Jack Carey: France

             Upon arriving in Cadaujac the first day, I was greeted warmly by my host family. My correspondent, Remy Laborde, played guitar, so we kicked things off with a jam session. As far as music went, we had surprisingly similar tastes, and rocked out to "Hotel California" by The Eagles. The Labordes were very curious about Nashville, so I answered a few questions, and used Google Earth to show them my neighborhood, as well as MBA. Their first two questions were, "Do you live in a forest?" and "Do you do anything other than sports at your school?" We ate pasta with baguette and chocolate mousse, and retired to bed after a long day of traveling.

             The following day (Monday), my host dad drove us to school. Remy explained how driving in France required much more extensive training than in the U.S, and added that he sometimes rode a scooter for transportation. The largest difference between the two schools was technology. At MBA, wifi is second in importance only to oxygen. At the Sauque, however, there was a single computer lab, which was the only area one could access the internet. Overall though, it definitely added to the experience, as I was never tempted to surf the web. Each day, the groups from MBA and SCA assembled outside on the benches adjacent to the basketball court. There, we conversed, and prepared for the main event of the day, normally a field trip. These trips included medieval churches and castles which dated back to the 12th Century A.D. It was remarkable to me just how well some of these monuments had been preserved; it was doubly remarkable, since nothing in the U.S. is very old. My favorite trip, however, was the Dune of Pilat, the tallest sand dune in Europe. After trekking up a vast number of steps at a steep incline, we were greeted by a spectacular view of the bay. The skies were clear almost the entire month, and that day was no exception. When it was time to leave, we ran down the side of the dune. The steep incline made running effortless, and we bounded down in long strides. 

Fishing for crawdads with Tim le pecheur

       

             My second host family, the Maurices, was comprised of four boys, with my host brother Baudoin being the oldest. The house was right on the Garonne, the main river that flows through the south of France. During the homestay, my French improved more than it had any other week. We spent many hours playing ping pong and Mario Kart. The highlight of this portion of the trip, however, was the wedding of Baudoin's cousin. It was a grand event, with over 300 people singing hymns in an old cathedral. Afterwards, we had dinner at a large chateau, and I finally got to try oysters, which are a regional specialty. In addition, my host family had prepared canelés, which resemble miniature bundt cakes, but have a more chewy texture, and an almost molasses-like taste.

Baudoin and I in front of the chateau were the marriage took place

             

    

          The third leg of the trip took place in Paris. There, we toured everything, from Montmartre to the Louvre, to the Catacombs, to the Eiffel Tower. My favorite part, however, was simply sitting in the Luxembourg Garden, where we could enjoy the Parisien atmosphere. After the week was over, I was fortunate enough to stay another ten days in Paris with my family. Since they spoke hardly any French, my skills as an interpreter were required more than ever. Moreover, I was able to relax, since I had already toured much of the city, and therefore did not feel as much pressure to visit more sites.

         

Contemplating life from the Seine

               Though the monuments were grand, what I will miss most about France were the little things: the conversations I had with the students at the Sauque, the hilarious play they performed on the final night, the dog that was always on campus, and riding through the sunny vineyards that never seemed to end. 

           Lastly, I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to M. Trotter for accompanying us on the trip, as well as the Wilson family, for their immeasurable generosity. Thanks to you, I was able to spend an incredible summer in France, all while learning a great deal.

My father, my brother and I posing in front of the Eiffel Tower

Will Peters: Spain

Week 1: Castilla y León

Day 1: Arriving in Spain

On June 29th, I departed from Nashville by myself, ready to embark on this new journey. Upon arriving in Boston, I met for the first time the 14 other americans who would become my family over the next 5.5 weeks. From Boston, we flew together to Madrid, and arrived at 6:30 AM on June 30 with little to no sleep, leaving us all very jet lagged. And so our journey began. We began the trip by taking a bus to Támara de Campos, a tiny town in Castilla y León surrounded by farmland, stopping along the way in Tordesillas, a small city, for coffee and toast, the typical Spanish breakfast. Upon arrival in Támara, a town of only 80 people, we had our first group lunch and began to get to know each other. After a quick group activity, we took our first siesta of the trip- an activity that proved to be a necessity as the heat increased and the days got longer. Following our siesta, we adventured around the tiny town and met many of the 80 locals. Although the first day was long, we had a nice beginning to the trip.

