For nearly 50 years, Proctor students have studied abroad with host families in Spain. The 2021 edition of Proctor en Segovia is off to a great start following a recent excursion to Andalucia and Cordoba. Read more from Sophie ‘23 and Katie ‘23 the group’s most recent blog post!
Proctor en Segovia has returned for the 2021-2022 school year under new directors Ellie and Luis Mendoza. After their first three weeks abroad, students have settled into a routine with their host families, in their Spanish, literature, and history classes, and recently completed an excursion to Basque Country. Read student essays from their first few weeks living and learning abroad below.
Our final trip while in Spain was to Málaga, down south in Andalucía and in the same region as Sevilla. Everyone met at the bus station as we normally would. And blast off, on the bus to Madrid, then to the subway, then finally to the high-speed train. Three hours later were walking through the streets of Málaga to get to our hotel, taking in murals and graffiti, as well as the warmer temperatures. The rest of the afternoon consisted of free time to wander the city, shop, and explore. I got lost. Then we joined back with Ryan for a little orientation, getting gelato, and seeing an ancient Roman theater in front of an old Moorish castle. The day wound down with an excellent dinner at a Spanish-Argentinian fusion tapas restaurant.
Our day officially started at 1:30 pm when we met up at the aqueduct to head out to Madrid. We filled the bus for the hour-long drive we had all come to know well. We arrived and ate our bocadillos in the gardens in front of the Palacio Real. We sat absorbing the sun and enjoying the good weather as we finished up our lunches.
Friday: After waking up from a nice 10 am sleep-in, I got up out of my bed and threw on the outfit I had planned the night before. With my full bag of clothes, and the yummy bocadillo (sandwich) that my mom made me, I headed for the bus station. The travel was long and included an hour bus ride to Madrid, a two-hour train ride to Seville, and lastly a thirty-minute walk to our hostel.
Traveling to Barcelona has always been a dream of mine, so I was incredibly excited on the days leading up to our excursion. The travel day was very long and tiring. We were on a bus heading to Madrid by 10:30am, dashing on the metro to the “Renfe,” or Spanish train service, station as soon as we arrived. The train flew through the Spanish countryside and about three hours later we were in Barcelona. After another sweltering hot, sauna-like metro ride, we were within walking distance to our hotel. Exhausted, we took the 45 minutes of free time to do absolutely nothing — and I was totally happy that.
A Morning in Segovia - Tuesday, January 14th
Tuesday, January 14th was such a nice day and super fun. I started off in kind of a scramble waking up at 8:45 and needing to meet Ngan downstairs at 9. Luckily I had packed my bag and laid my outfit out for the day. I quickly got dressed and ready for the day and dashed down the stairs. I made at 9:00 am on the dot, and we walked out onto the beautiful street. Ngan and I live in the same apartment building; I live on the top floor and she lives a floor below me. It has been nice having someone in the same boat, trying to get used to everything in Segovia and navigating a new small city. As we walk to school we pass a couple of little city squares, one by the aqueduct which constantly seems to have people hanging out, talking, and listening to music.
Thursday morning we began our long journey to the province of Andalucía in Southern Spain. A bus, metro, and train ride later we got to the city of Granada. We had just enough time to shower and change before being thrown into the Andalucían culture in one of the most traditional ways, a flamenco performance.
