Survivor's Guide to Exchange

One year ago, I was in the middle of packing my suitcase, saying goodbyes, and running around like crazy, trying to get anything in before I set off on my year journey. After many online searches, I never found the ultimate article on what I was looking for...

What I wish I knew before I left.

So briefly, here's my Survivor's Guide to ...my own personal exchange experience.

1). Packing. You won't fit everything you need into your migrating baggage allowance, so don't worry, and don't even try to pack everything you need. You'll have to send a box over for sure. I packed 3 sweatshirts, and sent one over. That's really what I was needing the most throughout the year, along with non-expensive tshirts. Tshirts to work out in, run around town, or cook. Whatever. Don't only pack nice tshirts. A few scrappy ones come in handy.

Heavily insure EVERY box you send from either country.

Avoid packing "things." Although there are a few that I will mention in a bit.

Remember- whatever you send over to your new country you have to bring back with you. So don't bring/send things you'll only use "on special occasion" or only a few times. And let your natural family save your collection of birthday and Christmas presents. Don't send things over, because you won't end up taking them back.

Sweatpants. My gym class wore sweatpants any given day of the year over athletic shorts. So that was something that went over in a box. But I also was in need of athletic shorts...so two pairs is my suggestion.

Heels. Heels are overrated and a huge no-no when packing. Don't pack a lot of shoes. Girls who try to wear heels all night hurt their feet. Badly. Going to discos and walking downtown many hours of the night calls for nice looking shoes of course- but not heels. Make sure you can walk five miles in the shoes you wear out at night. Especially Madrid.

Clothes. Like I said before, black, white, and grey is the name of the game. Don't bring your spring Easter dress. Black pants are awesome. Nice dark jeans, and a nice top. Those sort of things.

Do not bring rainbow colors.

2). Money. Bring lots of it and spend it smartly. In my case transportation was a monthly expense that other exchangers in Spain might not have had.

Things break. Lots of things break. But the biggest for me were my walking shoes (and jeans!). Even the best of the Asics fell apart on me with as much walking as I did in Madrid. So be ready to buy atleast one pair of new walking shoes. Or two. Or three...

3). KNOW THE TRANSPORTATION HOURS. Know WHEN the metro closes, how late the bus runs, WHERE the bus drops you off, and how much it all costs.

Madrid buses don't stop at every stop, so you really have to know when to hit the buzzer so the driver will stop for you. You enter through the front door and leave through the side.

Know it, understand it, memorize it, and be able to ask and understand any questions on how to get home, which brings me to four.

4). Know WHERE you live! HUGE ONE! Walk you neighborhood thoroughly, know where the nearest metro and bus stops are, and from which direction they come.

5). Realistically get a dozen tiny headshot photos for yourself, because the photo booths are kind of expensive, and a pain to go to. And make about 7 extra passport/visa photocopies than suggested. Most households didn't have a photocopier and finding one, paying for it, and the time it takes for all that can be annoying especially if you don't have a local "Correos" nearby.

6). Have you house keys with you 24/7. Sleep with them if you have to. But do not ever leave without your house keys.

7). Keep a white light flashlight on your house key chain. It comes in handy more than you'll think.

8). Use Yoigo for a prepaid phone. Enough said.

9). Bring one (or buy later) purse/(gym backpack)bag for guys. A purse that's not huge, but not small either. Something that's hard to pickpocket, but you can sling over your shoulder. And nice enough to bring out at night.

10). A gym bag. They are small and weight almost nothing, and are super cheap here in the states. Get one thats a backpack with the pull-close top. Very hard to pickpocket. Very useful when on the go, and going to sports or just around town.

11). Watch your bags like a hawk, and never ever let them touch the ground. It gets annoying and tiring, but anything will get stolen at any given moment. Consider yourself warned.

12). Bring your graphing calculator. Even though I never used mine it may come in handy depending on your math course. They don't use them in Spain.

13). Bring one outlet converter. Don't use the little ones for your computer. Bad, bad choice. Those little ones will fry your computer up to nothing. Save those for your ipod, phone, etc. Buy a converter cord for your computer- most cords have a box, and you can exchange the outlet end for the different one.

14). Bring an English-Spanish dictionary... but only if you can avoid it. There are iPod applications for $2 that translate words without internet. Much faster and takes up less space.

15). Keep a map with you until you know the city. I came home to find my "Streetwise Madrid" map right on my dresser. That didn't help me much in Barajas...

