Election Night in America!  Democracy in practice!  What an exciting time!  Or at least, it used to be?  

This past weekend, I was able to travel again and this time my destination was Morocco. Many friends who have studied abroad in Barcelona in the past, as well as some teachers at IES Abroad had recommended traveling to Morocco because it was a different cultural experience and was so beautiful. I decided to take the plunge with some friends and used a company which had scheduled trips that left from cities in Spain to Morocco.

Before I left for Buenos Aires, my study abroad adviser told me that not only would I be learning about Argentine culture during my semester abroad, but I would be unconsciously teaching Argentines about American culture at the same time. She explained that I might be the first American some Argentines have ever met, and that I should be prepared for them to ask me about elements of my culture or country that they find interesting or confusing.

She was right.

I should probably start this off on a little more of a positive note than the title suggests. Being a student in Spain isn't terrible. In fact, in most ways it's very similar to being a student in the US. Assignments are similar, the professors are all helpful, and the classes are about the same length. However, at the same time there are a few small things that do plague my life as a student here in Spain, so I decided to tell you all about them

1. 1.5 spacing

Minnesota doesn’t get earthquakes. Period, end of story. If my house shakes back home, it’s because of some strong winds during a thunderstorm, and it definitely doesn’t knock things off of shelves.

One of the many wonderful things about living in Europe is the ability to travel all around the continent in a fairly easy and efficient manner. So, a couple of us decided to hop on a plane and spend the weekend eating baguettes and window shopping in Paris. Sounds fun, right? It was.

Before my advisor told me about IES Abroad, Tokyo was my dream study abroad city for years and years. I decided that Nagoya was a better place for me because I get lost easily, I'm a strong introvert, I like smaller cities, and I wanted a more intensive language program, but Tokyo has still been on my bucket list for a good 5 years minimum. And I finally made it! 

As I stand there looking up at Kate Middleton I smiled to myself and realized that I live an extraordinary life.

4:30 a.m. my alarm goes off and I’m more wide-awake than ever. Today is the day; today is the day I will get to see the queen, and the royal family.

Today is Remembrance Day. It is a day to honor those who lost their lives in service, those who served, and those still serving.