Student Immersion Experience in Lima, Peru: Liam Grady
My name is Liam Grady, and as I prepare to graduate from Saint Rose in New York this May (2019), I’d like to give you an idea about how my summer immersion trip to Peru changed my perspective, challenged beliefs/possible biases, and just opened my mind to the beauty that is present throughout the world. I went to Peru as a part of Summer Term and it was a great month for many reasons.
Some of these reasons are the culture, educational classes, and immersion. There was so much information and the experiences I got to be a part of in just one month made me forever grateful.
How My Mentality Toward Language Learning Changed Abroad
A big highlight of my trip was taking classes at EdOdyssey’s partner language school, El Sol, because the language came alive. As someone who took 4 years of high school Spanish and 3 in college I had never really enjoyed Spanish class.
Before I arrived in Peru, I had been studying Spanish for a practical, real-world application as I plan to work in law enforcement on the West Coast. I never really had a huge passion for the Spanish language. My mentality toward Spanish changed at El Sol because I was constantly feeling engaged and eager to learn.
The teachers there do a terrific job of keeping the classes interesting, albeit they have people of all ages and from all parts of the world. It was truly a rewarding experience going to class Monday-Friday, 9am-1pm every day and really learning and working on my language skills.
Outside of the classroom, I was really able to work on my Spanish. I also really got to see Peruvian’s in their native culture and habits. In my month there, I went to numerous museums, the Andes Mountains, the Amazon Rain Forest, and Peruvian restaurants.
A Look Back at My Experience
I learned how all of these places provided me with an opportunity to speak and listen to Spanish, as well as have some of the best experiences of my life. That, on top of speaking and hanging out with my wonderful Peruvian host mom, Charo, every day, provided me with such an appreciation for Peru, the culture, and the language.
While no one can predict the future, I know that I will be more open and eager to learn about all different types of people and places for the years to come because of the experiences I was lucky enough to have in Peru. I hope to continue to be able to go on trips because my trip was truly life changing!
Definitely don’t miss out on this great opportunity and start your summer term application today!
