Alicante: You can still party hard without drinking! Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The workload was appropriate. There were projects and hard work, but tons of time to enjoy the town and the abroad experience aside from school. Grading was fair. The classes were very small, the largest class I was in had 10 students, excluding my cuisine class, which was 18 or so.

On-site administration of your program

The USAC office on site was in a great location that was easily accessible. There were always foreign student events going on, and the USAC office did a great job hooking us up with language partners. They always wanted to hear about your day and seemed to genuinely care about how your semester was going, both in and outside of the academics. They were fun and friendly, as well as enthusiastic about students visiting Alicante, and shared the town with us as if it were their pride and joy. They even helped me deal with a hostel's manager over the phone before I went on a trip to Valencia, as well as finding a local dance studio and other "fun stuff" around town. The program size was definitely bigger than my previous semester abroad (USAC San Sebastian, Spain program), so I didn't know everyone in the program as I did before. But that was fine. The program directors always asked me about my host family and my friends and travels.I still knew the program director knew ME on a personal level: not just as a random student, but as a friend.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I lived with a young couple in their early 30s, and their 2 year old son. They were so friendly and loving, and they made me feel right at home. I never felt home sick, and they were always genuinely interested in the goings-on in my life, and I was in theirs. To their friends, they spoke about me as if I were their daughter. I always felt safe around town, even though my apartment was about a 10 minute walk from the Barrio (where the nightlife is). My friends lived near me, so we often would walk home together. The town itself doesn't have that pretty European feel with the beautiful architecture. It is fairly "modern" ie, built in the last 50 years, with the exception of the Barrio, which is much older. There is a lot of graffiti, but there were never gangs or any danger of the sort. To get to class, I had to take a 30 minute bus, because it was about 4 miles away (not quite walking distance). Everyone else lived in the city, though, so it was common to take transportation to class. When I moved in, my host family jumped at the chance to get a new space heater and new power cord for my room upon discovering that they didn't work. If I ever wanted to buy food (which was rare), I could walk to the grocery store literally right across the street. My host family's apartment was large, and I had my very own room which was also large (a double bed, a couch, armchair, desk, two closets). I could only get internet in the family room, though, so I often did homework out there. It was very clean, and they had a maid come once a week to clean the rooms. They also offered me tons of sheets and towels, so I never ran out. Although I was allergic to dogs, I was accidentally placed with a family that had one. However, it never became a problem because they kept the dog in the kitchen and on the patio, where it wouldn't bother me. They also always asked permission before letting it into the family room if I was already in there.

My host dad cooked a lot of meat and starchy foods, which was very good. My host mom experimented more with her cooking, trying to replicate Chicken Tandoori or Mediterranean noodles with pine nuts and raisins. Both of their cooking was very good. Although I like to think I am open to eating a lot, I have to say it isn't very true. I would eat about 95% of what my host family cooked for themselves, but they were very understanding if I ever didn't want to eat something they made. They had an attitude of "I know I don't like all the foods, so why should we think you like all food?" So, if I didn't eat a lot of something, or didn't eat any of it at all, they would offer something else to make, like an omelette or something simple. I appreciated it a lot, because I really did try to eat everything, but they knew I wasn't too big on seafood, so whenever squid or octopus was on the table, I would have something different. I loved them for that.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

We went on a hike early in the semester, but I wish there had been more international students. It was very well organized and fun, but I rate it lower for the language aspect.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

The city could have an impression of being more dangerous than it was, but I never EVER came across an unruly gang or some crazy person out to get me. It really was fine, especially because I would be with other people most of the time. If you are smart and stay with others, as well as stay in well-lit areas, you will be fine. Yes, if you are drunk and walking home alone at 4am, you might have a problem. But really, I think that would be in any city. When I got sick with some cold, the program assisted me in going to the on-campus doctor's office, which was very helpful and wrote me a prescription for the medicine I needed. There were never any other health issues I came across, even with my allergies living with a dog! Before the program, I got a flu shot and swine flu vaccine (neither was required) just to "be safe." I have never gotten those shots before, but my mom wanted me to be safe!!

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

I practiced Spanish with my coworkers at the Radio station internship, my host family, my 3 spanish language partners (one girl and 2 boys, one of which I met volunteering to teach English at a language school), and in stores/at the bars. You definitely needed to know Spanish here. Although you are always bound to run into a person who knows English, I wouldn't rely on it. When my parents (who don't know Spanish) came to visit, I think they barely got by using English. As always, everyone recommends making Spanish friends. The program sets up exchange partners for you, as well as other language events, but it is really up to you to go out there and meet Spaniards. Because you are in classes with the program students (Americans) and can live with them, you tend to want to hang with them and spend time with them. Don't get me wrong, I loved my American friends that I made here, but it really hindered my chance to break free and meet new people.

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