One of 3 churches in Támara, this one constructed in the 15th century

Day 2: Bull Training

Each day during the first week we took excursions from Támara to different parts of Castilla y León. The following day, we left from Támara early in order to arrive on time at our first excursion of the week: a visit to a farm where they practice for una corrida de torros (a bull fight). We watched a rajoneador (horseback bull fighter) practice with a young bull for about an hour before we were give the opportunity to run around the ring with a baby bull. Using the tips we learned, we tried to have our own bull fight, but we clearly were inferior to the professional. During our visit we learned a lot about the controversy over these bull fights, and how many young people do not think of the fights as a good tradition, but instead of unnecessary cruelty. 

Watching the Rajoneador practice

Running down a trail through the surround farmland

Day 3-4: Valladolid and a visit to a cave

On day 3 of our trip, now feeling very comfortable with my close knit group of americans, we visited an urban area for the first time. However, instead of visiting one of the bigger, bustling cities of Spain, we visited Valladolid, a medium sized city in north central Spain. In Valladolid, we started the day by meeting a professional chef in a fresh produce market and purchasing all of the ingredients we would need to make our lunch for the day, which was made up of salmorejo (a tomato based cold soup), croquettes, salad, Paella and flan. Under the tutelage of this chef, we cooked our own lunch, and had quite the feast. Following our 3.5 hour excursion with the chef, we were free to explore the city, visiting a park, some old cathedrals, and even a couple authentic, locally-owned shops. To conclude the day, we had an early dinner at 8 PM of tapas. The two meals I ate in Valladolid were definitely two of the five best meals of the entire trip, and are ones that I will never forget. Not missing a beat, the next morning we got up early yet again to visit a cave about 1.5 hours outside of Támara and went spelunking. On the way back to Támara, we stopped at the ruins of a great roman estate and had the opportunity to tour the villa rustica. We rested more on that day, arriving back in Támara in time for another siesta and some free time.

A plaza in Valladolid

Using my knowledge of latin, I analyzed this villa rustica

Day 5: Paco Díaz (Final day in Castilla y León)

On our final day in northern Spain, we spent the day with a world-reknowned musician in Paco Díaz. He taught us much about his passion for music by giving us a tour of his house and all of his exotic instruments. We played a few instruments and even had the pleasure of watching him perform. Following our initial visit with him, we visited a Bodega (wine cellar) 30 minutes from his house and learned about the old methods of fermenting wine. Following our visit to the public bodega, we had the opportunity of spending time with Paco in his private Bodega, where he fed us a lunch of Paella and chorizo and led us in some singing. After about four hours of dining and festivities, we left Paco behind with full stomachs and tired vocal cords.

A barrel for holding wine in the bodega

Weeks 2-4: Aracena

Days 6-27: The Homestay

On Sunday, July 5th, we said goodbye to the quaint town of Tamara de Campos and made our way to the town that would be our home for the next 3 weeks: Aracena (Huelva). After the 10 hour journey by bus, we arrived in Aracena, a small town of 7000 in the Sierra de Huelva, and met our homestay families. Right away my family accepted me with open arms and incredible hospitality. My family was made up of a father, Fernando, a host brother of my age, Fernandito, and Pedro, Fernandito's older brother. Although I was unbelievably nervous, they took me in and we spent the entire first night sharing stories and meeting Fernandito's friends. Even though my family spoke slower and clearer at first (but not for long), I found out quickly that the accent in rural southern Spain was incredibly difficult to understand. It took me about a week to adjust to the accent and the rhythm of speak, but nevertheless I immediately felt welcome in this wonderful community.

