D-I-E Basque Country

1. DESCRIBE: The main challenge when you go abroad for a year is basically a communication issues. What do I mean? I mean that after a first semester you make a lot of good friends and then it is hard to get on well with others. You feel that there are no better people that those you met during the fall semester. I have noticed this issue even at Centria, watching our exchange students.

Using my Polaroid to capture one of the best evenings ever:)

2. INTERPRET: That issue might happen because the new incoming students at the moment of their arrival have a lot of things in common: they have just arrived, and they need to get used to the local environment. They start to explore the environment and facing the challenges together. That really unite them, as it had happened with me during the fall semester. At the same moment, me and other “oldies” had already completed this stage of acknowledgement.    

3. EVALUATE: Speaking about locals regarding this situation, they do not notice the split in the exchange group. They just enjoy getting to know other nationalities and cultures. As for me, I became really picky in terms of choosing people to talk to. I started to notice only negative aspects of people. Moreover, two students from Centria had arrived in Mondragon, so I started to feel more comfortable in my Centria squad. Now, I can give a good piece of advice: never stick to the past.   

Letter Home - Alina Lukina

Before going abroad, I had chosen Spain as my destination. I didn’t care whether it would be a big city or not. Therefore, a year ago I landed in a wonderful place called Basque Country. Here, I would like to highlight the importance of the independence of it from Spain.

The view from my window. Center of Mondragon.

The university I was studying in was private. Moreover, it is an important part of Mondragon Cooperation (a group of local cooperatives). So here we go, the name of this educational institution is Mondragon University.   
At Centria I am studying Business Administration and Management. Therefore, indeed, I have completed a year studying the same program in Mondragon University.

Speaking about the studying process, I did not notice any significant differences. There they believe in the importance of practical knowledge alike Centria and other UAS in Finland. Furthermore, courses were almost the same as in Centria. Nevertheless, the courses were covering some too specific aspects. In comparison, at Centria we have just a broad look at the studying business field. 

During my exchange I was living and studying with other exchange students. Indeed, they were my team mates in all the classes we had. That was great because other students (locals) were not really easy-going. However, I have to say, most of them are truly hardworking and dedicated to studies.  

Besides classes my everyday life was totally awesome! I will never forget this Spanish/Basque custom to drink coffee with your friends, buying freshly baked bread and eating a lot of fruits, vegetables, sea food and meat every day. Everything is just so relaxing. However, I was not bored at all! Even though the town was small we could always find some activities to do: travelling, hiking, sunbathing, swimming, etc.

The only challenge I had was to combine the fun with my studies. The attendance is highly important there. I even needed to drop some courses due to overlaps.

To wrap it up, I should highlight the fact how important is it to make an investigation about a country before going there. The thing that I expected and what I got in the end was totally different. However, I was not disappointed at all! I am very happy with my exchange experience and I wish I could do it again:)