Learning Spanish in Salamanca, Spain Past Review

By liecy (Family Studies, Samford University) for

University of Salamanca: Salamanca - Direct Enrollment & Exchange

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

My study abroad experience was totally worthwhile. I met new people, I experienced a new culture, I learned a new language, and I learned so much history at the same time. I encourage everyone to go to Spain because it is an experience that one will never forget.

Personal Information

The term and year this program took place:	Summer 2009

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	I have learned more Spanish during my five weeks in Spain than I probably have learned since high school. I was surrounded by this language everyday which helped me to learn and to understand Spanish very quickly. The teachers were very knowledgeable in the language and they were very helpful.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	The director in charge knew exactly what he was doing and he did an excellent job at getting everything done for us.
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	I lived in an apartment with a Samford roommate. The apartment was a good size and I loved my madre. She was very easy to talk to adn she was a wonderful cook. We lived on Estrella Polar. <br /><br /> The neighborhood was safe and not hard to naviagate. We lived in a family oriented neighborhood so there were lots of families and older couples. We took the metro to class and to our activities everyday. It was about a 20 minute metro ride to our classes and about 30 minutes to the main location of town
* Food:	Our madre was a wonderful cook and we loved to eat her meals. I suggest to eat at home as much as possible but go eat out at least two times a week. There are wonderful restaurants in town.
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	I loved going to different cities for our Saturday day trips and I also loved the museums that we went to. Everything was very interesting and I learned something new everytime we went to a museum or to a small city on the weekend.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?
* Safety:	Be careful where ever you go. Watch your bags and be alert at all times. When you take a picture, keep a close watch on your purse.
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	No

Finances

* 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)
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	I spent about 500 euros.

Language

How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program?	Intermediate
Language acquisition improvement?	My language skills improved because I was in the culture and I had to speak Spanish everyday. Whether it was in class or to the people in Spain, I had to communicate in Spanish