I’ve been home for almost two weeks now and it’s still hard to believe that my study abroad experience has concluded. It was very hard saying goodbye to my friends and host family; many tears were shed, but I was also happy to see everyone from home. It is certainly an adjustment to be back in the United States and I know it will take some time feeling comfortable here. The fact that it was so difficult leaving really goes to show what a great experience I have had during this past year. I can honestly say that I’ve changed so much as a person and I really got a lot out of this experience. It’s hard to believe that a year ago, I was contemplating whether I’d actually be able to be away from home for an entire year. If I had had the opportunity a year ago, I probably would have only chosen to go abroad for a semester. However, I now understand why most study abroad programs at Holy Cross are a full year. After my time here, I feel like even that wasn’t enough time and I could see myself spending coming back to Spain.

The experience certainly had its high and low points, but overall it was an amazing year. The challenges that I’ve had have really allowed me to grow and push myself in new ways. For example, the classes there really made me appreciate my Holy Cross education because even though I took them seriously and put in the work that I needed to, the structure of the university classes is very different. Not only was the structure and organization of the classes different but also the attitudes of the students came as a shock to me. In my opinion, I felt like there were a number of students did who not their classes very seriously and were not motivated to get the best grade they could; rather, many people are more than happy with a passing grade. This really made me value the education I receive at Holy Cross and has made me aware of some of the differences in the culture and academic institutions.

To anyone who will be going abroad in the future, I cannot stress the importance of trying new things and not being afraid to challenge yourself. Meet new people, share your experiences, and do everything you can to immerse yourself in the culture around you. It will be difficult and have its set of challenges, but it’s definitely worth it. The most important thing is to enjoy every moment of it! Everyone gets something different out of a year abroad and it is dependent on how willing you are to open yourself up to others. While this was difficult for me, challenging myself  has allowed me to learn a lot about myself, has given me more of a global perspective, and has allowed me to have the best year of my life in León, Spain. I really improved my Spanish, learned a lot about Spanish culture, learned to travel on my own, and made lasting friendships there.

While it was hard saying goodbye, it made it a little easier knowing that it was more of a “hasta luego”, because I will definitely be returning to Spain in the future and seeing my friends soon.  In fact, my two best friends from León will be visiting the US in September and I couldn’t be happier!

Finally, a big thanks to everyone who has been reading my blog and living vicariously through my adventures! I am glad that I was able to share my experiences with all of you!

¡Chao!

I am currently sitting here in my room, finally finished with all my exams and papers, thinking about the amazing year that I’ve had and questioning myself how it’s possible that I only have 4 days left here in León. Even though two of the other HC students have already left, it’s still hard to believe that this experience is coming to a close. I thought it would be appropriate to compile a list of my favorite things about León, and Spain in general. So, here goes:

My friends and host mom– The thing that I will definitely miss most about my year abroad will definitely be the people that I have met here. I consider myself so lucky to have gotten so close with my group of friends and I am absolutely certain that we will be keeping in touch and seeing each other in the future. Not only have I been able to become close with some people from León, but I’ve also gotten to know a lot of different international students in my time here. I’m also really going to miss my host madre, she’s provided me with a home away from home and made this experience so much easier for me. My experience here would be nowhere nearly as great without the people that I have met here!

The culture/way of life– In general, people here are more laid back and take time to enjoy themselves instead of getting caught up with work. Spaniards definitely know how relax and enjoy themselves and never seem to be in a hurry. While the whole not being in a hurry thing can be somewhat frustrating at times, it’s really nice to see people who are not constantly stressed out about work, and instead take the time to enjoy themselves.

Tapas (and Spanish food in general)-This is definitely one of the things I will miss most about Spain. I’ve absolutely loved going to tapas with friends and I have established my absolute favorite places to go. Not only are the tapas delicious, but it’s also a great way to spend time with friends. It’s a great environment seeing people of all ages in the bars, enjoying each other’s company. You go from place to place trying out the typical tapas of each bar, which are free when you buy a drink. (5 euro per person for dinner and drinks really isn’t a bad deal if you ask me!). As for the food, I have already prepared a bunch of my favorite Spanish recipes that I will be making in the US. Even though I once considered myself a picky eater, I find myself eating a little bit of everything now!

Being able to travel to a new country on the weekend- It’s been absolutely amazing how much I have been able to travel in the past year. I have seen 10 different countries with friends and have also had the opportunity to travel all throughout Spain with other international students thanks to the university trips. I had no idea that I would be able to do so much travelling in the past year; it’s been incredible and has really made me more independent and responsible. I now feel pretty comfortable in an airport, navigating any map, or tackling public transportation!

The Cathedral-I will definitely miss walking by the amazing Cathedral of León on a daily basis. There’s so much history behind it and it dates back to the 13th century. Seeing it illuminated at night is absolutely breathtaking and there’s certainly nothing like it back in the US!

Walking everywhere– For the most part, people walk from place to place within the city. León is so small that it is pretty easy to walk from one side of the city to another. Many people here don’t even have their own cars or drivers’ licenses. Not only is it a healthier approach, but you also get to see the beauty of the city and the rich history everywhere as you walk from place to place.

