Finals 5/10 – 5/13

Classes here ended with a flurry of exams and papers. As much work as it was, finals really showed me how much my Spanish has improved since coming here 4 months ago. I am so much more confident now, and I am much more comfortable with the language. During finals week a partner and I gave a 45-minute Anthropology presentation in Spanish and wrote an accompanying 13 page paper, I wrote a 7 page paper about my cultural experiences since arriving in Sevilla and my other Anthro group and I wrote a 15 page paper about gender roles and stereotypes in Andalucía. In January, never in a million years would I have thought I would have been able to do all of that. It was a lot of writing and a lot of studying in a short period of time but I came out all in one piece and summer vacation has officially begun! I still can’t quite shake the feeling that this whole semester has been a vacation of sorts, which some work mixed in here and there of course… After classes ended my program threw us a goodbye party at one of the beautiful restaurants on Calle Betis overlooking the Guadalquivir River. They had drinks and bite-sized tapas that were all delicious. It was so strange to see all of the kids from my program together in one room again, I couldn’t believe that it was 4 months ago when we were all lost and confused at orientation at the hotel. The party was so fun, a great way to celebrate the end of finals and the end of the semester altogether.