Testimonial - Adhgha Nizar about his summer in Spain: "Immersive, vastly enriching, and unforgettable..."

 As you all know, last June some South East Asian students had the chance to join the ESADE International Summer School in Barcelona thanks to the partnership between SENAI and this prestigious business school. 

It was a great experience for all of them. Now they are back in their home countries and more than willing to share their experiences and stories with you. 

Please let us introduce you to Adhgha, a young student from Surabaya (Indonesia) who spent 4 weeks in Barcelona learning about International Business and Global Governance and Geopolitics

Q.: Adhgha, could you please tell me one sentence that resumed your summer experience? A.: Immersive, vastly enriching and unforgettable

Q.: Question from SENAI's team
A.: Answer by Adhgha

Q.: How did you choose to come to Spain?

A.: It was a very easy decision. First of all, because the trip was (mostly) academic, the academic quality matters. And Spain has a lot of very reputable education institution. In my own case, I was blessed with having the opportunity to experience the academic atmosphere of ESADE Business School, which, despite its very young age, is amongst one of the most reputable business school worldwide, partially courtesy of its constant high position in various business school ranking as is being published by institutions such as Financial Times.
Secondly, summer school is as much about summer as it is about school! And being the Western Mediterranean country that it is, I always have this impression that Spain offers the best of both of the world for students coming from tropical country like myself. First, it is Western. So that you’ll be able to immerse yourself into the Western culture while admiring the grandeur of Western architecture (and really, Barcelona was so beautiful) , the like of which you most likely won’t be able to experience in your country.

On top of all of this, its public transportation and tourism sector is highly developed (at the very least in the Barcelona region), so you tourist would have a lot of fun and easy options to enjoy there. However,

by the virtue of being a Mediterranean country, it is not as cold as the other Western country, moreover in the summer. So it’s a win – win, you get to enjoy the Western without having to adapt a lot to its climate!

Q.: How would you define your international experience? 

A.: It really enrich my perspective. When you’re living your life mostly in just one culture (like I do), you might get this impression that your way of doing things is the way to do things. What I learn from my excursion, however, is that people in other culture might also have that same impression, that their way to do things is the way to do things. When people from different cultures meet therefore, an open mind and a humble heart are needed, for both parties to be able to really decide on how they should do things without insulting the other. This realization compelled me to be less self-centered and more considerate, things whose impacts would really go beyond the duration of the short excursion.

Q.: What do you think did you gain with this opportunity? 

A.: Of course the certificate, hehehe.
But it is really beyond that piece of paper, to be honest. The knowledge that I gained in the class, the non-academic experience (I went to my first ever music festival J J J ), and of course the pride of having the privilege to attend the program and taste a little bit of Barcelona.

Q.: What other facets of this experience have been challenging? 

A.: The trip between the accommodation and the university could be a little bit challenging sometime (with “sometime” mostly means that time when you’re late or that time when the sun is really unforgiving). To be fair, it was not due the place in itself. I know colleagues which had to took a longer trip than myself to go the campus. It was more because of how I did things in Indonesia. In case you don’t know already, we Indonesian do not walk that much. We let the motorized vehicles to do our dirty job of walking. In my time in Spain, of course I couldn’t do that. Due to various reasons, I had to either walk or take the public transportation. To be fair of, I could just took the public transportation. I didn’t, however, because, well, I didn’t think that the trip (which is “only” around 2.5 km) really worth the price (which was like 2 EUR/trip). So I chose to walk the full distance everyday. Thankfully, it was a beautiful neighborhood to walk through, with a lot of new things to experience while passing by.
I was once coming home from class when I passed a plaza with a band playing Spanish music when suddenly tens of locals put their bags in place and made circle around it. Holding hands and dancing to the music, with more and more people joining the circle. It felt so warm to be there, with people having fun together though I was that most of them were complete strangers to each other! I end up spending my whole evening there.

"I was once coming home from class when I passed a plaza with a band playing Spanish music when suddenly tens of locals put their bags in place and made circle around it. Holding hands and dancing to the music,(....) It felt so warm to be there (...) I end up spending my whole evening there.". Photo credit: Adhgha Nizar

Q.: What are the biggest differences you have seen between the university experience in Spain and in your home country? 

