Life With My Host Family

As far as host families go, I have come to the conclusion that they are much like school lunches. Sometimes you get what you really like (chicken noodle soup!!); sometimes you get what you really don´t like; and most of the time you get a combination of things you like and things that you could do without.

I have now had the experience of living with 3 different host families- one in Ecuador and two different families here in Spain. All of my host families have been great fits for me and I´m very glad that I opted to stay with a host family here in Spain instead of in a ´residencia´ (dorm). Host families provide the opportunity to experience home life by being a part of it, to speak Spanish constantly, and to eat some authentic home-cooked meals.

So about my current host family and home...

My host family includes my Spanish mom, Regina, my dad, Julio, and their dog, Lisa. Besides that, we have anywhere from 1-5 other international students staying with us at any given time. Host families here continually have students, some who stay for as little as a week and some who stay for as long as 6 months or a year. This experience in Spain has been a lot different than in Ecuador where I was the only student living with my host family. I like having other people my age to converse with and hang out with, but I also realize how having other students in the house can cause the host family to see the students less as "family members" and more as "clients". Thankfully in my house I feel very much like part of the family.

I live in a small apartment that has 4 bedrooms, 1 kitchen, 1 bathroom, and 1 living/dining room. I have the good fortune of having the only single room in the house, a place that I can call my own even if it is smaller than some walk-in closets in the U.S.! The other rooms have 2 if not 3 beds for other international students and my host parents. My room:

The kitchen:

My host mom used to be a chef at a restaurant but now just stays home taking care of students. She loves her "telenovelas" (soap operas) and often stays up until 1:30 AM watching them! She is shorter than me and very outgoing, keeping me updated on the latest goings-on and lets me tag along when she goes shopping or out for a nightly stroll.

My host dad works for the city as a street cleaner/maintenance man. He used to be a professor and is very smart (proven by his large library in the living room). He reminds me a lot of my own dad because he´s quiet in comparison to my host mom, informed of the latest news, and hard-working.

As for other students in the house, currently there are 2 Californian college guys (picture above), 1 girl from Belgium, and 1 girl from France. We are all here until the end of August and are getting along very well. We have a good time joking around with my host mom and talking about life in our different home countries.

And that´s my family! All of us students with my host mom