5 Reasons why YOU should Study Abroad while at The Citadel.

It has been nearly two months since I left Spain to come back to the United States and continue with my life as a cadet at The Citadel. Do I think about my trip in Spain often? I think about my time in Spain literally every single day. Whether I'm eating, sleeping, or hanging out with my friends, I always end up reminiscing my experience in Spain. It definitely is a sad reality check when you know you can never have that experience again. One of the most prominent factor I learned from this trip was about myself. I learned a lot more about myself and my capabilities as a human being. I was able to learn how I dealt with problems or obstacles that were stopping me from advancing and my other hidden personalities that I was not able to learn before when I was in my comfort zone. I loved every single second of my life while I was abroad and I will always cherish and remember those who made my trip amazing as well.

Today, I want to give a quick 5 reasons why my brothers and sisters at The Citadel should study abroad before they graduate from the best military college in the world.

1. It's never too late to go study abroad- Even though, I've always wanted to study abroad ever since I was a knob, I always thought It was impossible for me to study abroad due to being an Army contracted cadet and other issues such as financial and scheduling. I learned that even as a rising Army contracted senior, you can make everything work and study abroad if you stay hungry for your goals.

2. You will have a chance to make friends from all over the world- Despite creating a strong brotherhood/sisterhood at The Citadel, you will have a chance to communicate with other people from all over the world and learn about their respective schools and cultural norms.

3. New perspectives about yourself and your future- I learned about my true inner personality from traveling. I have also gained new perspectives about certain things in life due to meeting different people from all over the world and seeing the world.

4. You get a chance to learn another language- Knowledge is power and it doesn't hurt to learn another language. In fact, you almost need to know another language in order to survive in this generation. I was lucky to learn more about Spanish grammar and culture to possibly make Spanish as my third language.

5. Experiences that you get from studying abroad will be unforgettable- Studying abroad in a different country will give you enough stories to last a lifetime. Looking back at metro tickets, maps, or other small things from certain countries will allow you to remember how incredible your time abroad was compared to being home.

Last saturday in Spain

6/25/2016

Today was the last time traveling with The Citadel.
We went to Segovia, which is about an hour and a half away from Madrid. One of the most famous thing to see in Segovia is the aqueduct. The Roman Aqueduct was built at the end of the 1st century and it has been used until the middle of the 19th century. Even though it is old, it still looked well maintained and fully capable of doing its job. Aqueduct will be the first thing you notice as soon as you arrive to Segovia. During this short trip, we also checked out Plaza Mayor, Cathedral, and Alcazar.

Last friday in Spain

6/24/2016

Today was the last day of learning Spanish at Estudio Sampere. Despite the fact that I dislike summer classes, I was honestly happy and excited to go to classes everyday and learn Spanish with my amazing teachers and friends from The Citadel. I am truly thankful for this opportunity and all the hard work from both professors at The Citadel and Estudio Sampere.

After classes, we went to go see Flamenco, which is a traditional Spanish dance. It is known to be originated in the southern areas of Spain but it was hugely influenced by other cultures like Latin American, Cuban, and Jewish traditions. I am not a huge fan of art of dancing so I personally did not pay too much attention to it.

Cordoba Trip

To finish off our long weekend, we drove to Cordoba on sunday to see the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba. Over the past few centuries, the mosque transformed into a Roman Catholic church with many different architectural styles. It was absolutely stunning to see this building in real life because there were so many history and details such as the arches, the orchard, the cathedral, the chapels, and the history about this building.

It was an amazing experience to see all the different religious architecture from a time when the world was peaceful and forgiving.

Seville Trip

After we visited Granada, we drove to Seville and spent another day exploring beautiful cathedrals and buildings in Seville.

The Torre del Oro overlooked the Guadalquivir. It wasn't the highest tower ever, but there was also a small museum within it that made the trip worth it.

My favorite part of Seville was the Plaza de Espana. It was a beautiful park in the middle of a crowded city. I thought it was the perfect place to get away from the busy streets and enjoy the view of an amazing building. There were also boats on the small lake in front of the building, the spanish version of mini venice. Within the building, there were little symbols for every cities in Spain. My buddy and I didn't realize that the symbols were displayed in alphabetical order, so we ended up wasting 15 minutes walking and trying to find the symbol for Madrid.

Granada Trip

Granada was definitely one of the most unique cities I have ever been so far in my Spain trip.
Granada is in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain and it is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, even though it was June, we were still able to see some snow on top of the mountain. Unlike Madrid, Granada had an Arabic vibe throughout the city and the environment was so overwhelming and amazing because I have never been in an Arabic environment like Granada in my life. After talking to few Arabic workers in the street, I learned that they were all getting ready to close their stores for the night to get ready for Ramadan.

The Alhambra is a famous palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Spain.
It is known as one of the greatest masterpieces of Arab art in the world as it is also part of UNESCO World Heritage site. It was first built as a simple fortress in the ninth century and the word "Alhambra" means "The Red", which is the color of the material used in its construction.

Barcelona Part 2

After eating breakfast at the hotel, we explored Barcelona with a tour guide from 1100 to 1930.
First, we went to downtown Barcelona to see all the local stores and some of Picasso's work in Barcelona. We then went to Park Güell, Sagrada familia, and Barcelona beach.
Unlike Madrid, there were a lot more cathedrals in Barcelona. I thought that Barcelona had more history in general as well due to the catalans wanting independence.

- Cathedral in Barcelona with Professor Blanco.  

- Park Güell is one of the most impressive public parks in the world. The park is located in Barcelona and was designed by famous architect Antonio Gaudi.

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- Gaudi's original plan was to construct a residential park that can hold up to sixty single- family residences from 1900 to 1914. However, the project was unsuccessful and the park shortly became a city property in 1923. Even though, it is still not completed, the park itself is portrayed as one of Gaudi's most colorful and amazing works.

- Sagrada Familia was dedicated and consecrated as a basilica by the Holy Father Benedict XVI and became a holy place open for worship on 7 November 2010.

-The church has 4,500 square metres where 8000 people can come in and worship.

- Five generations have already witnessed the temple’s rise in Barcelona. Construction is still on-going today and could be finished in the first third of the 21st century.

-Picasso's work in downtown Barcelona