A view of Aracena from the Castle in the middle of the Pueblo

The main plaza in Aracena, where we regularly ate ice cream

Day to day in Aracena:

Settled in and adjusted to the new living situation in Aracena, I quickly developed a schedule that I would follow for most days for the 3 weeks of homestay in this town. On any given day, I would get up around 7:45 AM to go for a morning run. Although the town is essentially situated in the mountains, the running in Aracena was incredible, with many different options everyday. Following my run, I would eat breakfast with my host brother while my host father went to his job on his farm. Three days a week, following breakfast, I would head to a different farm, La Communidad Tierra de Esperanza, to spend my time helping the small catholic community that lived there with their daily tasks. On the farm, I packed hay bales, weeded gardens, fed rabbits, pigs and a cow, picked potatoes, and even helped install a pool by digging trenches, transporting gravel and tearing down a wall with a  pickax. Although the work on the farm was not easy, I formed some great relationships with the directors of the community, ones that I will never forget and continue to maintain. I worked on the farm from 10:00 AM until 1:00 PM, when I would bike back home for a 2:30PM lunch.  After our long, classically large lunch, Fernandito and I would usually take a quick siesta, varying in duration between 30 minutes and three hours. Following the siesta, most days, we would either go to one of multiple pools in the town or just hang out with some of Fernando's close friends. Then, around 8PM we would usually have a change of pace, whether it be a trip back to the house, a stop at our favorite ice cream shop, Rufino's, watching or playing soccer, or sometimes a second run or swimming workout. We would eat dinner at around 10:30 PM, as the sun was setting each night, and following dinner we would go out to hang out with friends in plazas until about 1 AM, when we would finally return home, ready to sleep and do it all again. Even though it was exhausting, learning and living the authentic daily life of the spaniards in this small town was an absolutely incredible experience, as I learned so much about the culture and lifestyle of the people.

A view from a road I ran down, overlooking a small town, Linares, nestled in the same mountain range

My host  family: Fernando, Me, Fernandito

 Excursions

While in Aracena, when we did not have our internships(my farm work) to go to, often times the LITA group leaders would organize excursions for either just the american students, or the students and their host siblings. These excursions varied from hiking to another town, Linares, going to the beach, going to a lake, visiting a ham(jamón) factory, visiting surrounding pueblos and old cathedrals, or even just visiting the castle and cave that are located within Aracena. All of these experiences proved to be very fun and provided opportunities to learn and grow in the language. Also while in Aracena, I had the opportunity to go on excursions with my family, such as beach trips and picnics at the farm. All of these opportunities allowed me to grow closer with all of the people around me and allowed me to form some friendships that I will carry on for years to come.

The Walk to the beach in Matalascañas

El Rocío, a wild western type town with an important cathedral 

Week 5: Cádiz and Sevilla

Hiking Trip

Saying a difficult goodbye to our host families and the lovely town of Aracena, we set off to do some hiking in the beautiful Sierra de Grazalema. Led by our guide, Sergio, we hiked roughly 10 miles each day, crossing through mountains and some rigorous terrain.With all of the clothing we needed for three days on our back, we hiked from town to town each day to find lodging, starting in Benaoján, hiking to Grazalema, then to Benaocaz, and finally to El Bosque. All three of these towns were beautifully nestled into mountainsides in the Sierra de Grazalema. After a long day of hiking, we would typically arrive at our destination around 2 or 3 PM, when we would take siestas or go swimming (if possible). After some relaxation and recovery, we would meet as a group around 8:30 PM to go to dinner, breaking the typical Spanish schedule of later dinners. After dinner, we always seemed to find some ice cream, and then proceeded to sleep relatively early, as each morning we got up at roughly 7 AM to start it all over. The hiking portion of the trip was challenging for some, but easily one of my highlights.

Sergio leading the way

Near the top of one of the mountains we crossed. 

