Author: Viana Esposito | Major: Political Science and English | Semester 2025

Viana posing underneath the Viaducto de Segovia (historic bridge in Madrid).

I always knew I wanted to study abroad, specifically in Spain. When I heard about AIFS’s 5-week summer program in Madrid, I knew it was the one for me. As someone who comes from Spanish descent, I have always wanted to explore my background more. My great grandpa immigrated from Spain to Mexico in 1902, so for the longest time I believed I was Mexican. However, from the first moment I entered Spain I felt as though I was coming home, despite never visiting before.

At the Universidad de Nebrija, I took two classes. Art in Spain and Intermediate II Spanish Language. Both classes were extremely engaging, encouraging student participation and I feel as though I was able to immensely develop my Spanish speaking abilities and learn more about the history of art in Spain. Not only did I develop this knowledge in the classroom but also walking throughout the city. Every day there was something new to see, from street art to statues to famous works in world renowned museums. Art in Spain not only taught me about art’s history but also asked me to connect with it, questioning what different aspects we as consumers can notice. While my Spanish class mainly focused on grammar, my professor loved to answer all our questions, teaching us Spanish customs, idioms, and new words.

This trip stuck out to me because I was immersed in a completely new culture. As a part of my program, I took a day trip to El Escorial and attended a cooking class. We also had many walking tours of Madrid, getting to see local and touristy sports with a guide. The day trip to El Escorial was by far my favorite activity with AIFS. It is a historic city 45 minutes outside of Madrid with the main aspects enclosed by stone walls. Inside these walls is a royal palace, library, school, basilica, convent, and of course, a gift shop. It was amazing getting to see the frescoes in the library detailing the history of philosophy. Walking through the gardens was also amazing because the landscape around the town is so much different from that of Madrid’s. The hills are quite a focal point, and the garden provided a cool shady place to admire them. Getting to take a cooking class was also very exciting. We made paella, tortilla Española, tarta, and sangria. All of these are extremely traditional of Spanish culture and are potentially foods my ancestors would have made in their homes growing up. The class was also taught in Spanish, helping more to improve my vocabulary when cooking or in the kitchen.

While on my trip, I took two weekend trips to San Sebastían and Barcelona. It was intriguing to see how only a short train ride away, the culture differed so vastly. San Sebastian is a coastal town located in the Basque Country of Spain. We stayed at a hostel located 45 minutes outside the city in the mountains and it was breathtakingly beautiful. Due to the Basque influence, instead of tapas they have pintxos as well as a special type of cider called cava. Barcelona also had many differences, the main one being that Catalan is spoken rather than Spanish. This made for a pretty challenging experience when navigating the metro, but we prevailed, nonetheless. This trip was extremely fun, because I got to visit with a fellow Razorback, and some of my new peers from Madrid took the adventure with me. We got to explore the Gothic Quarter, Sagrada Familia, and went to Coco Beach. The architecture throughout Barcelona tied in with my art class and was phenomenal to see in person. These trips rounded out my Spain experience, showing me the vast cultural differences between cities, and helped me to realize that culture is something to be prideful of.

If a student was considering studying abroad I would without a doubt recommend it. There are limitless opportunities, but obviously I am a bit partial to Spain, and for good reason. Not only did I get to experience a place my ancestors lived, but I also connected to the place myself. Often, people asked me how I knew so much Spanish, or even if it was my first language. My Spanish has always been conversational, but without this trip I would not be as fluent as I am now. It truly made me feel more tied to Spain and my heritage, making this a trip I will never forget.