A Deal of a Lifetime

Have you ever been to another country and studied abroad in a totally different culture? We have at Moeller a program with a Marianist school called Marianistas in Zaragoza, Spain. These students live here with a welcoming host family for 5 weeks and indulge their selves in the American culture. Our sister school, Mount Notre Dame; hosts the girls that come from their school and Vice Versa for Moeller.

One interesting part of the exchange program is that there are a variety of aspects they liked about the United States, things like the food here in the United States, the city, and the general environment each student were put in. According to Luis Nogueras, "There's a huge difference between Spain and the United States of America." From my experience, I could agree that there is indeed a vast difference between the USA and Spain. The amount of walking, different customs they had, and the atmosphere was different. Also, they do not have enjoyable foods that we have here, they tend to enjoy those more.

Although, it is not just about the new food or language; it is the interactions we have and going to a different school custom.

Most students I interviewed said similar responses that they will miss being with their host family. We all loved everything about each country, they liked homecoming and the get togethers we planned. Skyline and Chick fil’ A were the favorite restaurants they enjoyed, and Summit and Rhinos were the places they enjoyed.

One important part about going on this trip is the language. Going on this trip would be the deal of a lifetime, giving the expense through school versus going without. Moeller does a great job with helping students improve on their Spanish by giving them who are actively taking Spanish an opportunity to go study abroad in Spain, and it is the same for the school in Spain.

At first, my experience being in Spain, I could only understand some parts of when people spoke Spanish around me. But, towards the end, I got progressively better. Me personally, I got better at speaking, reading, and listening to Spanish, my Spaniard got better in English. The importance of this trip is to indulge in the country’s culture and experience the difference.

Overall, being in a different country opens doorways to your personal life. Becoming better at understanding a new language can improve yourself as a person.