My Semester in Barcelona

Barcelona offers anything and everything that one could possibly want in a city in which to spend a semster abroad. I fell in love with the culture, the people, the food, the architecture, and grew so much more comfortable with the language. My favorite aspect of the city is the countless neighborhoods to explore that all have extremely different vibes. The public transportation made for seamless exploration and felt extremely safe as well as easy to navigate. While in Barcelona, I never felt unsafe or uneasy about my surroundings. It's prime location makes travel throughout Europe easy and manageable.

IES exceeded all expectations. The pre-departure information IES provided answered all of my questions and calmed any remaining nerves. My family received correspondence before, during and after my journey including information on my re-adaptation to living in the US after such an unforgettable time away. The apartments that my friends and I were assigned to by IES were all in great locations with everything that we could possibly need for daily life. We were all assigned a local student to live in our apartment to teach us first-hand about Barcelona life as well as help us with any issues we may run into.

Above all, IES provided me with all of the resources I needed regarding learning to live in a country so dissimilar to my own. IES is located in the heart of the city, and provided us with excellent class choices, study spaces, and academic resources. My favorite part of the scholastic aspect of studying abroad was the relevancy of the course material. I felt that I learned material in class that would help me to thrive in my time abroad as well as further understand the beautiful country of Spain.