Arezina’s Erasmus experience at Unav in Pamplona, Spain.
Today, we’re featuring Arezina, an ICM student from Belgium, who had an incredible semester at the Universidad de Navarra in Pamplona (UNAV), Spain. Check out her story to see what she experienced and learned during her time abroad!
- What was your first impression of the host country and its culture?
Before coming here, I thought I knew all about Spain already because my family and I have been going to Spain every year since I can remember, and it already felt like my second home. Oh boy, was I wrong. That’s why the first few weeks were very hard on me. However, I could adapt to the new culture quite easily.
- Can you share a memorable cultural experience you had during your Erasmus stay?
I didn’t experience cultural events such as dance classes or going for pintos every Thursday, but I did acquire the siestas, and I visited a few churches and museums too. One time, we tried to visit the cathedral in Madrid, but we didn’t realize it was Palm Sunday, which is an important day for Catholics. There were so many people, and there was a whole camera crew as well. We decided to visit other things in Madrid first and return to the cathedral later. We ended up being on national TV for 3 seconds because they filmed a shot of the crowd while we were still there, which I thought was hilarious.
- How was the academic environment at your host university different from Thomas More?
At UNAV, I could choose the classes I wanted to take, which is different from Thomas More already. I chose classes such as photography, news design, and cinema history, as well as classes in a more business environment such as sales management, to see where I could find myself best.
To get in or out of the buildings, you had to scan your student card, which is not a system we use in Thomas More, I believe. All campuses were in one place, too. It was like one big park with multiple buildings for different studies. Campus Fcom, Amigos, and Central were campuses where I usually had my classes. The university was so big that it needed a map to see where each building was. Science classes, for example, were held in the science buildings which were on the other side of the map.
- What challenges did you face while on Erasmus, and how did you overcome them?
What I struggled most with was making friends and getting out of my comfort zone. I lived in a residence where I thought making friends would be easy, but unfortunately, almost none of the students there spoke English, and my Spanish wasn’t good enough to hold a conversation yet. It was especially hard since I saw all the other international students go out together, but I am not a going-out type of person, so I couldn’t bond with them as much as I hoped I would. In my third month in Pamplona, I finally got the courage to talk to more people, and that’s when I met the most amazing friends.
- How did this experience help you grow personally and academically?
This experience helped me grow in multiple ways. Since I don’t have a dorm in Belgium and still live at home, this was the first time I got a place of my own (kind of). Academically, it made me realize I really like news design and photography, and maybe, after ICM, I want to practice this a bit more or see if I can do another study about these subjects. Personally, this experience helped me learn more about independence than ever. But it also made me a stronger person in general. I am way more confident in who I am than before this experience, which I am grateful for.
- Looking back, what is your most cherished memory from your Erasmus experience?
What I will always remember from this experience are probably the friends I made along the way and the beautiful memories I made with my best friend, who I didn’t know would join me at UNAV until September or October 2023. This was probably one of the best surprises ever. I visited the most beautiful places and I’m so lucky I got to experience these moments with my bestie.
- What will you miss the most in Belgium after your Erasmus experience?
I didn’t want to believe this at first, but reverse culture shock is definitely a thing. I’ve been home for about a week now, but I can already see how much Spain and its culture affected me. I’ll miss the university and the environment because everywhere I looked, there were mountains and other beautiful parts of nature. That’s not something you see in Mechelen, unfortunately. But what I will miss most is definitely my friend Stasia, who lived with me in the residence. After dinner, we would watch movies or just have girl talk in my room together, and that’s definitely something I will miss not having here.
- Do you have any tips or advice for future students considering Erasmus?
My biggest tip for people considering an Erasmus is: go for it!! It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience you don’t want to miss! There are some downs (or at least that was the case for me), but there are so many more ups to it too! But also do some research about the place and culture before you go. I absolutely loved my time in Pamplona and I can’t wait to go back one day. I’m so glad and grateful I got to experience this and will forever cherish these moments.
