Before arriving to Spain, I didn’t know what to expect. This was my first time traveling outside of the country in years and I had to do it alone! I was very nervous, especially since the only other country I have traveled to is El Salvador, where my family is from. I was so eager to immerse myself in a whole different culture and learn from the people, traditions/customs, and food!

Upon arriving here, I realized how kind people were to me. I traveled a day earlier from the whole group, so I remember arriving at the airport in Madrid alone and having to figure out how to get to my Airbnb. I had no phone service and was only able to use my phone with wifi. However, people around me were so helpful; my Uber driver helped me so much as soon as he got to the airport to pick me up and take me to the Airbnb. My host at my Airbnb was also very kind to me and helped me get things I needed for this trip. The following day, I met with the rest of the group. We went to Salamanca together on a bus and when I first arrived, I immediately fell in love with the city and its architecture. There were several times in which I went to a cafe, store, restaurant, or bar, and people made me feel comfortable and welcomed.

A typical day for me in Salamanca went like this:

Classes start at 9:00 am and go on until 1 or sometimes 2 pm. I stayed with a host family and had three other roommates. Before class, we would have breakfast and then walk together to the school. My first class was Lengua Española, and this class lasted 2 hours. First period is always the longest class, so we are given a 10-15 minute break towards the middle of class. My second class started right after. I took Historia de la España Contemporánea. After this class, we had to go straight to our next class, which was Literatura Contemporánea for me (this was my favorite class by the way!). On days where I did not have our discussion class for API, I would be out by 1:10 pm, otherwise I would get out at 2:10 pm. When class was over, I would walk back home and have lunch with my roommates and host family. After lunch, which is typically at 3 pm, everyone would go take their siesta! Taking midday naps is suggested in Spain, so I definitely took advantage of that whenever I could! Later in the day we would usually have an activity or group excursion through the API program. At 9 or 10:00 pm, our host mom would serve us dinner and my roommates and I would sit and talk about our day together. It was a nice way to end the day (and yeah, there were some nights we decided to go out and meet with friends after dinner!).

Traveling to other cities on the weekends was definitely one of my favorite parts of the experience. We traveled to Galicia, Segovia, and Santiago de Compostela. Studying abroad allowed me to place myself in a whole different world where I got to learn so much from the people and their culture. If you want to study abroad, make sure you go with an open mindset and be willing to try new things. I promise you it will definitely make your experience more enjoyable and one you will never forget. I look forward to traveling there again in the future!