Madrid is quite a large city and it is divided into different districts. I live in the district of Moratalaz in the south east of the city. Within the district are barrios, the barrio that I live in is one of the most well connected in Moratalaz. I am 5 minutes walking distance from the Metro, grocery stores and cafes and steps away from bus stops that will carry me into the heart of the city. The neighborhood that I live in is scattered with tall apartment buildings that can reach up to seven stories tall. At the base of the building are various businesses including hair salons, computer repair shops, “china shops”, bars and pharmacies. The building where I live is on a busy yet quiet street with cars and buses running along it throughout day. The neighborhood is sprinkled with gardens and parks. Every day I walk past what appears to be an abandoned garden which is home to five cats that spend their days lounging in the sun. The streets are clean and strewn with people going about their day jumping into their cars to run errands or walking to the Metro to go to the city. My favorite part of the day is walking to the Metro in the morning to go to the university, the walk takes about five minutes but I enjoy the fresh crisp air and it is already about 70 degrees so you can tell if it is going to be hot or not for the day. On my walk I pass a library and next to the library is a senior center. Every morning on this walk I see the seniors being dropped off and escorted into the center for their daily activities which for me became a daily routine. I then reach the Metro stop and embark on my commute to the university. I spend, depending on the day, two to four hours a day in class. I attend class in the morning at the university but depending on the day I will have one of my classes in one of the various museums in the city. After class, it is about mid-day, not quite lunch time, Spaniards have lunch around two or three in the afternoon, so after class I will have second breakfast. Just across the street from my university is a centro comercial, there is a small café in which I can have a coffee and some pastries to tide me over until lunch. In the cafe, there are cases full of pastries and delicious cakes. One day I wanted to try a slice of chocolate cake, I order with my knowledge of what the word for cake is, but instead I received a pancake drizzled with chocolate! I was a little disappointed it wasn’t the amazing chocolate cake but nonetheless I was happy to eat the pancakes topped with whipped cream and chocolate syrup. Until then, students in my program and I will head into the city to explore something new. Then after exploring for a bit we search for a place to eat. In Madrid, during lunch there is a special called a menú del día, this special includes three course, appetizer, entrée and a dessert as well as a drink all for about 10 Euros. After lunch we explore, shop or study in the park. Then around eight o’ lock or earlier I head back home. There I relax and rest my feet from the day because I can walk up to ten miles a day here! And spend time with my host family. This is also a time when I would call my family due to the nine hour time difference I would have to only call at certain times. Then around 10 o’ clock in the evening we assemble to meet for dinner in the kitchen with my host family. Having been busy all day and walked nearly 10 miles I get ready for bed and would repeat the process all over the next day.

Thus far in my experience I have been surprised by myself. I am proud of myself for taking on the experience and trying to authentically live like a Spaniard for my stay here. I have taken the jump into the unknown and decided to live in another country half way around the world and I would like to think that I am doing it successfully too. I also have been surprised by my program. The people that I am traveling and studying with here in Madrid have been awesome; they have been great companions, friends and travelers. In addition, the program coordinators have been great as well, offering support, help and guidance in every step of the process.

I have been finding it a little bit difficult to find access and insight in community engagement. Due to my short stay and my classes only being with American students in the program, it has proven difficult to become more engaged with the people. At the university that I am attending there are no Spanish students to interact with since they are not having classes at this time in the summer. Advice I would give students that are interested in studying abroad is to just do it. You don’t know if you’ll have another opportunity to travel and study in another country. Another piece of advice I would give is to research. I believe a key to my success is that I came prepared and researched the country and city that I will be living in. Research will prepare you for anything that study abroad throws at you and make what could be strange situations into something navigable.