Spain | My New Spanish Family: Living in a Homestay

With the aim of improving my Spanish and getting the most out of my abroad experience, I jumped at the chance to stay with a Spanish family. I didn’t really know what to expect coming into it, besides the fact that I didn’t have to buy my own shower towel and that breakfast and dinner would be provided for me every day. In fact, we had no idea who our host family was or what area of Madrid we’d be living in until program orientation once we arrived in Spain.

Turns out I’d be living with a family of four – Pura, David, and their kids Sofia and Pedro, aged 16 and 19 respectively. Another American student from New York named Jasmine was also staying with us in the other free room in the apartment. The location of my homestay ended up being really convenient for exploring the city as well as commuting to school or other areas of Madrid every day. I lived right off of a metro stop on the blue line and about a 10- minute walk from Sol – the center of Madrid – and a 20-25 minute metro ride from the study center in Chamberí. This was the neighborhood of Lavapiés, which I soon grew to know and love.

On the top, flower stands outside of the metro stop closest to my homestay. On the bottom, flowers I got for my host mom and her daughter on their birthdays.

The best part of my room was that the window opened right out into the street – I definitely took advantage of this during the warmer months when the weather was absolutely spectacular.

I soon also found out that Madrid never sleeps, and being in an apartment in a rather trendy area close to the center of the city meant dealing with some rowdy (but goodhearted) people at night who thought they were destined to be on the next Spanish Idol – good thing I can fall asleep easily☺

I also had access to the bathroom next to the main entrance. It was smaller than the one I was used to at home and in the dorms, with enough room for a toilet under the sink, two storage cabinets, and some bins pinned to the wall, as well as a shower (box).

I’ve never really seen a shower box before, and this one came with a shower-head that was in no way attached to the wall, meaning I had to hold it with one hand while washing with the other. There was enough space for my body, but it was a bit difficult to move fully around with the allotted space. But again — there was space for everything I needed…it was just a tighter squeeze than usual 😛

I also had to be more mindful of my water usage, turning off the tap whenever I didn’t absolutely need it, since water is apparently more expensive in the city (as is electricity – this means turning off lights in rooms when not necessary and unplugging chargers from outlets when leaving the house). However, Madrid tap water is some of the freshest water I’ve ever had, so filling up my reusable water bottle was never a problem.

In terms of kitchen-use, getting tap water from the sink was basically the only thing I could do in the kitchen by myself. Since my host family prepared meals for me (even though breakfast was typically very minimalistic and included tea/coffee with a pastry, toast, or cereal), I wasn’t allowed to store food in the fridge or use the oven or stove.