![Portrait of Lily sitting in the woods](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/400x420_blog/public/admissions/content/blog-author/image/lily_10-12_-_lily_johnson.jpg?itok=mQHa7Ywb×tamp=1694612886)
First Impressions of my Language Study Abroad in Spain
Hi everyone! I just wrapped up the first week of my Language Study Abroad (LSA) in Santander, Spain. Several things have stood out to me as I am thinking through my initial impressions of Spanish culture and the program in general. First, as I anticipated, I am thrilled with the fact that this LSA utilizes a host family. This is different than some other international programs at Dartmouth which use dorms/apartments and students live in proximity to each other. Some of my peers live in the same part of the city as me but not on the same blocks. I have a host mom who has proved to be a very good fit for me, along with her two cats. In my home it is not too challenging to accommodate my diet (vegetarian and no eggs) because my host mom does not eat much meat or eggs, however when I am out and about it is a bit challenging just because it is a little less common here. Another difference that was immediately interesting was greetings since hugs and kissing cheeks are common here, and I make an effort to view this as a cultural difference, not something that is 'good' or 'bad'.
![Marcela and Lily LSA Lily and her host mom on the top of a mountain in Fuente de in Picos de Europa. They took a cable car to get to the mountain top.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_width_only_590/public/admissions/wysiwyg/img-20240624-wa0003.jpg?itok=Nc8uqoWz)
![Driving in Picos de Europa Lily took this picture in the car on the way to Fuente dé because she liked how tall the mountains are. She had to lean back in her seat to take the photo.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_width_only_590/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240622_094402248.jpg?itok=Nosjs1ce)
![View from my room in Santander This is the view from Lily's bedroom in Spain. There is a park with lots of natural vegetation, a couple of soccer fields, and the ocean on the horizon.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_width_only_590/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240616_114745443.jpg?itok=OdQZMUlh)
![Yellow Mellon in Santander A picture of a cut-up yellow mellon that is similar to a honeydew mellon.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_width_only/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240619_194353153.jpg?itok=E78pCIGT)
![LSA host cats These are the two cats that live with Lily and her host mom in the apartment.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_width_only_590/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240623_193535051.mp_.jpg?itok=V6Qec03p)
Transitioning time zones is also a huge challenge. Spain is six hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time in the US and this is just enough time to throw my biological clock off quite a bit. This is also paired with the fact that in Spain the food schedule is different. A typical day for me here looks like breakfast around 8:15 am, lunch around 2 pm, and dinner around 9 pm (although that is early, sometimes it is closer to 10 or later). Because of this, especially since I am a vegetarian with a high metabolism, I have gotten used to getting hungry at various times. Then there is also the siesta- a time to nap or rest- which typically directly follows lunch and could be anywhere from a half hour to two hours. Four days after I arrived my siesta was 3.5 hours since I was exhausted and adapting to the time changes. Another thing that is worth mentioning is that I only had a week between finishing my Spring term finals and leaving for Spain. Short breaks in between terms (interims) are normal at Dartmouth- winter is an exception- and in my experience, this can be somewhat exhausting.
![Santander sign Lily This picture was taken on Lily's first night in Santander. The beach behind the sign is on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_width_only_590/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240615_201004016.mp__0.jpg?itok=HuEW3zdW)
![LSA group cueva Castillo This picture is of the LSA group outside of the cave of Castillo.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_width_only_590/public/admissions/wysiwyg/img-20240621-wa0025.jpg?itok=cwaQuFRt)
![Santillana del Mar This is a picture of the street in Santillana del Mar, a medieval town in the Cantabria region of Spain.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_full_width/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240621_163656609.mp_.jpg?itok=Q8PsfxSK)
My LSA is a group of 10 Dartmouth students and a Dartmouth professor travels with us to teach a class and help direct the program. Our other professors are from Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo (UIMP) which is where our classroom is located. The four classes for this program are conversation, grammar, art history of Spain, and Hispanic literature. Our classes are Monday through Thursday and every day we have 4 hours of classes (2 blocks of 2 hours), and like everything in the program, it is completely in Spanish so I am more worn out after these classes than I am from some classes back at Dartmouth.
![Public escalator A public escalator that I see on my commute back to my host mom's apartment. There are also stoplights for crosswalks.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_full_width/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240620_184153936.jpg?itok=uarbzGzi)
![Outside of UIMP Lily took this picture outside of UIMP because she likes the layout for navigation of the city.](https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/sites/admissions.prod/files/styles/wysiwyg_full_width/public/admissions/wysiwyg/pxl_20240619_114810946.jpg?itok=sdbXAf1F)