Six months living and studying in Barcelona has gone by so quickly. But in these six months, I have met so many wonderful people and seen and done so many things that have made my time here unforgettable. From when I started studying Spanish, I knew that I wanted to go on an exchange program to Spain. Learning a language at University and living and breathing the culture and language in the actual country is completely different. I attended the University of Pompeu Fabra, which was right on La Rambla – the main street going up the centre of Barcelona. I loved the feeling of walking out the doors of Pompeu Fabra and along the Rambla, which, although was almost always crowded with tourists, had such a wonderful lively atmosphere.
The idea of going on an exchange program can sometimes be a bit frightening, especially if you are going on your own to a place so far away, but it is an experience definitely worth having and one that you will treasure for the rest of your life. There are so many things to do here in Barcelona that even after six months, I feel I haven’t had the chance to see all this beautiful city has to offer. The Gothic District (to the right of La Rambla) is full of tiny streets with cafes and stores, as well as many impressive churches. Barcelona is such a cultural city, with many different museums including the Picasso Museum and the National Museum of Catalonia and is the site of Gaudi’s creations including Park Guell, which stands at the back of Barcelona overlooking the city. One thing that amazed me in the beginning is that the city never seems to sleep. I was out on a Monday night and heading home around 11pm and yet the streets were still full of people. The lifestyle over here seems so different to that at home and even now, I am still not used to eating dinner at 11pm or later like my roommates.
Pompeu Fabra is a University that excels in the field of translation, and offers translation courses in English, Spanish, French and German. However, almost all the courses offered are solely for exchange students, so I didn’t have as many opportunities to meet Spanish people as I had hoped. The friendships I made with other exchange students though is something that I will hold on to and because of them, my stay here was all that more special. If I had the chance, I would go on the same exchange in a second as I have truly loved living here, and am looking forward to coming back again, hopefully in the near future.