En Sevilla

My arrival. It's funny, my definition of arrival has changed since the beginning of my travels. I flew into Sevilla two days ago from Toulouse, France. I travelled cheaply to Hotel Bécquer, where I would meet a fellow Spanish and philosophy double-major from Allegheny. She serendipitously met a girl from another Spanish studies program on her long flight here, so I quickly became friends with two cool girls whom I'm excited to share my semester with. For them, having arrived the night before, being in Sevilla was beginning to soak in. The girls who swarmed us the next day for the start of Orientation we're in a state of surreality from what I could tell, jet-lagged and not yet realizing just where they would be for the next four months. My arrival in Sevilla was a different experience than either of these, as I have at some level gotten used to arriving in a new European city and quickly, like a trained sponge, soaking in my surroundings, having conquered the stage of dreamy disbelief. My arrivals Bruges and Carcassone and my second in Paris were full of excitement from an incredible combination of knowing and not knowing what was in store for me.

But my arrival in Sevilla was different. Yes, my plane landed in a new country and yes, I had to tell myself "I'm here"... But it was tainted inescapable milestones that I would be facing, this time in a structured program alongside newer travelers than even I, which in some ways was quite daunting. I'm not saying this taint wasn't like stained glass, like that in the windows at Basilique Saint Denis, light-altering but beautiful. This new type of anxiety really grounded my emotions in the best and worst way. These moment ahead of me, like meeting the family that would be sharing their home with me for months; living in a city for an extended period of time with most of my Spanish-speaking skill borne in high school (any student can tell you how reassuring that is(n't)); learning the customs of Spain and how not to have 'tourist' written on my forehead. Of all the new obstacles that await me now, the most surprising cause for my anxiety has been the thing most meant for comfort: being in a structured program in which everyone is more or less experiencing the same feelings. While I'm confident that soon I will have a bond with many students here for the semester, there's an ironic sense of overwhelm coming from the program's guidance. After building armor to defeat the forces of lone travel, my new place as a student with a slight itinerary and environment of structure is causing some serious apprehension. It's amazing how quickly we adapt to our environments and our lifestyles.

But as I said, it's a tint of beauty, for I think that after the wondrous trek that was my August, it's time to reunite with the incredible reality that is Sevilla. I wrote during my travels that being open minded to a situation can only bring satisfying results. Being in this program gives me access to many opportunities that would otherwise be unavailable to an out-of-the-know traveler like myself. My arrival has been a significant adjustment, more so than I had expected. But it's one that makes my experience in Sevilla my own, special so that the unexpected becomes the sacred treasure.