Week 2 by Jason Johnson

The Realization

They say that time moves fast. I sit here I reflecting on just last night I was sitting at the table with my host father literally trying to remember everything that went on in the last week because he asked me what I did. I was trying to remember what interactions I have had with Spain. I’ve been to a good amount of countries, but never to Europe.

 I always thought that I never really wanted to go to Europe, my coming here was a chance to prove myself right I thought, I was coming here to complete course requirements I told myself. Take a look at the above picture and one can quickly realize that there aren’t enough words to ‘describe’ something that you have to experience in person. I sit here trying to put into words my experiences for the last week and realize that no matter what I say the experience is unlike other countries I have been to.

The people here are very welcoming and you can tell not only are they proud like other people elsewhere, but that they genuinely will go out of their way to surprise you, help you, and talk to you. In the last week we went to the Cathedral in Seville which is the largest in the world and the site of the burial of Christopher Columbus.

I also really liked being able to visit historic Caceres as part of the trip learning about the history of the town. I can say being able to walk through the Antigua de Caceres was like walking into a time machine as there are no signs of modern times if you don’t see that there are cars around in some places. I found myself taken aback by being able to see doors, walls, and construction that are literally built before 1229 when the Christians reconquered the city from the Muslims. I feel that being able to be immersed in the culture and language has been a lot more helpful trying to learn the language as it gives more context. I do find myself wondering how much I am going to miss this place and wondering how and when I will return. I think as time winds down I am going to continue to realize how wrong I was to not come sooner. The country is something you have to really experience to be able to have a change of heart though.