In Montoro we’ve been taking two classes with one dealing with the Muslim influence in Spain and the other about discussion between Muslims and Christians in today’s world. Along with these two classes we’ve taken field trips to Córdoba, Medinat az-Zahra, an oil museum, and most recently, Granada to reinforce and enhance what we’re learning in class. The Islamic empire’s history in Spain is rich and fascinating, and I’ve enjoyed learning about it in both the classroom and through my own eyes. Sometimes I’ve actually put myself in the story and imagined what life would have been like in that time.

Back at home our group has been living all under the same roof making meals for each other, cleaning up after each other, and just having fun. Even though we’ve spent the past three months together, living together in the same house has been a different experience with its own joys and challenges, but we’ve settled in rather nicely. In the next week, we have some final presentations and essays to complete, a workshop on Islamophobia, and a trip to Sevilla before packing and heading home on December 8.

Morocco has been a true cross cultural experience in every sense of the word. When I say this, I do not mean that Morocco has been an easy experience at all times, or that I have loved every minute of it. I mean instead that my time here has been an incredibly valuable opportunity for spiritual and emotional growth. Even our share of challenges as a group-severe food illnesses, theft, border crossing issues, a lack of independence, and a constant need for flexibility-have been stepping stones for better self-understanding and stronger group unity.

Although we have had many difficulties over the last five weeks, there have been moments so full of beauty and incredible joy that they have more than made up for the harder times. There was our first night at a roadside restaurant where we had the most succulent lamb I have ever tasted. There was the trip to Volubilis, where we explored ancient Roman ruins among the hills. There was the hike we took through a landscape that could have passed for the Shenandoah valley, if it weren’t for the monkeys surrounding us in the trees, waiting for the peanuts we had stashed in our pockets for them. There was the trip to the blue city of Chefchaouen nestled high in the mountains, where even the rain didn’t stop the group from going on a three hour hike.

Most recently, there was the trip to the Sahara desert, where a nine hour car ride past snow covered mountains and sheer rock cliffs brought us into a wasteland of sand. In the Sahara, we rode camels as the sun set over the desert, had tea in an oasis, laid under the stars and counted the meteorites falling to earth against the background of the milky way galaxy. To me, if I had to describe what God looks like, I would describe the sky I saw that night, crystal clear, endless, and filled with an ancient beauty and unfathomable mystery. We woke before the dawn with the wind howling through the tents and the stars still over our heads, and spent forty minutes climbing the high dune behind our campsite to watch the sunrise from what felt like the end of the world.

My time in Morocco has not always been easy. My time in Morocco has not always been fun. But my time in Morocco has changed my life in ways that I do not even fully comprehend yet, and for that, I will be forever grateful

Our countryside hostel was a geographical oddity, being a fifteen minute bus ride away from any town, but it was beautiful, and the owners were extremely friendly and helpful. Fira and Oia offered us a variety of wonderful experiences, shopping, sampling local tasties, and many photo shoots. Even though Santorini wasn’t what I expected, I was constantly impressed by the food, scenery, and the welcoming people of Greece.

–Written by Kelly Baker who traveled to Athens and Santorini, Greece with Rachael King, Nicole Yoder, and Lauren Derstine.

I chose to visit Prague for free travel because Wikipedia claims it is the most beautiful city in the world. Although I wouldn’t entirely agree with this assessment, I couldn’t be disappointed after having visited Prague Castle, one of the biggest castles in the world with its acres of vineyards, gardens, and beautiful view of the city. We visited the famous Astronomical Clock, the picturesque Charles Bridge, the Communist Museum, as well as the house of the writer Franz Kafka. Much of our time, however, we spent in the Old Town Square where we witnessed a range of events from the International Bartending Awards to a confrontation between 200 drunken football fans and three hundred police officers.

My favorite part of the trip was getting the opportunity to meet people from all over the world in our hostel. We hung out with people from Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, France, and Finland. It was fascinating learning about the differences in our cultures and finding out how similar we all really are.

–written by Jasmine Brubaker who traveled to Prague with Nichole Dinges and Abigail Spurrier

Rome, Florence, Venice. Three Italian cities in one week were kind of intense but the 5 of us had a lot of fun. We started in Rome where we hit the historical stuff pretty hard; Vatican museums, Sistine Chapel, Coliseum, etc. In Florence and Venice we took more of a break, relaxing and spending our time not only in art galleries but also exploring the city streets (canals in the case of Venice), taking in the local color and flavor of Italy from impromptu street dances, clowns, and shops to chalk artists to desserts! It was an experience we will never forget.

— written by Sarah Harder who traveled to Italy with Sarah Gant, Erica Yoder, Steven Rittenhouse, and Michelle Lehman

My group and I decided that we wanted to explore Spain, so we made a list of all the things we wanted to do in our week of free travel. Since Barcelona, our first destination, had so much to offer, we quickly realized that we wouldn’t be able to have time to do all of the things on our list. We began with La Segrada Familia. Words can not explain the way we felt when we got there. Taking a tour of the magnificent church was like taking a tour through the stories of the Bible. The architecture was breathtaking despite the incomplete construction of the building. Next, we went to Gaudi Park which was another beautiful experience. On our way to each of these places, we met with many wonderful people. One couple whom we met gave us advice for the best things to see in the city, and told us that if we ever returned to Spain, we were welcome to stay with them at their houses.

Throughout this entire cross cultural, God has been appearing in unexpected situations. This couple did not have to take the time to give us advice or be so welcoming, but through their kindness, I was able to see God working in Spain. Our group was extremely grateful for the experiences we had on free travel.