16). Bring good house shoes. Comfortable flip flops, slippers, whatever you want. In Spain shoes are worn in the house and it's nice to have a pair to kick off and on easily.

17). Go to the Prado before you turn 18. It's free.

18). Don't be ridiculous. Pathetic right? Don't be stupid....sounds reasonable. Don't carry your passport with you, try to publicly make it obvious that you are foreign, carry an umbrella with you, believe that it is actually cold outside in October, or any other tempting thing that is just ridiculous.

But the most important is to never bring that umbrella.

19). Learn songs in your host language. They'll love you for it.

20). Don't give to beggars. There are charity groups if you feel the need. If you give a penny everytime you will 1- Look like a tourist and 2- Be so bankrupt at the end of the year you won't know what to do with yourself.

21). Al Campo- is the place where you'll probably find the best deals on such a wide range of objects.

22). Farmacias Pharmacies- what many people dread. They are on every street corner and will have what you need. Don't feel the need to pack extra toothpaste/deodarant/tampons because the local farmacia WILL HAVE what you need. Even though it's a foreign country, people are people. Bringing Advil/Midol might not be the worst idea, but don't feel the need to overpack. Ibuprophen is prescribed with every visit to the clinic...

ABSOLUTELY DO NOT start medication after arriving. Birth control sent a few students to the hospital.

23). The typical AFS orientation things- never decline an invitation the first time. Go to that bullfight, or flamenco, or just hang out at the park.. because if you decline it once, you'll probably never get asked again. Make sure you pass your phone around to everyone, and tell them to add their number. That is how you'll be able to call, and insist that you give out your number to get called. If you start off correctly from the start, your year will go much easier.

24). Never take a taxi. Waste of money.

25). Get connected. Talk to those English speakers on the metro. That's how you learn about the city and meet people. And who knows, they might only live 30 minutes from your American home...

26). Don't expect your year to be perfect. That beginning expectation check-list will probably not be completed at the end, so don't worry about it. You'll make it back again.

27). Find ways to entertain yourself. School will be worse than jail but find a way to enjoy it.

28). Keep an open mind. You're the 'village idiot' in your host country...not everyone else. So don't assume you're right and they're wrong. You'll always be foreign to them even if you feel they are foreign to you.

29). Ask questions, more questions, and more questions until you understand. If I had a euro everytime I had something repeated a sixth or seventh time I would be retired with much 'pasta' in savings at age 17.

Pasta = slang for... money.

30). Just know right from the start, nothing will ever go as planned. For anything, really. So embrace it and look at it like an adventure.

And- it's never the first trip that you get what you need, it's the third or fourth. Whether it's your school books or visa papers, you'll find yourself going back multiple times.

31). Don't look forward to the end of the year. If you keep staring at the end of the road you'll miss the view out your window as you pass by.

32). Relax. Eat those calorie filled churros. Memorize the table of elements in Spanish. Wear the ridiculous looking pants.

Sure it's not all fun. But if you can't enjoy the journey, why go?


Have an emergency? Call AFS. Or your liason. And if that fails, make sure you have a really awesome friend you can depend on.

Going to Spain? Madrid? Contact myself or other exchangers I've mentioned. We've got 'the book' memorized.

...forwards and back.


-mb



*Picture uploader is currently down...



Notes added 9/1/11

*Bring underarmer if you have it. It's small and something you don't want to have to buy.
*Expect nothing. Take everything given to you as a gift. You'll never feel cheated or let down, but instead very grateful.
*Change seats as much as possible in school. Sit next to new people. And don't worry about what people think of you. Even if you spoke perfectly and had the most "spanish" looking outfits- you are new. End of story.
*ALWAYS have money on your phone for emergencies. Did I mention that?
*Madrid kids should buy a 'A' abono transportation pass if they only plan on staying in the city. B1, 2, 3- C1, 2 are areas that cover cities outside Madrid and are more expensive.
*Bring over a full suitcase/backpack. Bring over all that you are allowed. You want to avoid to buy as much as you can. But do NOT bring over 2 suitcases. That's what your goal should be to bring home.
*Make sure your school understands what AFS is and why you are there. Some people have never heard of such programs.
*Spain kids- you have to get a 'tuenti' account and USE IT. This is how people will talk to you and invite you to events. It's their try at a Spanish facebook, I know. But they finally got a 'like' button...[on most things]