Category: Gwen in Bilbao

It’s the People Who Make the Place

Published on by gwenmorgan323Leave a comment

I genuinely think that my study abroad experience would not have been half as enjoyable if I had not been placed with such an incredible host family.

I remember deciding to live with a family before going abroad, feeling a little unsure, nervous, worried about such a big change, and having to adjust to a new family and a new way of doing things. I remember finding out there were kids in my homestay and feeling terrified I wouldn’t be able to have my own space, as I have never lived with an 11 and 13-year-old before. Would they like me? Would it be hard to communicate with the language barrier?

Safe to say: best decision I ever made.

Another girl from DU and I were placed with a lovely family of four tucked away in the old town of Bilbao, Casco Viejo. Our family includes Ana, our host mom, Sergio, our host dad, and our two host children, Cloé and Enzo.

Ana is the kindest soul. On our first day, she picked us up from the tram station and helped us lug our bags to the little apartment where we would spend the next four months. I remember she fixed us lunch and let us settle in before we met the kids. Cloé is so creative, not only can she paint beautifully, but she has some of the nicest handwriting I have ever seen from an 11-year-old. She and I both love to draw and create, making my roommate and I the cutest clay keychains (mine is a bunny) as gifts during the first month here. Enzo is one of the funniest kids I’ve ever met. He had a lot of medical complications as a baby, having gone through surgery after surgery, and is such a resilient kid. I constantly admire him. He loves soccer, or fútbol, as we call it here. He could go on for hours explaining all the different leagues and teams to me (which I am super grateful he does as someone trying to learn more about sports). We plan on going to a game here together sometime soon and I cannot wait.

Each night we have dinner with the kids and Sergio. Ana recently started a new job helping disabled children in schools, so I usually see her more at lunch. Sergio is one of the funniest and most generous people I’ve ever met. I love explaining American lingo to him even when the language barrier gets tricky, and we have to laugh over silly little miscommunications. Recently, I tagged along with Sergio to one of Enzo’s soccer games, it was so fun watching him play a game on his own team. Before that, we stopped by the supermarket and I got to help Sergio grocery shop. Traveling every weekend certainly takes a toll on you and I’ve decided to make more of an effort to stay in Bilbao and remain present, which includes spending more time with my host family. I love mundane everyday activities like running errands, it allows me to see the little differences between our two countries.

There was one night I got off a bus from Madrid in the dead of night and had texted Ana to let her know I was safe, and planned on trying to grab a taxi since public transport was closed. She immediately insisted she come and pick me up with the car, not wanting me to have to navigate Bilbao when it was so dark outside. I had never been so grateful, I felt like I was home and my mom was picking me up after a late night of travel.

For my 21st birthday, they made me mac & cheese (the Texan way with four cheeses, yum) and got me a necklace along with a sweet card I have positioned above my bed. I had been so homesick that day, so to end it with a sweet family dinner, I just felt so at home. I remember another night we went to grab a coffee and have a stroll for Ana’s birthday. It was so nice to feel like I was with a family again, just getting to hang out and talk. Sergio once brought up some hand weights for me when I expressed my desire for an at-home workout and Ana, a yoga mat. Once, I came home for lunch and was greeted by a can of Dr. Pepper, apparently only found at a certain market that sometimes sold American goodies (again, I cried). They’ve always jumped at the chance to help me find cheap flights, help me book tickets for events, and let my friend hang out for a few hours while she waited for her flight.

Here, our laundry is taken care of, each meal is cooked for us, and we are treated with such kindness and respect. Sometimes, Ana even leaves us little candies on our freshly made beds (I cried). When my roommate’s parents visited, they made the loveliest dinner for them, really trying to incorporate traditional basque cuisine elements. I remember that night her parents asked them why they decided to start hosting. They talked about how important it was to them for their children to be exposed to people of another culture, especially in case they one day want to participate in an exchange program of their own. I want nothing more than to leave the kids with a good impression of the English language, and have them know they always have a home in the U.S.

I fear that I will never be able to fully express my gratitude and love for this family, and how positively they have impacted my study abroad experience. My roommate and I have attempted to show our gratitude, doing the bare minimum such as keeping our space clean, helping to load and unload the dishwasher and more. I try to vacuum any dust build-up I notice in our room and am happy to run any errands for our family. I recently bought them a pink flower plant and brought back some American snack goodies as thank-yous from my parents and I. None of this feels sufficient enough to portray just how much I adore this family.

I am so lucky to be able to say “I studied abroad and had the best experience” and be able to chalk most of that up to living with such kind people; people that I will never forget and fully intend to keep contact with for when I inevitably return to Spain.

Anyway, agur guys!

