Pre-departure Jitters

As I prepare to go abroad for this next semester, I am faced with a variety of emotions. I've found it quite difficult to convey these emotions to people that are not or have not faced the crazy, awesome, frightening adventure that will be my next four months.

Photo of Passeig de Gracias by Moyan Brenn

For those that don't know, I'm about to depart on a journey to Barcelona, Spain. I'm super (well, mostly) excited! The program I'm apart of is called Global Work with Immigrant Kids (GWIK) and it basically takes the place of my fall Social Work internship, by providing me with an internship in another country. It's an awesome opportunity that I doubt I'll ever have again! I chose Spain because I met the Spanish language requirements and wanted to work on my language skills. Also, Spain is much warmer than the other two options (Denmark and Belgium) and I love warmth. :) So basically, while I'm abroad, I'll be interning 15-20 hours a week working, presumably, with immigrant children, taking one class at Ramon Llull University and taking two Spanish courses at the University of Barcelona. I think I'm going to stay busy. :)

While I was in high school, I had the opportunity to go to Peru a couple of times, and it was cool, but it was very touristy. I was also surrounded by 700 other people, each apart of the same missions trip as I. Unlike Peru, I'm going to Spain alone. This scares the crap out of me. I'm about to move to another country and I don't know a soul. LITERALLY. AHHHHHHHHHHHHH. Not only do I not know anyone, but I don't speak their language. Okay, yes, for those that have hung around me long enough, I like to insert a few Spanish words here or there, but I don't speak it fluently. I've also never had to rely solely on my Spanish speaking skills to survive. That may seem a bit dramatic, and it may be, because I think I could get by without speaking at all....but I'd prefer not to. I am very much a people person. I don't like crowded places and large groups of people, but I do need conversation. This I think is one of my biggest fears for the next semester.

I'm nervous about many of the possible things that I will experience this next semester, but also excited about several. I'm living in an awesome area of town! It's called, "Barrio de Gracia." The picture I've included in this post is actually apart of my future neighborhood. It's beautiful! Barcelona is an incredible place. The beach is only 10-15 minutes away, and the mountains are not far either. The city has so many different things to offer: good food, art, amazing architecture and so many other things. It's a huge place, much bigger than my previous residences in Charlotte, Raleigh and Greensboro. The history of Barcelona is rich, and heavily influenced by Catalonia. I'm excited about exploring the city and getting to know the culture.

When I arrive, I'll have the first two weeks to explore and find out how to navigate the city. I'm so thankful for these two weeks. It's nice to know i'll have the time to get aquatinted with everything, before classes and internship starts. Hopefully, I'll be able to blog more once I arrive and maybe update with some photos. :)


For my own sake, and for those that want to hold me accountable, I have a few goals for this semester:

1. Work on my Spanish.
2. Invest in the lives of the children I'm working with.
3. Try a strange seafood.
4. Invest in the city, learn Catalan, do more than just "touristy" things.
5. More to come.....

Also, be praying and thinking of me this semester. I'm sure it's going to be awesome, but also extremely challenging. I won't be home for Thanksgiving or Christmas, so I'm sure I'll miss my friends and family quite a bit. Stay updated with what I'm up to through my blog, or feel free to find me on Skype (krdaniel7)!

Thanks!