Kare Coley

Bio: Hi my name is Kare Coley (she/her/ella) and I am thrilled to be one of your Madrid Cornerstone Ambassadors! I am a first gen college student, first gen American, and consider myself to be a native Spanish speaker. I’ve spent my entire life in Baltimore County, Maryland, about 45 minutes outside Washington, DC. I love coffee, writing, batacha, R&B, plants, and revolutionary reads. As a daughter of Mexican and Jamaican immigrants, I grew up immersed in different languages, foods, music, culture, and identities. It has been deeply engraved in me to be curious and appreciate people, stories, and experiences other than my own. I’m in Spain, to viajar (to travel), to conocer (to get to know), and to vivir (to live) a life other than my own. I believe I owe that to the world. As an ambassador, I’m looking forward to creating authentic, relatable, honest, and encouraging content that resonates with students who may be hesitant or unsure about traveling, and to show that studying abroad is possible for people who look like me. I can’t wait to take you along my journey in Madrid :)

September 22nd Blog:

Hi Everyone! My name is Kare Coley and I am from Pikesville, Maryland close to downtown Baltimore. My major is International Studies and my hope is to double major in Political Science. You might be wondering, studying abroad in your first semester of college, you must be crazy. I’ve received all sorts of reactions, but to any future student or applicants considering the Madrid Cornerstone Program, here’s what I’d said: you’re bold, you’re courageous, and you should absolutely take the leap. As cheesy as it may sound, embrace the unknown, embrace the new, embrace the adventure, and embrace the changed person you will become because of it, you won’t regret it.

My trip and semester in Spain is the 6th country I have traveled to in my lifetime and the 3rd continent I’ve had the privilege to visit. Every place I have traveled to has held a special place in my heart. You’lll find that there is something magical, enamoring, or captivating in each place you go, whether it's the food, the language, the people, the culture, a specific place, or the memories made. Though it’s been less than a month (3 weeks to be exact), Spain already has a piece of my heart.

I arrived in Spain on September 1st after a delayed and 8 hour flight from IAD. I am incredibly grateful to Ava Garcia, the Assistant Director of AU Madrid, for her patience in waiting at the airport for me.

This truly reflects the care and dedication the program staff has for the students. They immediately make you feel welcome and at home. This was also my first time flying internationally by myself. What I’d recommend is to arrive early, that way you have ample time to check your bags, get through security, and get food. There is no need to be rushed, save yourself the despair and anxiety, just get there early :)

After arriving at RESA (my new home for the next 3 months) my cohort and I spent the next two days unpacking, settling in, receiving academic schedules, getting comfortable with public transport, and touring our residence facilities, which includes: a pool, gym, dining hall, and rooftop area. Where we will live is conveniently located by groceries stores, pharmacies, two metro stations, and is approximately a 12 minute walk from the International Institute, where the
majority of our classes are held.

You will definitely get your steps in here and you’ll find yourself using the metro and bus daily. Unlike the states where having a car is almost essential to getting around and if you didn’t have one, like me, you relied on pricey Uber, Madrid's public transport is convenient, safe, and reliable. With one swipe and a monthly 8 dollar euro pass, you can travel almost anywhere by metro, bus, or train.

After orientation we headed to our first cultural excursion as a cohort, in Toledo! Toledo is Toledo, an ancient city that sits on a hill, about an hour South of Madrid. Toledo has so much character, from its whiny narrow cobblestone streets, to its skyline covered in mountains and medieval walls. Toledo is often referred to as “La Ciudad de Tres Culturas”, the “The City of Three Cultures” due to the diverse religious history of Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities. We visited “La Mezquita del Cristo De La Luz” , a tangible example of this coexistence. This mosque was originally built in 999, and later used and occupied as a church by Christians. Inside the mosque you will see traditional horseshoe arches, a key element of Arab and Islamic architecture. Additionally there are depictions of crosses and images of Jesus Christ, reflecting a blend and coexistence of religious history and identity.

Day Two of Toledo consisted of visiting the Santa Iglesia Catedral Primada de Toledo ( Primatial Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo). The Cathedral was originally made and dedicated to Virgin Mary in 1226, but wasn’t finished until 2 centuries later in 1493, as contributions and fine tuning continued to occur. I was in awe of the intricate details in the stained glass windows, the elaborate sculptures, and the beautifully adorned altars, all art crafted by human hands.

After returning to Toledo, we had our first day of classes. Classes are Monday through Thursday and I am currently taking a total of 15 credits. My academic classes include College Writing, International Migration and Refugee Crisis, Intensive Advanced Spanish, First Year Seminar, and Microeconomics. Classes are engaging, exciting, and interesting. Coursework is diverse] ranging from multimedia projects, to essays, and group discussion. Our professors are passionate and so experienced in their fields. It is so refreshing taking classes that are in my field of interest.

Admittedly, balancing school work abroad can be challenging, when there's places to explore, restaurants and tapas to try, and friends to hang out with, but it all comes down to effectively using your time. I’ve found that studying and completing my homework in my bedroom leads to distractions, doom scrolling, or accidental naps, so I encourage myself and my friends to find
new work spaces. Some of my favorite spots have included local coffee shops, the International Institute's library, and Retiro, a beautiful lucious green park that is a quiet getaway from the business of the city.

I learned about Retiro Park during our weekly walking tours or “Paseos”. These paseos are every Tuesday, with the intention of exploring Madrid together as a cohort. We rented boats on the lake, walked through the rose garden, and saw the glass palace that is currently under reconstruction.

Fridays are also special program days that consist of field trips that are in conjugation with our Unveiling Spain First Year Seminar Class. Our first Friday field trip was to Barrio de las Letras, or the “neighborhood of the writers”. We explored various sites connected to Spain’s literary “Golden Age” during the 16th and 17th centuries. We visited buildings associated with Miguel de Cervantes, the author of Don Quixote, as well as the home of Lope de Vega, a renowned Spanish playwright and poet.

So how about freetime and weekends? Well my past three weekends have consisted of my 19th birthday celebration, a 8 mile hike in Cercedilla, and a day trip to Aranjuez that I planned.

My friends and I planned a whole birthday bash, known as “Kare-Vaganza” that consisted of fany pizza, loads of dancing, and brunch and shopping. Despite being away from home on my birthday, I felt celebrated and loved by so many people.

Cerdilla was a beautiful, small, quaint town that is known for its variety of hiking routes and smaller skiing resorts. While I didn’t exactly hike the 7 Peaks, I enjoyed the breathtaking landscape, the wild blackberries we found, and the stillness of nature.

This past weekend, I visited Aranjuez, a UNESCO World Heritage site and significant town in relevance to Spanish royalty. The “Palacio Real” or the Royal Palace is absolutely stunning, with a variety of rooms decorated and dedicated to different eras and periods of time. The palace gardens, including the Príncipe Gardens and the Isabel II Gardens, are expansive green spaces
filled with fountains, sculptures, and flowers perfect for walks and picnics. We ended our day with dessert and lunch on the water, overlooking the Tagus River, the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula.

I can’t believe it's been 3 weeks since I arrived in Madrid. It feels like I have been here for a lifetime. Yet at the same time, as Anthony Bourdain said, “the more places I see and experience, the bigger I realize the world to be. The more I become aware of, the more I realize how relatively little I know of it, {and} how many places I still have to go, how much more there is to learn."

And so I’ll keep on learning, exploring, and discovering… and happily, I will share it all.

See you in October :)

-Kare Coley