¡Estamos en León!

Dear families, friends, and fans of Team León 2017:

After months of anticipation, weeks of preparing and planning, days of packing, and nearly 30 total hours of travel, we have arrived safe and sound in our beautiful host city, León. We departed from Indy ready for adventure, most of the students having little to no idea what to expect from our next step.

A new generation of León peregrinos ready to depart

The flight from Philadelphia landed us in Madrid, Spain's beautiful capital city, at about 8:00am (Spain time). Heaving heavy sighs, it quickly began to dawn on everyone that WE HAD ARRIVED IN SPAIN. Of course, the immediate excitement of arriving was matched by an jarring realization: the Honors Program had now become real, and for nearly seven weeks, these students knew they would not be uttering a single word of English.

Equal parts exhaustion and exhilaration

 We collected our luggage and our bearings, made our way to our charter bus, and set off toward the Northwest to our destination: León. For quite a few students this was by far the longest plane ride they'd ever taken (and for a couple, it was the first plane trip ever!), so nearly everyone was understandably exhausted once the bus had pulled out. Between bus naps, students were getting accustomed to the idea of having a conversation with each other in Spanish, listening to songs on the radio, and admiring the beautiful and vast Spanish landscape that stretched from Madrid to León.

About halfway through our four hour bus trip, we made our annual stop at a hotel/restaurant where students had their very first opportunity to order food in Spain and to sample said food - many ordered sandwiches (bocadillos) with Spanish ham, while others tried Spanish tortilla, a delicious omelette-like dish with egg, potato, and onion.

Celebrating a successful first encounter with food in Spain!

Upon arrival in León, the anticipation was palpable, because the students knew that within minutes they would be meeting their host families, who had been looking forward to this moment with equal anticipation. Students were greeted immediately with hugs and kisses and promises of way too much excellent homemade food upon arrival at home.

Day 1 now complete, we look forward to the first full day of the program tomorrow - we'll be taking the group on a walking tour of some of the most scenic and historic sites in León, as well as the best ice cream and churros shops. By the end of the day, they'll be well on their way to being comfortable, acclimated León residents.

On behalf of my esteemed (and exhausted) instructor team - Sarah T, Israel, Sarah G, and myself - we thank you for sharing this group of talented, curious, and fun students with us for the next seven weeks. We're off to a great start, and we only anticipate greater adventures to come.

~Mark