Montblanc, Spain. “El que no sabe adonde va llega muy lejos" by Kevin Land
Today's contributor is Kevin Land, a University of California-Berkeley graduate who studied abroad in Barcelona. In his post, Kevin tells students the most important things to keep in mind while studying abroad.
The above photograph was taken during a visit to the beautiful Catalonian Pueblo of Montblanc. My study abroad program – IES Abroad – organized a trip to the big-castle-turned-little-city and besides great food, friends and views, this graffiti laden handrail stood out as the highlight of my weekend. The rough English translation of the graphemically imperfect message is humble: “The less you know the further you’ll go.”
Whether you will be moving to Barcelona or somewhere else, minimize expectations of yourself and your experience abroad. I prepared for my six-month stint without any desires beyond Spanish fluency and absorbing new cultures. Trust that the logistics will fall into place, even if you can’t convince your best friend from college to plan a trip to Ireland three months before you move into neighboring apartments in the Barceloneta.
Challenge Yourself
When you arrive, I recommend exploring your city and introducing yourself to as many local folks as possible. I chose to enroll in Spanish-taught business classes at Universitat Pompeu Fabra. I arrived a half-hour late on the first day of Creación de Empresas, when the professor said some words to me in what I later realized was Spanish. My borderline illiterate response led her to suggest I drop the class immediately and find something taught in English.
Do not take such ill-informed advice. Had I dropped that class or any of the others, I would never have met my colleague Thomas from Switzerland, my ex-girlfriend Natalia from Spain, my bro Raiam from Brazil, my Frenchies Gabriel and Juliette, my lovely Italians Priscilla, Giuseppe and Andrea or my Chileans Pame, Daniel and Gino. Talking to these amazing friends and my homestay parents Esther and Luis allowed me to attain Spanish fluency while excelling in classes that counted toward a hard-earned double major from UC Berkeley. More importantly, this multicultural group offered me opportunities to travel to their home countries in a way that I observe few American students experiencing.
Make New Friends
Front to Back: Priscilla, Thomas, Me, Giuseppe atop a peublo near Barcelona by Kevin Land
With a little help from my friends, I did more than travel to other countries for a few days at a time – I saw what it is like to live there with native tour guides in my friends and their families. It was worth a travel-free first month or two to be invited to Italy to stay with Priscilla’s family on their Tuscan Villa, tasting homemade olive oil after a day of exploring Florence’s wealth of artistic architecture and museums.
Being shown around Paris by native Juliette after a Portuguese breakfast at Gabriel’s family’s house in the outskirts of town was the only way imaginable to erase my notion that French people are rude to Americans. These trips prepared me to enjoy a Sunday lunch with Natalia’s family in Castelldefels, one of Barcelona’s pueblos known for excellent Fideuá (Catalonia’s version of Paella) and beautiful beaches. None of these trips with new friends got in the way of visiting my English pledge brothers Ben and Phil in their homeland for a few pints, live music and comedy and some informative walks around London, Oxford and Windsor. Whether these trips were with new friends or old, experiencing Barcelona and the international cities to which I traveled did not matter. Going with people who are proud of their cities and proud to share their homes’ history and knowledge made me feel at home, even 6,000 miles away from the place I grew up.
Left to Right: Juliette, Gabriel, and Pame walking the streets of Paris by Kevin Land
Don't be Shy
This attitude followed me to Cape Town for a two-month internship and it has followed me to San Francisco, where I live and work now. I feel at home with my new family of college friends and Craigslist recruits, I embrace the wealth of people and culture here and I absorb knowledge like a sponge. Hoping your proactive classmate will invite you on that road trip to Bilbao he planned is denying yourself a chance to make international friends and discover yourself. Put yourself out there, do what you want to do and talk to people who interest you. Experiences will come to you, knowledge will fill your ears and mind and culture shock will warm your heart and soul.
Enjoy the Adventure
Of course, I loved my fellow Americans abroad (did I mention Ayesha, Cliff, or Juan?), and they helped me reach the following conclusion. You may feel like you need to change, like you need a perfect plan or like you need to try hard to adapt to your new settings. You don’t. All you need to do is buy your plane ticket abroad, and if you already have, just sit back and enjoy as you soar across the skies.
Kevin Land is a University of California-Berkeley graduate who spent time studying abroad in Barcelona. Kevin has also traveled to Sweden, Denmark, France, Belgium, England, Italy and South Africa. Originally from Thousand Oaks, CA, Kevin now lives in San Francisco where he works as a musician. If you want to learn more about Kevin, check out his LinkedIn profile.
What would you say to students who are about to study abroad? Share your advice in the comments below!
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