Shopping in Vigo

 Hello!

 I thought I would do a post about shopping for food and amenities in Vigo, as it may be of interest to anyone living or studying there, or considering doing so. 

 I chose to live on the University of Vigo's mountain campus. It was beautiful, and I was very content there. However, there was only, to my knowledge, one small food shop, which was part of the university and closed outside of class hours. I therefore had to look a little further for most of my food. 

 When I first moved into the accommodation, I was advised to have my shopping delivered, and I used a shop called Froiz. They had some nice products - I liked their pizzas, biscuits, yogurts and rice pudding - and delivery was very useful for heavy things, like bottles of water and milk.

 However, I became aware that halfway down the hill were an Alcampo and a Lidl, and that they were on one of my bus routes. I knew I liked Lidl food, it having been my local supermarket in a few places I had lived. I was craving their rolls and chocolate. So, I took the bus down the mountain.

 The two shops are situated on a huge, busy road leading out of the city.

 However, the area around them was, at least when I was there, all untamed, beautiful greenery. It was nice to get off the bus and just stand for a bit, enjoying the wildflowers.

 Lidl had much the same products it has everywhere (or at least in the UK, France and Spain, based on my experience): a great range of sweet and savoury rolls and pastries, lots and lots of chocolate, sugary but tempting cereal, extravagant cookies, plenty of fruit. 

 One quirk of Vigo's Lidl was a supposed pick-and-mix of chocolate truffles, except they only ever had one flavour, which was coconut. They were divine, though, and I would always buy a handful.

 I had been to an Alcampo with Daojun, and so I knew they could be big, but this one still blew my mind with its hugeness. There were so many sections, with food, books, clothes, appliances... It was like several shops in one.

 I spotted some Cathy Cassidy books...

 ...and some really pretty Malory Towers editons.

 There was also a strange story in Galician about a mole who finds something surprising on his head...

 In the clothes section, I noticed a trend of English and French words and phrases being used.

 I generally preferred Lidl to Alcampo, as it was smaller and felt more relaxed. Alcampo did have lovely books, though, and some cool food items such as enormous chocolate bars crammed with different fillings, rice cakes that I really liked and light vegetable snacks (like a crisp alternative).

 After shopping I would face the dreaded uphill walk with my heavy bags to the bus stop. It was always a wonderful feeling to relax into my seat and cruise up the mountain, often watching the sun set over Vigo. 

 In those moments, looking down on the city, it would really hit me just how enormous it is, sprawling across the hillside and hugging the sea. It would remind me of Rio de Janeiro. I was amazed to be part of it.

 I hope this post has been useful or enjoyable. Vigo is a great place to study, and you shouldn't worry too much about the campus being so rural. With regards to food, there are options - deliveries, or a bus ride to Lidl or Alcampo. I loved my time in the mountains and am very glad I chose them.

 Thanks for reading.

 Liz x

My Mam and Granma in Vigo

 Hello!

 My semester in Galicia was sadly coming to an end. However, I had something to look forward to: as they had done in Avignon, my mother and grandmother would be visiting me for a few days. 

 My Mam and I would then fly back to the UK together, while my Granma would return to Ireland.

 As the days became hotter and the sky ever bluer, I made the most of my remaining weeks in Vigo. I wandered around town and relaxed by the sea. 

 I enjoyed the city's quirkiness all over again - the Merman and his Celta shirt and scarf; the E.T. on a bike suspended from the ceiling in the A Laxe shopping centre. I listened to the breeze in the palm trees, and watched the impressive boats and little birds that frequented the harbour.

 My mother arrived, and I met her in town. We enjoyed pizza and ice-cream at A Laxe, and were amazed by the size of a cruise ship that had moored. It dwarfed the Maritime Station building, which had always struck me as big and imposing.

 We caught the bus that would normally have taken us up to campus. However, today it finished its route in one of the villages on the way up the mountain, and we had to wait there for the next bus. This was a bit of a pain when we had luggage, but it was an incredibly pretty place. 

I wasn't sure at first whether this was a cat or a fox

This gate had a sign saying "Dangerous dog"

 We eventually reached campus, and I introduced my Mam to the loud frogs that lived in the pond outside my room. She had visited me before but in winter, and I was so glad she had the chance to see the hills and pine forests in their spring beauty. We had a nice, chilled afternoon.

 The next day we headed into Vigo to meet my Granma. She hadn't visited the city before so we spent some time exploring, strolling down the Calle Príncipe and looking in shops.

 On Porta do Sol my Granma met the Dinosaur and we encountered an orchestra.

 We went down to A Laxe, where we had some frozen yogurt and checked out a bicycle exhibition, a bakery and a craft and trinket shop.

Sweet kids' hairdresser

 Back outside, we introduced Granma to two famous Vigo sculptures, the forlorn-looking Swimmer and the tentacled tribute to Jules Verne. 

 We had chosen some pastries at the bakery and now we sat and enjoyed them in the sun. Someone had left biscuits on the ground and seagulls were fighting passionately over them.

 We made our way back to Porta do Sol to get the bus back to campus.

The football bus!

An interesting idea to have an escalator leading up from a main shopping street - I imagine it is useful for people laden with bags

 The bus took us back up the mountain, where we admired the gorgeous sunset.

 It had been a wonderful two days and I couldn't wait to see what other adventures we would have.

 Thanks for reading.

 Liz x