Sevilla: A Great And Unforgettable Adventure! Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

It was really nice that we only had one class up until June 1st, so that we had some time to adapt from our culture shock before our other class started. The other class I took at the "center" (cc-cs) was a lot harder than any of us in the group expected. There was a ton of new vocabulary, but there was a quick review of grammar for the first week. If you're not completely confident with grammar and conjugations, this will be very hard. The grading system was basically the same, but all classes used the plus/minus scale.

On-site administration of your program

See above, when I spoke about Dr. Flores our TCU faculty leader and professor. I think our program size was perfect. Including myself, there were 10 students from TCU. We were by far the biggest group from the same university that was studying at the Center during our session.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I loved my host family and their apartment. It was the perfect location--only 15 minutes from my classes and on the same side of the river as all the shopping. There was a discoteca (dance club), a mall, and a bus station only 10 mins away. The apartment was a lot bigger than I had expected because there were four bedrooms and three bathrooms. My señora had set up a special room and bathroom for me and my roommate with everything we needed, including desks, closet space and beds made and ready. The only thing I would recommend is asking for a fan or buying one when you get there. It starts to get really hot in June and not many places have air conditioning. My host family only turned on the a.c. for 2 hours during siesta, and that was one thing that was very hard to get used to. I was treated as a guest, because they gave me alone time, but also like a family member because my Señora seemed to treat me just like her other children that lived at our house too. The only downside to this almost perfect home was that there wasn't internet, only occasionally would one of our neighbors turn on their internet and we would quickly savor a few minutes of email and facebook.

I was lucky that my Señora was such a great cook, because I've heard other horror stories about what was served to some of my friends. From the start, it is really important to tell your señora what foods you like and which ones you don't. It won't be much fun later, when she serves you things you hate and she'll wonder why you didn't tell her earlier. Also, once you tell her you really like something, she'll try to serve it every meal in different forms. Another thing I wasn't expecting was how much seafood everyone eats over there. Get ready for sardines, fish, clams and more! They also use tons of olive oil on everything and fry just about any food. They don't always peel vegetables before they put them in stews/soups. Some soups are served cold and many times fish is served with scales and head included. Other than those fun facts, I had fun exploring the different types of dishes and cuisines over there. In the end, I decided I quite liked the food and bought a cookbook in English to bring home with me. While you may not like everything, there are definitely some things you will love; you just have to try it!

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Every weekend there was a special trip planned for our group. I had two favorites. One of them was our overnight trip to Granada, where we got to stay in a high class hotel with an American food buffet, tons of nearby shopping, and great sightseeing. My other favorite was the optional (a little expensive, but definitely worth it) two night get away to Lagos, Portugal. Basically the whole weekend was free time for us to explore the town and the beautiful beaches and grottos. I want to go on vacation there again some day. The day trips were also a lot of fun. We visited Córdoba, Ronda, La Rábida and a few other places. We stayed in Andalucía, but I would have liked to have visited Barcelona or Madrid too.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I really didn't have any problems or concerns about my safety while in Sevilla. It isn't a very dangerous city and I felt fine taking walks alone during the day and walking home from a bar at night with my roommate. With my healthcare class, we visited one of the hospitals in Sevilla and it wasn't a place I wanted to ever return to. Let's just say they weren't as sanitary as I would have hoped and as compared to the US health system. Social medicine wasn't working in their favor.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

My señora didn't know any English, so my roommate and I were forced to practice our Spanish. The accent in Spain and especially in the southern part of the country is really different from Central and South American Spanish which is what is taught most of the time from our professors in the US. It was difficult to understand at first, but after a couple weeks we started to get the hang of it. At our spanish home we had a full-time commitment to the language. When our group (tcu) was together hanging out, we spoke English. I definitely feel more confident in speaking to waiters or store clerks, because barely any of them knew more than "hello".

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• Host Family

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• Host Family