Faith – Spain

Blog Entry 3

Another month in and Spain is really starting to feel like home to me. I know my way around the city and now have many spots that I frequently visit. I the last month I been doing a lot more schoolwork since the semester will be ending within the next couple of weeks. Many of my class have assigned group papers/ projects as a part of our final grades. The assignments have been going very well and my group are all very good and efficient with the work. A heavier workload, however, has not stopped me from exploring.

At the end of October, I went to London for a couple of days with a friend. London was amazing! I enjoyed the city and urban appeal of London because it is such a bug contrast from Murcia. While there I got to parliament square, Big Ben, The London Bridge, The London Eye, Soho, and Piccadilly square. Seeing Big Ben in person really puts into perspective the size of the tower, to truly admire the statue you need to be a good distance away. But Big Ben was not the only great thing about London, Piccadilly square is amazing, it reminds you of New York but better! There are so many stores and shops to look at and the people are all so different. Everyone has their own aesthetic, no one is wearing leggings/ athleisure clothing, like we do in the US. It’s a nice change.

Lastly since I am American, I couldn’t forget one of my favorite Holidays, Thanksgiving. It was a little different than what we would have had in the United States, but we made do. I had a Friendsgiving with some other Americans and some international students. It was very fun to share our American traditions with foreigners but mostly having thanksgiving made me feel like I was at home.

–Faith Mills

Blog Entry 2

Boy has time flown by, I have been in Spain for two months now and it has honestly been amazing. I have meet so many great friends along the way. During all our holiday we try and take a trip to a different country.

I would highly recommend doing this when studying abroad because when else are you going to have the time to travel around Europe or other parts of the western hemisphere at such affordable rates. So far, I have been to Hungary (Budapest), Morocco (Marrakech), and in the next couple weeks I will be traveling to London.

However, traveling is not my sole concern, I am still very focused on my studies. My classes here are taught in both English and in Spanish. At first scheduling was a bit hectic to make sure that my classes were bilingual but now that it is figured out everything is going smooth. I have a manageable workload and very accommodating professors. The professors here try to make sure that international students comprehend the topics being discussed and if not, they will personally help you. My workload is consisting of mostly class work during the work and a few take home assignments, and in all my business course I have a group project that is presented at the end of the term as a part of my final grade.

Though school and travel have been great that has not been the best thing that has happened in these last few months.  Surprise, Surprise I brought my dog, Delta, to Spain. She flew over to Spain shortly after my arrival and it has been great. Having her here has helped a lot with being home sick and keeping me active.  Since my main mode of transportation within the city is walking is very helpful because I can take her with me to most places. Here she gets to go to all restaurants that have outdoor seating since it is very common in Europe to bring your dog to restaurants. Waiters are very kind and usually bring out a water bowl for the dog.  Since having dogs is so common there are many dog parks located throughout the city, allowing us to make daily visits to the park.

–Faith Mills

 

Blog Entry 1

My name is Faith Mills I am Junior studying International Business and Spanish. I have chosen to study abroad in Spain through our partner program called ISEP. This week before departure was full of last-minute things that I needed to get done. For example, I had to drive up to DC to get my passport/ visa, so make sure when you send it in that you also send a return package with your label. Other than that, the last week went smoothly.

 

I arrived in Spain August 25 about a week and a half before my program start date/ I really would recommend coming at least a week before because it gives you time to explore and get comfortable with the culture. I had the chance to explore Sevilla and Málaga. They were both very large and beautiful cities. I couldn’t see everything there but I took a tour bus around both cities so I could see the main attractions of each city. Everything else that I wanted to see in the city was done by walking, so be prepared.

Now I am a few days out from the first day of class and I am so very excited but also nervous as well. We have orientation Friday the 2nd to help answer any questions and to also get us connect worth the other students in our program. It is nice to hang out with other students because they are going through the same issues that you are, so it makes the experience go a lot smoother. But what I am most excited for is becoming immersed in a new culture, becoming better at the language, and exploring Europe. With those excitements do come some reservations like acclimating to not being able to call my family all the time (because of the time difference) and being homesick. When these things happen cause, I know they will I am just going to try to look at the Brightside of things rather than dwelling on those feelings.

–Faith Mills