Tumgik
Photo
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
teresa carles
Awkwardly, I walked in with my friend Saskia who was in distress from someone stealing her phone a few minutes ago. I hadn’t eaten lunch and we had a 3-hour class soon, so I asked her if it was ok to stop here.
I had walked past this restaurant before and wanted to try out their vegan and vegetarian foods. The waiter sat us down at a table and I looked through the menus, while Saskia was busy with my phone, contacting her parents and boyfriend.
The ‘menú del día’ didn’t look too appetizing so I ordered straight from the general menu:
to nibble: grilled watermelon, goat cheese, mizuna, sweet mint sauce, almonds
and a starter: Jerusalem hummus, plant-based black ‘sausage’, house made gluten-free pita, crunchy chickpeas
I really enjoyed the combination of watermelon and goat cheese flavors, and the almonds gave it a nice crunch. However, the cold and hot temperatures were mixing, making it warm overall. 8/10
The hummus with pita was a lot of hummus to eat my on my own, and I think it was missing some flavor. The toppings combined into the hummus pretty well, but again, missing a touch of flavor. 6.5/10
Besides food, the service could have been better. It wasn’t even peak lunch time, but I felt the waiters were creating a rushed, almost careless vibe in the restaurant, while it seemed the decor’s intent was to create more of a casual, sophisticated environment. And Saskia being in not the greatest mood did not help much. But overall, I would say it was a good experience, and I would probably go back to try out some other plant-based eats here with my friends.
2 notes · View notes
Photo
Tumblr media Tumblr media
25.01
These pictures show how excited and happy I felt standing on a balcony that I always imagined I would have living in Europe- I’m not living at a place like this, so it makes me appreciate the visit a little more. Just wholesome.
A couple of weeks ago, I went over to my friend Heidi’s apartment to make some Kraft mac & cheese and Ghirardelli brownies from some box mixes I brought with me from the US. Honestly, the mac & cheese was not as good as it usually is when you eat it alongside some bbq and other sides. The brownies..well, first we undercooked them, and then we burnt them. But the parts that were edible tasted heavenly (they’re my favorite brownies in the world!!)
2 notes · View notes
Text
UDON
Finally, after searching for a restaurant with good reviews, in a convenient location, and offering fair vegan options, as well as “regular” options, I decided we should go to UDON for lunch with my two friends Saskia and Heidi.
Saskia and I were waiting outside, browsing the menu for a couple of minutes, when Heidi texted us she would be a little bit late. But that was ok, because as soon as we walked into the restaurant, I felt a laid back vibe, though at the same time, elegant and sophisticated. Usually I would have expected a rushed presence at any restaurant in the area, and would have rather waited outside than tell the host we were waiting on someone- but here that was not the case.
First I ordered some flower berry hot tea, served beautifully in a black teapot. Instantly, the floral smell filled my head with peaceful thoughts. And although the tea was very nice, I needed something cold and fresh, so I ordered an Aquarius lemonade. While we waited for Heidi, I decided on the Green Avocado Roll appetizer and some Nabeyaki Udon. I’m not sure how long it was before the food arrived, because I was lost in conversation with Saskia about her new romance in Barcelona. But once my appetizer arrived, I was pleased to find it a light, fresh snack- I felt healthy and satisfied for the moment.
When Heidi finally arrived, so did my Udon- which by the way, I had been thinking about since the day before when I decided on this place. I didn’t show my disappointment when I first saw the dish, but I was expecting something else- and rightly so, because they had accidentally misunderstood my order. However, I didn’t realize this until I was almost half way finished- and still, they happily replaced my vegetable udon noodles for the Nabeyaki Udon soup that had broth, chicken, prawn tempura, spinach, egg, shiitake mushrooms, and bamboo stalks. Well, for some reason I remember it being pork rather than chicken, but this is what the menu lists, so that’s what I’m going with. In any case, the soup met my expectations, which were pretty high. The flavors from each ingredient complimented one another perfectly, and the hot soup warmed me up after that lemonade and avocado roll.
I could only eat about half of the soup, but the waitress offered me a to-go container, which to my surprise was some kind of cardboard eco-friendly-looking box. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any cash to tip, and the credit card machines didn’t have the option to include one, thought I really wanted to let them know I was happy with my experience.
Later that night, I heated up my leftovers, which tasted almost just the same. And that’s when I decided that I’ll be back for more in the future.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
1 note · View note
Text
B a c k    a t    i t.
Last semester, I never made the time to write, even though I had so much to write about...and a lot of free time. I just wasn’t feeling inspired to actually sit down and type out my thoughts. I’m back in Barcelona, in an overall better mood, and this time I’m ready to share my experience.
