Back in the US!

I have to admit I was extremely excited to head back to the States when it was time. Being home feels great, although sometimes it feels like the trip barely happened, which is probably because nothing at all has changed here in my hometown. I absolutely loved Spain. Spain was an awesome experience for me. I met tons of people and got to take trips throughout the rest of Spain. I got to experience the school-life there and do the things that Spanish kids do for fun, which are very similar to what American kids do. I got to just live and adapt to the Spanish culture, and, of course, I got to learn Spanish!

 Everything was awesome. I really can’t complain about much, other than it’s a bummer they don’t celebrate thanksgiving over there. Go figure. But living there, even though it was a short amount of time, taught me about the culture and their way of life. Things such as eating times, what they eat (which is so much more healthy than the American diet…), and even when they do things– for example, my host sisters (one being 10 and the other 14) were up until 10:30 or 11 o’ clock on school nights, when I was their age I went to bed at 8:30! And the biggest thing I learned was, of course, the language! I probably made myself fluent in what I already knew, (if that makes sense) and doubled it. I can carry on a conversation if it’s directed towards me and I understand the topic. I can understand much more than I can say. It was cool to be able to understand what was going on. 

 My older brother and mom came to Spain the last week while I was there, and I took them around with my friends.  It was cool to be able to talk to the waiters in Spanish and understand and translate for my family. I felt fluent, even though obviously I was not, but I really feel like I learned quite a bit of Spanish, much more than I would have learned sitting in a Spanish class in high school. While my family was there, we also introduced them to my host family and my friends’ families. My friends, Carmen and Fernando, are coming to Michigan in the summer, and their parents wanted to meet my mom and make sure everything was okay. My last three days there, we went out to eat numerous times with my host family and we went to Carmen’s house for dinner, and had tons of excellent meals. It was just such a great time. It was awesome how welcoming they all were to my family!

 The ending was the hardest in two ways. As it got closer to leaving, I realized that I actually was ready to go home. I started to get excited to see my family and talk to them and show them my pictures, etc. But then at the same time, while being excited to leave I was getting sad about leaving the people I have made life-long memories with– people who I couldn’t forget even if I wanted to. Not everyone gets the opportunity to study abroad. I don’t think it’s possible for me to forget an experience like this. It is something I enjoyed and would love to experience again later in college.

 Spain was an amazing experience. Something I will never forget. Definitely recommended.

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