Why go abroad?
As a college sophomore last year, I had the opportunity to go abroad, something I had never done before. Due to being on the education track, my licensure made it impossible to be able to go abroad during the typical junior year; this meant I was the only person I knew going abroad. Having an older brother who had just returned from Prague last year, I knew I had to jump at the chance. I consulted my parents and friends, filled out page after page of applications, and booked an overpriced ticket to Barcelona. Clearly, I had no idea what to expect and knew not a single soul, so the anxiety around this experience was at full force, but the glimmering hope that this could be the best chapter of my life (a cliché I know) was peeking out.
Spoiler Alert, it quite literally was! There is something so liberating about being in a foreign country and space, while not knowing anyone. Obviously, the first few days were not easy. However, I was blessed with the best roommates, who are now some of my best friends, and an awesome location to live.
Be Open-Minded
The thing about going into something blind is that you have to be open to anything. I specifically wanted to meet new people who didn’t go to UMass to get out of my comfort zone. The program I was part of really implemented this through school and living arrangements, placing me with girls from other schools, but still UMass students living in my apartment. You also have to be ready to relearn basically everything. Spanish and Catalan are Barcelona’s main languages, and adapting to reading, speaking, and communicating in them is a total 180.
The culture is also different. Personally, at my local bodegas, you don’t always say hello, but anytime you walk into a local market, you greet the shop owners. Not only because it’s kind, but also because they see you almost every day, grocery shopping is more of a grab a few things and stopping into shops a few times a week. Anyway, you get it, the culture differs from the excessive capitalism in America.Â
Meet the LOCals
I think, whether you’re alone or with friends, the true way to explore a new place is to go to the local spots. There was a Bar, Diagonal 241, right beneath my apartment building that my friends and I ended up frequenting. At some point, it was less the drinks and more the people. The bar owner, whom we call Mama Ingrid, was so welcoming and loving. She adopted us right away, always learning about our days and our silly American quirks. We met the whole neighborhood through her letting us into her world. We genuinely knew our neighbors, the local flower shop owner, and even her daughters. Her amazing daughter, Aitanaa, took us to local spots and taught us so much about Barcelona, while we helped her with some English as she was moving to Dublin. The point is, without being vulnerable to explore and break past speaking boundaries, you won’t meet some of the best people you know.Â
Embrace the culture
Learning to embrace the culture is such an important part of going abroad. I had a professor who took us around Barcelona every class. She taught us to view the world from a different perspective. We soaked up so much culture beyond what would be taught in a standard history class. We went to this one park where there were locals just dancing. To these locals, this impromptu dancing was just a natural way of love and communication between them. She encouraged me to explore other cities I was visiting through the lens of a local, whether that was through food, enjoying the local spots, or exploring the city in new ways. In truth, this caused me to drag my friends to some pretty odd spots in the world, but it only made us all appreciate where we were more deeply.
Overall, moving to a new place is scary, especially when alone, but it is so worth it. If you have the opportunity, jump at it! As Anthony Bourdain said, “If I’m an advocate for anything, it’s to move. As far as you can, as much as you can. Across the ocean, or simply across the river. Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food. It’s a plus for everybody.”
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