This entire past year has been a time of uncertainty. It started with COVID-19 sending me home from my freshman year a little earlier than expected. Then we were allowed to return to campus this past Fall but under limitations. I made sure to never get my hopes up about plans for future exciting events because I always knew that there was a high potential for the event to be canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions. Therefore, when I signed up for this study abroad program in early Fall, I was under the impression that it was going to be canceled.? However, everything worked out for the best, and I am currently writing this blog post from Barcelona, Spain!
It was great getting to know my fellow peers on the long layovers and plane rides while traveling to our destination. We landed around 8 AM on our first day and hit the ground running with only a few hours of sleep. It was packed with an apartment orientation, getting to know our neighborhood and bonding with our roommates. The apartment orientation was the most eye-opening due to the different types of lifestyle routines that Spaniards practice. What struck me as most surprising was how we completely turn off the electricity by removing a card out of the electricity slat whenever we leave our apartment.
This way we do not waste any electricity when we are not using it! I had never heard of something like this before and think it is a great idea to help live a more environmentally friendly life. We also practiced ordering our food in Spanish as we ate at a small caf? next to the famous La Sagrada Familia Basilica in our neighborhood. Lastly, the highlight of our first day here was learning how to navigate the metro.
Over the weekend, we had the opportunity to take a tour of La Sagrada Familia, which is only a short walk from our apartment. The stained glass is not only gorgeous from the outside but provides beautiful lighting inside of the church. This was the first Gaudi architectural design that I have seen, but I am looking forward to discovering more of his architectural work around the city. My group also had a fun beach day and watched part of the soccer championship at a restaurant on the beach that night. My first weekend here has been a whirlwind of exploration, adjusting to being seven hours ahead of our normal time zone, tons of walking, and taking in the culture surrounding us!
There is always a slight level of uncertainty when venturing into an unknown experience, but I have found that this is when I make the best memories. I start school this week and am excited to learn from both my A&M professor and a professor located here in Barcelona. I am looking forward to spending the next couple of weeks diving into the Spanish lifestyle, learning both inside and outside of the classroom, and exploring all that Spain has to offer!