A Summer in Salamanca, Spain

When I was sixteen years old I signed up for the study abroad program at my high school and traveled to Salamanca, Spain for the month of June. The program consisted of attending The University of Salamanca three days a week and going to Spanish class. All the students who participated in the program stayed with a family. My best friend and I were paired together and stayed with a single woman who we called “Mama.” 

On the three days we went to University we had morning classes, which went from 7am-12pm and then we went back to our selected homes for lunch. After lunch it was time for a Siesta, which is an afternoon nap and is taken during 1-3pm. On the first two days my friends and I would go outside and explore because we weren’t tired but then realized that there was nothing open during the Siesta time period. After the siesta we would go and do some more exploring, shopping, bar hopping or go and eat.

On the weekends our school set up day excursions for us to learn more about the surrounding cities and Spanish culture. A couple of the excursions consisted of going to places like Patio de Escuelas, which has the characteristic ambience of Salamanca. We traveled to the House of Shells also known as Casa de las Conchas, which was built in the 15th century. The house belonged to Talavera Maldonado who was a knight of the Order of Salamanca.

My favorite attraction was the cathedral of Salamanca, which was constructed between the 16th and 18th centuries encompassing both Gothic and Baroque architecture styles. Later, in 1992 while the cathedral was being renovated artisans decided to carve statues into the stone. Among the statues were an astronaut, a crane and a gargoyle-looking faun eating ice cream.

The most memorable moment of my trip was the last week when Spain won the World Cup. Everybody in Salamanca went crazy for the rest of the week and the parties were still going after we left. Traveling to Salamanca was a great experience and gave me the chance to immerse myself into the daily traditions of Spanish culture. My experiences in Salamanca were so positive I’m looking forward to traveling to other Spanish cities like Madrid and Barcelona in the near future.