Studying Abroad in Alicante, Spain with a Host Family!

Lia Shtereva Start Date: Jan 25, 2020 - End Date: May 24, 2020
  • Alicante, Spain

My Travel Story

by: Lia Shtereva Start Date: Jan 25, 2020 - End Date: May 24, 2020
I am very passionate about two things; science and business. I hope that one day I could combine these two together and make a living off of it. As a minor in entrepreneurship, the Ali Abroad study program would be perfect for enriching my business side because it has the perfect class that I’d like to take, Entrepreneurship experience in the European Union: A strategic approach. I was born in Bulgaria, a European Union country and in the future I’d like to start my own business there. Although I am learning business here in America, America and Bulgaria are very different in so many ways that the things we learn in America might not be as accurate and helpful in starting a business in another country. This class provides a comparative look at European and Spanish approaches in contrast to other models. That class and living in Spain will provide an idea of the differences that occur between America and a European country. Living in Spain will provide an enrichment to my view of   business in a way that could possibly help me understand how business might work in another country that is different from America. While it might not tell me specifically how a business could be successful in another country, it could provide me with the differences necessary to consider when growing your business to an international level. 

Another very important academic goal that I believe this program will help build upon is minoring in Spanish. I have taken three Spanish courses at DU and my Spanish is good but this program will allow me to grow my knowledge greatly by taking a semester long language acquisition class. This class will combine language study with other university level coursework. While this class will provide many advantages while I am abroad, it will also help me when I come back. I believe studying Spanish in Spain will be much better than taking any Spanish class here at DU and I believe that it could help me test out of Spanish courses so I can be closer to achieving my goal of minoring in Spanish. The advantage of taking a Spanish class while in Spain is enormous because while outside of class I will still be surrounded by people that speak only Spanish. 

Another great advantage of this specific program that will help with my Spanish is living with a host family. That will provide me with the amount of Spanish necessary in my daily life to be able to learn it. Your body is naturally able to adjust once it hears something every day. I know many strategies that helped me learn English and I am planning on using them to learn Spanish as well. Going to the Academic Language Institute will help me learn the European approach to doing business and it will help me learn Spanish fluently thus helping me accomplish two of my greatest academic goals. 

As an American immigrant that moved here about 6 years ago I know that living in different places enriches you as a person. When I moved to America, I learned a very important lesson, that people around the world are so different from one another due to their cultural and historical differences. What I am personally and professionally looking forward to experiencing in Alicante, Spain is learning about their culture and their way of living. The area around Alicante has been inhabited for over 7,000 years thus the area is rich with history and traditions. Their traditions have been influenced by Phoenician, Greek, Roman and Arab traders and conquerors. Also Alicante hosts many unique traditional festivals throughout the year which would be an amazing way to get immersed into their culture. Specifically, I am excited to go to Moors and Christians fiesta in October that is packed with parades, music and fun. As an immigrant I know it’s important to learn a city’s culture and history to really know the place and the people. The professional side of enriching yourself culturally and historically is business related; once you really know a place you are able to provide good customer service and desired products and services. 

Since I have already done something similar, moving to America, the program in Alicante, Spain is perfect for me. It has a medium amount of support which I am really attracted to because I love facing challenges on my own and I do have previous experience in moving to an unknown country. I like facing challenges on my own because I think they provide a learning experience that no other teacher can teach you. This program is marked as having medium support because it does not help you with the process of getting a Visa and other necessary things needed before getting to the institute, but that is not a problem for me because I was born in a country that is part of the European Union which means I can go to any country that is part of it without a Visa, including Spain. 

Another reason that I want to go to Alicante specifically is because of its weather and the beach. Living in a location with warm weather and a beach are both a professional and personal goal of mine. I find beaches to provide me with a certain relaxation that I am personally looking forward to. But the business side of living by the beach is enriching your knowledge of potential products and services that are necessary in such an area. Living in different locations will help my business career by providing me with valuable information about what people like to see and what they need. There are many advantages of living in Alicante and I am excited to be able to experience all of them.

I am no stranger to cultural differences and although I have lived in America for 6 years now, I am still not completely living the way an American would live due to cultural and historical differences that we have faced throughout our lives. There are many challenges that I could face while living in Alicante, Spain. Some of them are financial, cultural, the language barrier, and feeling comfortable in this unfamiliar to me country. I am not scared of challenges. Challenges are what has made me as great of a person as I am today. I seek challenges, otherwise I wouldn’t be here at DU. I wouldn’t be here if challenges are not what I believed pushes you to move forward in the right direction. 

I have been independent since the day I moved to America. My parents do not speak English almost at all and I have had to be the one to take care of me and whatever my parents have needed help with such as court, doctors and even applying to jobs. Since I also didn’t know the answer to these questions, I always had to look everything up on my own and find resources that can help me solve the problem I was dealing with. I think this skill will help me a lot while I am abroad because I’ll definitely search for help if I ever need it by using the institute’s website or by scheduling an appointment with the resident director that is available 24-7 to provide me with the necessary information. I also live on my own, off campus, and I have to do everything to keep me and my apartment intact such as cleaning and cooking. 

One of the biggest challenges that is specific to this program would be living and feeling comfortable in a strangers’ home. Comfort is something that us humans seek and need in life. The unknown provides a lot of discomfort to us and that’d be the biggest challenge for me because it has so many aspects within it. Although it would be very different to have a host family than what I am used to, I am a person that is very easily adaptable to new things. My approach would be to get to know my host family and to get close to them so it can start feeling more like home instead of an unfamiliar place. I’ll make sure that I am always involved in cooking and cleaning which will also help me get immersed into their culture. I’ll make sure that I am following all of their house rules and that I am very presentable so we can all be happy living under the same roof.

 I am not scared of things that I have already fought through and things that I have come up from to be where I am today. I’ll be using all of the skills that life has taught me to overcome the challenges of living in Alicante, Spain. 



  • Alicante, Spain

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