Isabel Chavarro: My Study Abroad Experience in Leon, Spain

There is a lot I could say about my study abroad experience in Leon (Spain) as I near the end of my time here, but as I process what I will write, the experiences that have influenced me most come to the forefront. As I am writing this, I have lived, eaten, participated and experienced 5 months of Spanish culture and language in this small city of only 150,000 inhabitants, five hours north of Madrid by bus.

In a general sense, the people here are a bit unfriendly and plenty argumentative with a very wholesome culture that can be called definitively Spanish. Although a bit shocking and nerve wracking at first, once understood that the Spaniards mean no harm in their way of speech it became easier to step outside of the comfort zone created by being foreign, and engage in speech with the locals. One of the biggest benefits I have found about Leon was that since it was so small, not a lot of tourists or students come to Leon (excluding the pilgrims traveling El Camino de Santiago). What this means for us as foreign students is that Spanish is the primary language spoken here.

Even including the Erasmus students (the students who come from the European Union here to study) there are only about 100 exchange students at the University of Leon. However at the Centro de Idiomas students from Japan, Korea, China, Russia, United Kingdom, Poland, and Australia as well as from all over the United States are placed systematically in levels and taught side by side in Spanish by a knowledgeable team of professors. But besides all of this, all of the classes and the culture, the food and the Barrio Húmedo (the bar area of Leon, famous throughout Spain for its free tapas) what has influenced me most was the people I have met. I am honored to have meet the incredible people who study or live here and to have the chance to befriend them.

There is so much more outside of what defines our culture and what creates our opinions of the world. To me it was terribly surprising that I would make such good friends with people from Japan, Australia, and even from Kentucky, and be able to meet people from all over the world outside of class. Despite the hardships and fears of traveling abroad, it was all a learning process that I appreciate greatly, and will hold on to dearly in my memories. The experience of being surrounded by Spanish everyday cannot compare to learning Spanish in a classroom since it cannot present the complete immersion that living abroad offers the student. I will be lying if I said that I wasn’t homesick and that I don’t want to go back home, but it is also equally true that I will miss Leon dearly when I go back and I will miss hearing the second language that I now clearly understand.