Learning under the Spanish sun

Last May, only a few days after school ended, I boarded a plane to Europe, the land of my dreams, for the first time.

Being a Spanish minor, professors always encouraged me to study abroad in a Spanish speaking country. I chose to do that and complete my minor in Spain, the native land of the language. If there’s one thing you have to do in college it is studying abroad.

A group of about 20 students and I landed in Barcelona for our first Spanish experience only to find that they really didn’t speak Spanish at all, but Catalan. I certainly was surprised. This was one of the many eye-opening experiences on the trip where I realized how different yet how similar the United States and other countries are. Not everyone in the U.S. speaks English as his or her first language and we all know how diverse our country is. Spain is the same way because they have different languages and cultures.

We took classes in Valencia; the things I liked most were the shopping and the classes. I usually like shopping in America so this is no surprise, but unlike here, I enjoyed going to class. I learned about Spanish culture from a person who knew all about it, a native. The teachers were also young and fun. I learned so much about the popular culture as well.

I took Advanced Grammar and Conversation and Spanish Civilization. I really enjoyed both classes. They were tough and I had to study, but I know so much about the language and culture and it was worth it.

Professor Tony Alcarria was the leader of our trip and he certainly made me exercise because we walked so much. One can’t see Spain without walking around it. I saw castles that I had only dreamed of seeing before.

My favorite city we visited was definitely Segovia. It was beautiful and had the prettiest castle. We only spent a little time there, but I would definitely go back. It looked like something out of a fairytale.One of the friends I made on the trip was Kathryn Hollstein, a senior studying management information systems. Her favorite stop on the trip was Mallorca. We spent a weekend exploring this Mediterranean island.

“The best thing about the trip was having people to share the memories with. We all were in the same boat being away from home and it was nice to have people understand where I was coming from when I struggled with being homesick,” Kathryn said.

It was true that there were times when I didn’t enjoy being away from home for a month and Katelyn Hebert, fellow Colonnade staff member and roommate on the trip, was there for me. You will make friends and they will help you deal with being outside of your comfort zone.

Being out of our comfort zones was the best way to describe how Katelyn and I felt about Spanish food. She is a vegetarian and I’m just picky. It was hard to find what we liked in the cafeteria in our dorm, but in restaurants she discovered vegetarian paella, the meat free version of Spain’s favorite dish, and I discovered tapas and that Spain has the best chocolate.

The only suggestion I have for people who want to go on this trip or one similar to it is to make as many local friends that you can. It will make your language skills so much better. I didn’t get to do this to the extent that I would have liked to, so don’t make the same mistake I did and not make local friends. Go outside your comfort zone and meet new people.