As part of our 20th anniversary celebration, CEA is gathering two decades worth of interviews and insights from alumni. We talked with CEA Alumni Ambassador Karime Diaz about her hopes, concerns and favorite parts about studying in Barcelona in Summer 2017.
Before she even reached Barcelona, Karime was excited for the new opportunities that studying abroad with CEA was going to present to her.
Karime: The thing that I was most looking forward to was experiencing a new environment and culture and living completely on my own in a different country. Something that I loved that I wasn't expecting was how easy transportation was and how traveling to different countries was so easy and cheap.
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| "You saw Gaudí art everywhere in the city. This is me with Casa Batlló in the distance." |
In fact, being able to use transportation was one of her main concerns about going abroad, but that quickly faded.
Karime: I had a few concerns in the beginning because everything was fairly new to me. At first I thought I was not going to be able to figure out public transportation and get to my internship on time. By the end of the first week I was a pro at taking the metro and navigating throughout the city. Barcelona has such an organized and user-friendly public transportation system that anyone can become a pro fairly quickly.
Outside of becoming a public transportation master, Karime enjoyed experiencing the amazing architecture of Barcelona!
Karime: My favorite memory is when I visited Gaudí's masterpieces, especially the Sagrada Familia. This church is such an icon and innovation to the beautiful city that it is a definite must-see. Another great memory is when us interns got a private tour of the Gothic Quarter. It was breathtaking to see the culture and historical landmarks first-hand. One last lasting memory is when we took a day trip to a local winery and then after we went to Sitges. Sitges is a gorgeous beach- front town that is a definite go-to as well.
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| "An alleyway in Sitges: it was such a charming beachfront town." |
Now that she's back home, she wants to help others get to experience the same opportunities that she had and cannot wait to travel more.
Karime: I am back home getting ready for my senior year at Kean University in Union, New Jersey. I am actually a new CEA Alumni Ambassador and I will be helping this school year with their goals to spread awareness of the benefits of studying abroad with them. The internship abroad has helped me to realize what I value the most in life which is: time, hard-work and creating and maintaining relationships. This experience has also expanded my wanderlust and my desire to immerse myself in different environments and cultures.
Expand your Horizons with CEA next semester.
Judson Tomaiko is the Communications Intern at CEA Study Abroad. He studied Journalism at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism.