I know I start off all my posts by saying "being in a multi-city study abroad program..." but today I feel like I want to take another spin. With the end of our sixth week today and the seventh one beginning, I feel like I have truly been able to dip my toes in and really "find myself" while living in three different cultures. Each has been incredibly unique from the next and provided me with numerous stories and memories that I cannot wait to share when I get home (fair warning, I will probably be talking about this trip for the rest of my life sorry not sorry). Recently I read a blog post where a girl compared the three cities she visited abroad over spring break and ranked them based on what appealed to her there. Having lived in three different cities, and traveled to three more, I decided to do the same based on what appealed to me the most. With this in mind, here is my classification for the places I would like to live, study, and vacation:
Live: PARIS
I don't think this comes as a shock to anybody, considering how much of a love affair that I had with Paris once everything got smoothed out with getting there (cue luggage story again). It wasn't just that I loved the museums and monuments, because every city has in them what makes them so special. It wasn't just anything. Rather, it was the combination of things. I loved waking up every morning and walking to class in our heavily Parisian-with-no-tourist-neighborhood in the 15th arrondissement. I loved living in the south of the city which forced me to venture off and find new areas to see and explore. I loved that I could easily understand the public transit system and get myself from point a to point b no problem, and with little reliance on anyone else. I loved being able to sit in a cafe or bakery and find something good to eat whenever I wanted. I loved the neighborhood shop owners, who we got to know through routine grocery and market shopping. I love the way the French language flows when someone is talking, how every word sounds so beautiful (it's why I am attempting to teach myself French). I loved how I was able to blend in quite smoothly and navigate my way around. I loved it all. Given the opportunity, I would move to Paris tomorrow to learn the language, find a job, and maybe fall in love. Who can say for certain, but I know I will be back someday. This dream city will always hold a place in my heart.
Study: MADRID
Probably because both times that I have come to Madrid were to study, or that the city is so alive with history and culture, I may never really know. Of all the cities in Europe where one could study abroad, I feel like we all know someone who studied in Madrid for some point of time-I know at least five each semester for the past year. The city is very student-friendly, as there are many large universities within its limits. The educational opportunities within the city are endless, and not just if you are there to study Spanish or Art History. Everything that we have found in Madrid is relatively reasonably priced, and our housing accommodations here have been my favorite (not just because we have air conditioning). I love how the public transit system also makes it easy to go from point a to point b, but sometimes just walking along can bring you to new places you may not have discovered. Who knows if I would have found Cafe de la Luz or The Big-Little Cafe (going later this week!) if I hadn't looked for cafes with free wifi in order to do my homework? The educational opportunities are endless, the food delicious and easily accessible (who doesn't love flea and tapas markets!), and nightlife always "kicking." Had I considered studying abroad during a semester, I can say without a doubt that I may not have considered Madrid because I had already been but I feel like I have learned the most in our time here.
Vacation: ROME
Let me preface this by saying that by no means do this mean Rome was my least favorite city. In fact, I'm going to sound so typical Hannah when I say that on this trip I did not have a "favorite" city, but rather certain elements of different ones stuck out to me more. I have always wanted to visit Rome; it's been on my bucket list probably since I watched the Lizzie McGuire Movie when I was eight years old and dreamed of performing one day in the Colosseum. Rome is absolutely amazing and I hope to be back someday, but I think that I would prefer to have done it as a tourist. Maybe this is because we were constantly surrounded by tourists having lived right by the vatican, but I always felt like I was such a small person in a large crowd whenever I was there. While I loved doing some solo explorations on my own, a lot of what I would have seen was done with class which made me feel like I had to do more in my free time. At the same time, though, everyone goes to Rome for a different reason: mine just happened to be for study. Had I done it at the pace I am used to, I would have seen everything in the span of 3 or 4 days but not really developed an appreciation for the city and its culture. I enjoyed that I was able to see everything I wanted to see (and more) during my two weeks there and hope that the next time I go to Italy I will be able to see more of the country...and eat more pizza, pasta and gelato.
So, maybe not your typical insight in a blog post. But, I felt like I had to share because everybody has different experiences when going abroad and travels to different places. I have been fortunate enough to spend two weeks in each city as part of a unique study abroad experience and would encourage anyone to do the same! After all:
You are full of life, taste every drop.
Don't waste time. Don't take a second
of this trip for granted.
It ends so quickly and
completely
that it will break your heart
forever.
Live hard and long.
-Rollins
Hasta Luego!
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