If you were to ask the people who I’ve met in college to describe me, a lot of them would probably use the word “adventurous” at some point or another. Beginning with the gap year that I took after graduating high school, I found myself drawn to new experiences and the unfamiliar world around me. Because of this, it was no surprise that I chose a major that required a semester abroad, or the fact that I wouldn’t shut up about it. 

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I had looked forward to studying abroad since I got to college, so when the time came for me to embark on this new journey, I was beyond excited. I had decided to spend Spring semester 2024 in Seville, Spain, and it did not disappoint. I initially went into the experience hoping to develop my Spanish skills, experience as much of Europe as possible, and learn about a new culture through immersion. Although I got to do these things, there were a lot of aspects to the study abroad experience that were different than I expected, and my final learning goals and takeaways have shifted slightly since coming back and having time to reflect. 

One of the biggest alterations that I had to make to my initial learning goals was the Spanish speaking aspect of study abroad. Having taken several Spanish courses since middle school, I was sure that going to Spain and living there for 4 months would lead to perfect fluency for me. This was unfortunately not the case. Although my Spanish speaking skills improved immensely because of this semester, it was no walk in the park. Upon arrival, I figured that I had ample experience and knowledge to be able to communicate seamlessly with the locals, but boy was I wrong. This was my first time in Spain, and I was very quickly reality-checked with the difference between classroom Spanish and real-world Spanish. Although I was still determined to improve my speaking skills, by the end of the semester, my objective had shifted slightly and was more focused on building confidence while speaking. Because I had most of the fundamentals down, I quickly realized that one of the largest barriers to success wasn’t my actual ability to speak, but rather my ability to do so with confidence; to push myself outside of my comfort zone and speak to locals, knowing that I would probably make mistakes and not seem like a native speaker (which I’m not). 

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Another one of my main goals for this semester was to fully immerse myself in a new place and learn about what it’s like to live in a culture different from my own. This was one of my favorite things about studying abroad, and I very quickly fell in love with Spanish culture. One key distinction that I quickly noted between our culture and the culture in Seville was the work-life balance and the perception of time. In southern Spain, nobody seems to be in much of a rush, which I found to be a drastic difference from what I was used to in the United States. People in Seville take their time walking from place to place, they enjoy lunch breaks outside every day with friends, chatting and maybe even drinking a beer. There is no such thing as “waiting for the weekend” to have fun. It very quickly became obvious to me that Spaniards enjoy every day, Monday-Sunday. They do not assign all of their happiness to the two days at the end of the week, which I admire greatly.

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Additionally, regarding work culture, it was clear to me that Spaniards' lives do not revolve around their work in the same way that Americans’ do. Here, we are taught that you must work hard in school to get into a good university to then get a good job. Then, that job is essentially supposed to become the main focus of your life. Conversely, in Spain it seemed like there was much more of a “work-to-live” than a “live-to-work” culture. Of course, work is important and people have jobs; however, even some of my professors were perfect examples of how their job did not dictate their whole lives. One of them, for example, arrived to class a few minutes late one day because he had been out to lunch with his friends, and they were having fun so he got caught up. Here in the U.S., this would be considered “unprofessional”, but to him, it was only something that deserved a simple “apologies” prior to beginning class and going about his day as normal. This is something that I really respect about Spanish culture, and it was very interesting to be exposed to that lifestyle.

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Although I deeply enjoyed my time in Seville, one of my other favorite aspects of studying abroad was having the opportunity to travel all around Europe and experience a multitude of new places. Prior to this semester, I had never been to Europe, so I was determined to get out and about as much as possible while I was over there, and my time traveling was one of the most memorable parts of the whole experience. I was lucky enough to go to several cities and countries, all of which impacted me in different ways. One that was particularly memorable was my trip to Morocco, as this was the most culturally different place I experienced. Visiting a country with customs and ideologies so different from those in the U.S. was truly eye-opening in so many ways. It pushed me way outside of my comfort zone and exposed me to a completely different lifestyle. Seeing the way the women were dressed, and the lack of women out on the streets was something that particularly stuck out to me, and is something that I will never forget. In general, all of my travel experiences taught me to have an open-mind, how to plan-ahead, and how to adapt to unfamiliar situations. I believe that these are all important life-skills that I will continue to carry with me into the future. 

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One commonality that I experienced throughout the semester which really opened my eyes to my own privilege and role in society was the use of English throughout the world. Although I was determined to speak as much Spanish as possible and develop these skills, I couldn’t ignore the fact that no matter where I went, there was always somebody who spoke English. In Italy, Denmark, Portugal, and even Morocco, I could have spoken English at any time if I needed to. I remember being in Rome and taking a pasta-cooking class that was inevitably taught in English, and noticing that my friend and I were the only Americans in the class. Others were from France, Germany, and other European countries with their own languages, and yet the class was fully instructed in English. For one of the German women, this made things challenging for her as her English was not very strong. While watching her try to follow along with the instructor, I had this sort of massive realization that I am so lucky to have English as my first language, and what a privilege that is. It dawned on me then that there is a reason that so many people from different countries speak a multitude of languages, and it almost frustrated me that we do not have the need for that in the United States, as almost everyone everywhere knows English. It seems unfair, but I do recognize how lucky I am to have grown up with that as my first language. 

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Overall, my study abroad experience was so valuable in so many ways. I grew immensely as an individual and learned so much about myself and the world around me. Academically, my Spanish skills improved significantly and I gained confidence in my ability to learn and grow even when it seems challenging at first. I developed soft skills such as open-mindedness, adaptability, and time management which I have implemented throughout my senior year and plan to carry with me into the future. I have learned more about what I find value in and what is fulfilling to me as a student and as a human being. In general, I feel incredibly fortunate to have had this opportunity and all of the experiences that came with it. Seville, Spain and the time I spent there will always hold a very special place in my heart.