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Spain

"Living in Valencia was a wonderful experience. I learned a lot from the lifestyle, from my host family, and especially from my ethnography. The trips to Andalucia, Morella, Barcelona, and Castilla y Leon were great."
-past participant of the Spain program

Program Description

The Spain program is designed for those seeking to develop considerable fluency in Spanish while studying the history, literature and cultures of Spain. To study in Spain is also to learn about a significant part of American culture given Spain's three hundred years of political and social dominance in the Americas.

Location

The program is based in Valencia, the third largest city in Spain. Valencia is located on the Mediterranean coast and is one of Spain's oldest cities/seaports, founded by the Greeks in the sixth century B.C.E. Valencia is also known as the agricultural capital of Spain. Valencia has been home to almost all the different cultures that have occupied Spain throughout its history: Greeks, Phoenicians, Carthegineans, Romans, Moors, and Christians. Vestiges of these cultures are still visible in Valencia today, in art and architecture, cuisine, and language. One of Spain's national heroes, El Cid, briefly captured Valencia from the Moors in 1094 and Jaime I conquered Valencia in 1253 for the Kingdom of Aragon.