Our next three stops on our journey in keeping the dream of International travel alive are Spain, Cuba, and Argentina. Students attend programs in these countries like the Buenos Aires and Mendoza in Argentina, La Habana and Santa Clara in Cuba, as well as Salamanca, Barcelona, or Seville in Spain. One TLU student that I interviewed studied in La Habana, Cuba and Buenos Aires, Argentina, the other studied in Salamanca, Spain, and I studied abroad in Seville, Spain. When going to study abroad, there are some factors and experiences that can hold individuals back including uncertainty about classes, fear of the unexpectedness abroad, and even lack of support from family. Here is a glance at some advice, what they have learned through their experiences, and the classes they were able to take.

TLU Senior Marlin Rojas studied abroad in Fall 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Fall 2019 in La Habana, Cuba. She states that “it gave me a better view with the countries in Latin America as well as the relations that the United States has with them.” Marlin stayed with a host family in Argentina and had her own room. Her host family consisted of a mom, dad, and little brother. In Cuba, she lived in an apartment with two other girls, but she had her own room. Her highest moment was meeting people around the world that would help her understand their way of living, and her lowest moment was missing family as well as friends during holidays back in the states. Marlin wishes that in Argentina she “would have met more locals around the area instead of relying and being with the rest of the international students.” When she traveled to Cuba she transitioned to meeting more locals around the area however, she wished that she talked to a variety of locals instead of just staying with the same group and talked to more organizations that support LGBT+ as well as Women Org. Marlin’s tips for going abroad would be to have an open mind when it comes to being in a different environment, know the location that you will be abroad in as well as their history, and pay attention to current events when you will be there.

When preparing financially for Argentina she worked in the summer to prepare for studying abroad and she received a refund check of $7,000 that helped her travel all over South America. For her experience in Cuba, she worked three jobs in the summer to save up all the money that she could. The money helped her pay for school and the expenses on her trip and she made sure that she divided her money to spend the same amount each week. The courses that she took in Argentina that helped her Social Entrepreneurship and Spanish double major were Argentinian Fiction, Global Environmental Policy, Gender Reproductive Rights, Developmental Poverty, and Spanish Advanced II. These courses transferred back as an English elective, an environmental science elective, Political Science 379 (Special Topics), a political science elective, and Spanish 376 (Advanced Practice in Reading & Writing). In her experience she faced a few challenges such as realizing that racism is present all over the world and there is mistreatment within all communities that are struggling to get their basic rights in the US; such as LGBT+, Women with reproductive rights, and the separation within the church and government. Also, Marlin states that another challenge was “seeing the injustice system and how they mistreat the locals in the island”.

TLU senior Psychology major Kristen Barho, spent Summer 2019 in Salamanca, Spain. She ended up choosing the place that worked best for her and was happy with it. Kristen stated, “I really loved it!” when reminiscing about her experience. Her highest moment while abroad was when she realized her Spanish had developed a lot in Spain. She had to translate between other students and the professor. The lowest moment that she spoke about was when she was coming home in the Madrid airport. She was very confused, and it became a bit overwhelming. Fortunately, she was able to navigate her way around and made it back to the US. When asked if she would have done anything differently, she stated two things: knowing more Spanish, and she wished she wasn’t as concerned about fitting in with the culture. Regarding fitting in with the culture, she had read a few articles before she left that stated that people in Spain did not wear shorts/t-shirts. She complied with what she had read because she did not want to look like a tourist. However, when in Salamanca, she noticed the younger generation wearing shorts so, she regretted not bringing any because it was hot. Kristen recommends packing lighter when studying abroad and when choosing a location, she urges you to think about what interests you as well as what you would like to see when traveling.

When thinking about finances, Kristen made sure to set a budget when shopping for souvenirs as well as eating all of her meals with her host family. This allowed her to guarantee that she would have enough money to make it through her trip. As far as classes, she ended up taking a Spanish language class at the intermediate level that transferred back as Spanish II course and a Spanish Art class that transferred back as a Spanish elective. Kristen also had an interesting experience in a Conversational Spanish class linked with another course at the university. In this class, she sat in a café with people and they practiced their Spanish with each other.

I am currently a Junior Kinesiology- Sports Management and Spanish double major and I studied abroad in Seville, Spain in Spring of 2019. I have to say that studying abroad was one of the best decisions that I have made in my college career. I adored my host family that consisted of a mom, dad, and a brother and sister. My highest moment was being able to travel to about 7 different countries including Morocco, France, Poland, Italy, Belgium, and Germany, as well as visiting many cities in Spain. I learned how to plan a trip properly including booking hostels/Airbnbs and that I can accomplish great things. Through my trips, I met a lot of cool people and made new friends. It also helped me realize my independence. My lowest moment had to be during my trip to Germany, where I found out that my best friend had passed away. I was very emotional throughout our last day in Germany and it continued when I went back to Spain. My friends (both local and US), my family back home, and my host mom really helped me get through that time. It showed me that love was all around me and that he was in better place. Some tips that I would recommend giving to others would be to pack light especially since you will buy a lot of souvenirs, have an open mind when traveling to other places, and make sure that you attend local festivals/events in your city. By attending local festivals/events, you can dive deeper into the culture that is present in your city. In Seville, in the spring their two biggest festivals are Semana Santa and Feria. They are spectacles to see especially if you study in Seville!

Financially, I had worked a paid internship during the Summer as well as received a generous donation from my Church in my hometown. The money helped me throughout my travels and I also received a refund check. I would recommend using a credit card for some purchases abroad since some do not charge a foreign transaction fee. I was able to be added to my mom’s card and just kept track of my spending to pay it off. I took about 5 classes abroad and they were Spanish Cuisine, Progressive Spanish Speaking, Literary and Cultural Traditions in Spanish Speaking Countries, Healthcare & Voluntary work course and Theory and Practice of Flamenco. They transferred back as upper Level Spanish courses and helped me turn my original Spanish minor into another major.

After listening to the stories of Marlin, Kristen, and I you can see how we all had unique experiences in Spain, Cuba, and Argentina. It is true that we can go through similar experiences, but your study abroad experience is truly what you make of it. I hope that through our stories you can see how impactful that our study abroad stories are on our lives. On our next journey, we will hear one story about Italy and say goodbye. Stay tuned!

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Photos Courtesy of Marlin Rojas, Kristen Barho, and Audrey West

Written By: Audrey West