Abby M
I am a third year student studying abroad at the Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Spain. I'm on a quest for fluency, broad horizons, and whatever else is along the way.La Peregrina en una Busqueda
Travel Blog Posts
January 12th 2008
I went to Salamanca this year for Christmas break. It was a tough decision because of course it would be great to go home, but our break is only 2 weeks here and it's a really long trip between here and Maine. I lived with a family and had the entire "student apartment" to myself because everyone else had gone home for Christmas. I took a Spanish course while I was there to try to improve my proficiency a little over the break. There were only a couple of other students in my class (which I should have expected, considering it's Christmas and all). In the morning from 9 to 10:40 we had Grammar and Vocabulary class and then after a 20 minute break we had Conversation and Composition. Once a week we had a Culture ... read more
December 21st 2007
This past weekend I went to Angers, France to visit my friend Nissa. She’s studying abroad there for a semester. I was a little nervous about going, considering that I don’t speak a word of French, but most everyone I spoke to during the trip spoke English, which surprised me. People here keep telling me that English is the universal language (and it is a required course in many countries) but it just seems strange to me. Maybe because I never had to learn a language as a requirement, it seems odd that other people would have to learn English. Speaking of that, I’ve had several requests from people here to practice English. So, France was fantastic. It was great to see Nissa and just experience a different culture (though I was only there for ... read more
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas
Published: December 17th 2007Europe » Spain » Galicia » Santiago de Compostela
December 17th 2007
Although I really, really miss snow (there’s no chance of it here because it’s too warm) I do think that Santiago looks very festive. Maybe it’s because I’m not watching much TV here, but I think that there more of a focus on the religious aspects of Christmas than the commercialism. On Christmas Eve the Spanish eat a big dinner which usually includes seafood. And “Papa Noel” is gaining popularity, but it’s more traditional to give gives on “El Día de los Reyes Magos” (The Day of the Wise men), which falls on January 5th this year. It marks the day when the wise men completed their journey and gave their gifts to the baby Jesus. Much like our shopping mall Santas, there are people who dress up like the three wise men and ride through ... read more
November 17th 2007
The bus ride from Santiago to Porto is about 3 hours, but I enjoyed looking at the beautiful countryside. Both Spain and Portugal are known for their wine, so there were many vineyards to see along the way. There were even small vineyards in people’s backyards. I learned later that many people grow their own grapes and make wine once a year. Essie and I met up with Joana once we arrived and Joana showed us around the city. It was really different from what I expected. I just assumed that it would be about the same size as Santiago (about 93,000 people) but it was much bigger. They already had Christmas decorations up. At first I thought it was early for that, but we are almost half way through November. There was so much open ... read more
November 6th 2007
On Thursday I went to Finisterre with my friend, Essie. Finisterre is a small fishing town that is famous for its impressive lighthouse. It is usually the last stop for pilgrims completing the Camino; it’s traditional for pilgrims to burn an article of clothing when they finally reach the end of their journey. We took a bus, which took 3 hours because it followed a coastal route. Once we got there, we walked around for a bit and found a really nice little beach. Then we started walking. Along the way we found a map. Unfortunately, it was pretty much useless because it didn’t have a “you are here” indicator, so we could point out the lighthouse but had no idea where we were in relation to it. But in the end everything worked out, and ... read more
October 25th 2007
Hola Everyone! This week has gone by so quickly! The weather is still inexplicably beautiful; I haven’t been caught in a rain storm yet. Now that I have my schedule finalized, I can see how the semester will go. The classes aren’t too difficult, but I do have quite a few on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I think my favorite class is Introduction to Comparative Literature. Last class we talked about the difficulties of adapting plays into movies. We also discussed the prevalence of Shakespeare in pop culture. We got to watch an interpretation of Hamlet on The Simpsons and an episode that referenced Romeo and Juliet of Home Improvement during the class! I think I was one of the only ones laughing at The Simpsons because it was in English and most of the class ... read more
October 21st 2007
Hi everyone! Well, I've been in Spain for almost a month now. In a way it seems like I just left, but it's also quite hard to remember what life in Maine is like. At first, I had a difficult time adjusting here, but now I'm finally starting to feel settled in. I would say that my life here is almost 180 degrees from my life in Maine. One of the hardest things to get used to is the "Spanish time". Many stores are closed during the siesta time (ranging from 1:30 to 5) and then they reopen from 5 to 9. Everything is closed on Sundays, because that's when everyone goes to church and spends time with family. People eat lunch around 2:30 or 3 in the afternoon and eat dinner around 10 or 11 ... read more
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