The Nightlife– Spain is known for its nightlife culture and it’s something I will definitely miss. For example, the espichas, or parties at the university that occur on Thursdays are something very unique to León. Students start to gather outside the university buildings in the afternoon and in the evening, they migrate to a huge tent with music on campus. I also can’t go without mentioning the Barrio Húmedo, where the streets are filled with people until the early hours of the morning. There are tons of different types of bars and surely there’s a place for everyone. There’s absolutely nothing like topping off a night of going out like having churros and chocolate at 6am!

Hello!

I would like to update you on some of the things that I’ve been up to recently here. My family visited me in Spain for 8 days and I had an incredible time with them. First, I met them in Madrid and we spent a few days there exploring the city. I am glad that I had already been to Madrid before because I already had a sense of where all of the sights are and how to navigate the city. My family decided to rent a car for the week, which turned out to be interesting to say the least, but despite some extremely narrow roads, treacherous highways through the mountains, and the busy streets of the city, we managed to make it alright without any major problems.

From Madrid we all went to León. My family had the chance to see the city I call home, meet my host mom, get to know my friends, and experience the Spanish culture here. It was great for them to be here and we had an awesome time together.  It was so nice to have them here. We also decided to take a day trip to a pueblo (village) that was close by. We went to a village called Santiago de Peñalba, a small town amidst the mountains. Little did we know that this would involve narrow windy roads on the side of the mountains without guardrails, and my father driving the rental car. My mother was holding on for dear life and I think it was the longest hour ride of my life. However, the sights were beautiful and we arrived at the village safely. The village consists of quaint buildings, a 10^th century roman church, some beautiful mountains. It was a really cool experience because only a handful of families live there year round and there weren’t any other tourists in the town. We had the chance to hike a little bit around the mountains and we even walked to a cave nearby in one of the mountains.

While my family was in Spain, we also spent one day in Gijón, a city on the northern coast of Spain, which is only about an hour and a half from here. It’s a very pretty city with a really nice beach and even though the weather wasn’t too great while we were there, we managed to have a great time there. Overall, I couldn’t have asked for a better week with my family. I am so happy that they were able to come visit me and see where I have been living for the past year.

After Easter here in Spain, we had a week and a half of vacation from classes, so I decided to travel to the Netherlands and Belgium with a friend from HC who studies in Ireland. It was certainly an adventure and each city that we visited was unique in its own way.

We started out our trip in Amsterdam, a beautiful city made up of canals, where there are more bicycles than people! We toured the Anne Frank House, which was very sad and surreal. After learning about the history of Anne Frank in school, it was very strange to be in the same room where she and her family hid for 2 years to escape capture by the Nazis. It was very moving, and I was especially struck by hearing the church bells right outside of the window because those were the same bells that she heard and wrote about in her diary. We also visited the Van Gogh museum, strolled through the park, and walked along the endless canals. One of my favorite things that I did in Amsterdam was definitely a bicycle tour of the city; I recommend it for anyone who travels there!  It lasted about two hours, we were able to see the entire city and learn about the history and culture at the same time. It was a very fun and relaxing way to see Amsterdam. While the city has a reputation of “sex and drugs”, the city has a rich culture and it is certainly much more than that!

After spending a few days in Amsterdam, we took a train to Brussels- well actually we ended up taking three different trains due to some issues, but don’t worry, I’ll explain. We bought our train tickets a few days in advance, went to the train station early in the morning, and hopped on a train to Brussels. Little did we know that we accidentally got onto the high-speed first class train that we shouldn’t have been on.  By the time we realized that, however, the train was already moving. After about an hour, the train stopped, and I decided to ask the conductor if I was on the right train. Of course the answer was no, so we needed to get off the train and find the right one. So there we were, in a random train station in the Netherlands, with no clue how we would get to Brussels. We eventually managed to find the correct train, waited a half an hour, and got on. We were sitting on the train, extremely content to finally be on our way to Brussels, when all of a sudden, the conductor makes an announcement over the loudspeaker. Apparently there was a security issue on the train and everyone would need to get off and wait an hour for the next train to come. After three trains, we finally made it to Belgium, relieved to say the least. Just in the nick of time, I found wifi in the Brussels train station and successfully enrolled for classes my senior year on my ipod. Im still in shock that somehow that worked out!

Anyways, I really enjoyed Brussels and Bruges, and they were both completely different cities. While Brussels was much more modern, Bruges was extremely calm and peaceful, and I felt as if I had went back in time strolling through the canals and cobblestone streets. One of my highlights of Belgium was the  self-guided chocolate tour that we did, aka we walked into every chocolate shop that we saw, ate free samples, or bought a piece of chocolate. I can’t even tell you how much chocolate I consumed in just a couple days. I have to admit, it was definitely the best chocolate of my life! We also ate plenty of Belgian waffles and Fries; needless to say we definitely experienced the typical food of the country! It was amazing that in only 6 days, we managed to see two different countries and three different cities that were each very unique. I couldn’t have asked for a better week!