First week of classes : where confidence in your Spanish skills goes to die
So the first week of classes was rough. I've never felt so overwhelmed in my life. Sitting in a class taught in Spanish and understanding VERY little of what's going on will certainly make you wish you had studied a little harder at NAU.
Anyway, I started out with a couple courses that turned out to be mostly different from my finalized schedule. The first week of classes here was more of just a trial it seemed. We met up with our adviser in the middle of the week to actually make sure we were all in the right courses and such.
I began with a class on marine contamination and one on the Mediterranean in Prehistory. I ended up ditching the class on marine contamination, only because it was a little too advanced for me and didn't quite work out with my schedule. Instead, I enrolled in a biology course, and a couple weeks later int the semester my Spanish level B2 class began. Including my online course at NAU, I was taking four classes. Now this may not seem like a lot, but classes in Spain are worth more credits typically. You will most likely cover more material in one class here than you would in the US, so three classes on campus is a full load, especially if you're taking them all in Spanish.
The first week wasn't all bad though! I had the chance to sign up for the Buddy Program on campus, which is a great opportunity if you want to make a Spanish friend! Basically you fill out a short application that says a little bit about you, and you'll get paired with a Spanish "buddy". Now you're not required to actually hang out with this person all the time, but you certainly should. At the first buddy meeting, I met my buddy Lucia. She's a nursing student here at the UA, and is quite honestly the most lovely person I've ever met. We had a great time getting to know each other and practicing Spanish. Now I know not everyone had a buddy as great as mine, but one Spanish friend is better than no Spanish friends!
Attached are a couple pics of us visiting the beach here in Alicante and also in the nearby town Benidorm on a trip organized by the Buddy Program people.
Anyway, I started out with a couple courses that turned out to be mostly different from my finalized schedule. The first week of classes here was more of just a trial it seemed. We met up with our adviser in the middle of the week to actually make sure we were all in the right courses and such.
I began with a class on marine contamination and one on the Mediterranean in Prehistory. I ended up ditching the class on marine contamination, only because it was a little too advanced for me and didn't quite work out with my schedule. Instead, I enrolled in a biology course, and a couple weeks later int the semester my Spanish level B2 class began. Including my online course at NAU, I was taking four classes. Now this may not seem like a lot, but classes in Spain are worth more credits typically. You will most likely cover more material in one class here than you would in the US, so three classes on campus is a full load, especially if you're taking them all in Spanish.
The first week wasn't all bad though! I had the chance to sign up for the Buddy Program on campus, which is a great opportunity if you want to make a Spanish friend! Basically you fill out a short application that says a little bit about you, and you'll get paired with a Spanish "buddy". Now you're not required to actually hang out with this person all the time, but you certainly should. At the first buddy meeting, I met my buddy Lucia. She's a nursing student here at the UA, and is quite honestly the most lovely person I've ever met. We had a great time getting to know each other and practicing Spanish. Now I know not everyone had a buddy as great as mine, but one Spanish friend is better than no Spanish friends!
Attached are a couple pics of us visiting the beach here in Alicante and also in the nearby town Benidorm on a trip organized by the Buddy Program people.
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