I moved to Florida a few years ago and worked in a restaurant with people from all over the world, from that moment I had an instant desire to travel. Life had always gotten in the way until I started St. Petersburg College and found out that they had a study abroad program. I checked out all of the options but the Spanish program to Salamanca was the most intriguing to me. I had never traveled outside of the country but Spain spoke to me. I will be honest, I did very little research because I love the surprise factor and being immersed into something completely different. All I knew going into this trip was that I wanted to try anything and everything. I thought I wasn’t going to know anyone on the trip until I found out my friend Frederikas from the restaurant I worked at was going.

When traveling internationally alone for the first time of my life there were so many what if’s and a lot of anxiety. Once I got off the plane and started meeting people in the airport I realized that I was really going to have an amazing time. There has been no let down thus far. I love my Madre Aurea and her cooking. At first my roommate Maryclare and I were concerned about the language barrier. I thought that it would be hard to live with someone who controls your meals when neither one of you can understand each other. However, it is amazing how quickly we learn to communicate when left with no other options. She really has become like a mother to me.

I feel so blessed to have such amazing people to explore the city with such as my amazing roommate Maryclare, for never meeting before this trip, I don’t think I could have picked someone better to share a room with for 3 weeks. We also have our wonderful neighbors Scottie and Jennifer who we love. Maryclare and I are not the best at navigating so we probably would have gotten lost for the first 3 days if it weren’t for them! I couldn’t forget the cuatro amigos who have helped make everyday enjoyable (we sure know how to have a good time). I’m so glad to have met Valerie, Isabelle, of course Etyan and everyone else who has left their life behind for 3 weeks to experience a very old but new side of the world.

The sights that we have all been exposed to, the different culture, and of course my favorite, the food. I couldn’t imagine traveling Spain and the south of France (for a few hours) with any other people. This will certainly be an experience that I will never forget. After spending a few weeks and really getting to know this city I definitely see myself coming back in the future.