Reflection Espana 2012

My time in Spain was unforgettable, incomparable, and truly the best time of my life. Despite the program being only five weeks long I don’t think I have ever learned so much about not only about Spain and art, but about myself. At first, meeting everyone was slightly uncomfortable and I was anxious about getting to know everyone considering I was one of only two non-art majors on the trip. After a number of awkward jokes and almost getting lost in the airport while searching frantically for our shuttle everyone seemed to hit their stride and in a matter of minutes, it felt as though I had known them, well most of them, for years. I could not be more grateful for the opportunities that were presented to me on this trip. I had one of the most intelligent and relatable professors I had ever had in my college career, five unbelievably smart and funny girls to live with, and four strapping young men who all made the experience worthwhile.

            The structure of the class was perfect. I could not imagine being in a classroom anymore than we were, and thought the number of museum visits were great. The balance between class time and study visits, was perfect. It was really helpful for me to have talked about the works, and movements we were going to see later in the afternoon in advanced. It helped me put things into perspective and definitely helped me learn to appreciate the art I was looking at. The structure of the visits was also really helpful, being able to go to a museum as a group, and then having enough free time to go back and visit wherever you’d like was great. Having the freedom to explore on our own definitely made my time there a lot more interesting. I think what was most eye opening for me on this trip was the function art plays at both, macro and micro levels of society. Art is not only a form of self-expression, its also revolutionary and cunning in nature. After seeing first hand the repartee artists had with each other and society at large, I really appreciate the intellectual aspect of art that I never noticed before.

            Because I think like a sociologist, being able to understand the history and context of each painting made a world of difference. Looking at one piece now reminds me of the years prior to the piece and what chances were taken and what changes were made for that piece of work to be what it is. I no longer look at a sketch of Goya’s and just think it’s a cool and interesting drawing, instead I see the disappointment underlying the sarcastic nature of the piece. Learning about the history of Spain while looking at the work first hand was the perfect way for me to learn about art history in Spain. It also didn’t hurt to have eight other art-experts explaining things to me when I wore a look of confusion.

            Living in Madrid was the ideal location for studying art in Spain. There is so much in the city that I felt as though ever single fountain, park, sculpture was something I needed to take a picture of. I could not imagine living anywhere else while we were there! Living with five other girls on paper is not something I would normally be able to bear, but I was surprised by how quickly the living arrangements grew on me. Not only was the location impeccable, but being able to live with all of the other girls allowed for an anything goes environment. We quickly learned a lot about each other, about our eating, drinking, sleeping habits, what we like don’t like, and what our limits were for personal space and boundaries. I do wish the boys had lived a little closer to us so we could have gotten to see them more, but I’m not complaining!

Our travel accommodations while there were all much better than expected. Everywhere we stayed was a clean, really beautiful hotel, in a great location. My only complaint about our excursions outside Madrid was that we did not have enough time. I would have loved to stay in Toledo, Granada, and Barcelona for even one day longer. I realize this could just be my selfish travel bug in me, but it would have been amazing if we had been able to see one or two more cities. Obviously that is not possible in the time period we were there for, and had we tried to fit anything else in I think we all would have died from exhaustion. I will say that I think ACCENT (despite some minor glitches and hiccups) did a great job of booking our travel arrangements and places we were staying. I also really enjoyed the various activities we were able to participate in, the Corrida de Torros, Flamenco, Flamenco Opera, etc., were all really amazing pieces to Spain’s culture that we were able to be a part of.

I learned so much about art and Spanish culture during my five weeks in Madrid, not just in museums, but also through communicating with the people in my group as well as the people of Spain. Experiencing their culture was not shocking, but intoxicating. I loved interacting with the people and learning about who they were, where they were from, and being able to connect with someone who grew up with a life completely different than my own. It was fascinating to see how men and women interact, how men cat call and how women ignore them. It was interesting to see the differences in body language and how people hold themselves. I found that, at times, body language was universal and extremely helpful in trying to overcome the language barrier, other times it was completely lost and made for an awkward encounter. I felt as though all the people I met and talked with were all so eager to answer my questions and ask me some in return, it was really wonderful knowing that there is someone on the other side of the globe that is interested in you and what you have to say. Its unreal how many people there are on this planet and being able to meet a few of them was amazing.

Something that struck me about my traveling was how welcomed and at home I immediately felt in Madrid. We quickly made friends with each other, and with the locals, it was hard to feel out of place. It took little to no time to adjust to their timetable, eating and drinking habits, or laid back state of living. I did not realize that I had become used to eating at ten and going out at two until I came back home to Colorado. I don’t think I have ever experienced such a culture shock in my life. Adjusting to life back home was much harder than I would have ever imagined. I find myself looking for a circular button on top of the toilet to flush, and saying “pardon”, “porfavor”, and “gracias”, only to be greeted with a confused and startled face. It seems strange to be back because it feels as though I haven’t even left for Spain yet. This trip brought some really amazing people and experiences into my life, and I could not be more thankful for having the opportunity to have experienced it all.