A.: The lectures are way way more inclusive. The professors wanted to make us (well at least those that are actively engaged in the class) to genuinely feel that our opinion matters in the class. I have one experience when the professor asked a question and there was one student that answered with an answer that was, in my opinion, really off. The professor however, went into a great length of effort to somehow incorporate the answer, “corrected” the answer without insulting the student. These kinds of behavior really encourage us to engage more actively in the class.

Q.: What do you like the most/the least about Spain?

A.: There are so many good impressions that Spain left on me, many that might always stay there. To sum it all up, Spain really fulfill my expectations. It is a very developed, cultural, and beautiful country.
What I like the least? The working hours here! hahaha.
A professor once asked my class what words came up to mind when he said “USA”. And one of my friend answered, “convenience”. He explained further that in USA it is more convenient to do things (though by things he basically meant shopping). You have chains of supermarkets that are opening way until late so it is convenient to do your things. I believe that is also true with Indonesia, where, mostly due to the rivalry we’re having here between chains of supermarket, it will be harder to walk a kilometer without finding one than the otherwise. In Spain, I found that shops are closing a little bit earlier. And remember, many of them take like a 2-hour break for lunch.

My most shocking experience, however, came when I went to a local supermarket to do my grocery on Sunday. It was closed.

Being Indonesian, that was so weird for me. I mean, it was Sunday! People do grocery in Sunday! At least that’s how it is in Indonesia, and Malaysia and the Philippines as fellow summer school students from those countries told me. To be fair of, however, turned out that it wasn’t “Spain things”. My colleagues from France and Italy were as shocked as I was on that Sunday when they knew that we did our grocery on Sunday back home. Most supermarkets also closed on Sunday in France and Italy. One more thing about inconvenience. There was one midnight when I was wandering in the downtown of Barcelona. Feeling hungry, I rushed myself when I recognized an outlet of my favorite fast food chain. I was shocked, however, to find that it was already closed. I just find it hard to discern. I mean it was only like 00.10 AM, it was in the downtown, it was in a tourism hotspot, and it was a high season for tourism. Why do you close that early, why, why... Back in my hometown Surabaya, this kind of outlet would open for 24 hours.

Q.: How SENAI helped you during this time?

A.: Pretty much by leaving me with so little things to do by myself. Of course I’ll still have to prepare for both the visa application and the trip, and showed up in person anytime the visa process required me to do so. But aside of that? SENAI took care of my application (and even offered to correct some mistakes that I made in my cover letter), addressed every concern that I have to ESADE, arranged the meeting for the visa application, searched and arranged the accommodation for me in Spain, offered the flight plan for the trip, arranged a pick up service for me in the Barcelona’s airport. Pretty much everything. When you’re going somewhere you’re unfamiliar with, or doing something you never done before (it was both my first time to apply for visa and to go abroad alone), these kinds of help are really invaluable.

Q.: Would you recommend SENAI and study in Spain to other students?

Q.: Absolutely. Studying in Spain is a very enriching experience, an experience that is so immersive and beyond the academic. Due to the unfamiliarity, however, it could also be discouraging. This is exactly where SENAI fits in. They can help you with pretty much every concern you might have about going to Spain, without which, I honestly believe that my preparation to Spain would be way more difficult.

Q.: Is there any other comment, suggestion or advice that you would like to give to students going to Spain in the future?

A.: Compared with where do you come from, Spain could be very different. The culture, the food, the way things are done. At times, these differences could be discouraging. When that times do occur however, I suggest that it would be beneficial for you to keep your mind open and focus on the goal that you’re trying to achieve when you’re there.

Adhgha is now finishing his studies in the the Airlangga University, Department of International Relations, Surabaya, Indonesia. He is also a proud member of Post Keynesian Study Group. You can check out his own blog here.

We will keep you posted with more experiences, more stories and more satisfyed students who have enjoyed and tasted what study in Spain is like.
As usual, do not hesitate to comment, share and like :)
Have a beautiful day!
 

Those oddities you didn't know about Spain...

Salvador Dali, Spanish Artist and an oddity himself

So you have finally decided to fulfill that dream of study abroad. And you have chosen Spain as your destination. Well, congratulations! you are about to experience one of the most joyful and nice countries in Europe. Nevertheless, Spaniards have ways and customs that might surprise you (and maybe bother you) somehow...so better get ready for some of this:

- Not everybody speaks English: Sure English is pretty common nowadays, specially among the younger generations but...don't expect the taxi driver or the boy who works in that little store around the corner, yes, the one selling almost everything, to be fluent in other language rather than their own. To compensate that, there's this second fact

Probably the first reaction would be something like this, a big "What?" while staring at you like if you were from other planet (you actually kind of are...)

