Today, my GCP group and I visited a university class in Spain that was learning the English language. The teacher of the class is an old friend of Adela’s, my group leader, and had invited our GCP group to come speak with her students in the form of a “speed dating” style.
At first, my group members and I were nervous, as we didn’t know what to expect. We were introduced and spread throughout the room to talk to groups of students about anything and everything. We all had a list of questions we could ask each other- such as “where are you from?” and “do you believe in love at first sight?”. The first group I spoke with was extremely friendly and not long after our conversation started, we drifted away from the written questions. We began to talk about our families, our lives outside of school, our goals and so much more. When it was time to switch to another group, I found myself being pulled away from a conversation I was very much absorbed into. I reluctantly moved on to the next group, but soon found out the same thing happened over and over again. Every conversation with every group of students led to a different direction and I was loving every single minute of it. Some topics of conversations between my groups included animal abuse, how we found love, traveling, and so much more. Conversations between my GCP group members and other students included topics such as gun control, stereotypes of the US and Spain, and so many others.
It was so easy to connect with these students no matter our backgrounds, ages, and beliefs. I had such a great time learning about these students and connecting to them on a level that I have never thought I could with someone in a different country.
I learned so many different and raw facts about Spain from these students that I would never learn from a formal tour guide or a history book written about Spain.
I felt like I was able to open myself up to these students and express myself in so many different was through my conversations with them. To be able to do that in a foreign country is a privilege to me and I can’t express how much I love my experience in Spain.
Our day ended with the university students and GCP students exchanging social media so that we can all keep in touch!
By Uyen Tran ’20, Doctor Of Physical Therapy Student, Posting From Cáceres, Spain