Well, to start off, I quit my economics program in October and applied for a marketing program starting in January. In order to stay here legally with my student visa, or so I thought, I had to take 20 hours a week of something, so I enrolled in advanced Spanish classes. However, once I went to register for my residence card in November (a couple of weeks before returning to the US), they told me I was supposed to be in the economics program, and that this was unacceptable. Therefore, I had to quickly apply for a new student visa when I arrived in the US, and luckily I received it on time to start my marketing courses last week.
So far, I’m having a much better time than I did last semester. The people are much nicer, both the professors and the students. And the content is much more exciting. But sharing school-related things is usually not as fun as sharing photos around the city and new foods + reviews. So that’s what I’m going to start doing more of, and hopefully one day someone finds my content relevant to them when exploring Barcelona :)
0 notes
Text
Texas student getting a student visa to study abroad at the University of Barcelona (2019)
I thought I would write my thoughts and advice on the process in obtaining a Spanish student visa. My process may slightly differ from yours if you’re from another US state and/or if you’re enrolled in a different university/program.
***Quick facts: You only need a student visa if your program is over 90 days. You can only go to the Spanish consulate in your US region and you have to submit your application in person. If you forget something or do something incorrectly, they allow you to send them the missing/incorrect item(s) within a certain time period, though they won’t start processing your visa until they receive everything. More FAQs are answered on their website:
http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/HOUSTON/en/InformacionParaExtranjeros/Pages/Visas%20Houston/Visa-Frequently-Asked-Questions.aspx
!!! BOOK ASAP !!!
My biggest mistake was waiting until 3 months before my intended departure date to book my visa appointment. I read that you can’t submit your application until 3 months prior- however, you can (and should) book your appointment as soon as you get accepted to a program in Spain. When I looked in July for August appointments so that I could leave in September, there was no availability until December. After checking (literally) every hour to see if anyone cancelled, I was able to book an appointment two weeks before my classes were supposed to start. I continued checking often for an earlier appointment, and I decided to email them about my problem. They actually opened a new student visa specific category (before there was only a category for general visas). My advice is to go online and book an appointment scheduled for at least 2 months before your departure date (the visa takes 2-4 weeks to process after your appointment, and you won’t want to book your flight until your visa is approved).
DEALING WITH CONFUSING REQUIREMENTS
You can gather most documents within a day, except the background check and medical certificate- these may take a few weeks, so do those as soon as possible, though not more than three months before your application date. This website contains the list of items you must bring to your appointment:
http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/HOUSTON/en/InformacionParaExtranjeros/Documents/Student%20Visa.pdf
Make sure to make two photocopies of everything- one for your own records and one for the consulate.
1. Application form- pretty self-explainable. Make sure to glue your photos on two application forms, and sign and date at the end. Then make 1-2 photocopies for them (I made 2).
2. Passport- ensure the expiration date is at least three months past your intended return date.
3. ID- nothing complicated about this.
4. Passport photos- I got 2 photos at CVS for about $16 which I think is ridiculous, but they make sure that the photos meet passport requirements.
5. Acceptance letter- try to include all the little details they ask for. My program did not have a fax number, but it wasn’t a problem for me. You don’t need a signed hardcopy- a digitally signed one is enough.
6. Evidence of funds- for my situation, my parents are financially supporting me. I wrote the following letter (I excluded my mom’s typed name/number/email below the signature line) and asked my mom to sign it.
Tumblr media
Then we took it to the UPS store and asked them to notarize it for about $6 (it could have been free at my Wells Fargo bank but they needed me to type certain words, and they were being vague about it). You also need to print out the last 3 months of bank statements of their account, and bring a photocopy of your parent(s) IDs.
7. Health insurance- my university partners with Ferrer & Ojeda, so this is the link I used:
http://www.ferrerojeda.com/es-Es/UB2.aspx
Click on “Viajo a España”, “UB Incoming -> Calcular”, and enter the information. If you’re staying longer than a year, select 365 days. Even though the consulate asks for insurance until the end of your program, it’s not possible to make it longer than a year (at least for this insurance option). You need to register for an account before continuing and making the payment (233 euros for the year). The proof of insurance is simply a 2-page document that you can print, which outlines what the insurance provides for you.
8. Police criminal record- I assume the process varies from state to state and you can figure it out online. To obtain a fingerprint state background check in Texas (also listed are West Virginia, New York, and Colorado), click on this link:
https://uenroll.identogo.com/
The service code is 11FT12. I was able to book an appointment within the week, and it took less than a week to have my background check mailed to me. Make sure that you request the background check to be notarized. After you receive the document,  you will need to get an apostille. In Texas, there is only one Secretary of State located in Austin, which is where you can get an apostille:
https://www.sos.state.tx.us/authinfo.shtml
No appointment is necessary. If there is no line, it takes less than five minutes for the secretary to stamp your document and process your $15 payment. I paid with a credit card, and they asked me to write down the card information (not sure why since it was in-person that they swiped the card). You can also mail your document instead, along with the items requested (a form stating the country’s name, money, and pre-paid envelope). I emailed them about that option and they sent me the form, but I chose to go in-person because of my time constraints.