-GM ❤

Fleeting Connections

Published on by gwenmorgan323Leave a comment

Three weeks ago my phone died in the middle of Soho, London.

It was one of the best things to have ever happened to me.

I had gone off on my own to visit the Victoria & Albert Museum on South Kensington Street. I was on the trip with a couple other girls, but I felt I was making insufficient use of my three days in “The Big Smoke”. So, after being shown around by one of my sorority sisters, I decided to head off by myself. I had a map; I had my phone, and I had my spare battery. I knew exactly where I was thanks to my friend (who had my location) and knew exactly where I needed to go at 6:30 to have dinner with the rest of our group.

Except my phone was at 40%…and my battery pack was dead.

This I did not know until I reached the museum, which I did entirely by physical map because I wanted the opportunity to navigate without Google Maps and take a break from my phone (ironic). I then decided to turn off my phone, save my remaining battery, and go through the museum without taking any photos; a sort of “mini challenge” for myself as someone who loves to whip out their phone and snap a picture of a painting. For those who don’t know, the Victoria & Albert Museum is the world’s largest of applied arts, founded in 1852. Truly, one of the best museums I have ever set foot in and is filled to the brim with not only ancient architecture from every part of the world but people too.

The first person I met was a lady named Jan. Jan was at the museum with her son and husband. They had popped into town for some Korean barbecue and decided to check out the museum afterward. Jan and I had a lovely conversation about the green dye used for shoes in the Japanese exhibit. I told her about my studies here in Bilbao, and she told me about how she’d lived in London all her life and that her son was also interested in an exchange program. I encouraged it. I bid her adieu and went along my merry way.

The second was a boy my age named Spencer. I found him studying and touching one of the vases in the exhibit (don’t worry it was fake). Spencer is currently studying abroad in Italy and is super into pottery and ceramics. He came to the museum mainly to see the “moon vase”, a giant white pot on which he was basing one of his own pieces off of. He showed me why he was touching the vase, and how he was trying to memorize the different dips and curves. It’s such a beautiful thing, getting to see what other human beings are passionate about, what makes life worth living for each delicate soul on this planet.

The third was a girl named Disha, who I met in the Roman sculpture gallery of the museum. Disha was trying to get the perfect picture, setting up her phone against and table and running back to try to get the perfect shot. I offered to help her, and we ended up having at least a 30-minute discussion about our lives and a mini photoshoot in the gallery. Disha is from Canada, works for a travel agency, and is one of the most interesting people I’ve ever met. We exchanged Instagrams, I gave her some suggestions on spots to hit during her time in London and raced down the steps of the museum to get on the metro…which I then found out was closed, so I headed to the bus station.

At this point, my phone had gone down, down, down in battery, and my anxiety had only gone up, and up, and up, so with only 15% left I began to study the bus map, hoping to find out where I needed to go the old-fashioned way and preserve battery. Luckily, I was helped by a lovely woman named Bushra, another local Londoner who was coming back from teaching music composition. She showed me where I needed to go, and which line to get on as she peppered me with questions about the U.S. and I demanded she tell me where I could find the best scone before I hopped on the double-decker bus and made my way to the restaurant in Soho, London.

Side note: Soho was easily my favorite part of London. It’s like New York, full of color and bars and billboards. I definitely intend to return and explore it more in-depth!

Upon my arrival at the restaurant, I had about 5% of my battery left, feeling not too worried since I had made it to the location, and my friend would be arriving soon with my spare portable charger.

Apparently, I was at the wrong restaurant, and my phone died minutes after realizing this information.

Luckily, there was a lovely trio of people standing outside who willingly lent me a charger, and I went back inside to charge my phone behind the bar, where I met the sweetest bartender, Antonio.

Antonio told me about how he had lived in London all his life and had always wanted to come to the U.S. He also asked me if it’s true we wear pajamas all the time…to which I laughed and said unfortunately yes. We bonded over various topics while we waited for my phone to charge. We laughed about how different our countries were as he made me one of the best martinis I have ever had (I’ve never had one), and we exchanged Instagrams for Antonio’s inevitable journey to the wonderful state of Colorado. Once my phone was sufficiently charged, I paid for my drink (discounted- thank you Antonio), said our goodbyes, and returned the charger before ordering an Uber to the proper restaurant where my friends were waiting.

There is something so beautiful about those fleeting connections made with a stranger. I’ll probably never see any of these characters again, but I will always remember them. I was unbelievably anxious about my phone situation, and each of those little connections just made the whole situation ten times better.

But do consider this a cautionary tale. As someone who is constantly overprepared and hyperaware, this was certainly…not my finest moment, and while I don’t recommend letting your phone die in the middle of a big city you’ve never been to before, definitely make some fleeting connections.