Vejer de la Frontera: Beach days

After a challenging 3 days hiking, we were rewarded with 2.5 days in a bigger, beach town, Vejer de la Frontera. Traveling from El Bosque, we stopped in a large port-city, Cádiz, for the afternoon to have lunch and explore a big Spanish city. After venturing through Cádiz, we got back on the bus and arrived in my second favorite town of the entire trip (second to Aracena, of course), Vejer. Although it is still considered a town, or pueblo, Vejer was relatively large, having 24,000 inhabitants in the summer. Located 5 miles from the beach, many people go to Vejer on beach vacations, just as we did. We went to two beaches while in Vejer, and had many incredible group meals. The first beach day, we visited a beach located at the site of some roman ruins, which we also toured. We spent the entire day out on the beach and even ate at a chirringito, or beach bar, that served us fresh caught fish, some of the best I've ever had. The following day we visited Tarifa, a city on the beach located not too far from Gibraltar. We were able to eat lunch on our own, shop, explore the city, and then ultimately go to the beach again. These 2.5 beach days were some of my favorite of the trip. 

Roman ruins on the beachfront

A view of Africa from Tarifa

On top of an enormous dune with two of my American friends, Logan and Cameron

Sevilla and the return

To finish the trip, we spent our last 2.5 days in Seville, a large city in southern Spain and the capital of Andalucía. Upon arrival in Seville, I immediately fell in love with the city, making it easily my favorite in Spain. While there, we learned enormous amounts of cultural information over Seville's history, the moorish and christian influence on the city, the architecture, the importance of catholicism in the city and the way people live in the city. Our first full day there, our group leader and american, Meredith, gave us a walking tour of the city, as she not only lived there for two years, but also is engaged to a man from Seville. Later that day, Meredith and I had the opportunity to go to Mass in Seville. That mass proved to be the prettiest I had been to during the whole trip. On our last day in the city (and in Spain), we spent a lot of the day meeting people of our choosing in the city and taking pictures with them. We also spent the afternoon with some of our Spanish friends who came from Aracena to visit. As a group, we shared our final dinner together, and wrapped the trip up as it came to a sad, but rewarding end. The following morning, we left our apartments at 5 AM, and headed to the Sevilla airport to begin our journey back to the states.

La Giralda, the steeple of the cathedral and tallest building in Seville

LITA Spain South Group

View from the top of La Gerald

A retired Spaniard that my friend Trevor and I met in a Seville Market

Thank you

To end the blog, I would like to say thank you to everyone that has made this trip possible. First, to Jordan, Michela, Zac, Meredith and the entire LITA program for organizing the trip and being with us for support every step of the way. Secondly, I would like to thank Sr. Paolicchi, Sr. Kamm, Sra. Victoria, and all of the language program teachers that pushed me to take this opportunity and helped me decide where to go. Your help was invaluable. Finally, I would like to give a big thank you to the Wilson family for making these trips possible. This trip has definitely been one of the best experiences of my life, and I can't put into words how grateful I am for having had this opportunity. I have bettered my self in countless facets of my life from this trip, from my Spanish language use, to my cultural knowledge, to my interpersonal skills. Thank you very much for this great experience!

Michael Mappes Summer in Rome

 Student life

             Our average day started, after waking up to the sound of an annoying rooster or UD's alarm system, with a breakfast that consisting of spiced ham, cereal, pastries, and yogurt. Afterwards, we would head into Rome for seeing different sights (around 8:00), with explanations of those scenes by the main instructor, Dr. Swede, a very knowledgeable and interesting classicists. As soon as we returned (around 12:00), we went to the dining hall to eat lunch which included pastas, vegetables, and some meat. Thereafter, we would have some free time to do whatever we wished. My downtime would usually be spent playing card games or chess with my newly met friends. After that little break (around 3:00), we would diligently prepare large chunks of Latin, which we had been assigned the night before, in order to review it in the later group meetings. Sometimes, if we had to do chores (such as laundry), we would do those things intermittently in these periods to break up the tedious Latin. When I finally finished, I would resume playing with my friends who had finished. When dinner finally came (around 7:00), we would go to the dining hall to eat dinner. To Italians, dinner was considered to be the most important meal of the day, and, in accordance, the meals were bigger, grander, and more tasty. Almost immediately after dinner, we met in small groups to discuss Latin. After our small group met, we would be released, and, exhausted, refused to look at Latin for the rest of the night. After the free time, we went to bed at curfew (11:00). The most important part of the daily life was water. This summer was the hottest summer since 2003 according to Dr. Swede. Staying hydrated and cooling down during the long walks was very necessary, for it was miserable to not possess water. I made the mistake one day during our trip to the forum and the thirst was almost unbearable. The heat was magnified by the lack of shade and breeze. I will never forget this lesson since that day: When in Rome, ALWAYS HAVE WATER. At campus, there were two ice machines that softened the heat and were life-savers. 

