Why did you want to study abroad?
I’ve always been interested in leaving. It’s not that I don’t enjoy my home school or my family or anything, but I feel like it’s a very big step in your life to get outside of your comfort zone. I was very eager to discover new experiences and try a different way of life than what I am used to. It’s my first time living outside my home country.
What made you choose Richmond?
I wanted to try a smaller school for a change and have that connection with the professors, and I feel like that’s been the case ever since I got here. I was really happy about that.
How would you sum up UR in a phrase or a sentence?
“American dream,” maybe. You see those American movies, and it’s exactly what I expected when I came here. It’s living a movie. You have the campus life, go to your cafeteria, to your library to study. You make friends, and you go to clubs. I really enjoy that living-in-a-movie sensation because you never know what’s going to happen next.
How would you describe the environment on campus?
It’s a very community-based environment. ... You have lots of people you know already, and even if you don’t, you know somebody in common. You always have this sense of being surrounded by people who are nice, who will enjoy talking to you, and you enjoy talking to them.
Not only students. Staff, too. In the dining hall, for example, workers always ask you, “How are you doing? I like your sweater.” Every time you walk into some place, you walk in with a smile.
What is your favorite thing to do on campus?
I do club sports. I play rugby here. I discovered rugby once I came here, and I really enjoy playing it. It’s a very harsh sport, but you have lots of fun. The group is great. The coaches teach you from scratch, even though you have no idea how to play.
Besides sports, I also go to the gym a lot. The facilities here really help with that. I enjoy walking around campus. We have a forest surrounding us, and there’s the lake in the middle. Lots of times, I just find myself walking around campus, thinking to myself and calling my family and just enjoying the views. I’m a really big nature guy.
What do you miss about home, and what have you found here that makes it feel like home?
My family, of course. I’ve lived with my family all my life. This is my first time living away from them, and this is a big jump. And probably the food, too. Spanish people are really proud of our food.
Here on campus, I’ve found another family. That can be other Spanish students or the rugby club — just this constant sense of belonging with different people. You meet new friends constantly. Even though you might be having a bad day, if you’re on campus you’ll run into somebody you know, and you’ll end up cheering up really quickly because it’s this constant feeling of, “Aw, this is my place.”
One of the things that saddens me the most is knowing this is my last semester here. Last semester was easier because I thought, “I have a full year in front of me.” Now, I find myself in a place where there is no next semester, so I’m trying to make the most of it.