- Over the month of May, I was given the opportunity to go to Barcelona to study international business at the CEA Capa Centeralong with a group of other OSU students. I was able to immerse myself in the local culture, practice my professional skills, and learn about a new work environment in an international setting. I visited local businesses with my group and learned about professions like project management, technology innovation, journalism, and global expansion.
- This trip was an interesting and fun journey for me that gave me the chance to see the changes that I have gone through over the past year on my path to self-acceptance and self-love. I assumed going on this trip that things would be very planned and segmented out for our group, giving us a strict timetable that would keep us busy. I was extremely shocked to find out that we had a very fluid schedule that made us plan accordingly to get work done while still being a part of the culture of Barcelona. I found that, with time, I was able to create a routine that mimicked an average Barcelona citizen to better adapt to the environment that I was in. I got up later than what I usually did, ate a different breakfast that usually consisted of a quick coffee and pastry, walked the very walkable streets to class, enjoyed large lunches that led into afternoon naps to give myself a break, and stayed up later at night to see the vivid and beautiful nightlife of the city.
This was the largest thing to change for me: having a slowed-down pace. Through everything that we did, we were late sometimes and we had to wait on people. It was never a hustle to get everything in or done on time and, instead, to put in all the best effort that we could and have our best work possible. My view on how I live my life drastically changed as I usually work myself to the bone to get my projects in on time (or early, even) along with having to do everything I possibly can in a day. There is a sense of having to work like the American work culture in any place that I go, every day of the week. It turned into a competition with myself that I could never win, but I became successful in the eyes of the United States work standard. There is a huge difference in Barcelona, along with many European countries, on how their work and life are balanced. It is said that Americans live to work and the rest of the world works to live. I think this is incredibly true and I was able to witness it in just two weeks of being abroad. - There were three main parts to our trip that really solidified the changes that I noted within myself.
The first one was with the relationships that I created with the people in my program. I had an apartment for housing and shared it with three other girls who were all younger than me and just starting their time at OSU. Along with this, there were two other apartments of girls that were in the program and we all got along very well through the week. The one thing that I did notice, though, was the roles that we all naturally fell into over the period that we were in Barcelona. One of my main goals coming into this program was to immerse myself as much as possible into the local culture so as to not disrupt the people that lived there. I wanted to blend in and tried my hardest by researching the social norms to know how to best conduct myself in any situation. When I started to travel with this group, from our apartment to restaurants, classes, small towns, and business visits, I saw that we each had a role to play in what we knew and how we were going to interact with the environment around us. I took the role of navigator and communicator, keeping us on track of when and where we needed to be places along with corralling everyone together. Another girl was in charge of researching where to go during our stay and what would be most beneficial for us to do. Someone else was in charge of managing who had to pay for what when we paid with one card to not confuse waiters. So on and so forth, giving us each a key part in how we interacted with each other and did our best to do the most during our time abroad. This was huge for me, as in the past I think I liked to control all aspects of what went into a social group or a project, but I really tried to slow down and listen to what each person brought to the table to best understand how I fit in with everyone. I went into this program not knowing a single person, scared that I would be doing this all on my own. By the end of the program, I gained many new friends that I’m excited to bring back to campus.
The second part was the cultural workshops and events that we went to through the two-week program. Barcelona is filled with art, food, dance, and a social life that is unlike anything that I’ve been a part of. The first amazing thing that we got to do was see some of the more touristy, but important, spots like Parc Guell, Casa Batllo, the Picasso Museum, and more. There were so many famous artists that lived in Barcelona and filled the streets with amazing architecture and art. Along with this, we went to a tapas workshop to learn about the history of tapas and why they are a huge part of Spanish cuisine today. I love to cook, and getting the chance to learn about the food that people eat here every day, along with what ingredients go into a recipe, and the history of why these specific dishes have stayed around made the food that I ate later so much more special. Finally, we got the chance to learn and watch a Flamenco dancer who showed us some classical moves and how to do them. I loved this the most, probably, because I saw as the lady danced the confidence and the importance of each move that she made. Trying to do it myself was a little embarrassing, but after I saw that confidence was one of the biggest things that you needed to dance Flamenco correctly, I felt a lot more at ease doing some of the moves. The dance class was a fun way to realize how much confidence plays a role in me being comfortable with what I’m doing. Sometimes, I really just have to lean into the fake confidence until I feel comfortable enough to be confident on my own.
The final piece was how I got to be independent. After the first few days of riding the metro to get to class, I started to walk different routes each day to see more of the city. This was my favorite part of anything that I did. I would put the route into my phone each morning and then go down different streets, either one too early or one after, knowing that I knew the grid would lead me where I needed to go at some point. I got to see so many different neighborhoods and go into a new cafe each morning, testing out my Spanish speaking and listening skills each time. By the second week, I was able to go into a cafe, order my food, have a small conversation, and pay fully in Spanish. Sometimes the people would respond back in English, but when they saw that I would do my hardest to keep going in Spanish, they would be nice and slow down to help me understand better. It was a boost of confidence to know that I could try to make it easier for someone to do their job and not have to switch to English in order for me to get my food. I didn’t want to have to add more difficulty to their job, and while they know another language, I do too if I try hard enough and keep practicing. - This change and development is a big part of my life and the journey that I’ve gone through with OSU. When I started here back in 2021, my life was in shambles as I tried to navigate how I would be myself and independent amidst a global pandemic. COVID aside, I was nervous to be on my own and reach out to make new friends. I hit so many bumps within the first couple of weeks that I really started to feel alone and scared for the next four years. It took so much time and so much effort to see that I needed to go through the roughest points to get to some of the best. I always thought of myself as being super introverted, but in reality, I was just scared to show my authentic self because I hadn’t found a group of people that I felt fully safe with. It took me having to be comfortable in my most uncomfortable moments, to have my friends get in arguments with me, and to be alone and learn to be comfortable with myself before I could see how I’m not the person who started here three years ago. This trip showed me that I made friends in two weeks, I put myself out there and did what was honest and true to me, and that it can sound cheesy and corny, but I love the cheesy and corny stuff the most.
This journey didn’t change my life, it just opened my eyes to the person that I am proud to be today.