Subtle Warnings About Going Abroad
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Now that we’re halfway through the semester, it’s time to discuss some of the troubles I’ve had living in Spain. The vast majority of my experiences here have been above and beyond amazing, exciting, and worth my time. But that is not to say everything has been perfect. Let’s start from the top.
When I arrived in Spain, I did not feel a huge change in lifestyle or surroundings. I actually adapted extremely quickly, for better and for worse. While I am still surprised by how quickly Spain became my new home, I was relieved. There was only about a day of jet lag! What I did not see coming was how crucial my behavior was in these first few days; they were very habit-forming. It was two weeks until classes began, and when they did, it was difficult for me to pay attention, and I wasn’t ready to give time to study. I’ve had to reconstruct study habits and cut away my leisure time a lot. It didn’t quite happen in time for my first physics exam… (Hello, lowest exam grade ever. Nice to meet you).
My advice at this point is this: be very aware of the habits you start when going abroad; they will stick with you. In other words, work hard against bad and pointless habits, and try some great new ones to make the most of this transition catalyst.
The second thing that was less than ideal has to do with my faith. I am a Baptist Christian, and I did scope out and find a church and Bible study group as soon as I could. But something was missing, and it took me more than a month to figure it out because it was subtle. It was a Sunday. I stayed home from Iglesia and instead watched my home church’s live stream from the previous week. My pastor gave a message on his personal experience with memorizing scripture, and ended it by reciting several chapters of the book of John, which was both super cool and showed me something I had been missing. He didn’t just say all the words in the correct order; he almost performed it. He was having fun with it.
I had forgotten how to enjoy my faith after coming to Spain. I suppose I had been so eager to enjoy my time here that I missed out on a lot of enjoyment from God. It’s been a slower recovery, I guess, but I was pointed in the direction of Dr. John Lennox, who reminded me how much I love science, God, reading, and having conversations with people about those things. (He has a great couple of interviews from the Within Reason Podcast). With his help, I have been working on bringing back some of the fun that our relationship had lost during this time, and it has really helped me emotionally as well. Though now I am again very annoyed at the restrictions placed on research, engineering, and science as an undergraduate student who needs to make money. Thank you to my housemate Gabri and my Bible study buds for being so encouraging!
I suppose that leads me into a third warning about how free you are in another country. Not only are you of legal drinking age, but you are an ocean away from anyone you know who might object. This is not to say I have fallen to this temptation, but it is clear in the people around me that it exists. Clubbing, drinking, partying, etc., are very common and I have friends who encourage me to join. When I ask them what they enjoy about partying, a reason is that they enjoy getting drunk. I am uncomfortable with that, I won’t lie. I suppose my version of this is how Spain enables me to buy a lot of coffee. It is not the prices that draw me to coffee, but the lack of good study spaces. Most days you have two free options: home and the IES Abroad Madrid campus. However, the campus closes on the weekend, and so a cup of coffee becomes your ticket to another study space. It doesn’t help that coffee is an every-morning breakfast item from my homestay. I suppose what I am trying to say is that when you study abroad, you will most likely be more free than you have ever been. For better or for worse.
A topic that has captured my attention in recent years is the necessary effect people have on others. Part of that is the fact that when the people who surround you change this drastically, you will change a lot, and I cannot predict how that will happen for you, just that it will.
I’d like to finish this blog off with some encouragement, because as I have tried to communicate, this is a wonderful experience. Some things I never saw as being so fun include the free trips IES Abroad schedules and sets up. They are a lot more than just going to see the sights. It’s amazing having trips that break up some of the stressors without costing you time to plan or money to spend. Also, invest in your classes, and they will be a lot more fun. It’s especially easy abroad to see classes as an obstacle between you and free time, but spending quality time studying and progressing your education can be very rewarding here. Physics I, I apologize for my first impressions!
And in the spirit of Halloween, here is a quote from the villain I dressed as here in Madrid:
“I love checklists!” – Michael Yagoobian AKA Bowler Hat Guy
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