Saorla’s Trip to Elche, Spain
Hola!
My name is Saorla Twomey, and I am a fifteen year old transition Year student. On the 14th of September, I came over to Spain where I would be spending the next 3 months. I decided to go to Spain during transition year to improve my Spanish, and I thought the best way to do that was by immersing myself in the Spanish culture.
FLYING TO MY NEW HOME FOR THE NEXT 3 MONTHS
It was my first time flying on my own, so I was a bit nervous, and the nerves kept growing as I walked out to meet my new family. It wasn’t their first time hosting a student, as they have had multiple Irish students in their house, which has definitely been a plus. We drove home and ate dinner which was a Spanish Tortilla (one of my favourites).
SPANISH SCHOOL
The next day I went to my school with my host sister, and met up with the coordinator, Carlos. I also met one of the English teachers in the school. I got a tour of the school and my timetable. I went home and had lunch with the family at 2:30. Around 4:30 I went on a walk with the mom and sister and got to see Elche. At the end of the day, I was very tired, and I went straight to bed.
The next morning was my first day of school, and school here starts at 7:50 so I had to get up very early. The English teacher had got a group of students to help me and walk me to my first class. I went to my first class which was geography and history. I tried (and failed) to understand the teacher. After that I had a free class, so I got to talk to all the people in my class who were all so welcoming. In my maths class I was handed a sheet of paper, which my friend explained to me was a permission slip for a trip to Valencia! (It was so much fun and I really enjoyed it). School ended at 14:55 and I walked home with my new sister.
LITTLE ESCAPADE TO ALICANTE
On the weekend I went to Alicante and walked along the coast, it was so pretty. We got crepes and then went back for dinner. After being in Ireland for so long, the weather was such a welcome change. My first few days were a little daunting, but as time passes it gets better and better, and eventually it will be the new normal.
VISIT GRANADA
My first week was really enjoyable, however one thing that was different was the meal times. It took me a week or two to acclimatise to the late dinners, but after that it was fine. My host family has been nothing but kind and welcoming to me. Every week that passes, I get more and more comfortable with them and they really do become your family. We go to many different towns and cities on the weekend such as Alicante, Santa Pola, Murcia and many more. I even got to go to Granada for 4 days. I am also very fortunate that the host dad is an amazing chef so we always have delicious meals.
One thing that I wasn’t prepared for was how tired I was. I constantly felt like falling asleep my first few weeks here, until I got into the practice of having one of the very famous Spanish Siestas. It has made me much less tired, so I would highly recommend having a siesta most days.
MY SPANISH LANGUAGE IMPROVEMENT
After six weeks here, I can understand a great deal more and my speaking Spanish has also hugely improved. I would recommend keeping a list of new words you have learned (I keep mine on my notes app) I have found it helps a lot.
This has definitely been an amazing experience, and I am so happy that I chose to do it. I could not recommend this experience enough.