Out in Rome

            In our many adventures in the Eternal City, we had the chance to see many marvels. From the famous Colosseum to the infamous temple to the fatherland, we experienced most of what Rome had to offer. We even went to St. Peters. Basilica, although it had no connection to Latin or the Romans. During these trips, Dr. Swede would explain each wonder by blue box, a device that allowed him to communicate to us so that we could hear him even in crowded areas. Such venues included a million gargantuan churches, an eighteenth century church built upon a sixteenth century church that was built upon a Roman treasury and Cultist temple, the lofty Pantheon, Roman temples A, B, and C, the Roman Forum, the Palatine hill where the emperors' palaces were. All of these abandoned, ancient sights were isolated in the bustling city which created a nice juxtaposition. My personal favorite site was the Altar of the Fatherland, where my friends and I could beautiful chunk of Rome on the tallest and most elaborate building in the city.

Capitoline, Colosseum, Palatine, etc. as seen on the top of the Altar of the Fatherland

Out of Rome

          A few times on this trip we left Rome to experience other sites. One such place was the Etruscan Necropolises, which we had the opportunity of exploring. The ominous sense of death in those black abysses of the tombs that you sensed when you climbed down into the manhole was definitely a thrilling experience. Another treat was Ostia Antica, the port city of Rome. This place was exhilarating to explore as nothing was roped off and everywhere was an awaiting adventure. The staff let us go, and off we went to explore the vast city of thirty thousand Romans. As I explored, I gained a sense of the power and wealth which the Romans possess through seeing huge buildings and wonderful tiled art. By far, the most exciting experience came from the Naples trip. Climbing the heights of the towering Vesuvius and thence seeing the azure ocean and the dense city, ascending the cliffs of the lofty and bustling Capri, observing the masterpieces of art painted on the walls on Pompeii and Nero's wife's villa, wandering in the home town of Cicero, standing on the marble paths of the Monte Casino while gawking at the view, and so on made this experience very enjoyable. Finally, in our latter days in Italy, we visited a few ancient Roman towns on hanging cliffs. The highlight of this trip was seeing the farmlands from a cliff opposing the city of Lavinia.

Mt. Vesuvius and Naples as seen on Capri

Latin

                     UD had devised a system for learning Latin. At first, we all went on the same pace until they decided who were the faster and better Latin students. Then, they divided the whole class into smaller groups which would meet at 8:00 (pm) to translate the Latin that we prepared that day, which included works from Tacitus, Suetonius, Livy, and much from Vergil. At the end of the month, we had a final exam which encompassed all the material that we had covered.

D'On Coofer: Colombia

On May 23, 2015, I considered myself blessed to have the opportunity to wake up in one country, The United States of America and to go to sleep in another, Colombia. I had so much excitement for this trip that I could not go to sleep the night before the flight. The good thing for me was that the flight was very early in the morning, so I did not have to stay up without sleep for a long time. Before the trip, Montgomery Owen, Andy Zhu, Warner Lamar, and I all connected and began speaking with our host families. My mother and I skyped my host family soon after we knew their information. From the first time of many that my mother and I skyped my future host family, we fell in love with them. Although my mother was nervous that I would not only be away from her where she could not physically see me for 3 weeks, but I would also be on another continent, it made her feel a lot better being able to skype my host family. The relationship that grew between our two families was vital.

