Day One in Salamanca, The Golden City of Spain

Madrid, Toledo, and Salamanca, Spain.

I read somewhere that the more new things you do, the slower time moves by. This is why life seems to go by so quickly as you get older: you stop doing new things.

The last six days that I have spent in Spain have felt like six years, and the first day that I spent in Salamanca made me realize that these days of doing new things have only been the beginning of my study abroad journey.

When I walked out of the airport in Madrid after a long 9-hour flight, the air felt different. It was warmer, and hints of traffic pollution and Spanish sunlight flavored the air. The world felt deeper and brighter, and after I got lost and wandered around the airport to find my study abroad group, I realized that the world that waited for me outside the airport doors would be full of stories, adventures, times getting lost, and many, many siestas.

The Journey to Salamanca

On May 28th, I landed in Madrid, Spain, and joined the six other students in my study abroad program. We were given a short orientation, a map of the city, and the idea that we wanted to find gelato and sangria, and we were sent off into Madrid to explore for two days.

On May 30th, I woke up in Toledo, Spain, one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen. It is located about an hour southwest of Madrid and is older than 600 years. When I woke up, I squinted and looked in the reflection of the mirror on the closet door. The city beyond the window on the other side of the room was reflected in the mirror, and I rubbed my blurry eyes as I realized I had never woken up to a better view.

The Golden City of Spain

From Toledo, we took a three-hour bus ride to Salamanca, and when I saw the city for the first time, I was amazed that I get to call it home for the next eight weeks. Salamanca is called the “Golden City of Spain,” and I soon found out why. All cities in Spain have a “Plaza Mayor,” which is a large square in the center of the city with shops, rooms, and open air seating. In the Plaza Mayor in Salamanca, during golden hour at sunset, the walls of the stone city turn golden.

Several of the students in the group met their hosts families on the sidewalk where our bus dropped it off, and they sped away in taxis to their new homes as Carmen, our program director, walked with me and two others to our residencia, a student house.

The First Day in La Residencia

We were guided into a quiet doorway on a sidestreet, and suddenly, we were home for the next four weeks. Our residencia is a student house with around 20 - 30 Spanish students currently studying for their month-long exams. Once inside, I unlocked the door of my habitación, set my bags down in a small but comfortable room, and walked down the stairs into the dining room with wide eyes.

I entered the dining room, and I was greeted by loud Spanish conversations, new faces, and a line for the food. I walked towards the food table, starving and nervous, and held my plate out and smiled. The man serving the meal looked up, smiled, and said something. In that moment, my four years of Spanish vanished and I couldn’t understand a word he said.

“Repite?” Repeat? I asked.

A call from the table behind me made me turn my head.

“En Ingles, no?” In English, no? someone from the table behind me teased.

“No no, hable en Catalán,” No, no, speak in Catalan, (another language spoken in parts of Spain) another added. The table laughed, and I smiled faintly at the server as my head spun.

I turned around, smiled, and walked to the end of the other table with my food. I gradually learned that being made fun of in Spain and Latin American countries is a form of endearment, although it didn't seem like it at the time.

I also quickly learned that I have more in common with the students who live there than I thought. As I ate, a Spanish student arrived late and sat down next to me to eat her food. I started by asking her what her name was, and we quickly began talking about our majors. She was a language major and spoke four languages.

She asked me why I decided to learn Spanish, and I smiled and replied in Spanish, “So I can talk to people from other cultures in their language like I’m doing now.” At that moment, I realized that I was doing the very thing I hoped to accomplish when I decided to learn Spanish. She smiled and responded, and we realized that we were both studying languages for the same reason - to learn more about other people, places, and cultures.

After dinner, we were invited to play cards with some of the students on the patio, and I realized that they were nervous to talk to me as I was nervous to talk to them. They made fun of me a few times, and I learned more Spanish phrases (pro tips: say “vale” instead of “OK” if you don’t want to seem like an American, and don’t ask people to repeat what they said if you think they’ve insulted you.)

The first night was like a movie.

The sun set as we played long rounds of Uno on the third-floor patio of the residencia, and cigarette smoke mingled with laughter as the students handed out insults to each other (and slid +4 cards under the table to help me. It didn’t work. I almost lost both times.)

After the last game finished, I slid indoors amidst the lingering chatter, crept into my room, and closed the small wooden door. I locked it and dropped onto my bed in weariness and amazement. My suitcase and half-unpacked clothes lay strewn across the floor, and my teeny tiny shower waited for me to rinse off the day while I tried to figure out how to use it (many European showers have a hose attachment but not a hook on the wall to hold the showerhead. It helps conserve water when you have to turn the water off when you’re not using it.)

I stared at my closet, wondering what to wear for the first day of class tomorrow, but eventually, I laid my head on the pillow and stared at the faint light coming into my window from the streetlight outside.

I made it to Spain.

More Adventures to Come

Time moved by so slowly, and I have a growing feeling that the more new things I do, the more I will become enthralled with the country of Spain.

My next adventures include stories of buying a phone plan in Spanish, starting summer classes at the University of Salamanca - International Courses, getting lost without Google Maps, ordering food, and the ups and downs of living and studying abroad.

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