Relationships with the host family
My relationship with my host family has gotten better and better with time; I feel completely comfortable talking to them, whether in a joking manner or in a more serious way. I especially loved the holiday season, because in my host family on Dec. 23 we have a gathering of all the relatives far and near, that is about 70 people, to eat and spend one day a year all together. After dinner, to close the evening we almost all went to a club to dance the night away, young and old, and it was hilarious. They call this gathering “Primada” and it was really fun and exciting, so much so that I would like to come back next year. The best moment, on a family level, though, was Christmas Eve, where we were about half the size of the Primada; we had dinner and sang Spanish, but mostly Italian, songs all night long. For me it was a special moment because I felt like an integral part of the family. Also, although we don’t do many activities together, I loved it when my host dad took me and other exchange students to visit Toledo, but it doesn’t end there, because one Saturday he also took us to the mountains for a hike. I also really enjoyed when we went to their beach house near Santander, there I hung out more with my brother, my host sister and their friends and had a great time.
Relationships with the host community and friends
As far as interaction with the host community is concerned, I am not experiencing any problems; I have adjusted perfectly to the customs of family and friends. Speaking of friends, I really have many: classmates, baseball teammates, and especially other SFA students. With the latter, we have really created an unbreakable relationship: we go out every weekend and try to do as many activities as possible, for example, we go out to eat, we go to many parties, to the amusement park, to Valencia round trip in one day, to Granada three days with AFS, to the stadium and many other things. Three of them will even come to my house a few days in early September to celebrate my 18th birthday.
My school performance, both from the point of view of profit and in regard to interpersonal relationships (with classmates and teachers)
My academic performance is very good, both from the point of view of profit and from the point of view of interpersonal relationships. At the end of both terms I received compliments from professors for raising the class average, which was quite unexpected since I am an exchange student. As far as relationships with professors are concerned, I cannot
can absolutely complain, so much so that I personally get along much better in Spain than in Italy. Same thing the with classmates; I was very well received and I have a really nice class with whom I get along very well and I will be very sorry to have to leave them at the end of June.
My leisure time
My free time has not changed much from the first report I did: I go to the gym 6 days a week, I train with a baseball team 2 times a week, I study when I need to (the workload is definitely less than in Italian school) and on weekends I go out with friends. Occasionally, during the weekends there may be SFA activities or a few outings with my host family, however, it happens much more occasionally.
The things that particularly impressed me in this country (both positive and negative)
As for the things that particularly impressed me, I would undoubtedly say the school; because it is much more relaxed and enjoyable than in Italy, the teachers are always helpful and understanding, in fact, since the beginning of the year, there has not been a single moment when we as a class have been reprimanded. In addition, there are many more activities and
“educational outings” than in Italy, and I really consider this a plus, because it allows you to not always be sitting in a chair writing in a notebook. Another thing that amazed me a lot, despite the fact that it does not particularly touch me, is the apparent “scarce” Spanish nationalist sentiment. This is because in Spain there is more than one independence movement and sometimes, in the eyes of a foreigner like me, it seems that there is no great national unity. One sentence that really struck me was when my brother exaggeratedly said, “Here in Spain it seems that no one wants to be Spanish.” Also, I was pleasantly surprised about the people because, apart from a few exceptions that can happen, I found a really welcoming, pleasant, sunny and friendly society.
3 words that describe my experience so far (explain why I chose it)
“Immersion,” because I felt completely immersed in the environment and family customs. “Emotions,” because during this year I am having so many exciting experiences, which are leaving precious memories within me. “Growth,” because I see myself growing and changing from the me before I left, but in general I feel that I am growing and learning something new every single day that passes.
Anecdotes/Open Commentary
In this section on anecdotes, I cannot fail to mention the three-day trip to Granada organized by AFS. All of us students from Madrid participated and had a great time: from the bus ride to the return there was not a moment when I did not enjoy myself, all thanks in part to the AFS volunteers, who as always were very nice and helpful.