Mr. Calico, Montgomery Owen, Andy Zhu, Me(D’On Coofer), and Warner Lamar (Left to Right)

        The first day was great. My host family, the Naranjos, kept this day relatively simple because we arrived fairly late the night before due to  a flight delay.  The next morning we work up close to 11 o’clock or noon. We ate breakfast which was so very good. I quickly learned that breakfast typically consisted of  four  main things: a type of cheese, a meat, bread, and fruit. I was introduced to Colombian food very quickly and fell in love with it.  Breakfast was followed by a daily weekly bike/walk/run/any exercise one wished to do. It was amazing  to see the number of  people in the streets to the point that some streets were blocked off for these activities. Once we returned to the house, we took showers before going to eat. We went to a famous Colombian barbecue/grill restaurant which served its food for groups to eat together. Throughout my experience immersed in culture, language, and more, I bonded heavily with many people there including my host family, now friends from Colegio Claustro Moderno, and the family of my host family. Everyone whom I met in Bogota was very loving and opened his/her hearts up with great care.

My first day at Colegio Claustro Moderno had its differences or things I just was not used to. Instead of driving to school everyday, we rode the bus which was my first time riding the bus. When we arrived to school, I was first  amazed by the views from the school yard. The views were so beautiful that  I knew that it was not the end, but only the beginning of what this magnificient  and marvelous city had to offer and show me. I went with my host brother, Juan Diego Naranjo Bulla, to all of his classes. In the classroom, the atmosphere was much more laid back which was different because I was used to  MBA rules. We also did not attend every class every day. We were on a block schedule like a lot of public high schools in Nashville, TN or surrounding areas. Playing soccer during our 3 breaks each day was very popular among all students. It  became a fun activity which Montgomery, Warner, Andy, and I participated in although our skills were not on the same level of most of the other students there. Yet, we were always included. We did everything in Spanish. We played in Spanish, we studied in class in Spanish, we listened to music in Spanish and anything  else in Spanish. The amount of time I spent speaking in Spanish, I was able to improve my understanding, listening, and speaking skills tremendously.

At the top of the mountain on which Colegio Claustro Moderno is.

View of most of the city.

        I was taken on numerous excursions during my stay and loved every last one of them. I was able to go to the Salt Mines which is a Cathedral, Monserrate which also a cathedral, downtown, a famous lagoon, soccer games, and many more. My new favorite Colombian soccer team is the Millionarios after I was able to go with my host brother and his dad to one of the playoff games in Bogota. The atmosphere was very intense because of the players and spectators.

The language immersion  experience has greatly enhanced my acquisition of the Spanish culture that includes language, music, food, sports, art, relationships etc. . As a result I am extremely grateful that I had the opportunity to travel abroad to Bogota,Columbia in South America. I experienced first hand what some have only been able to read about or watch on the television.  . Without you, your desire and willingness to help others and your generosity none of this would have been possible. You have directly and positively impacted my life greatly and made a change that will last a lifetime. To the Wilson family, Sr. Paolicchi, and  everyone who were able to make this possible, many heart-felt thanks go to you. You have changed my life for the better.

Chapman Malone: Sevilla

Sevilla

Upon arriving in Madrid with Asher Curnutte, Hamilton Garber, and Cole Campbell, who all went on the same program, I was met by MJ. and Martín, two directors of our program. We soon met the other kids on the same program and set out for our hotel. It was storming as we drove for the hotel, but hearing all about Spain from MJ distracted all of us from the bad weather. We arrived at our hotel, NH Zurbano, and set out to look for food and begin exploring the city. We spent the first weekend in Madrid touring the city, seeing a traditional Spanish market with walls covered in jamón serrano, and experiencing Madrid life. My interest was peaked by the street performers in the central plaza of Madrid, including several headless gentlemen, minions from Despicable Me, and an interesting adaptation of Spider Man.

After spending two days in Madrid, we left and headed to Toledo, a small town close to Madrid. We only spent one night in Toledo, but were able to see the incredible cathedral and watch a few matches of Padel, a sport similar to tennis that we had never seen before. We ended up spending most of the night watching the Padel tournament right by the cathedral.

Padel

Toledo’s Cathedral

 

Caracoles

After the first weekend, we left Toledo for Sevilla. Upon arriving, I met my host mother and one of my host brothers, Manuel. We went back to the house, where Manuel showed me around and showed me the pool on the roof of the three floor apartment, which I would swim in daily to cool off from the one hundred degree weather. Then Manuel showed me around the city, and we headed back to the house for dinner. The first week I spent the mornings seeing and touring the sights of the city with the ISA group and taking classes during the afternoons at the ISA building, which was right beside the Plaza de España. One notable tour was a tapas tour, in which we walked around some popular tapas bars and tried the different appetizers they offered, including caracoles, snails cooked and served inside the shells.

