How a dog changed my life
For English scroll down
Did you know that I had no plans at all to live in Barcelona? Always wanted to go to Spain, but Barcelona was totally off my list of potential places to live. So how do I get there I hear you thinking. Well, eeh, as befits a true animal lover: a dog!
The original plan
In July 2018, I decided that after years of dreaming, I should finally take the plunge. Follow that dream, Danique, go abroad. The plan was to first visit a friend of mine in Barcelona for a weekend and then take the train to Valencia. To then travel toward Seville. The goal was to explore Valencia and Seville to see if they are suitable places for me as a digital nomad. You see, Barcelona was nothing more than a first stop. So far so good.
Lunch together in Barcelona?
During this time I was also working for Fairtrade Original and through a supplier of theirs I came in contact with a super nice girl who lives and works just outside Barcelona. After a long phone conversation with her, she said we should just go to lunch in Barcelona when I was there. Only…she couldn’t that weekend. Hmmm, then I should stay a little longer because my original plan was to be in Barcelona from Friday to Monday and leave after the weekend. No big deal I thought, I’ll just go to Valencia a few days later.
Meet the dog
Just before I was to leave for Spain, a friend told me that she knew someone who was in need of help. Long story short: an Argentinian acquaintance of hers has a dog, but that acquaintance was going to Argentina for over 3 weeks and needed someone to look after her dog and house. Whether I wanted to do that? Then I had 3 weeks of lodging in an apartment in a cool location in exchange for babysitting the dog. Eehh, yes of course! Super fun!
And then suddenly I was in Barcelona for four full weeks. During these four weeks I enjoyed the dog, met beautiful people, had amazing experiences and discovered how much fun Barcelona can be. How much this city and the surrounding area, not to mention Catalonia, has to offer. So when I came back at the end of September I knew for sure, I’m going to move to Barcelona. So when I stood at the airport in Rotterdam in late October with a one-way ticket to Barcelona, I was brimming with energy. I’m going to do it: live in Barcelona!
And Valencia and Seville? I haven’t been there since. Although I will surely go there again sometime, they are not my favorite cities in Spain– next to Barcelona – for nothing.
Curious about all the great things you can do around Barcelona?
- Road trip to Costa Brava
- Ultimate guide to vegan restaurants in Barcelona
- Traveling by train to Barcelona
English
Why did I move to Barcelona? How a dog changed my life
Did you know I had no plans at all to live in Barcelona? Always wanted to go to Spain, but Barcelona wasn’t in my list of potential places to live. How do I get there then I hear you think. Well, um, as befits a real animal lover: a dog!
The original plan: follow your dreams
In July 2018 I decided that after years of dreaming I should finally make the step. Follow that dream, Danique, go live abroad. The plan was to first visit a friend of mine in Barcelona for the weekend and then take the train to Valencia. After that travel to Seville. The goal was to explore Valencia and Seville to see if they are suitable places for me as a digital nomad. You see, Barcelona was no more than a first stop. So far so good.
Shall we have lunch in Barcelona?
During this period I also worked for Fairtrade Original and through a supplier of them I got in touch with a super nice girl who lives and works just outside Barcelona. After a long telephone conversation with her she told us to have lunch in Barcelona when I was there. Only…she couldn’t meet that weekend. Hmmm, then I have to stay a bit longer because my original plan was that I would be in Barcelona from Friday till Monday and leave after the weekend. I didn’t mind, I just go to Valencia a few days later.
Meet the dog
Just before I left for Spain a friend told me she knew someone who was in need of help. Long story short: an Argentinian acquaintance of hers has a dog, but that acquaintance was about to go to Argentina for more than 3 weeks and needed someone to look after her dog and house. Would I like to do that? The deal was That I had to stay in an apartment at a nice location for 3 weeks in exchange For looking after the dog. Uh, yes of course! Super fun!
And then all of a sudden I was in Barcelona for four full weeks. During these four weeks I met beautiful people, had fantastic experiences and discovered how fun Barcelona can be. This city and its surroundings, not to mention Catalonia, has so much to offer. So when I came back at the end of September I knew it for sure, I’m moving to Barcelona. So when I was at the airport of Rotterdam at the end of October 2018 with a one-way ticket to Barcelona, I was full of energy. I’m going to do it: live in Barcelona!
And Valencia and Seville? I haven’t been there since. Although I’ll probably go there again, it’s not for nothing – besides Barcelona – that they are my favorite cities in Spain.