This semester has been such a joy. Living in a homestay made me feel like I was home all of the time.

I chose to stay with a host family because I wanted to become more fluent in the Spanish language. No way to learn it if you do not speak it often, as every Spanish teacher I have ever had said. When I first got my housing assignment, I found I was going to be placed with a host mom, her 19-year-old daughter, and a girl from Brazil. The document told me where she was from and what she did for work. It gave me a little more peace of mind knowing exactly where I was staying.

When I arrived on the first day, my flatmate, Julia, and the host sister, Zoe, welcomed me with open arms and invited me to eat lunch with them at the table. My Spanish was faulty, but I enjoyed talking about our favorite music and shows.

Joys: I enjoyed spending time in general with each and every one of them. I went to a concert with my host mom, Eleonora, and after she took me to grab a drink. When the power went out in Spain, we spent the day together playing card games like Exploding Kittens and sharing the ice cream that melted in the freezer. Julia, my flatmate, and I loved to get ready and un-ready at night together, depending on the day. My favorite ritual was that we would walk to Casa Fruta (Fruit House) two minutes down the street and pick up fresh produce like mangos and strawberries, which were always so fresh.

Challenges: Trying new foods was a struggle for me, but I really did not want to be picky. My host mom’s food was generally good, but sometimes I knew it was just not my thing. Sometimes I would tell her and other times just lived with it. Another challenge I had was not being able to do my own laundry which sounds like a luxury for many, I found that not being able to wash certain items on different settings damaged them. Finally, the main challenge was having to understand I was not a guest in the house after the first week or so, by then I was part of the family. I struggled to feel that, but as time went on it got much easier.