and one of the areas we ended up looking for flats in. We also couldn’t recommend our host Milton anymore - he helped us with everything we needed to know about moving to Madrid, and was both friendly and accommodating. Definitely book to stay with him if you can, it also really helps getting inside information from someone local as you settle in!
The streets of Malasaña
3. Sort out transport from the airport to the city
We chose AeroCity shuttle buses from the Barajas Airport, as they offered a relatively cheap price (~€20 for two people), we had a lot of luggage (2 hold and 1 cabin bag each) and they offer a door to door service, i.e. straight to our Airbnb flat in Malasaña from Terminal 1.
If you’re not carrying as much luggage as we did, there is a cheap train to Atocha station where you can then catch the Metro to a stop near your accommodation. Click here to read through the different options from travelling to the city centre from the airport.
4. Pack all your essentials
An obvious point, but still part of the preparation stage. We would recommend, in particular, bringing the following:
Adaptors, chargers and extension leads (if you have a lot of electronics like us)
Clothes for both warm and cold weather (we arrived in October, which is when the weather starts to change dramatically)
Essential cooking equipment (to keep you going until you can buy more)
An old phone (to use with a local sim when you arrive): this is very useful as all contracts we encountered need a working local phone number
The usuals, such as toiletries, a working credit card, passport/tickets, comfy walking shoes, etc.
(The rest you can ask your family to send or bring later on!).
5. Research jobs and top attractions in Madrid
If you’re looking for a job like both of us, either temporary or permanent contracts, it’s better to get a feel for the job market and start applying for positions before you arrive so that ideally you have some interviews for when you get here. linkedIn.com, infojobs.net, indeed.es and jobandtalent.com are all decent websites for this, and it is worth setting up your profile, preferences and alerts beforehand so you can easily apply for jobs as soon as they pop up.
In terms of top attractions, I hope my list of top things to do below will provide a useful start, otherwise a different idea would be to search #madrid on Instagram and/or start following some local accounts to find the quirkier, 'hidden gems’ of the city.
A cool building in Chueca
FIRST WEEK STEPS
Now, what to do once you’ve arrived and the best order to do them in!
1. Look for a piso (apartment)
idealista.com and fotocasa.es were the best online sites we found and would recommend using. The rest of the time we spent wandering the streets in areas we liked and looking for ‘Se Alquila’ (for rent) signs, calling the numbers advertised and booking appointments if they were suitable. Joining Erasmus Facebook groups is also a good option, although these are likely to post information about shared rooms and/or include agency fees.
TOP TIPS:
Make as many appointments as you can & be quick about booking them. Setting up alerts for your preferences helps with this!
Wander around the different barrios to get a feel for them and find the one/s you like (we preferred the Centro areas like Malasaña and Chueca)
Look out for agency logos or ‘Profesional’ written on the online house listings, as this usually means there will be an agency fee. Check for the word ‘Particular’ if you don’t want to pay this
Have a list of essentials in mind when visiting flats, so you have a clear picture of what you want/need/can give up before you enter.
(FYI: we found our flat in Chueca within the first four days of arriving WITHOUT the help of an agency (and the accompanying agency fee), being the first people to view it and book there and then! You have to be quick and decisive, but there were plenty of flats available, i.e. it can be done and you will find something suitable somewhere, just be persistent!).
NOTE ABOUT INTERNET:
You may also have to set up internet in your flat if it isn’t in place already. AS SOON as you have found your apartment, head to Telefonica on Gran Vía to sort out the best deal for your property with Movistar. Remember that Fibre Optic is not only not available for every flat, but it’s also not essential if you don’t want to spend too much on internet every month (the top package costs around €58 per month, or €77 for ‘fusion’, i.e. connect it to one mobile).
We ended up choosing the basic ADSL package for ~€45 per month, which they said would take 2 weeks to install but (luckily) only took 4 days, and has been working fine so far. We also visited Orange and Vodafone to find out about their cheaper deals, but these require an NIE number to create an account, which neither of us have yet (click here for more info on NIE).
Our very tall stairway!
2. Set up a bank account
We chose Santander for this, as they also have offices in England and would possibly have cheap rates for international transfers (Our discovery: it makes no difference), and were directed towards the branch at Calle de Carretas 14 as it is (potentially) the only branch which can set up accounts for non-residents.
As a student you’ll need proof of enrolment and a passport scan, and as a working professional you’ll need a copy of your employment contract with a passport scan. You can go back and give your address later when you collect your debit card and have eventually found a flat.
TOP TIPS:
Book an appointment early on, as you need this to set up the account
Bear in mind the arrival of the debit card can take a while - we received ours 10 days after opening the account on a Saturday morning (yes, they are open on Saturdays 10-1.30)
Check out the opening hours, i.e. be aware of the siesta closing times.
3. Order your Public Transport card
Luckily for us, the age bracket for the jovenes (young people) Tarjeta Transporte Público has increased to 26 years, while the monthly cost has reduced; a change which happened one day after our arrival in Madrid! This means we only need to pay €20 every 30 days for unlimited transport across all zones. Wonderful.
