ISA Study Abroad in Granada, Spain

While it's been several years since my study abroad experience, it was something that left a lifelong impact on me. The ISA staff, both in the U.S. and in Granada were always helpful when I had a question or needed assistance. While we were given the option to find our own place to live or stay with a host family, I'm glad I chose to stay with the host family. It was a great immersive experience and while challenging at times, I loved it! The classes were also challenging and you were placed depending on where you tested for an initial test. ISA also had great opportunities, even for the five week program to see other cities. Upon arrival we saw Madrid and Toledo before heading to Granada. We also went to Sevilla one weekend. You can also plan excursions on your own of course and I was able to visit the beach one weekend as well as Cordoba. I'm also glad I opted to sign up to meet with a local student who was taking English classes so I could practice my Spanish and she practiced her English, I always enjoyed those meetings and the city of Granada as a whole!

The ISA Granada program is a great option for those who wish to improve their Spanish skills while becoming immersed in the rich culture and fun social scene of Granada, Spain. One of the best aspects of the semester program is that it offers the option of extending your time abroad by completing an intensive month-long course before beginning the regular semester at the University of Granada's Center for Modern Languages (CLM). The intensive course allowed me to really focus on improving my Spanish because it was my only course for that month, and it met four hours a day for five days every week. I was not used to having classes taught exclusively in Spanish, so this intensive course helped me become comfortable using Spanish on a much more regular basis. By the time I started the regular semester, taking four courses in Spanish at the high-advanced or superior levels was much less intimidating. In terms of the social and cultural adjustment, I think the ISA staff really helped encourage students to become immersed in the Spanish culture by regularly offering tours, activities, and workshops in Granada, as well as several free excursions throughout Spain. Since these options were free and easy to sign up for, and because I felt very comfortable around the ISA staff and students, participating helped me take the first step in being more adventurous while abroad. When I first arrived in Spain, I honestly just wanted to stay in my room and mope about how much I missed home. I was also terrified to speak to any Spaniards in Spanish because I was self-conscious about my abilities in the language and did not want to be judged. However, the activities offered by ISA, as well as the intensive course at the CLM, forced me to get out, see more of Spain, and become more comfortable using the language. This was only the foundation for growth, of course, as there is only so much that ISA can require you to do; I appreciate how the program left it mostly up to me to decide how active I wanted to be as an international student. However, I always felt that the ISA staff wanted nothing less than the best for all of their students and would be more than willing to step in and do whatever they could to help make their students' semester the best experience it could be. Because I had this strong foundation to build from, in addition to a team of program staff and university professors who I always felt were on my side, I eventually felt confident enough in myself to travel outside of Spain alone. I'll admit that at the beginning my first trip, which was to Switzerland, I had a lot of the same feelings of fear and anxiety that I had had when I first arrived in Spain. But then I reminded myself how much I had grown in my first month in Spain and that I could do the same in Switzerland. I was absolutely right, and the changes in myself soon became very apparent. When I first arrived in Spain, I spent over an hour trying to figure out on my own how to get to another part of the airport because I was too afraid of potentially having to ask someone for help in Spanish, a language I had been studying for eight years. But by the time I was in Switzerland, which was only a month later, I found myself confidently ordering food and buying souvenirs in French, a language in which I have just one year of experience. And while I had originally been afraid of getting lost while walking just a mile to class in Granada, I had gained enough confidence in my navigation skills to get myself from the major city of Geneva to a small mountain village located three hours away. This first trip was such a success that I soon found myself wanting to travel by myself as much as possible, booking subsequent trips to Austria and Ireland. I am very thankful to ISA for helping me realize that being abroad does not have to be as scary as you might make it out to be; with the courage and self-motivation that the program helped me acquire, I was able to have what I consider the best experiences of my life by exploring Europe by myself. From now on, whenever I find myself doubting my own abilities, I will always remind myself about my time in Europe, and how it helped me realize that I had had the skills, courage, and confidence inside me all along.

I lived about a 20 minute walk away from the CLM where I studied, and after school I would often meet my friends for tapas, go to "intercambios" to practice our Spanish, or explore the grounds around the Alhambra. Granada is the best place to study abroad, and ISA is definitely the best program provider. They had 24/7 on site support, a computer lab that I could use during office hours, and staff that was available to offer tutoring during the week. They also provided great excursions for us to Sevilla, Córdoba, Nerja, Las Alpujarras, Madrid, Toledo, and Morocco. I wouldn't have studied with any other third party provider.