After a week of staying with my host family, our group set out to spend the weekend at Gibraltar the beach in Cadiz. In Gibraltar, we drove around the city and saw the incredible view off the cliffs, then drove up the mountain to see the monkeys of Gibraltar. I was amazed by how comfortable the monkeys were being around people. One monkey even jumped onto the side mirror of our bus and barely noticed the bus driver looking at it from only a couple feet away. After seeing the monkeys and the caves at the top of the cliffs of Gibraltar, we drove to Cadiz and settled in at our hotel. The next day, our group spent the day at the beach then at night a few of us ate at a tapas bar and ordered about fifteen appetizers to share as our meal. We walked around the beach late at night before heading back to the hotel to go to sleep. The next day, we drove back to Sevilla.

During the second week of group tours or activities during the morning and classes during the afternoon, I began to realize how thankful I was that I was lucky enough to have a pool in my house. When I would come home for lunch, the temperatures usually had reached around one hundred degrees, and since houses don’t generally have air conditioning in Sevilla, I had a great way to cool off during the day. Our day activities included kayaking in the river, playing soccer, and learning how to cook paella that, according to Quique, is the best in Spain. Friday, we prepared for our next weekend excursion, Portugal.

      Quique’s Paella

Cathedral of Sevilla

We set off for Lagos, Portugal, and spent the first afternoon there on a boat ride on a sailboat. We rode past the caves and took smaller boats to see them closer up, while others swam in the ice cold water of Portugal’s coast. That night, we went out to some cliffs and watched an amazing sunset, then returned and all walked around the city eating ice cream and watching street performers, such as a musician and a singer. The next day, the whole group learned how to surf with lessons from a local surfing company, and we all had a great time, even though none of us were particularly gifted surfers. After a day of surfing, we ate cheeseburgers by the beach and headed back to Sevilla for a final week with our host families.

During our final week with our host families, we had some very exciting activities, including a flamenco show and visiting an amusement park. Some of the guys in our group also finally were able to eat at Bushi, a burger and sushi combo restaurant that turned out to be surprisingly good at making the odd combo of burgers and sushi. Classes wrapped up with our taking the final tests and turning in the final projects for our Spanish Language and Culture classes, and on July 3rd, I said goodbye to my host parents, my host brothers, Manuel and Alfonso, and got on the bus to the Madrid airport, where we would leave to arrive back in the United States on July 4th.

Although I was sad to leave Sevilla, I was happy on the return because I had such an amazing trip. My Spanish improved significantly, I made lots of new friends, including my two host brothers, who I’ve had several conversations with over text since I returned, I learned all about a new culture and way of life, and I had an experience that I’ll never forget and will have a lasting impact on my life. I am so thankful for the Wilson family for making this life-changing experience possible for me, and I’m thankful for Sr. Paolicchi and Sr. Kamm for teaching me Spanish and helping me find the perfect program. I had the experience of a lifetime, and am very blessed that I was fortunate enough to be able to receive a Wilson Grant for this opportunity.

Dani Biegl: Germany

My German experience began much like everyone elses. We arrived in Frankfurt noon on Sunday. 

Here is the family i was staying with. I had the fortune of hosted Jan Hackmann, the man in the middle, this past fall. I was fortunate to already have some friends in Germany making the process so much easier. Almost immediately i fall asleep and woke just in time to be late for school. It was quite an experience to walk to school every morning, something that  surprised me. School was rather fun the first day. We spent a time making new friends and in my case catching up with some old ones. The daily school routine rarely differed; classes, breaks, lunch and done. However whats more interesting was what happened on Wednesdays. On Wednesdays school lasted till 1, rather than the normal 4. It was this first Wednesday that Charlie, jay, and I got to know Weisbaden. Every week we had a class trip on Friday, and this first Friday we went to Frankfurt to tour an art museum. We then took a tour of the museum in German. The ride and the tour were all as expected, but what really surprised me was what happened next. The teacher allowed us high school students to run around in Frankfurt for two hours. The weekends were my main chance to get to know Germany, yet this first weekend was rather boring. Saturday Jan took me back to Frankfurt to walk around a little more and that Sunday he had to study for a test so i just went into town.
    Next week i met Fabian, pictured bellow.

