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L
earning experiences at Bluefield College can be
“amazing,” “life fulfilling” and “a dream come true.”
Just ask BC student Adriana Moreno, who just recently
completed a study trip abroad to Spain, where she not only
had an “amazing” time learning, but also developed a keen
appetite for global adventure.
Originally seeking to simply fulfill a BC general education
requirement of one year of intermediate study of a foreign
language, Moreno ended up completing a once-in-a-lifetime
adventure with a semester of study in Alicante, Spain.
“My semester abroad felt like one long wonderful dream — a
dream that consisted of nothing but the happiest of times,”
said Moreno, “exploring magical places that I thought only
existed in fairytales.”
As is often the case at Bluefield College, Moreno’s “magical”
learning experience occurred outside the classroom in study
abroad, thanks to BC’s Global Education Program and its
many partnerships that provide students the opportunity to
learn in Brazil, England, Ireland, Italy, Australia, China, India,
Costa Rica, Uganda, Jordan, Lithuania, Lebanon, Greece,
Argentina, and Spain.
In Moreno’s case, Bluefield’s partnership with the University
Studies Abroad Consortium (USAC) allowed her to travel to
Spain where, in her own words, she didn’t just read history;
she lived it through a tour of the Coliseum. She didn’t learn
a second language from a textbook, but through friendly
conversations with locals. And, she didn’t just listen to lectures
about other cultures and places; she experienced them.
“Study halls became plane rides, and tests turned into
navigating back to your hostel without getting completely
lost,” said Moreno. “Lunch in the caf turned into lunch by the
canal. And study plans turned into weekend trips and soccer
matches.”
In addition to studying intermediate Spanish, Moreno studied
Spanish and contemporary European societies through a
wide selection of academic courses at her host school, the
University of Alicante. She also explored Spanish composition
and dance.
“Adriana had a fabulous time in every way,” said Dr. Cindy
Bascom, a BC faculty advisor who facilitated Moreno’s
study trip, “expanding her Spanish skills, experiencing
other cultures’ traditions, visiting beautiful, magical places,
appreciating history, forming lifelong friendships, and in short,
developing an appetite for global adventure.”
Her host city, Alicante, located on the Mediterranean Sea,
boasts magnificent sandy beaches, blue waters, rich history,
and beautiful monuments. People in Alicante live most of their
life outdoors as part of the Mediterranean lifestyle, featuring
busy cafés, vibrant nightlife, street markets, and local festivals.
The University of Alicante features lovely gardens, fountains,
palm trees, and modern architecture, all of which created a
great learning and social atmosphere for Moreno.
But, Moreno’s adventures were not confined to Alicante. In
fact, during her six-months stay, she visited 20 cities in eight
different countries, including Spain, Italy, Greece, England,
France, Holland, Ireland and Germany — each, Moreno
said, with its own history to learn, transportation to master,
dishes to taste, and new adventures to find. Her adventures
included sitting in the grass under the Eiffel tower, skipping
stones in the Mediterranean Sea, riding bikes under windmills
in Amsterdam, swimming in crystal clear waters in Italy, and
climbing castles in Spain.
“I met the most amazing people from all over the world,” she
said, “and truly enjoyed some of the happiest moments in my
life. There were times when I would just sit and think about
how my life couldn’t get any better than this exact moment.
Spain was everything I had hoped for and more.”
Committed to academic excellence
vision
mission
7
Cl imbing Castles
IN SPAIN
The beautiful city of Alicante, Spain,
the classroom setting for a semester of
study for BC student Adriana Moreno.