- Spanish people are very expressive. They might not fully understand you but you will realize they will do everything they can to communicate with you, hands moving, mimic, speak perfect Spanish very loud and slow....(even tho this won't help). If you put some effort you'll see communication is possible, and fun.

Yeap, the whole facial range, or even more

- And linked to that expressivity, Spanish people are veeeery talkative. Spaniards talk. Either sitting on a bench in the park, over a coffee or beer in a terrace, or after lunch or dinner, we like to talk and enjoy our close ones company. That talking after lunch or dinner is called "sobremesa" and can take hours...so you meet friends for lunch and then you realize that is already dinner time, so you stay with them for dinner...and then it's 2 in the morning and you get back home after the longest lunch ever. Yeah, we love those things.

Bars and restaurants are commonly crowded

- Of course, something that most foreigners don't realize, don't understand and can be a big issue at the beginning of your stay: Spanish people eat very late. When I say late means lunch is served after 1 p.m., being 2 p.m. the real lunch time, but this can be delayed till 3, or even 4 in the summer time. And you will never have dinner before 9 p.m. Forget about it, it just won't happen. Good thing is that most of the places have "pinchos" (little, and sometimes not that little, sandwiches of many different kinds) all day long. So don't worry, you won't starve.

This could perfectly be an after lunch meeting with friends, yeap, sunset time

- Tapas are for sharing. You can not order "croquetas" or "tortilla" or "jamón" and expect the whole thing is for you. No my friend, tapas are for sharing, food is for sharing and enjoying with family, friends and loved ones. Don't be surprised if somebody takes the last bite out of your plate. The good thing is that you can take food from other plates too.

Patatas bravas, calamares fritos y chorizo...you could try all of them! Remember: sharing is caring

-"Siesta" is a myth. Don't get me wrong, it does exist but, against what most of people think, it's not a daily life habit. "Siesta" as it is conceived in Spain, is reduced to weekends and holiday time, is the time to rest after lunch and, including the eating time, can take 3 hours. Now, it is true that some shops closed during this period, but mostly not to take a nap....I already mentioned the "sobremesa" and how talkative Spanish are, right?.

ok, maybe sometimes we take a nap....sometimes...

- Punctuality is not among Spanish virtues...I can see some of my friends' eyes poping out of their sockets while they are reading this...Let's face it guys....Spaniards are not really the first ones to get to the meeting point. Of course it's not like when you get stuck in a traffic jam in Jakarta and you realize that you will be, at least, one hour late, nothing can be compared to that, but we make good use of those "cinco minutos de cortesía" (grace period) every time we can. If you are meeting a group of Spanish and they are late, don't take it personal, they need five minutes more, that's all.

Just 5 minutes, I'm almost there

- When meeting someone, it is customary to give one kiss on each cheek. Honestly I don´t know where this custom comes from, but it's the way it is. Don't be scared if a beautiful girl/boy is been introduced to you and she/he throught her/him self into your arms and kiss you. It's not love, it's a common greeting, sorry.

kisses, kisses, kisses...

- Spanish food is not spicy and very seldom hot. Spaniards are very proud of the Mediterranean diet, even in those regions that are not in Mediterranean waters. Further more, Spain is the number one producer of olive oil in the world with 44% of the world's olive oil production. That is more than twice that of Italy and four times that of Greece, and we use it to cook every meal. Don't ask for "jalapeños" you are in the wrong country.

Some says this is Spanish gold

- Not all Spanish are flamenco dancers or bullfighters... It might sound strange or maybe disappointing to you, but it's true...As a matter of fact, flamenco is popular mostly in the South of Spain, while in the North it's not common at all. And reciently some of the regions banned (or are in process to) bullfighting. So, yes, even tho Spain is not a very big country traditions and customs vary from North to South, East to West, giving each part and region a very specific and unique taste. More to explore and discover!

These are some but I bet that not all....and of course, all said is not 100% true....I know very punctual people for instance.

What do you think?. Were you already aware of any of these things?
Spaniards, did we miss something?.

Give us your comment and opinion guys!, and remember, sharing is caring.

Enjoy your time in beautiful Spain!