I flew back to the US last week, August 4. Before returning to California I stayed a week in New York City to visit my brother. Being able to speak the language made me feel more respected by the culture. I had never been to New York so I didn’t know what to expect in terms of customs. New York is immensely diverse and I was surprised by the amount of Dominicans there. I didn’t feel as motivated to use my Spanish in New York but when I did practice, I didn’t want to use my Spanish accent as much. It felt almost strange to try and attempt to speak with a Spanish accent in a place where English is the primary language. In addition, to try and use a Spanish accent to someone who is a native speaker where they could easily identify that I was not. In Spain, it felt more natural and flowed more easily when I spoke Spanish. But that embarrassment of attempting to use my accent in Spain turned up again when attempting my accent in the U.S. but in a different way. I didn’t want to attempt a conversation in fear that I couldn’t finish it fully in Spanish because it felt pointless if I could just speak in English. But regardless, it was nice to be able to practice my Spanish even if it was just a little bit, outside of Spain.
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The six weeks I spent in Spain have been one of the best summers I have ever had. I gained a deeper understanding of a different culture and got to improve a language that connected me to my ethnic background. Staying with a host family was super helpful in terms of accelerating my language pace and I was grateful to stay with such a wonderful family. I hope to return next summer to potentially work an internship in Barcelona and better my Spanish even more.
By Elise Alvira, Diverse Ducks Ambassador
Intermediate Spanish Immersion in Segovia, Summer 2024