Wow. It has been less than 12 hours that I’ve been in Sevilla, but I already feel like I’ve known the students on my program so much longer. It’s amazing how close people bond together when they are in a new and unfamiliar place.

My flight was delayed in Dulles by 2 hours so I had to seriously book it in the Madrid Airport to transfer to my next flight. At the baggage claim, I swear I almost had a heart attack because I’d been waiting there for a good half hour and still hadn’t seen my suitcase! Turns out it was coming out on the wrong belt and by some stroke of luck, I happened to glance over just in time and saw it. Once I picked up my bag, I raced through the crowd, weaving in and out with my little baggage cart–it was intense. And to my surprise, I got through check-in and security quickly and even arrived early at my next gate. As I was walking over, I heard someone call my name and saw my friend Ali! She was with Steve, a guy from Penn State whom I hadn’t met till today, and as the 3 of us were talking, gradually we gained more and more CIEE people who overheard us. It turns out that there were about 15 of us flying on that same flight from Madrid to Sevilla, many of us Penn State students.

My first sight of Sevilla wasn’t actually as pleasing as I was expecting it to be. Apparently it was beautiful from the aerial view, but I was sleeping like a rock on the plane and saw nothing. My first view of the city was of the airport area, which obviously is in a more open, desolate area. It actually looked a lot like the airport area of Puerto Vallarta, so for the first few hours I kept feeling like I was in Mexico. But it didn’t take long for Spain to kick in. We are staying in the Hotel Del Sol Melia, which is right next to Plaza de España– an absolutely stunning edifice complete with a vast courtyard and fountain. After a short nap, a group of us went for a walk through the Plaza, Parque Maria Luisa, and then got Sangria!

I cannot wait to get to know the area better and I’m so excited just for this whole experience!!

Plaza de España with Jaclyn and Emily

Location: Sevilla, Spain