AFS Spain High School Study Abroad

I studied abroad in order to be who I felt I was. To expand, my first few years of high school were rough; I was continuously boxed into playing a person and a role that I didn't identify with by the people I had grown up around. I was ready to break out and grow into a different person, but I could not do so by remaining in my home environment. So, instead, I left and went to study in Spain. Getting off the plane, I was instantly whisked away to orientation, where I was placed with a group of teenagers who were all just as scared and nervous as I was. Never before had I felt so comfortable. Other exchange students are some of the closest and easiest friends you could ever imagine to make - they are the only ones who fully understand and identify with the struggle of being immersed in a brand new culture, and that allows a connection that is both instant and intimate. Being in a new environment allowed me to act as the person I saw myself becoming, and the struggles that come with studying abroad and learning a new language built me into that person. My year with AFS, as a result, was the most formative of my life, and, no matter where you are, I highly recommend partaking in a study abroad experience.