Piso Search

On Friday, I went to 2 pisos. Let's just say this got me really discouraged really quick.

The first one was right in Sol, the main plaza area (the one where the bear with the tree is). It was a room in a shared flat that I found on loquo. The ad didn't have any pictures, so I didn't know what to expect. When I got there, the guy let me in and started off by saying, "Let's hurry this up. I'm tired." As we walked through this very narrow hallway to my room, he proceeded to tell me how weird the people were who lived in the piso. I asked how many people were there, and he said, "5, or 8, or 9." Not a good sign when the landlord doesn't know how many people live there. So he shows me the room, and it's basically just enough room for a bed and a dresser. Tiny, tiny room. He takes me past a nasty bathroom and an even worse kitchen, telling me how everyone there pretty much stays in their room and doesn't talk. As he's talking, one guy comes out of his room, mohawked hair, in boxers and tennis shoes, says something really quick and runs back in. By now, I'm already just wondering how fast I can get out of this smelly, dark place. I tell the guy thanks, and I'll call him later and let him now. Ha. Yeah right. He's getting no call from me.

The second place sounded good in the ad. I would be living with 2 guys, and they wanted someone who was a runner. Little did I know that they were 2 really weird 32- and 34-year-old guys. I walk into their apartment and look up to see that the ceiling's missing and I can see the floor of the piso above it. The guy sees me look up and says, "Oh, that will be fixed soon." Yeah right. I knew that had been there for a long time and wasn't getting fixed anytime soon. He shows me the room and someone else's stuff is in it. The guy tells me that the person in the room is going to leave soon. I ask to see the bathroom, and he tells me there's someone in it so I can't see it. What? Then the other guy comes out of his room and he smelled so bad! I gave them the same, "Oh, I'll call you" and left.

After these two, I was just completely discouraged. But I went back to the residencia and complained about the hunt with the other Fulbrighters there. It was at least good to know that they were having the same problems, so I wasn't alone in my stress. That night, I ended up setting up 2 more for the next morning.

Saturday morning, I went to 2 pisos. The first was in a decent location, although it would have taken me longer to get to my school when I commute. The guy I would be sharing it with was in his 30s, seemed semi-normal, and the piso wasn't all that bad. But then I asked him about it being okay for me to have a friend stay here on the couch if anyone visited me in Madrid, and he immediately said, "This is not a hostel. You're paying to live here, so just you." That was pretty much a dealbreaker. If my friends come to visit, there's no way I'm making them stay in a hostel. So I told him I'd think about it, left that as a slim possibility, and headed towards my next appointment.

At the second piso for Saturday, it was in a really cool area but was pretty far south of the city. I finally found the piso after getting lost, and the guy that met me there was a little strange, but not bad. We went up to the piso, and it was really nice. I would be living with 3 other people and 3 of us would be sharing a bathroom. It was a great room, but he wanted 500 euros! I wasn't paying that much for how far away it was. But I didn't completely rule it out. The place did have an indoor pool, which was nice.

When I got back to the residencia, I kind of made the executive decision that I wanted to live in a 2 bedroom with another Fulbrighter, that way I could have friends stay if need be and have a little comfort in my piso, not with weird Spaniards. Saturday night, I found two nice looking 2 br pisos and set up appointments for the morning.

Sunday: The first piso I went to at 11 am was in an area called Malasanas. The street seemed pretty nice. There were bars and stuff along it, so I was worried it might be loud. But when I got to the piso, the landlord took me back into the back 3rd floor of the building to the piso. When I walked in there, it was small, but I really liked it. It had a living room with a table and couch and little TV, two bedrooms with dressers in both, a nice little kitchen and a tiny little bathroom (kind of like a cruise ship bathroom). The guy wanted me to sign a year lease, and I told him I'd only be here for 10 months. So what we compromised on was that if I didn't find someone to fill the place for the last 2 months, I would pay one month and he would just lose the money from the next month (because people don't tend to look for housing until September, which is when all the students get here). That wasn't bad, considering the rent was only 745 euros/month for 2 people. It would be an extra 27 euro per month per person, which is still a deal in the area it was in. So while I was really interested in the place, I wanted to at least go see the other piso I had an appointment for.

When I got to the other piso, it was not what I expected. While it was really big, it didn't have a living room. Oh, or furniture. The ad said it was furnished, but it only had 2 bed frames, 1 mattress, and 1 dresser. And it was 800 euro/month for 2 people! So I ruled it out.

After thinking it over, I decided to call Luis (the owner of the first piso from the day) back and tell him I wanted to rent it.

I went back over there later in the day, double-checked everything, and finalized things. I brought Lisa, another Fulbrighter, along to give a second opinion. After she approved, Luis and I started talking business. We dealt with the contract, he had a plumber come in and fix a problem with the sink, and he showed me all the little details of the place. After about 45 minutes of talking through it all, I signed the lease on my apartment!

Now that I have the keys, I have to go there this week and get a phone line set up so we can get DSL Internet. And I have to get dishes, because the piso didn't have them. But there's an Ikea right down the street, so it will be easy to get that.

Pretty much, the piso is great. I really liked the neighborhood (at least what I saw in the day), liked the landlord, and think it will be a great place. Now I just have to find another Fulbrighter to live with me. Hopefully that won't be a problem. They all get here in the morning, so I will ask around then. If they know how much stress it would relieve from them to just go ahead and live with me, they would do it in a heartbeat. So I guess what I did was took on the stress of 2 people!

Now that I have a piso, I am so much more relaxed and happy to be here. Until now, I felt tense and anxious and so stressed out. I haven't really slept much since I got here, so I'm going to catch up on that sleep now that I don't have to worry about a piso. Plus, my entries will probably be a bit more exciting because I can actually explore Madrid now without have to keep my eyes peeled for "Se alquilo" (for rent) signs.

When I get everything moved in this week, I'll make sure to get some pictures up of the place. Until then, now it's on to finding a roommate!

Oh, and here's my address:

Michael Clemons

c/ San Dimas, N˚ 3, Planta 3, Puerta 3

Madrid, Spain 28015

I would love mail, but it might be expensive so don't feel the need to spend tons of money!