Leaving Spain

As I finish my summer here in Spain all I keep thinking about is how fortunate I am to have had this experience. Before I came all of my friends and family told me that this would be the best summer of my life but I didn't know what to expect at all. I knew it would be great but I didn't expect to have the opportunity to travel to 7 different cities in Spain, I didn't realize that my señora would welcome me as warmly as she did, and I didn't think I'd come out of this with as many new and close friendships that I have now.

When I landed in Madrid airport 6 weeks ago, I immediately felt awkward and uncomfortable. The first spanish conversation I had was with the person at the information desk about bus tickets to Salamanca. She replied very quickly and quietly to my question and I didn't understand her at all. I was so scared that the next 6 weeks would be just as discouraging with me having to ask people to repeat themselves over and over again. However now that's not the case at all. Living here in Salamanca has given me the skills and the confidence to conserve and reach out to the community. I'm really happy that I got over that discomfort because I would not have gone to Madrid or Barcelona and would have missed out on all the incredible experiences.

Living with Sagrario and speaking with her every day was a very valuable learning experience. Everyday at lunch we'd watch the news while we ate and she would explain to me things that we're happening in Spain. That was very helpful to me because it give Sagrario and I more things to talk about then how my day went and I in turn learned a lot about the Spanish culture. Sagrario was amazing to live with. The food was delicious, even when Sagrario served me parrotts, she always provided everything I needed, and took care of me when I was sick. Some of my favorite memories living with Sagrario would include how she calls half the people on television ugly, when I was sick we watched the Girl with the Pearl Earring together, and going out to lunch with her and Luis. I'm truly going to miss her constantly gossiping on the phone with her friends and repeating herself over and over again.

I was also very lucky to have excellent teachers, who made a great effort to make sure that I understood them and that I learned the things that would help me to make the most of my time here. I especially enjoyed History of Art because when I went to the Prado and the Reina Sofia it meant more to seeing the paintings when I know their significance. Cultura Española was also a very useful class because it made me aware of Spanish customs that had I not been aware of would have put me in very uncomfortable situations. I loved my "Learning and Living Abroad" class because it was specifically directed towards teaching us things that would make the home stay more comfortable and places that we should visit that we would not have know about otherwise.

I think I am most thankful for the friendships I made with the people in my program. I didn't know anyone going into this experience and now I have lots of new friends that I share lots of great memories with. For example our bus rides to the excursions, studying for midterms, meeting for dinner, and hearing everyone's stories about their homestays will definitely come to mind when I recall this summer. I'm glad that everyone is a student at U of M as well because it makes saying goodbye less difficult.

And here are some of my favorite pictures that reflect my experience best.

Our welcome dinner. At this point all these people were strangers to me.

First night out with everyone.

Watching Spain become Champions at Corte Ingles.

My birthday with all my new friends

View from Cathedral in Sevilla

The seventh beautiful Cathedral I saw

View from the roof of the Cathedral in Spain

The Erics and I at our group photo

To everyone that read this, thank you and I can't wait to see you again.