I came to Madrid for the first time on a typical post-graduation Eurail trip.  I spent a few days in the city, seeing the sights and sipping sangria with my travelling companion and various new friends from our hostel.  One of my most memorable experiences was attending a drag show where the performers were dressed up like Hillary Clinton and Monica Lewinsky!  My friend and I were the only American residents in the audience and the performers were concerned we would be offended, but we had a great laugh along with all the madrileños.  I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Madrid; however, I honestly never dreamt that I would move to the city one day.

A “few” years later, I had made my way to New York city where I was working as a Management Consultant and settled into an apartment in the Chelsea neighborhood with my partner Will and our beagle Ella.  When Will was accepted to the IE Business School in Madrid, we decided to pack our bags and make the jump across the pond.  Will had never been to Spain before and I didn’t speak a lick of Spanish … it’s a good think we’re adventurous!  Luckily, I have a lot of experience moving to new places and am an avid traveler.  This combined with Will’s Spanish skills and a lot of help and advice from friends, The Guiri Guide, and my alumni club allowed us to quickly narrow down neighborhoods for our house hunt and have a bit of head start before we arrived in the city.

We are now all three (yes, Ella came along!) settled into our apartment in the Malasaña barrio.  I am enrolled in intensive Spanish classes and am very pleased at how much I have already learned in class and picked up around-and-about in Madrid.  I enjoy walking around the city – seeing the sights again, but also exploring all the fabulous boutiques, small but delicious cafes, and sitting out on the plazas drinking a tinto de verano with new friends.

There is so much to see and do in Madrid and I look forward to sharing what I learn in the next year with all of you.