I’ve been in Spain for a month now. One of the biggest challenges of living here so far, or in almost any other country, is the language. I’ve been studying Spanish since middle school, but being immersed in the language all day long is very different from any classroom setting. The day I arrived, I was pulling my suitcases with me through the airport, when I was stopped by a police officer. He started asking me several questions, all in Spanish of course, and it took me several seconds to even realize what he was asking me. After a few minutes of conversing in my rusty Spanish about whether I had anything valuable in my bags or if I had anything to declare to customs, I was on my way.

I was surprised he didn’t switch to English, which has been relatively common when I interact with workers in cafés or restaurants, but it ended up being a good opportunity to start to get over my fear of speaking Spanish. When learning any new language, there’s always worries of making mistakes or causing misunderstandings. Through that interaction though, I learned that even in “serious” situations, people are generally friendly and willing to make an effort to understand my Spanish filled with errors.

I’m living with a host family this semester, so I’ve been speaking Spanish from the moment I wake up. My host mom has been super accommodating, rephrasing what she says if I don’t understand, and teaching me all the sayings and idioms. Yesterday, while talking over dinner, she taught me the word “rollo.” Apparently, it’s like the English, “a drag” or “a tedious task.” We were discussing all the chores that come with day-to-day life.

The Spanish used here is pretty different from what I’ve been learning in class in the U.S. Don’t get me wrong, all of the formalities and set expressions are necessary to have a good base to build on, but it’s through living in the culture that I’ve been learning how people here talk in daily life. Spaniards tend to be quite casual in how they talk to each other, and I don’t think I’ve used the formal forms once here. Even when speaking to my professors, they ask us to call them just by their first names, and we use informal language with them. And when going out for coffee, small talk isn’t really a thing like it is in the U.S., as waiters and employees are quite direct, but still polite. I’ve gotten a lot more comfortable and confident in my spoken Spanish over the past month and am excited to see how things improve as the semester continues. ¡Hasta luego!

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Learn more about this blogger’s study abroad program: ALI Abroad: University of Alicante