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One of the best and most exciting and fun parts of my semester in Spain has been living in a homestay. I was lucky to pick a program that offered the chance to live with a host family, and I was lucky that IES Abroad matched me with who I personally believe is the best host family in the program and placed me in a house constantly bursting with energy and joy.
To no one’s surprise, I overpacked (in all the wrong ways). Here are some things I wish I brought abroad, and some items that I regret packing.
First and foremost, I wish I brought a blanket from home. I convinced myself that I could go the whole semester without an extra blanket for my bed. I didn’t even last one night of sleep without one—seriously, I went shopping the first day I got to Nice and picked out the fluffiest blanket I could find. I wish that I brought one, so that I didn’t have to purchase one when I got here!
As the foggy coastline of Rabat receded into the distance, the sloping green mountains of Ifrane, the coldest region in Morocco, came into view. As we drove further inward, the white-washed, mediterranean landscape replaced by cedar forests, I couldn’t help but to be reminded of the lush mountains that surround my college in the Northeast. Before our stop at Ben Smim, a small, nearby village where we stayed the night with a host family, we ventured into a clearing in the forest, where we prepared a homemade lunch around a campfire.