Barcelona: Attracts the worst of Americans but still remains absolutely INCREDIBLE Past Review
By Hannah C (Art and Psychology, Trinity University) for
IES Abroad: Barcelona - Study Abroad with IES Abroad
Studying abroad was one of the most worthwhile things I have done. To be able to live with my host mom and have her teach me so much about the language and the culture, to travel as much as I did to so many amazing places, and to make a few good friends in a sea of immature Americans, were really life changing. I am so glad I did it. I feel like Spain is in my heart now, calling me back. As cliche as that sounds, I feel compelled to return and teach or work at some point in my life. I adore the Spanish culture and I felt so connected to it while I was there, and I miss it so much now that I'm gone. Though I did get a lot out of my time there, I still feel I have so much more to learn from that beautiful country.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Some of my classes were very interesting but others were not really at all. I really enjoyed my art history class on Picasso, Dali, and Miro, but I couldn't stand my Romanesque and Gothic architecture class. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
I felt the program overall was too large, and not selective enough. There were a lot of American students there who seemed to have one priority: partying. I came to Barcelona for the psychology classes offered, ignorant to the fact that most students are attracted to the program for other reasons. As for the advisors, I liked them and they were largely supportive. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My host mom was so incredibly loving and wonderful. She was truly my mom when I was in Spain. She took care of me when I got sick, cooked me amazing meals, and clearly cared for me greatly. Living with her was the best part of being abroad, though it was the part I was most terrified of before going abroad. |
| * Food: |
Seafood in Barcelona is to die for. They eat a lot of food that Americans are not accustomed to. But it can be delicious if you give it a try. Spain is also, of course, famous for its ham and various pork products. Most important is to keep an open mind and try everything you can. Spaniards don't really understand vegetarians. The vegetarians I knew had a lot of trouble with the food. Just don't be picky. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Our required field trip to Tarragona could have been better, but it was not bad by any means and was pretty educational. The optional field trip I took to the Basque country, however, was incredible. I had an amazing time and IES did a very good job of planning lots of interesting activities I loved. I felt like I got a lot more out of the Basque country than I would have if I had visited on my own. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
When I got very sick during the program, they sent me to a very nice, English speaking doctor who didn't seem quite as in the know as American doctors. After some trial and error though I eventually got better. I felt overall very safe in the city, far more safe than I do in America. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Approximately 6-10 euros for lunch (depending if you get the 3 course menu del dia, which is usually more that worth it), anywhere from 3-10 euros for drinks, more if in discotecas than bars. I spent more than I had anticipated. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Not having gone out much in the states, I was not used to budgeting in going out expenses, and this was something I ended up spending a lot of money. Also, lunches weren't as cheap as I would have hoped. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
My host mother was by far the most positive aspect of my time abroad. Talking to her for hours every day was the primary way that I vastly improved my Spanish skills. My Spanish course was beneficial as well, especially for nitpicky grammar issues, but talking with my wonderful host mother was certainly my best way of improving fluency. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | This program was overall alright, but I personally would have benefited from a more academically-oriented program I think, or one that was more language intensive. The other 400 Americans in my program were largely very annoying, immature, and horrendously wealthy. I was able to find some people I connected with, but I felt overall that this program didn't attract any serious people. |
