Interview with Kinjal Chatterjee: ‘It’s very good because you feel a sense of community’.

Kinjal Chatterjee is from Calcutta (India) and has been living at Unihabit Ciutat Vella (Barcelona) for two years. He is studying a double degree in Global BBA and Artificial Intelligence for Business at EADA Business School. 

From Unihabit we have interviewed Kinjal to tell us his story and his experience in the university residence in Barcelona, Unihabit Ciutat Vella.

I was thinking about what I wanted to study, and I had always known that I would do something related to technology or the business world. I found this double degree, which was perfect, and also my program director is a lab director at MIT, and I wanted to study with him. That’s why I chose to come to Barcelona. It was also influenced by the fact that I’ve been a Barça fan since I was about four years old, so it all fit together.

Yes, I love Barcelona. It’s never boring, you have so many things to do… 

When I was looking for a place to live, first, I saw that my university had connections with Unihabit, and I knew that Unihabit was a legitimate place. Also, it’s very close to the centre of Barcelona and very well connected to everything. Plaza Cataluña is a ten-minute walk away, Paseo de Gracia is about fifteen minutes away, and it’s also a beautiful place. These were my reasons for choosing Unihabit.

I came to live here for the first year and then I decided to renew the contract because I love this place and I love the people. A lot of people I met last year also renewed, so I thought: if my friends are staying here, I’m staying here too, why shouldn’t I stay?

My classes are in English, I don’t speak a lot of Spanish, but I understand a lot, about seventy per cent.

I tried to use Duolingo, like everyone else, but I had problems with the visa because I was 17 when I came, and I forgot everything I had learned before. But once I got here, I got used to it, and now I can walk around the city and get around in Spanish, but I still can’t speak fluently.

My favorite place in Unihabit is the roof; the views are incredible.

In the morning, you can go there and it’s sunny, as it is almost always in Barcelona. The terrace is perfect. There’s a ping-pong table, great for playing or just sunbathing, although I don’t do it much, but it’s a great space. And at night, you can see the stars and the whole city lit up. You can even see Montjuic from the terrace, it’s beautiful. 

Apart from that, the study room is very good. It’s always full because everyone is studying, but it’s very nice because you feel a sense of community.

You are far away from home, but you see other people who are also far away from their families doing the same as you, and this gives you strength.

These two things are what I like the most.

As I was 17, I needed to have legal guardians in Spain to get the visa. When I went to the consulate, I didn’t know, and the consulate was not in my city, but in Delhi. It was interesting because they said: ‘OK, we take your documents, but you have two weeks to get legal guardians.’ We had to run around a bit.

The university lawyers said they would do it, so it was quite a process, and my arrival was delayed by about two weeks. But, well, I arrived.

I miss the food, I miss my mother. But I would say I like Barcelona more than my hometown. I mean, obviously I love my city, but it can get a bit boring, and it’s too hot in summer.

I don’t know yet, to be honest. I’ve just finished my second year, and the fourth year, I’ll be in France, so I’ll be graduating in France.

I’m not quite sure if I’ll come back here, or if, when I find a job, maybe I’ll move there or do a Master’s degree somewhere else. But it’s a place where I’ll always be open to coming back.