The Barcelona Semester

Barcelona is the most magical city I've ever visited. Depending on where you're standing, you can see mountains to your left and the Mediterranean Sea to your right, which is what makes this city so unique. There's so much to do and such a wide variety of activities available throughout the city that I never even had time to be homesick.

While living in Barcelona, some of my favorite places to visit were Sagrada Familia, the Gothic Quarter, Park Guell, Montserrat and Tibidabo. One of my biggest concerns of studying abroad was missing home and feeling uncomfortable in a new country, however CIS made sure that I was the "good kind of busy" for the duration of my stay. CIS also went above and beyond to accommodate the needs of all students and make sure that we always felt comfortable in our new home. Each week neighborhood tours were offered so that we could continue to get to know the city better. Barcelona is big, so knowing my way around different parts made me feel much safer than I ever could have imagined. Another way that CIS assured our comfort was by taking us on weekend trips to other cities in Spain, which included Madrid, Zaragoza and Besula in Girona. This allowed us to get to know everyone in our program on a family-like basis, which in turn made everything more fun.

While I was studying in Barcelona I had the opportunity to travel to 10 countries. My absolute favorite trip that I went on was my trip to Morocco, which was organized by CIS just for our program. My favorite thing about CIS is how organized they are with everything and how willing they are to work with students no matter what the issue may be.

Lastly, on top of all of the traveling and fun, CIS made my education a priority. Before arriving, I was nervous about moving to a Spanish speaking country and only knowing basic Spanish. I took 12 credits total during my Barcelona semester, and my teachers were some of the best I've ever had. I learned so much about Spanish culture and with the help of my teacher, became conversational in Spanish which guided me through my four months there. I would recommend the Barcelona semester to absolutely anyone looking to expand their cultural horizon and grow immensely as an individual. You will undoubtedly have the best four months of your life!