A review on Abbey Road Programs Barcelona

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  Abbey Road Programs Barcelona Barcelona Program

  Reviewed by Maggie B on April 20, 2012 .

  When people ask me what my trip with Abbey Road, to Barcelona was like, I often struggle to find one or two phrases to sum up the whole experience. Words like amazing, unforgettable, and enriching come to mind, but to me they only seem to touch the surface of what my month abroad was like. For the first time I felt like I actually lived abroad, that I wasn’t just a tourist. I was able to fully immerse myself in Spanish culture and experience what the lifestyle in Barcelona is like, all while making lasting friends and vastly improving my Spanish.
  From the first day on the trip I was enchanted by the amazing city that is Barcelona, and I did as much as I would to explore it. Right after we unpacked in our rooms, my roommate and I set out to explore the city and ended up in Las Ramblas, one of the most interesting areas in the city. That was our first but most definitely not our last excursion out into the city. We made an effort to try and go out into the city every day. On top of our individual explorations we often went out as a group. In the city we went places like the Picasso Museum, Poble Espanol (an outdoors museum), a Flamenco show, an amusement park called Tibidabo, the famous architect Gaudi’s buildings around the city, and much more. I loved these types of outing because we got to go and see places that were either too far for us to visit alone, or too expensive. In addition to all of this, we went on a weekly day trip to another town. We visited a winery, the Dali museum, a monastery, lots of beaches, as well as many other places. For me, these were some of the highlights of the trip because our group got to see other places than just Barcelona, because although it is a great city there are many other areas with lots to offer as well. All of this, as well as daily classes kept us very busy the whole time we were in Spain.
  When I decided to go to Spain, my main goal was to improve my Spanish. I can proudly say that I achieved this goal, I am much more sure of myself when I speak Spanish now. When I first arrived in Spain I found it difficult to have conversations in Spanish and I often stumbled. Through my daily Spanish classes and being forced to speak Spanish with anyone out of the group I have been able to learn a lot of Spanish as well as gain confidence. It makes me ecstatic to be able to look back on my time in Spain and know that I accomplished the one thing that I wanted most to do while I was there.
  Making new friends and fully experiencing Spanish culture were also among my many goals when I set out on this adventure, however when I arrived in Spain they became far more important to me that they originally had been. When I met the rest of the group I knew immediately that I would make great friends on the trip. Everyone grew close very quickly and we all started to feel like one big family. This is when I realized how important it was to me to make friends on the trip, because I knew that there were people who I would keep in touch with after it was all over. Also, once I reached Spain I realized how interesting Spanish culture is. This made me want to experience it as much as I could. I was able to do this by dining at traditional restaurants, going to a bull fight, seeing the works of famous Spanish artists and more. None of this would have been possible without Abbey Road, I would never have been able to be a part of this amazing culture in the authentic way that I was if I hadn’t gone on this trip, nor would I have made the amazing friends that I did.
  I left Barcelona, a better Spanish speaker and more culturally aware, and I brought with me the names and numbers of many new friends and memories that will last me a lifetime. Going to Barcelona was one of the best decisions that I ever made and I’m so glad that I got to experience this trip. Abbey Road was so much more that a few cliché words. There is no way to full describe the experience, except for to say that I will remember it forever.