Submitted by Ceara Stewart on the 2019 fall semester study abroad program in Barcelona, Spain…
This is an email containing my wrap-up of my time in Barcelona. It was an amazing three months and I am extremely sad, but also happy to be going home. This place has been my life for the whole semester and I have gotten to know the city so well. I became a local who knew her way around public transport, where to get the best coffee or tapas, and where the best sunset views were. I was able to travel to 8 countries and visit 4 Spanish cities other than Barcelona.
I will miss all the professors that widened my global experience and challenged me. I will miss all the Art Nouveau, especially Gaudí’s fine works (I will be back in 2026 to see you finished Sagrada Família, don’t you worry). I will miss the Spanish food and the people who always would walk up to me and speak Catalan (thank you sir who asked me directions in Catalan and when I said I only spoke Spanish you turned around and left, I will miss you). Yes, maybe there were times or hardship when public transport got messed up because of the Independence riots.
I will miss my host mom Gloria and her amazing traditional Spanish cooking, and her little dog Samba, and her daughter Claudia. Gloria and Claudia helped my Spanish so much and pushed me daily to branch out and become more comfortable speaking. I cannot wait to come back and catch up with them. Along with my host family, I met so many people both from UD and from other universities that changed my life for the better. I think I will miss those people the most because I will be back to Barcelona, but the people who shaped my experience are going back to their own lives and it will be hard to not to be able to message “hey let’s meet up and get tapas”. So good-bye Barcelona. Thank you for an amazing time and it will be something I will carry in my heart forever.