However, UNluckily for us we applied for our cards online (after being told this was the only way to get one) via this website, paying €4 each but we are still yet to receive them. Since then we have heard you can get the cards for free (but topped up with the first €20) from any local Tabac corner shop, but I’m not sure how true this is.
4. Find cheap local supermarkets
After spending our first week eating out for all meals, sampling as much as we could during our ‘vacation period’, we have switched to being cheap and finding the best supermarkets with regular deals and savings on offer.
We have found LIDL (opposite Plaza de Tirso de Molina) that sells cheap meat, alcohol and produce, and also Carrefour Express which has stores all over the city, as well as some huge stores located in the outer districts (e.g. in Alcobendas, where you can set up a Joven card and start receiving discounts with all your purchases). Both supermarket chains Dia and Simply offer a club card/points system, with many small stores located across Madrid.
Puerta del Sol, a central area in Madrid
BEING A TOURIST
Okay, now the fun part; in brief, what to do and where to eat on a budget in your first week exploring this amazing city...
Top things to do in Madrid:
Explore Plaza Mayor, then head to Puerta del Sol and the nearby Calle Mayor and Calle de Arenal lanes to get a feel for the city
Wander around Chueca and Malasaña, and grab a coffee in one of the quirky cafes or terrazas (outside terraces)
Visit Palacio Real, and then relax in Plaza de Oriente opposite
Plaza de Oriente
Walk around the central parklands, including Parque del Oeste and Parque del Retiro (where you can also visit the amazing Palacio Cristal). The Real Jardines Botanicas also seem worth a trip (although you need to pay to enter) while Casa de Campo is a bit further out from the city centre but houses a theme park and other attractions
Palacio Cristal, in Parque del Retiro
Visit el Rio Manzanares via the gardens next to Calle de Segovia, and hire a bicycle to ride along the riverside paths and across the puentes (bridges) for alternate viewpoints
Browse the mercado (market) El Rastro for a variety of cheap goods, which takes place every Sunday in Lavapiés
Visit Gran Vía, probably the main tourist street in Madrid, for great shopping opportunities, as well as the streets leading to Puerta del Sol and around the Centro area. Still not finished? Venture to Plaza Norte 2 in Alcobendas for a shopping mall experience
Ir de tapear (eat tapas) in La Latina, especially in the nearby Calle de la Cava Baja and Plaza de la Paja, supposedly the best tapas in all of Madrid
Tomar un cafe (have a coffee) in the sun in Plaza de Santa Ana (in Sol), Plaza de España or Plaza de Chueca, for an afternoon break
Plaza de Santa Ana
Visit the national museums, e.g. Museo del Prado (the only one we have managed to visit so far!). Click here to find out times for free entry for each
Finished all these? Head to the Chamartín, Chamberí and Salamanca areas to wander around and experience the more relaxed pace of life in the business/family areas of Madrid.
Bright coloured buildings in Chueca
Cheap food deals:
Café & Tapas - we visited this popular chain on Gran Vía for some drinks and tasty smoothies, albeit a little expensive if you’re trying to be cheap
Margaret (in Plaza Mayor) - ración of paella, pan (bread), una bebida (drink) and tapa including chorizo and potato for €6.90, plus free wifi
Ofertas de desayuno (breakfast deals) found in cafeterías (cafes) all over the centre for around €2-2.50, including a café con leche (milk coffee) with churros, tostada (buttered toast with different toppings) or other type of pastry
Popular food markets, for example Mercado de San Miguel (try an empanada for €2 or one of the more expensive marisco (seafood) options) and Mercado San Anton (grab a tapa & beer/wine for only €2)
Mercado San Anton
Emporio (Calle Arenal) - ración of pizza/pasta/salad with a drink deal for less than €10pp
Tapas deals, or ir de tapear, as the madrileños (people of Madrid) say... We found a great food street near Sol (Passage de Matheu) where we tried all the Spanish favourites, such as albondigas (meatballs), patatas bravas (potatoes in spicy tomato sauce), croquetas con jamon (potatoes with cheese and ham), calamares and/or chiperones (fried calamari and squid), and gambas (prawns)
Tapas near Sol
Cervecería la Sureña - a popular chain with stores all over the city, including La Latina on the infamous Calle de la Cava Baja and another in the Plaza de Jacinto Benavente. Visit on Thursdays for 2 for 1 raciónes (can be different dishes), or sample any of their tasty €3 tapas options
The Good Burger - 2 for 1 deal on Thursdays, where you can pay €2 each for a decent sized, tasty hamburguesa (burger) tapa
Other unmissable dishes;
The popular bocadillo con calamares (calamari sandwich) served all around the city at €3-4 each, but make sure you ask for aioli and/or lemon juice if desired
Regular bocadillos con jamón are also everywhere, selling at around €2-3 each
Churros con chocolate, the ultimate sweet treat for €3-4
All kinds of paella - order a huge dish for ~3 people for around €12
Seek out the menu del día for every restaurant to get great value for lots of different courses (prices range from €7 to €20 pp).
Churros con chocolate at Maestro Churrero, Plaza de Jacinto Benavente
And that’s it for now. I hope the information above has been useful in some way, and I’ll make sure the next post doesn’t take so long to share!
¡Hasta luego!