By Renee S., Guest Blogger studying Spanish at AmeriSpan's Montevideo Spanish school
Hello fellow travelers,
I am heading to Montevideo, Uruguay in 2 days. I will take classes and stay with a host family for four weeks. Following the four weeks, I will spend two more weeks traveling. Hopefully, this will allow me to enjoy Montevideo while I am there and not spend my free moments leaving the city to visit another location.
I chose Montevideo because it is known for its safety and stable economy. As a female traveling alone, these are important factors to consider. I want to be able to walk the streets alone and enjoy the city and country without too many worries. Yet, there are always precautions to take.
I am excited to travel, but nervous about all of the pieces pulling together. Due to the volcanic activity in Chile, in the past few days many flights have been canceled that were heading into Montevideo. I called the airline company today and was happy to hear that the flights are up and running again. I still can’t help but worry… “What if I can’t fly in?” or since my last leg of the flights is from Brazil to Uruguay, “What if I am stuck in Brazil with no visa to enter the country?”
As I prepare for the trip, I constantly remember items that I am forgetting. This causes some worry, but in the end, as long as I have my passport and toothbrush I can handle the rest! It is hard to mentally prepare to go to winter when the sun is shining and it is 85 degrees out. Luckily, all of the clothes that are going are not currently in use, so I do not have to worry about wanting to wear them now.
The idea that I was leaving soon did not hit until I received the information for my host family. The house is close to the school and the city center. The information sheet stated that she has plenty of time to talk with the students and loves to cook. This works out perfectly because I want to improve my speaking and I love to eat.
I read a travel guide for Uruguay (the only one available on the internet that was specific to Uruguay) and every location sounds exciting. I can’t wait to begin exploring. I thoroughly enjoy study abroad experiences because it is a sensory overload of new information, events, experiences, etc. and when I lay down at night my brain is tired from all of the excitement. Hopefully, since Uruguay is off the beaten path for English speaking tourists, I will have plenty of learning opportunities in Spanish.
Until my arrival,
Renee
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