I can’t sleep. There is no air conditioning in the Manuela’s home where I am staying, so to sleep comfortably my roommate, Parker, and I open the window and turn the fan on. The weather is usually pleasant this time of year I’m told, but this week we have a heat front from the north of Africa pulling temperatures to an all-time high. Because of this, I wake up every morning to the sound of at least a hundred birds chatting melodically at each other and a group of kids playing in the playground while their parents converse in Spanish at one of the three bars just outside my window. I open my eyes to this every morning and for a brief moment a smile stretches across my face. I’m awake. I’m in Spain! I take a deep breath and try to imagine what amazing meal Manuela has planned for today. I try to process what I’ve learned in class so far and I am overwhelmed with a feeling of accomplishment when I think of the huge steps I’ve taken in my Spanish. I’ve gone from nodding my head in complete confusion to executing entire conversations in a language I never thought I would study so much. Some days my three-hour class period is engaging and over in an instant, others drag on for what seems like hours. Still, I can’t deny their effectiveness.

As I fade in and out of consciousness in the morning I think of how no place else I’ve been to has affected me quite like this. This is my second study abroad with St. Petersburg College and it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. In the past, travel has been purely an exposure to culture and a means of objectively understanding different viewpoints. From the different cultures, politics and ways of thinking I’ve learned about, I’ve managed to completely evolve my perspective and understanding of the world around me. However, it seems that this trip has a new focus of connecting with others, building friendships and discovering how easy it is to make friends even when I barely speak their language. Naturally, every place has its own political issues and I’ve been doing my best to learn about the lifestyle here, but Salamanca Spain has truly been a trip about people. Right from day one, I felt an immediate connection with everyone in my group. Words can do no justice in describing the ease this group had in getting to know one another and the friendships I’ve made and seen happen.

Additionally, there is something very special about spending a night with a family that only speaks a language you know very little of and getting to know them on such a friendly level despite our handicap. I often find myself thinking in the mornings that the greatest lesson I’ve learned over the course of this three-week period is that friendships are made in many shapes and sizes and within my different styles. I’ve learned just how easy it really is to connect with people no matter what my circumstance and I will always have a place in my heart for this beautiful city of Salamanca. With that, the smile slowly fades off of my face and I find myself rolling out of bed as I head towards my window. I take a long look at the brick road that seems to cover this whole town, shut the window and close the blinds because that beautiful sound of birds and Spanish families, the seemingly ceaseless wake in Salamanca has my mind racing at six in the morning, and this guy needs some more sleep.