Trip to Cadiz, Spain

I made my first trip to Spain at the beginning of April to the University of Cadiz (Universidad De Cadiz). This visit was not for fun but to analyze pharmaceutical compounds in seawater samples obtained from the North Sea Thanks to my research group; processes and sensors of the marine interfaces for helping to collect the samples during the Heike Cruise in March 2023.

The University of Cadiz is in Cadiz Province located in the southwestern part of Spain. The University according to Global Higher Education was founded in 1979 with an origin that can be traced back to the 15th century. The University has four different campuses which are located in four different cities. The cities are Cadiz City, Puerto Real City, Jerez City, and the Bay of Algeciras. Each campus has different faculties. For instance, the College of Engineering, Health, and Computer Sciences are on the Cadiz campus. Administrative work is said to be on this campus.

On the other hand, studies relating to Education, Marine sciences, and natural and Environmental sciences are on the Puerto Real campus. I, therefore, visited this campus for the analysis of my seawater samples for two weeks. I must say that it was a wonderful experience 😍😀.

We left on the 10^th of April in the morning with samples as my supervisor came to pick me up to the airport (Hamburg). It was indeed a good trip with her and I am so lucky to have such a very nice supervisor. Because of the samples, we had to leave as early as possible in the morning to be able to check in the extra luggage. Checking in was good and effective. Flight takeoff and landing were also good only to get to the airport (Jerez airport; the closest airport to Cadiz) without my samples and other luggage arriving at the same time with me. My host at the University Professor Pablo Lara-Martin communicated effectively with the customer care service of the flight. I could not speak Spanish. I knew that speaking English with customer care would not afford me the full information needed for the location of my luggage 😀. Thus, with his effective communication technique, we were able to locate the samples and my other luggage. They were delivered to the University the next day and I was really happy. Information about sample processing and results will be published in a scientific journal and later posted on this page.

My host was the head of the Physical Chemistry Department in the Faculty of Marine and Environmental Sciences, at the University. The research group majored in the distribution and analysis of pharmaceutical compounds in coastal environments, estuaries, and wastewater treatment plants. They have expertise in different types of chromatography and mass spectrometry most especially in ultra-performance liquid chromatography and triple quadrupole mass spectrometry. You can find some of their publications here. All the people in the research group are nice, welcoming, and accommodating. I would love to visit the school again and I look forward to more collaborations 😍😀.

Now let’s talk a little bit about Cadiz and the reasons why you should visit this amazing place.  Cadiz is located in the southwestern part of Spain. The City is very rich in culture and all-around beauty. According to Biel-Maeso et al. (2018), the city has a total number of 430,000 inhabitants, five ports, and many shipyards and because the city is an island, its important attribute is fishing tourism. So, if you are interested in fishing and tourism pack your bags and head to Cadiz for an unforgettable experience.

Even though was busy analyzing my samples during my two-week stay at the university, I had the chance to visit the city on my last day there with a couple of wonderful friends and I was overwhelmed by the beautiful scenery that radiates over the city. I have not been to other cities in Spain but I can say that Cadiz can be the perfect destination if you want to experience Spain’s true essence. Please see the pictures below.

Another important aspect of the city is the transportation system which is typical of the European transportation system. Transportation is not only good but also very cheap. You however have to purchase the popular transportation card and load the card with maybe 10 Euros. This will be affording you over 90 % discounts on transportation by bus. For instance, commuting to the University from Puerto Real resident with the card in most cases costs me only 34 cents. Without the cards, I once had to pay 2.30 euros 😩.

Overall, my trip to the University of Cadiz was an unforgettable experience, full of research experience and natural beauty. If you are a student and you are planning to visit the University for a research stay, depending on the location of the department you intend to visit, you can choose to stay in Puerto Real or Cadiz. Even though both are in the same Cadiz province, they are two different cities and are located some kilometers (30 minutes max) away from each other. If you plan to visit the Puerto Real campus, staying in Puerto Real will save you some time in communing with the University every day. But you can also stay in Cadiz for full culture, history, and beautiful scenery experiences.