9. Medical certificate- the hardest part for me at this step was finding a doctor, since I didn’t have a regular physician. I tried urgent care centers like CareNow, but they refused to sign anything because they didn’t know me well enough. Luckily, I came across this website used for US Citizenship applications:
https://my.uscis.gov/findadoctor
The doctors listed on this website have encountered legal certificates before so I started calling the ones nearby to see if any accepted new patients and was covered by my insurance. Make sure to explain that you need a signed certificate for your student visa to study abroad in Spain, and that you found them on the USCIS website. I was able to book an appointment that week where they did a check-up and some bloodwork. Then I picked up my signed and stamped certificate within about a week. Here is the sample I used:
Tumblr media
10. Minors- (I skipped this because I'm not a minor)
11. Envelope- I went to a US post office and asked for a pre-paid envelope with a tracking number. It was about $25 for a cardboard envelope, a little bigger than the size of a paper (not sure the exact dimensions, but you can fit regular sized printing paper inside). You don’t need to fill out the “From” part because the consulate can stamp their address on it (you can if you want to though). Make sure to fill out the “To” part with your address.
12. Non-US Nationals- (also skipped)
AT THE APPOINTMENT
The office was a little hidden in Houston, but my Uber driver was able to locate the building. I arrived about half hour early just in case. The office was really small- maybe 20 chairs for a small waiting area, and 4 windows to call up everyone with appointments. They didn’t call me until about half hour past my appointment time. I handed them all the documents including my passport, but not the envelope or money, and I went to sit back down while they reviewed my documents. When they called me back up to the window, they said everything was good, so I handed them the envelope and money (I paid with exact cash- you could also pay with a money order). And that’s it!
WAITING FOR MY VISA
They say it can take 2-4 weeks for your visa to be approved and mailed back to you. I think for me it took a couple of weeks before I received the envelope in the mail. It included the documents with the consulate stamp on each one, my passport with a visa page, and a yellow paper telling me to get my residence card within thirty days of my arrival in Spain. And that’s a whole other blog coming up...
0 notes
Photo
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
01.10
Part 3/3 - last week in Barcelona
~~~First 4 pictures taken at Divinus
-chocolate lava cake with dulce de leche ice cream
-tapas bar
~~~Next 5 pictures taken at El Nacional
-nicely decorated restaurant
-tapas
-crema catalana
~~~Last picture taken at PerBacco (pizza)
1 note · View note
Photo
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
01.10
Part 2/3 - last week in Barcelona
Life begins at night...
2 notes · View notes
Photo
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
01.10
Part 1/3 - last week in Barcelona
3 notes · View notes
Photo
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
30.09
Today was my first day of graduate school at the University of Barcelona.
Not gonna lie, I’ve been overwhelmingly stressed out since yesterday when my mother left back to the US. I sincerely do not think I have ever experienced as strong anxiety as I did, but luckily it’s fading away. Yesterday afternoon I FaceTimed most of my best friends, and today I talked to my boyfriend, mom, and sister, so that all has really helped me calm down a bit.
Anyways, this morning I got ready, and made sure to wear tennis shoes and a belt like Europeans do- tbh, my class is international, so many students don’t dress the European style- but I like it.
My first class this morning was econometrics- I literally understood about half of the words the professor was saying (she was Spanish but speaking English) which means I have no idea what the heck the class was about (well, I know she was talking about the syllabus, but I don’t know what she was saying about it...).
My second class was microeconomics (I think? haha I don’t think it was macro). This professor had a strong accent but I was able to understand most of what she was saying so I’ll definitely do well in that class.
I had a matrix problem review set assigned, but it’s not due until Wednesday so #procrastination still lives in me (unfortunately?) Pretty much just relaxed all afternoon and evening :)
1 note · View note
Text
24.09
¡Hola hola hola! I’m starting this blog to record my experience in Barcelona over the next couple of years as a graduate student studying abroad. In total, I will be spending about 18 months (not counting the 3 month summer break in between).
I’ve been thinking about what I want to blog about for a while, but I don’t think I’ll be able to determine what’s best until I start posting!
For sure I want to share my academic experience at the University of Barcelona, social outings around the city, and my creativity through photography, painting, dance, and poetry. I also enjoy reflecting on random philosophical and life subjects, and since I’m in a long-distance relationship, I’ll be blogging about all that as well.
I’m 21 years old, and just graduated with a major in economics and minor in mathematics from St. Edward’s University in Austin, TX. 
Anyways, I’ll try to start posting as soon as I can :)
0 notes