Moving in... finally!

The guy I'm renting the apartment from is wonderful. His name is Mohammad, Mumi for short. He is from Germany, and is part German, part Persian. He's 25 years old and gay. He works as a free lancer in fashion and aspires to live in New York City. For the next few months, he will be traveling and thinks it best economically to rent his apartment in the mean time. He told me he's asking for the same amount he pays so he won't make a profit on this sublet. Considering what I've researched in the area, I believe him. For August, he is going to Germany to visit family. Then he wants to go to NYC for a month to try to make connections for a future move. Finally, for October, he's going to head to Paris. He can speak German, Spanish, English, and some French, at least. Being of similar ages, we have common interests and get along famously. I've met some of his friends too who are also quite nice. It's nice that we don't have to just have a strictly business relationship, because now we can offer each other some flexibility. The contract I signed is for 3 months, until the end of October, with a possible extension.

The moving day, however, started off the same way the rest of the trip had been going so far: a borderline disaster. Mumi, was adamant about completing the contract at 11:30 am August 3. I checked out of the hotel early and arrived at the apartment at 11:30 on the dot. I called Mumi. No answer, of course. I waited a few minutes before I called again, still no response. I figured he might be like some of my friends: a heavy sleeper. Most of my friends will rouse at 10 consecutive phone calls. Not Mumi! I went to an adjacent cafe for a while, then I sat on a bench in the shade, with half of my bags. Remember, I had dropped off some luggage the night I met him so I didn't have to move all at once. The apartment is on a square (called a Placa in Spain), so the shady bench had a decent view. After 3 hours of dwelling on not having a place to stay and less than half of my belongings, a very flustered Mumi called me with a thousand apologies. He proceeded to take me to lunch to thank me for my understanding. I admitted that as far as this trip has gone, everything seems to work out at the last minute and that this really was nothing new. I took a nap on my new couch while Mumi ran errands and finished packing. I helped him carry his bags to his friend's place where he's staying for a few days, because I wanted to meet more people. We had a nice evening with red wine and homemade lasagna. I slept my first night in my first apartment like a baby. The next morning, I took everything out of all the cupboards and drawers, then went to get cleaning supplies. I want to scrub the place top to bottom so it feels like new! After shopping, I took a looooooooong nap. Clearly, cleaning and getting settled in will take a few days, seeing as I'm already moving at a Spanish pace! Once this place is sparkling, I will post photos. Now I finally feel like my true Barcelonian adventures can begin!