Name: Vanessa Lantigua
Class: 2007
Major: Political Science
Minor: Spanish
Hometown: Methuen, MA

Studied at: Suffolk University Madrid—03-04
 

Vanessa took advantage of a unique opportunity to spend her Freshman year abroad. “I didn’t get the housing I wanted my first semester at Suffolk and I took advantage of the opportunity to get away from Boston for the winter. I always wanted to go to Spain, so as soon as I saw that I would be able to go through Suffolk University as a freshman I signed up. It’s very unusual, but because it’s the same university it was easy to transfer the credits.

Vanessa was nervous about getting the paper work done, in addition to preparing for her first year of college, but once she got her plane ticket, she began to settle down. “I was still pretty nervous. I left on my birthday– I had never been away from home for more than a week, especially without my family. It was a big difference; a big change but I’m glad I did it.”

It took Vanessa about two or three weeks to realize that her life would go on despite the changes. “You’re in an unfamiliar country, but you still have to take responsibility. You still have to be aware of everything that’s around you, and while it’s a lot of fun and games, there are still some things that are going to be a little frustrating in the beginning. But it all settles down.”

Vanessa lived in the new Madrid Campus residence. “We were seven girls in an apartment. They called it a residencia. We had four bedrooms and 1 ½ bathrooms. We also had a lady who came in and cooked.”

“In the beginning, the food took me a little while to get used to, but other than that, the people are the friendliest people I think I ever met, whether you’re in the north, the south, or the city of Madrid. Everywhere you went everyone was welcoming. If you don’t finish your food, they ask if you didn’t like it—did I make it wrong? Everywhere, they were very nice, very kind.”

Vanessa thought her classmates were terrific.“There were some people from all over the United States, then there were some people from China, France—from all around the world. Everyone was great, and classes were small. I heard different perspectives from every point of view. Some of the students in the degree program at the Madrid Campus, mostly from Spain, were there the year before, and they would let you in on what to do and where to go, and how to deal with everything.”

“The first week, you get to know people, then you met new people, and everyone mixed in with everyone else. Now that I’m back in Boston some of the full time students from Madrid are here, and it’s my turn to fill them in on everything.”

Vanessa thought her professors were amazing. “Every single one of them was so passionate about everything they were teaching. Not only were they teaching the subject matter, but they would help you with where to go, what you should see and what you shouldn’t miss. What monuments to see, what museums to go to. They were really there for us.”

Part of the learning experience took place outside the classroom. “In my art history class, we were able to go to the Prado museum twice a week, and we were able to go on our own. You couldn’t go out of your house without seeing something that represented Spain, or something you could learn about. Every day you learned something new about the culture.”

The experience definitely changed Vanessa’s view of the world. “This was an experience that made me a lot more open minded. It’s a very small world, and I don’t think you have a chance to realize that until you leave the country. Now, all I want to do is find a way, whether it’s my job or whatever, to get back to Spain.”