This April a group of students from Rolleston College were lucky enough to be able to partake in a Spanish exchange for twenty days! We were all from year levels 11 - 13 and this was an exciting journey that opened our eyes to many different aspects of Spanish culture, and helped to improve our Spanish communication skills.

We traveled to Spain on the 18th of April, and arrived back home on the 6th of May. During our time away we followed a detailed itinerary full of enriching activities. From the 19th to the 24th of April, all twenty of us students plus our three teachers stayed in an apartment on the Gran Via, Madrid. During this week we visited many different museums, galleries, shops, and other fascinating places. The students contributed to the itinerary by researching the places we would like to visit. Lilly then looked at our ideas and organised the detailed itinerary with Mrs Mansfield. A highlight I experienced in Madrid was when we were able to visit the Museo Reina Sofia, which housed many famous modern and contemporary Spanish art pieces. Another highlight of our time in Madrid was when two fellow students and I were able to go to a local Spanish market with Mrs Mansfield and purchase food for us to use in a picnic lunch. We had to use our Spanish skills to navigate the market and also got to try some new foods!

After the five days in Madrid, we embarked on a two-hour high speed train journey to the City of Córdoba, Andalusia, where we met up with our exchange partners and their families, and where we spent the next week. Throughout this week we were fully immersed in local culture, with all of us being fed local delicacies, such as flamenquin or, my personal favorite, berenjenas fritas con miel. We all struggled to adjust to the Spanish way of time - eating lunch at 4 pm and having dinner at 11! The history of Córdoba was rich and interesting, dating back to classical times, where it was inhabited by Romans, and then ruled under the Umayyads. This meant we were able to visit so many places where past civilisations had left their mark, including three world heritage sites of Mezquita-Catedral de Córdoba, the historic centre of Córdoba, and in our final days, we were able to see the Festival of the Courtyards. Personally, being in my host family in Córdoba was the highlight of my trip, as I was able to fully immerse myself in Spanish culture.

This was truly an incredible experience and I can’t wait to be able to return to Madrid and my newfound family in Córdoba. We would like to say a special thank you to Guyton Reinforcing, who generously sponsored two students to travel to Spain.

By Mikki Young