I’m writing this from my bedroom in my host family’s apartment in Valladolid, a small city in northern Spain. It’s 11 pm, and dinner was about half an hour ago.
It’s so hard to believe I’ve only been here for a week! It’s seemed so long, but mostly because it’s been so full of new experiences. Some memorable experiences:
- The trip there was incredible. We stopped in Atlanta, and people there make you feel so welcome. And on the flight to Madrid, I woke up just as the sun was rising and just as we saw the coast of Portugal. It’s the first time I’ve ever been to Europe and a moment that will always stay with me.
- Realizing how easy it is to connect with another person. So many of us were strangers before this trip, but many of us became fast friends. Liz and I have spent nearly every day together shopping and teasing and talking, but we didn’t know each other at all before. Likewise, I didn’t know Amanda or Rachel at all either, but we stayed up until 1:30 one night gossiping and laughing about our lives. I wrote so many people off as either uninteresting or not interested in me, but by having all of this time to be together and all of these shared experiences, it’s become so easy to relate to other people.
- Getting pushed out of my sheltered bubble. So many more people have piercings, dyed hair, cosmopolitan clothes, smoke, drink, have sex, etc. than in the US. While walking around Madrid, we were constantly warned to keep our bags close. We passed groups of people drinking in the middle of the day, urinating in an alley, and flipping us off really close to a busy market. I think that was the first time that I’ve actually felt completely unsafe somewhere. My host sister asked me if I wanted to have beers with her friend one afternoon, bought a pack of cigarettes from a vending machine as we were walking down a street, and talked about parties and hooking up every weekend. She is a warm but tough and non-superficial person, and seeing all of that really made me realize how sheltered Medfield is. Although I wouldn’t choose to drink and smoke and hook up myself, it’s not the end of the world if you do.
- Realizing how much American culture has spread around the world. Almost all of the young people here are really into American music (LMFAO, Katy Perry, Michael Jackson…), American movies (The Hunger Games, Bridesmaids, Mary Poppins, Titanic…), American TV shows (The Simpsons, Modern Family, Two and a Half Men…) etc. I had a similar experience in Shanghai—people just knew all of this American media.
- Language barriers and the universality of a smile. So many times, I’ve had to ask, ¿cómo? because people talk so fast and use complex language and new vocabulary and expressions. It’s so hard to understand classes and my host family, but it’s such a learning experience. But smiles and simple greetings go so far for connecting to other people.
Overall, I haven’t fallen in love with Spain. I adore Sonia, my Spanish sister, the language, the tortilla de patatas, the shopping, siestas, and the parks. The first few days were difficult, but now I’ll be sad to leave. At the same time, America is my home, and truly a place where I can create my life. But I have another week left, so I’m going to make the most of it.
