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Hola Amigos! Mi nombre es Kelcey Grogan. I am from Scranton, PA. Currently, I am a junior in the Schreyer Honors College at Penn State majoring in Community, Environment, and Development with minors in Spanish and International Agriculture. During the spring semester of 2012, I will be studying abroad in Alcala de Henares, Spain. It is a smallish town about a half hour outside of Madrid.

 

It looks like a beautiful place, and a picturesque town . . .

 

 

I chose to study here because I thought I would get the best of both worlds, a small town with a community feel where I could feel at home and learn and practice my Spanish AND I would only be a thirty minute bus ride from the major city of Madrid with its museums, fashion, history, tourist sites, and nightlife.

 

 

While this semester abroad will be the longest time I have spent outside of the United States, it certainly will not be my first time traveling. I certainly have been blessed in my young life to have seen much of the world and traveled to five different continents. I LOVE traveling. I adore everything about it- the airports, the adventures, the new food, the different cultures, the various styles. I relish the chance to meet new people, to try to learn new phrases, to see different world views, to experience different political systems, to feel a little out of my comfort zone, to challenge myself to try to experience it all.

 

My family planted the travel bug in me early. Rather than spending every summer vacation lying on a beach and burning our pale Irish skin, my parents and two sisters and I traveled across the United States to various national parks, historical landmarks, and major cities, we even made it to a new continent when we traveled to Australia! We spent the different weeks hiking, exploring, eating new food, and meeting new people. (My sisters and I also spent a lot of time asking “are we there yet”, getting on each others nerves after long ten hour car rides, ordering grilled cheese and fries rather than the local cuisine, getting really lost with “faulty GPS directions” (Sure Dad), and complaining about smiling for another family photo). However, those latter memories fade with time, but the feeling of wonder at the natural beauty of the world around you and the realization that the world is a bigger place than your hometown have not.

I’ll upload some embarrassing family travel photos later.

 

So far I have traveled to California, Wyoming, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Hawaii, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Internationally, I have travelled to Australia with my family. Many of explorations internationally were not on family vacations. I have been to Greece and London with friends and classmates, and I travelled to Haiti twice to work, learn, and volunteer with a non profit organization. I spent three weeks in Jordan with an embedded class from Penn State after my freshmen year of college. After my sophomore year, I spent three weeks in Kenya with another embedded course .  Phew! Quite the passport . . . and I’m not done yet 🙂

 

Of course, I will miss my family, friends, and the comforts and familiarity of home while abroad. I even will miss my commitments, classes, and professors here in Happy Valley. While at Penn State, I have served as the president of the Community, Environment, and Development club, and I recruit students to join the Schreyer Honors College as a member of the Scholar Advancement Team. I also work as a Fitness Instructor and am an undergraduate research assistant here with a professor. I am passionate about fixing the education system here in the United States, and have worked as a Campus Campaign Coordinator and Operations Coordinator with Teach For America. In my free time, I love to run, drink coffee, and attend Penn State football games!  . . . . I certainly do like to keep busy and make the most of every opportunity!

 

So to make the most of this upcoming opportunity to travel abroad in Spain I thought I’d write down a few goals:

1. Pack Efficiently (If you know me, you know how much of a challenge this will be! I love clothes, but I don’t want to be bogged down by a suitcase during my travels. And, I can always buy things while there 🙂 ! )

2. Speak Spanish (Since all my classes are in Spanish, I guess this isn’t really an option! I probably should practice a bit over these next few weeks though!)

3. Take Pictures (I have never been good at remembering to take pictures. I am usually too caught up in the moment and I let other people worry about it! I want to have plenty of pictures from this time abroad though.)

4. Enjoy! (Sometimes I can get so caught up in the planning process, I forget to enjoy the moment. I want to enjoy every new experience while abroad, the food, the people, the language, the culture, the places, the challenges, and the successes! I know these four months will fly by. )

5. Have adventures

 

Well I think this enough information for now! (I have a tendency to talk a lot.) Thanks for reading. I can’t wait to actually be blogging from Europe . . . . Hasta Luego!

Location: State College, Alcala de Henares, Alcala,