Global May: Madrid
- My STEP Signature Project was Global May: Madrid. I partook in an educational experience and study abroad program, where we travelled to several Spanish cities and learned about the past, present, and potential future for Madrid, and how these histories continue to shape the individuals who live in Madrid today.
- If someone were to have asked me if I would ever leave the US without my family or friends, I would’ve laughed. I was challenged in so many ways leading up to, and during this experience, I cannot even put it into words. Going to Spain with 17 other students I did not know anything about was terrifying, if I am being completely honest. However, it ended up being the greatest blessing. I am now extremely confident in my ability to converse with others, use a foreign transportation system, and interact and appreciate those who are different than myself, whether that is people from my group, or locals in Madrid.
- I think the aspect of this trip that led to my transformation to the greatest extent was the fact that we all lived at different stops and on different Metro lines on the Metro. This forced me, uncomfortably at first, to figure out how to navigate through a transportation system that I might even be nervous to do in America. I realized that if I wanted to spend time with someone who was not my roommate, I had to travel alone to meet my other friends somewhere, which gave me an immense feeling of independence and the “I can do this!” attitude.
The language barrier that existed in Spain changed the way I look at who I am today and who I hope to be tomorrow, additionally. I am a Spanish minor and have taken Spanish classes since I was six years-old, so I would say I am proficient enough in the language to understand the basic level of conversation between native speakers. However, I often found myself, during the first week, speaking in English to Spanish speakers, knowing that they would probably know English and speak it back to me. Then, I realized how ignorant that was of me. When people are studying in my country and do not at least attempt to communicate in English, I get frustrated. So why would I do the same thing? So, for the rest of the trip, I tried to humble myself and always give it my best effort, especially when talking with my host-mom, María.
Finally, this may sound cliché, but I transformed the most as a human being by simply seeing Spain. I mean it when I say the day before we all went home, all 18 of us sat on a rooftop building and just sat silently, enjoying the insanely captivating panoramic view of the city that we lived in for a month. I got to have the most amazing experiences in Madrid, the greatest museum, the Guggenheim in Bilbao, the most storybook-esque and beautifully enriching history of Segovia, and so many more. Simply existing in Madrid was transformational for me as a student, but more importantly, as a human being in general.
- This experience will help me in many ways in the future, however the area that I think this will benefit me the most is in my professional life. I hope to be a teacher upon graduating. Furthermore, I would absolutely love to teach English in a Spanish speaking country, which I NEVER would have told you before this trip. I think that this trip inspired me to take my hard work further than America’s borders, and use my love of literature and adventure, to help those in Spain or Argentina.