Fabian was my old exchange student from last year. I spent that Tuesday going to his classes. It happened often that I would go to different classes, because Jan would take classes like Spanish for which i had no interest. This picture above is from dinner I had with them.
The second weekend was hands down the best weekend of the trip, Jans family took me to Berlin.






Above some Trabants can be seen. Trabants are old east German cars, and have become tourist attractions. I always enjoy seeing one but never riding in one, there is no room. We spent the first day walking around. We walked from our Hotel to the KaDeWe. A giant mall for some of the worlds most expensive items, like a 10 euro bottle of iced tea. The next day we took city tours, on boat, on bus, and even in a Trabant. On the way back we stopped by in Meissen. Meissen is home to Europes first porcelain factory.
 
 Here is an example from the Hackmanns second home.

The third week was made up of class trips. Everyday we took a trip with either the class or the other exchange students, who arrived this week. One of the most memorable was Heidelberg.


Here are two pictures of the giant castle in Heidelberg. The castle was set up on a high hill and walking up was a giant pain. It was worth it. The view of the Heidelberg was something else. Luckily we took the train down.
Another memorable trip was to Mainz. Mainz is Weisbadens sister city and at the same time a rival city.
Here there beautiful cathedral.
The last week the four of us took a road trip. We stopped for a day in Rottenburg.
From this birds eye, the city walls are barely visible. The wall go all the way around the city and can be traversed.
 sometimes.....
The city was old and spectacular, having never been destroyed. We finished that day in Munich. Tired but hungry we set out to find a doner, however my suggestion soon turned into a two hour hike, the rest were not pleased.
The next day we went to the BMW museum. The museum looked like my dads Car and Driver collection, but nonetheless very enjoyable. When we were there they had a mini exhibit. This was our favorite.
We then proceed outside to the Olympic park.

Like every memorable picture in Germany, this came with a long hike. After this picture we went to a festival on the other side of the hill. There was music and booths with an assortment of foods, clothes, and other souvenirs. Later that day we went to the main square.

This is the facade of the capitol building of Munich. While we were there they had a gay pride festival in the middle of the square in front of this building. The entire square was filled with booths and stands holding all sorts of food, drinks, and candy(the germans love candy). We had to go to bed early that day because the next day we were going to tour the castle. Schloss Neuschwanstein was a crazy castle built by a crazy king.

This a picture of the castle from a normal perspective. The castle was a long hike up and then this view another equally long walk. The hike was well worth it and the castle was a beautiful as advertised.

The next day we left for Dachau. Dachau was a Nazi work camp mainly for political prisoners. While it was a mass death camp the day was rather bleak, but it is important to remember so that we may never repeat the mistakes of the past. 

From there we went on to Nurnburg. Nurnburg was historically a very important city in Germany. It was the home of the Kaisers castle and was were the golden bull was written. We arrived the first day and like every day took some time to look around. The next day we went on to the Nazi rallying grounds.
This picture was taking from were Hitler would have given his speeches. The green hill marks the boarders. The grounds could hold up to 200,000 people, but now is home to a racetrack. We also saw the skeletons for the German senate. The scale of the building was something else, rivaling a football stadium in size.
The final day we stopped by in Wurzburg.
Behind us is the famous keep in Wurzburg. Again another long hike for an amazing view. We also took some time to walk around and see the bishops home. The house is giant and built in the same style as Versailles.

As a lost remark I would like to thank the Wilson family for this amazing trip. Not only did my German improve to the point that my host father began to wonder why i even needed this trip but also I was able to understand so much about the German mindset. Having hosted for two years I thought I had an idea of what I was getting into, but life has its ways of surprising us. So therefore I would like to thank the Wilsona for these pleasant surprises and my new and improved German vocabulary.