I'm under the impression that Granada is an underrated city in Spain. It has a magical vibe, so full of history. The mountains surrounding the city are absolutely stunning. There was no other city in Spain that i felt had such a wonderful environmental surrounding. It is the perfect city to study abroad in if you choose to study in Spain. ISA is helpful in informing us about activities which we can do in a near Granada. They also assist you in making the most of your semester by being there for you every step of the way. When i say this, i do not mean that ISA staff is breathing down your neck. They give you freedom to do your own thing, but its comforting to know that they are always there if needed. Also, the housing provided was not at all fancy, but the warm staff of my residencia more than made up for this fact. ISA sets up a couple of excursions during the semester. These excursions were definitely some of the funnest, most memorable and most educational parts of the semester. The Morocco excursion costs extra, but don't miss it! It was by far the best one in my opinion. (I studied in the Spring, idk if this is available in the Fall). One piece of advice to those of you who choose Granada. Having chosen such a wonderful city you will unfortunately have to deal with a few hordes of tourists now and then, especially in the warmer months. Don't be a tourist! Be a local! Explore the places where the locals flock, there are plenty of them, you just need to do a little bit of exploring. Overall, this program is awesome. ISA really does the job right.

From the moment I landed in Granada I felt something special. Granada is a magical city full of culture and history. Listening to the music from Sacramonte to La Alhambra it is a must see city in Spain.

Oh Granada.... I miss it so much! This experience changed my life without a doubt and it is very hard to decide where to begin. My overall experience was fantastic - I improved my Spanish, made amazing friends and explored Europe. I'm going to focus on three things that I wish had been different: My living situation, prior knowledge about my school's attendance, and cultural immersion. My host family was very caring and we lived in a large apartment complex like most people in Granada, however I was not expecting the lack of communication/involvement from my host family. I think that in Spain many host families are older ladies who need money and so they are not hosting for the cultural experience so much as they are for cash. I found this disappointing - although I could have pushed to do more with them. Secondly, one of the major reasons I went to Spain was to travel through Europe - I even bought a EU rail pass prior to leaving... Don't do that.... After arriving in Granada I learned that my school had a rule forcing you to attend at least 80% of your classes or else you can't take the Final test (a couple of my classes were graded with only 2 tests - each 50% of your final grade). The rail pass was a huge waste of money, was time consuming, and very restricting. USE RYAN AIR! Flying is much faster and more flexible so it should be able to fit into your limited amount of time to travel. Lastly, I was disappointed that the centro de lenguas modernas was its own little island of international students and I had virtually no interaction with Spanish students. If you plan to make Spanish friends, seek how to get involved on the main campus at the beginning of your trip! Overall, I had a great time. The people are wonderful, the city is beautiful, and you will experience a type of freedom you didn't know existed... Now i'm feeling really nostalgic. You will love it!

I chose to study abroad in Granada because I wanted to improve my Spanish, and I had learned that Granada has a unique culture and a rich history. I am glad I chose to study through ISA. They set me up with a wonderful homestay, just a short walk away from everywhere I wanted to go. My host mom made the most delicious meals for us.

All of my classes were taught in Spanish, and through then I learned a lot about Spanish history and culture. The only downside to my classes is that most of my classmates were Americans. I did join a theater club, and made friends from all over the world that way.

My favorite part of the experience was traveling a lot. ISA set up several excursions to cities throughout Spain, and we also had time to travel on our own.

To describe my experience in Granada, Spain through ISA, I would need a year. Or two. In reality, January 22nd – May 23rd were the best months of my life and I would not trade it for the world. Before coming to Spain, I tried to not have any expectations because I wanted to have an open mind about everything. And that is exactly what I did. Stepping off the bus in Granada was the best feeling ever. I was not aware of all the friends I was going to make, the trips I was going to take, and the experiences I was going to have. When I reflect on everything that has happened, I smile.

The things about Granada that were most valuable to me were my host family, the trips I took, the memories I made, and the ISA staff. I cannot describe the love I had for my family. They truly are a second family. My host dad asked me to help him download Skype for his phone so we could communicate after I left Spain (and we still text every single day). How thankful I am to have lived with these wonderful people. Besides my family, I am so blessed to have traveled to Italy, Ireland, France, and Portugal. I had never traveled outside of the United States and now I can proudly say that I have been to five other countries. These trips have been some of the best memories of my life.

Each day in Granada was unique. Whether I was walking to school, eating gelato at Los Italianos with friends, shopping in the Albayzin, or tanning at Garcia Lorca park, I made the most out of my time in Spain. Even though I am thinking about returning to Spain to teach, I don’t know the next time I will be around that many Spanish people. One Spanish woman who was very special to me is my "intercambio" Virginia who I have already blogged about. I met with Virginia every Monday for three hours and spoke Spanish to her while she spoke English to me. These three hours a week significantly improved my Spanish. Virginia is one of the sweetest and smartest women I know and I am so glad I met her.

Of course, there were hard days here too where I missed my family and friends, but that's where the ISA support and staff felt like home. I would choose to study abroad with ISA countless times because of the extremely friendly and helpful staff that is available 24/7.

I will never feel like I am home again because part of my heart will always be in Granada. That is the price I pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place.