One of the special takeaways I learned during my time in Barcelona was discovering passions and interests that I never knew I had. When in a new country, we all were forced to adapt to certain situations that I know I would not have had to do if I did not come to Barcelona on this trip. The longer I stayed, the more I realized how deprived I was before.
One of these interests is my love for climbing. Although I would not consider myself a physically active individual in any way, I realized the beauty behind climbing mountains. I first experienced this adventure when we took an excursion to Montserrat, a mountain-range area neighboring Cataluña. Once we reached the mountain we could hike, my friends and I made it our mission to make it as high as we can go. Although in many moments I couldn’t bear the heat or wanted to give up, I still enjoyed taking on the challenge with others. The views were also beyond worth it every time. We also went hiking on Los Bunkers in Barcelona, in Amalfi, Italy, and many other places that made me realize this love for climbing mountains.
I also discovered on this trip how much I love the beach. Living a 2-minute walk away from the beach for the past 6 weeks made the beach so accessible that it was impossible to not visit frequently. Even though I can’t swim, i still enjoyed sitting in the sun on shore, and this time even encouraged me to journal, something I have wanted to do more consistently lately. I loved how there was always someone in the program willing to go to the beach, so I never had to go alone. Before this trip, I cannot remember the last time I had gone to the beach, but these past 6 weeks has made me want to go to the beach more often once I go back home.
A third passion I discovered because of this program is my love for learning and practicing new languages. At Northwestern, I find it difficult to love my Spanish classes in the way that I would like because I view them as just another class for which I have to complete assignments and readings and take exams. This program, however, has re-sparked my appreciation for learning a language because of the nature of our classes abroad—less competitive and more focused on our better understanding and actual practice of Spanish.
These are just 3 interests that I discovered on this trip, and I do not doubt that everyone else on this trip also discovered new things about themselves.