I thought it would be interesting to dedicate a blog post to food because it has been so important during my time abroad. Coming here I did not think food would be an issue because to be honest, I am not picky about food. However, I soon realized that I missed the food I am used to a lot.
Groceries
In Segovia, it is relatively hard to get groceries. Since I live close to school, I live “far” from the main areas of town. There are not any grocery stores near my place and the closest one is very small. It is hard to find everything there so I usually have to do a 30 minute walk to get to one of the main stores. This would not be a problem if I did not have to carry heavy bags on the way back (which, by the way, is uphill).
Besides the store being very far, I also struggle to find the ingredients I need and I am used to. Thanks to this I have learned to make new dishes with the ingredients I have available to me.
Eating out
Surprisingly, eating out has also been different here in Segovia. I usually try to eat at home because it is cheaper but when I do eat out, I have to make sure the restaurant I am going to is actually serving food. Back home (in the United States and Mexico), I can usually walk into a restaurant and I am sure they will serve me food. Here in Segovia, and in other parts of Europe I have visited, they start serving dinner at a certain time. This is very odd to me because even if the restaurant is open, you can only have drinks or coffee.
Even ordering pizza has been a challenge. Although there is a known chain of pizza here in Segovia, for some reason they do not deliver to the area where I live, so my roommates and I request the delivery to a mail office near by and we go pick it up there. We also have two big American fast-food chains which have extended hours. Although I do not eat there that much, at least I know they are open.
Getting used to it
Now that I’ve been here for three months, I am used to it. I can not expect the rest of the world to adapt to what I am used to, so I knew I had to adapt myself. Like I’ve said in previous posts, this experience has taught me to patient in a lot of different ways and for that, I am grateful.