Q and A

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High School Abroad in Spain

Authored By:

Ruthanne M.

Oct 18, 2018

Hey everyone!!

So last week I asked on my instagram story for questions about studying abroad because I feel like sometimes I don't mention certain things since they are so normal for me. I was so grateful and excited for the number of questions I received. Some of them I didn't included because I am going to create separate blog posts since they are tough long topics (for example: stereotypes and prejudices). Anyway, if anyone else has more questions dm me on instagram @ruthannemartin and I can answer them for ya!!

Do you speak to your friends in English or Spanish? Do your friends speak English?

So my friend social stuff is a little different here for me, because in the US I played 4 sports so I had friends from different groups, but no set tight knit friend group.  Here I have a friend group of about 17 people (it's nice cause there's always someone to hang out with).  Everyone in my friend group speaks basic English because it's a required class in school.  Some of my friends though speak super good English, because they take classes after school. A couple of my friends have English titles which means they took a test to get a offical certicifcation kinda that says they can speak English.  One of my friends, Elisa, speaks perfect English because her dad is from England.  My friends also like English music and movies so that helps too. To answer the question, my friends all speak a little English but some more than others.  I refer to talk in Spanish with my friends, because I want to learn quicker so 95% is in Spanish or Spanglish jaja. I help them with English homework or we speak English to help them practice and sometimes if we are making plans and I'm confused they will translate so that I'm sure I know all the details correctly.  And there's always those awkward moments when I misunderstand and then answer really random and we just laugh it off.

Is everything at school in Spanish?

Yep. Well this isn't totally true because my history and PE classes are bilingual.  The PE teacher talks in English and Spanish when giving directions and we have homework in English sometimes (but he has me do the English hw in Spanish haha).  My history teacher gives us the notes about Europe in Spanish and US history in English (yep we are studying US history as well).  My teacher likes to have me explain in English stuff like the Boston Massacre and Boston Tea Party and he explains in Spanish.  English class is also in English (shocker ik) and it's super boring.  My teacher changed our seats this week so that a person who has a good grade sits in between people with bad grades, so I'm partners with one of my guy friends and I just help translate and such. Language class is tough Spanish lit and grammer and it's killing me.  I have a tutor now for twice a week so that helps a lot but it's hard in class because the teacher talks so fast I don't understand and usually fall sleep (it's become a regular thing my friends don't even wake me up anymore).

Are you learning the same subjects?

I take Language, Math (it's kinda like math modules because it's a little from every type of math since they don't do Alg, Geometry, Alg 2... they do a combo each year), Latin (I'm not planning to pass this or use the credit), Economics (I've already taken this online so this class I didn't need, but here you can't pick), History (it's like world history because we learn about Europe and US) English, PE, Technology, and Computer Science.

What is school like?

Read my blog post about the comparisons of Spanish to US school.

Isn't it scary to live with people you just met?

It's super exciting and fun.  I thought it would be weird but it's honestly just became my normal life and I don't really think twice about it now.

Do your host parents discipline you?

I try to be super good haha so they don't need to.  So far everything has gone well and we've had no issues.  I just have to be mature and follow their rules and respect them.  They treat me like a daughter so I respect them as parents.  I honestly plan to behave very well and never have to find out.  Sometimes they say no to me going to parties or things like that if they don't feel comfortable, so they act like pretty normal parents.

What thing do you miss most about Texas besides family and friends?

The food!! La Finca, Panda Express, CFA, Potbelly, Whataburger, Fundruckers, Luby's, Shipley, Southern Made Donuts, Pollo Loco, EL Jarito, Dairy Queen, Baskin Robbins, MOD, Denny's and the list goes on.  Spanish food is amazing but sometimes I just miss my comfort food.  I also miss being able to easily communicate what I want with servers or strangers.  My friends and family understand my accent and Spanglish but other people can't and it's upsetting sometimes.  I miss my friends a lot. But I really miss my family.  I miss my annoying goofy brother and sisters and my parents and second parents.  I miss family dinners and game nights so much.

What are the differences between being at home with your USA family vs being at your host home? What is your home life there and not walking in after school and seeing your USA family?

I study A LOT here just so I can pass somewhat so I spend a lot of time in the office doing homework.  I am trying to work on spending more time with my family, I am just so tired after school I want to rest.

In the US I played sports and was super busy so it's nice to be able to rest.  I take dance classes (Flamenco/Sevillana) two days a week and guitar one day a week and then I walk everywhere for a workout.  Meals are much more family oriented so we all sit down and eat lunch and dinner together everyday.

I miss my US family so much. One time I woke up from a bad dream and got out of bed and walked to where I thought was my parents room and realized I was in Spain in a different house and my parents weren't with me and then I cried a little haha.  It tough but I am so grateful for this opportunity and I truly love it here.

How is talking to your friends there? Are you picking up Spanish? How well do you speak Spanish?

My friends all agree that I've improved SO MUCH this month so I'm hoping I'm fluent by month 8 ish. I can communicate but it's a struggle at times.  Every day I get better and better and understand more and more. I went to Sevilla today (I live in a tiny town outside of Sevilla) and there's a TON of tourist there so I always spend half my time helping people with directions or recommending local places to eat or see. It's super exciting to me that I've reached the point I can get around by myself and blend in somewhat. My spanish isn't amazing but I can understand and translate quite decently.

What are the biggest struggles with living in a Spanish speaking country?

I live in Andalucia which is in the Southern part of Spain and they talk SO FAST. The people in Madrid talk normal speed but here it's crazy how fast.  They also have an accent that I'm still trying to get used to.  So I'd say understanding the accent and speed.  The eating times are about 3 hours later for every meal and we eat a lot of bread and carbs in general. Lunch is at 3:00 or 4:00 and dinner is at 9:00 or 10:00.

Do people in Spain automatically sterotype you just because you're white?

It's not very diverse here so they typically can tell I'm American.  They often ask about Trump or guns and it always makes me laugh.  I'm going to do a seperate blog post on this topic soon because it's complicated.

Studying abroad is a tough concept for many people to understand since it isn't common in high school, but it's honestly SO COOL and worth it. If anyone has any questions about studying abroad just cause you're curious or because you are considering studying abroad yourself I'd love to kinda give ya the reality about it (not the sugar coated version) and tell ya anything you want to know.

Sending all my love from España,

Ruthanne aka AnnaRuth

*if there are typos I'm sorry I honestly just write these blogs whenever I have a few spare moments so they aren't well planned lol