Hello, my name is Torin Matthews and I am a senior geoscience major at Arkansas Tech University. I have the amazing opportunity to study abroad in León, Spain for almost three months this spring. I was inspired to study in Spain because my older sister studied abroad in southern Spain eight years ago, and I remember thinking about how awesome her experience was from how she described it. I’ve also been fortunate enough to travel to western Europe before, so I hope that experience will help me feel more comfortable being abroad.
Since I am at the end of my undergraduate time, I am looking forward to the great adventure of total immersion within a completely new country and culture. I am excited to focus solely on the language and culture courses I will be taking and finally get a respite from all the other classes I have been taking in Russellville. I think I will miss some of the comforts of home like my family, friends, having my car, and the familiar places and things we take for granted in the United States. I am hoping to travel to Spain with a widely reflective attitude. I know as both an Arkansan and American, I have habits, mentalities, and behavior that need to be adaptable and flexible while in a different culture. I believe strongly in the idea of “southern hospitality” and treating people with both compassion and kindness. Going about your daily walk of life while treating people well is a great way to make a small difference in someone’s life, and to potentially make a new friend. I hope to represent these attitudes well, and change people’s perception about the US and southern culture.
I am sure that the University of León has different teaching and classroom dynamics than at Arkansas Tech and even in the United States in general. I have heard that students are expected to be more independent and responsible for their learning outside of the classroom, so I am curious to see how things will compare to what I am used to. I hope that I will continue to gain a deeper appreciation for and understanding of Spanish culture and language. I think that complete immersion in the language will help me learn more and enrich my skills beyond the classroom. I think that Spain is a little more laid back than the United States, but there are still many cultural expectations for decorum and having a low profile. Additionally, I’ve read some travel books about Spain, and I find it super fascinating how each region is unique based on the mixture of religious influences and historical occupation by different groups. In particular, it is super cool that you can see the influences from the Romans, the Visigoths, and Moors all having their own unique impacts (with many other groups of course).
I hope that I will make friends and connections with locals and fellow international students at the university. It is a super unique opportunity to connect with many people and to represent the United States and ATU well. I want to fit in as best as I can and not feel like a tourist or a foreigner that can’t connect with the host country. I can’t wait to travel around mountainous and green northern Spain and then venture down south toward the more arid and Mediterranean parts of the country. I am nervous that it will be cold in León, but spending my winter break in Maine has gotten me pretty used to below-freezing weather so it may not be that bad. I am super grateful that I get to spend the end of my undergraduate time at ATU with the study abroad program in Spain. I have high hopes and am determined to make the most of it!
