October 2002:
“Come back…” she whispered seductively. “Please come back….”
As I looked out over the sprawling city beneath me from the aeroplane window, I promised I would someday, somehow make my way back to her; my beautiful city of Barcelona.
Fast forward to 2014:
Here I am sitting in my pokey apartment, surrounded by heaps of washing to be dealt with, piles of papers to be filed, and panicking about how on earth I’m going to pay the bills and make ends meet. Am I happy? Why yes of course, because all of this is happening in the bustling, barmy and quite simply brilliant Barcelona.
Just to help set the scene a little, I made my way back to Barcelona in 2003 and my first few years here were nothing short of an absolute ball. I was a young, carefree, single girl living the dream. I worked to live, had a great social life, and an amazing pack of like-minded single friends. Good grief was I having an immense amount of fun.
Then BAM. PREGNANCY. Oops a daisy, talk about a reality check. Suddenly nights out were a no-no, hangovers non-existent (that’s a plus I guess), and I started working crazy hours just to make sure I had some savings to cover me for a few months once baby arrived. It was time to grow up and get my act together quick sharp.
Five years on I’m a not quite so young and carefree single mum, still living the dream (just not the one I had originally imagined for myself), and trying my hardest to be a grown up and keep my act together. I have a busy work schedule yet still strive to fit in all the quality time possible with my son, making the most of everything this great city has on offer to families.
I always had an inkling that becoming a mum would drastically turn my life upside down and I have to admit that during the pregnancy I felt overwhelmed and daunted at the prospect of having a kid (potentially on my own) in a foreign city. However, little did I know that despite all of the difficulties, the fun was just about to begin.
Over the next few blog posts I’ll be sharing with you some of my own stories of life as an ex-pat mum in Barcelona, and attempt to give some tips along the way - advice often unheeded by myself may I add (hindsight is a wonderful thing).