tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22563516.post-55063199789773298002008-03-04T10:24:00.003+01:002008-03-04T10:54:51.853+01:00Déjà vu is the strange feeling that you've been here before, even in new situations. Last year at this time we moved back to Madrid, found <a href="http://spaindad.blogspot.com/2007/03/new-apartment.html">an apartment</a>, and moved in. I can't help but think we're repeating history this year, even though we've never been here before.<br /><br />We found a new apartment over the weekend and will be moving in at the end of March. We spent most of last week negotiating a new contract with our landlords, but as soon as we settled on something, our new apartment came on the market, and it was everything we wanted, so we took it.<br /><br />Here are a few things I like about this particular apartment:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">250€ less per month</span><br />By far the main reason we like this apartment better than <a href="http://spaindad.blogspot.com/2007/03/new-apartment.html">our current one</a> is because of the price tag. We need the money for basic things like groceries, but April keeps dreaming of the trip we'll take to Greece with all the money we have now.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">It's 8 streets away</span><br />We are moving to a new apartment, but not a new neighborhood. I've discovered that our neighborhood matters more to us than our apartment, which means we'll still be able to drop in on our friends, play at <a href="http://spaindad.blogspot.com/2007/11/alleke-and-mom-on-swings.html">our favorite playground</a>, and shop at <a href="http://spaindad.blogspot.com/2007/06/panadera-part-i.html">the stores we know</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Playgrounds</span><br />3 playgrounds = lots of kids for Alleke to play with. All three playgrounds are within a five minute walk, and two of them are the best I've seen in the city center.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Market</span><br />I love buying fresh fruits and vegetables from local vendors. Our new apartment is closer to a food market that I started going to a few months ago. In comparison to the other markets, it has a larger selection of foods from around the world and has lower prices.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Grocery stores</span><br />Only a few grocery stores are located in the city center, which means it's always a hassle to get groceries. As a result, we've ordered our groceries online for the last four years. Our favorite grocery store, <a href="http://www.mercadona.es/">Mercadona</a>, doesn't deliver to our current address, but will deliver to our new one. We will be eating better next month, my friends.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">70 m2</span> (750 ft2)<br />Our new apartment is smaller than our current one. I'm sure our European friends will think it's spacious, but coming from a super-sized nation, we're still tempted to think bigger is better. April and I are both looking forward to the challenge of living smaller and more simply (in other words, we'll be giving things away and throwing them out as we pack).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Walking</span><br />We will be close to three metro lines, but even more importantly, we will still be within walking distance of most things we do. I prefer to <a href="http://kellycrull.com/personal/one_of_the_reas/">live my life at a walking pace</a> because I get exercise, I can stop and chat with people, and I'm not burning gasoline.<br /><br />Anyway, we haven't signed the contract yet, but if all goes well, we will be moving in at the end of the month. Here's some photos:<br /><br />Watch this slideshow in <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/97445131@N00/sets/72157604044150261/show/" target="_blank">fullscreen</a>.<br /><br /><style type="text/css">.dtop,.dbottom{display:block;background: white /* <- change http://www2.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifthe color of the corners here */ } .dtop b,.dbottom b{display:block; height:1px;overflow:hidden; background:#000} .d1{margin:0 5px} .d2{margin:0 3px} .d3{margin:0 2px} .dtop .http://www2.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifd4,.dbottom b.d4{margin:0 1px; height:2px} </style> <div style="text-align: center;"> <div style="background: rgb(0, 0, 0) none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; width: 460px;"> <b class="dtop"> <b class="d1"></b> <b class="d2"></b> <b class="d3"></b> <b class="d4"></b></b> <iframe style="margin-top: 10px;" src="http://www.flickr.com/slideShow/index.gne?user_id=97445131@N00&amp;set_id=72157604044150261" frameborder="0" height="390" scrolling="no" width="390"></iframe><br /><a style="font-size: 10px; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(85, 85, 85);" href="http://blogger-templates.blogspot.com/2005/09/flash-slideshow.html">Flash Slideshow</a> <b class="dbottom"> <b class="d4"></b> <b class="d3"></b> <b class="d2"></b> <b class="d1"> </b> </b> </div> </div><br /><br />Alleke's complete photo albums:<br /><a href="http://flickr.com/photos/97445131@N00/sets/72157603437622686/">13-15m</a> | <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/97445131@N00/sets/72157602073403819/">10-12m</a> | <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/97445131@N00/sets/72157600211311774/">7-9m</a> | <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/97445131@N00/sets/72157594489264524/">3-6m</a> | <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/97445131@N00/sets/72157594318296415/">0-2m</a>spain dadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10438464318100375855noreply@blogger.com