More rain in Spain than Dublin? - Aidan Black tells us about exchange in Galicia

We asked Aidan Black, a DCU mobility exchange student, to share his experience of studying abroad in Spain.

What's your name and where are you on exchange?

My name is Aidan Black and I’m currently studying in Vigo, Galicia, Spain. I study translation studies.

What have been the biggest challenges?

The biggest challenges that I have faced so far have probably been settling in, the workload of some classes and adapting to a place that rains more (much more) than Dublin.

It took me longer to settle in because I came alone here to Vigo so I really had to put myself out there at the beginning while also trying to find a place, choose the right subjects and make friends. But the ESN society here was really helpful and they assigned me a buddy who actually found my apartment for me. In terms of classes some teachers expect more from native speakers in translation classes so don’t expect it to be a doss!

What have you enjoyed most?

What I have enjoyed most about Vigo would have to be the people and the landscape. The Galician people are some of the nicest I’ve met, in fact they’re very similar to the Irish. It does rain quite a lot but this makes for stunning scenery and it’s really easy to travel within Galicia to places like Coruña, Ourense and Lugo which are really beautiful.

What's next for Aidan after this? :)

After this I have another year in DCU and after I graduate I plan on doing a TEFL course and moving to central or South America.