'I do not mind riding a bicycle, it is stopping that is the problem.' Monica Lopez Lorenzo, a Chemical Technology aio originally from Santiago de Compostela in Spain, has only been here since 1 September and is not yet used to cycling.
She has just started working for the Textile Technology Group lead by Professor Warmoeskerken. 'I am researching improving the properties of fibres recycled from textiles, using enzymate technology. After my Master's degree in chemical engineering at the University of Santiago de Compostela, I was a PhD student at the same university for two years.'
It was a difficult decision to leave Spain and start again after all the work. 'But the University of Twente offered me the opportunity to do interesting research that is also useful for industry.' A friend of hers from Santiago was already working here at the CT faculty. And she liked it at the UT when she came for the interview in May. 'During my visit I decided that when they offered me the job I would accept, they did and I spent the summer packing.'
Twente agrees with her and she is not worried about winters here - the North-west of Spain has wet and fairly cold winters, 'so I will probably feel right at home', she explains. She will use her time here for research, of course, but also to enjoy herself exploring Twente and the Netherlands, learning Dutch. 'And', she laughs, 'learning how to ride a bicycle without falling off when using the brake.'