–Written by Angelica Lorisme who traveled around Spain with Katie Brubaker and Angelica Robles.

The city of Berlin is massive. To get a feel for the country in a limited time is simply not feasible. However it is rich with distinct culture and exhibits passion for the ambiance of pre-war Germany. An example of such can be found in the avoidance of sky scrapers and
adherence to height restrictions to best emulate architecture modeling a time prior to the decimation a great war inevitably brings.

The air smells pure, the streets are clean, and unity and pride can both be found throughout Germany. On the whole the Germans treated my small group with respect and were open to conversations and discussions of political and lifestyle perceptions alike.

–Written by Greyson Dructor who traveled to Germany with Robert Alderfer, Steven Stauffer, and Colten New

In the cross-cultural setting my emotions have been heightened and tonight they are precariously perched at the top of the roller coaster. For me this unfamiliar and challenging experience has led to new exploration. During one of our weekly meetings at Moira’s, she shared a devotional that resonated deeply with me. The devotion came from the book ¡³Ò°ù²¹³¦¾±²¹²õ! and comes back to me in a striking way tonight.

“We can come to experience our basic vulnerability, our need for others, our deep-seated feelings of ignorance and inadequacy, and our fundamental dependency. Instead of running away from these scary feelings, we can live through them together and learn that our true value as human beings has its seat far beyond our competence and accomplishments.”

I could not articulate more accurately the feelings that are revealing themselves here in Spain. Through sharing our feelings of being overwhelmed and insecure we give each other strength to face these challenges, and that’s an amazing thing to be a part of.

The atmosphere in Spain is much more relaxed than in the U.S. The entire society is geared toward relationships and social gatherings, unlike in the U.S., where individualism reigns. I am enjoying the fact that I can sleep 7-8 hours every night and still take a siesta every afternoon if I choose to. The siesta is actually built into the Spanish schedule. Many businesses shut down during the siesta from about 2-5 pm to open up later in the evening. Traditionally, workers went home during this time period as well–lunch is generally served between 2 and 3 in the afternoon–although now some jobs have more of the workday hours found in the U.S.

We have often spent our afternoons or weekends on the beach, a common pastime for the people of Cádiz during the summer and early fall months. Many people arrive at the beach after lunch and stay there until evening when the temperature cools off and it is time to start thinking about dinner. That being said, many gaditanos (people from Cádiz) prefer to stay away from the beach once the weather turns colder in the fall.

Academics here are much more relaxed as well. Although class officially runs from 9:30-11:30 and 12:00-2:00, we usually start 5 to 10 minutes late and end whenever we have finished discussing the topic of the day. Even though classes are packed with information, the teachers (at least in my Spanish culture/history class) tell us not to take notes because it is all in our textbook–200 pages of info. We are in class to listen. If we have homework, it is usually to read less than 10 pages or complete a few exercises–none of the rigorous studying that I am used to at home. We have one final project and a final exam that is supposedly pretty general. We also learned the first day that specific questions about course requirements are only something a student from the U.S. would ask. Oh well.

I find it really easy to relax here. I feel like I’ve mellowed out a little, a trend that I hope continues for the rest of the semester and even after I return to the U.S. I have realized that I don’t need to be frantically rushing everywhere and trying to fill up my day with activities to have fun–life is not like that here.

As for social gatherings, people flock to the streets after dinner (which is between 9 and 10:30 pm), especially on the weekends. Everyone dresses up (not formally, but not in jeans and a T-shirt) and the entire family goes out, including the children, until late in the evening or early the next morning. Many people meet friends in the numerous city plazas, sitting at cafés, going to bars, or getting ice cream. While the parents and teenagers converse in groups, the children play soccer or run around in the plazas, a normal sight in the afternoons as well.

The pace of service at such places is rather relaxed as well, as Sarah H. and I experienced last Saturday. We just ordered a cheese sandwich (although the waitress gave us a strange look when we responded negatively to her question about getting something to drink) and ended up spending about 45 minutes sitting at our table from the time we ordered until the time the waitress came for our money. It is a social norm to go to such cafés, order something to eat and drink, and sit conversing with friends for a couple hours.

Such is the atmosphere here in Spain, and I have greatly enjoyed the change in pace.

Saturday’s bus ride included a brief stop at a noisy roadside bar where we were served loaves of crusty bread sliced and accompanied by a thin slice of meat or cheese–the classic Spanish Bocadillo.  We then drove a few hours and stayed at the Hostal el Triunfo in Cordoba.  Many in the group enjoyed the nightlife and beautiful lights of the city, while others headed right to bed.

Morning brought excitement as Moira led 15 or so of us through the city.  Here we saw el Catedral Mesquite, once a Mosque in Moorish Spain, but now converted into a beautiful and unique Catholic cathedral.  Another beautiful stop was the synagogue which once housed Maimodes, a world-renowned Jewish philosopher, as he studied. Finally, around noon, the group gathered for lunch and then piled back onto the bus for the four hour ride to Cadiz.

Spain’s repetitive landscape of olive trees and vineyards lulled many to sleep, only to wake as we neared the city.  Our first glimpse of Cadiz was both exciting and nerve-wracking simultaneously.  Nervousness only increased when we arrived at the meeting point, the park across from the University, and realized our families were nowhere in sight.  After an hour, it became apparent that they were not coming, and Moira began to call the families one by one. Many quickly arrived, and explained that there had been a miscommunication, and all eighteen families had been at the park for three hours on Friday waiting for us.  Soon, all the families had been apologized to, and 19 students parted ways to begin their cross cultural experiences in earnest.  With almost a week of classes past, our two day journey feels an eternity away, and our lives with our families have begun to seem comfortable and routine.