One of the reasons why I chose Clemson and my major is because I knew that I wanted to study abroad. In the spring semester of 2022, I had the opportunity to study abroad in Alicante, Spain. Originally, I had planned to go abroad with one of my friends from another university, which made me much less nervous because I would have someone that I know with me. However, at the last minute things changed regarding her credits and she could not come anymore. This terrified me because I didn't know anyone in my program and I was scared to go to Spain all by myself.  We were originally supposed to go to Bilbao, but when I found out that my friend couldn't come, I switched to the program that went to Alicante, Spain because it is in the south of Spain and I wanted to be close to the ocean and in a warmer area. 

​

     I was very nervous to go abroad for six months without knowing anyone and to leave my friends at Clemson behind, but nevertheless I was excited for the new experience. I was lucky enough to have my mom fly with me to Alicante the week before my program started to become more familiar with it. Neither my mom nor I had ever been to Europe before, so we made a vacation out of it.

​

     Once I arrived in Alicante, I had a rude awakening. I could not speak or understand Spanish to the level that I thought I could and it was very hard to understand the Spaniards when they spoke. This was different from a culture shock because I was more shocked by myself than Spain. I knew it was going to be different and they were going to speak Spanish, but I didn't anticipate feeling so underprepared with my Spanish. On our second day, we took a train from Alicante to Madrid and I was so overwhelmed. There were so many people speaking Spanish to me and I couldn’t understand them and I felt like I couldn’t respond fast enough. We were supposed to return to Alicante on a train that left at 8 PM, but I was having such a bad day that we ended up changing our train and leaving at 5 PM. 

​

     This became a common theme for me during my first month in Alicante. Before arriving in Alicante, had never taken a class where no English was spoken, so my classes being completely in Spanish was difficult for me at first. It seemed like no one else was struggling in my classes, so I felt very behind, which was also a new feeling. I remember being so confused in class, but I felt like I couldn't ask questions because I didn't know how to ask them in Spanish. However, I did very well on our first exam, which gave me much more confidence in my Spanish, because although I was struggling, I was learning so much. After the first exam, I could tell that my Spanish was getting better because understanding my professor became easier and talking to people in Spanish outside of class was starting to become easier. Throughout the semester, I could tell that my Spanish skills were improving at an extremely rapid rate from my classes and being able to speak Spanish every day with the locals of Alicante. I learned more Spanish during my semester in Alicante than I could have ever expected, but I also gained so much confidence in my Spanish. At the beginning, I was scared to speak because I didn't want what I said to be incorrect, but I learned that I have to speak in order to get better and that my Spanish will never be perfect if I don't practice. By the end of the semester, I was confident talking to locals despite my fear of saying things incorrectly because they always were able to understand what I was saying and carry on the conversation. 

​

     Aside from the language skills I gained, I also had so many valuable cultural experiences that I will remember for the rest of my life. I was able to visit various places in Spain like Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid, Ibiza, and many other small cities near Alicante. I learned so much about Spanish culture and their way of life. I went on a few field trips with my program to Valencia, Granada, and Altea. These were so much fun because we went on tours and learned so much about the city that we were in. I also loved the group field trips because it meant that everyone from my program was together. I learned other things about Spanish culture just from observing things from my time there. For example, in Spain, people don’t usually eat dinner until about 9PM, which was difficult to get used to at first. I really enjoyed how the pace of life in Spain is so much slower than in the United States. Spaniards will sit outside at a cafe eating tapas for hours and chatting with their friends. No matter what time of day, there were always people sitting outside and enjoying the company of others. This idea goes along with how my professor was much more relaxed than most of my professors in the United States. First of all, she asked that we address her by her first name, which was very new to me, and honestly I felt a little disrespectful at first. Second, she made a group chat with us on Whatsapp which is the equivalent to iMessage in Europe, which was different to all of us because I don't believe that any of us have been in a group chat with our professor in which we could text, ask questions, and send pictures from our weekend. Third, being late is a part of Spanish culture. As I previously mentioned, people don't eat dinner until 9 PM, which means the rest of the day starts later, too. I also learned from my friends that were locals that showing up right on time to a social event is not normal, it is normal to be at least 15 minutes late. In addition, being late to class was a very understandable thing in Spain, even my professor was late a few times! In the United States, I have had professors who would take points off our final grade if we arrived late or even just count the person as absent if they are late. However, when we told my professor in Alicante about this, she did not understand it at all, because everyone runs late sometimes. All of these observations helped me gain a deep understanding of how fast paced and intense life in the United States is and how it is the opposite in Spain and other parts of Europe. 

​

     Being able to travel while I was abroad also enriched my experience. Our spring break was 2 weeks long which gave us ample opportunity to take some trips that we needed more than just a weekend for. My spring break was my favorite time during my time abroad. My friends and I went to Lisbon, Porto, Florence, Rome, and the Amalfi Coast. It was the most incredible 2 weeks of my life. In Lisbon, we took multiple tours and I learned so much about Portugal. We went on a sailboat and we got to see Lisbon from the water which was so beautiful. In Florence, I learned about the wine and food culture in Italy and it was delicious. It was amazing to see all of the historical sites in Rome. Thinking about how the Colosseum and other buildings were hundreds of years old was like stepping into the past. I felt so grateful to be able to see it all in person. Amalfi was the most beautiful place I have ever been to. The locals were so kind and accepting of me and my friends.  

​

     My time in Spain and abroad allowed me to have new experiences that I never would have had if I hadn't gone abroad alone. I made so many new friends and it was amazing to share experiences with them. I met many people from Clemson that I had never met before which resulted in me having more friends at Clemson when I returned. I made friends with people from universities across the country, so I have friends in all different parts of the United States now. I didn’t know it before I left, but going abroad alone was exactly what I needed to mature and grow as a person. It was an incredible feeling to know that I studied abroad and made amazing friends and had incredible experiences all on my own, and I was able to return as a more cultured and mature individual. Alicante helped me grow academically and personally and I will be forever thankful for my experiences.