Last week, I wrote about Katie Odens — a CU sophomore applying to study abroad in Spain. This week, I got to chat with a CU student already studying in Spain — Emma Franklin, a 19-year-old news editorial major.
Emma has been in Granada for the last couple of months, studying Spanish language and culture through ISA. Emma will have been in Granada for around five months before she comes back to CU.
What’s your living situation like?
I’m living in a homestay. I have a roommate, who shares my room and we have bunk beds, which isn’t really exciting… I hate bunk beds. And we live with our house mom, our 12-year-old “brother,” and our 17-year-old “sister.”
What do you like about Spain?
It’s weird, because I think some of my favorite things about this country are also some of my least favorite. For example, I love how eco-friendly everyone is here and I know I’ve had much less of an impact on the environment since I’ve been here. But, on the other hand, I hate taking showers here! To conserve water, we’re asked to turn the water off while we use shampoo, soap, conditioner, etc. It’s a cold, stressful process, and I love when my program takes us on trips so that I can use the hotel showers for as long as I want.
Have you been eating a lot of Spanish food? Is there anything you miss?
I’ve been eating a lot of soup and paella. The paella is really good! I want to learn to make it. I miss a lot of the gluten-free stuff I used to eat back home because some of the gluten-free stuff here isn’t great, or can be really expensive, and there just aren’t as many options. Also, we all miss peanut butter. They sell it in one store but it’s pretty expensive. Luckily, (my roommate) Shari is very brand-specific so she had her mom send her some of her favorite kind so we are stocked up on peanut butter.
What do you think about your program?
ISA has been really great. They are super supportive and they organize all kinds of tours of the city and excursions to surrounding areas. I’ve had some health issues since I’ve been here and one of the program directors came to the doctor with me both times I needed to go and really helped me not freak out.
What do you do for fun?
My friends and I are addicted to this little gelato place and we go there a lot and then walk along the river with our gelato. We’ve also been shopping a lot. When we got here in January, Rebajas had just started and it just now ended. Rebajas is like Black Friday… for two months. Very dangerous! I personally don’t go to the discotecas that much but there’s a huge culture for that here.
Have you been homesick at all?
I have been homesick like crazy. I hate to admit that, because I know I should be making the best of my experience and all, but I honestly would love to come home. I think keeping myself busy helps, and being able to Skype family and friends makes it a lot easier for me.
Jessica Ryan is a junior media studies major at CU-Boulder. She writes about study abroad experiences once a week for the Colorado Daily. On Twitter: @JessicaLRyan.
