"There is nothing worse in life than being blind in Granada"

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.