1. How my life has changed since I visited Leeds.

18/09/2021, 20:26 - 21:09.

    Back in 2017, when I had just turned sixteen, I was lucky enough to be chosen for a scholarship that would completely change my life. I went on a two-week trip to Leeds, where I took an immersion course and got my C1 English Level certificate, and everything was surprisingly for free. 

    I was asigned an amazing host family and stayed at their house for the course's duration: it was a charming old three-story building not too far form the city centre. I had the top floor all for myself, which included a huge bathroom, a studio and a bedroom with the softest bed in the world, right below a skylight that made me feel like I was sleeping outdoors. The family, two young boys and their mother, was just as warm and welcoming as their home; I still keep on my shelf the "magic wand" that the Harry Potter-obsessed younger child hand-carved for me.

    On that trip not only did I fall in love with Leeds, but also with York and, specially, Scarborough, cities which we visited during the weekends. However, I wouldn't have truly loved this adventure if it wasn't for the friends I made there: Paula, María (C.), María (D.) and Nuria. The five of us are still friends to this day, and I couldn't be happier about it. They're amongst the most amazing people I've ever met, and together we had lots of fun and made tons of memories: spending the entire afternoon at the bookshop, going to Scarborough's beach, having dinner together (for free, as we were walking by a restaurant which was giving out free pulled brisket sandwiches to draw in some clients), and countless others.

    The only bad thing I can remember happening during this trip is that I dropped and broke my phone at Scarborough's Sea Life while taking some pictures, and as we were trying trying to fix it, which we didn't manage to do, my SIM card got blocked. Luckily, my host family lent me an old phone and I had enough money to buy a new one once I arrived home. There was also a smaller problem on my last Friday there: it was the day of my C1 exam and I had forgotten my DNI at home, but I was able to catch a bus home and back to school and totally nail the exam.

    This was also the first time I was alone in a big city having to manage everything by myself, and everything went surprisingly well: I learned to use public transport (which is impossible to do in my village since there's none), got some cooking experience and learned to budget my money on my own. I also expanded my English knowledge and got a lot of speaking experience, which is one of the main reasons why I have a semi-Brithish accent now. Overall, this adventure abroad was indeed life-chaning.