Black and Abroad: My 宝博体育 Story in 西班牙

A question many people asked me about my 宝博体育 experience is: “What was it like being 黑色和国外?" Answering the question now, in hindsight: it was very interesting, and eye-opening in a lot of ways.

Truly, I wasn’t sure what exactly to expect while living and studying abroad in 西班牙所以我挑战自己，不抱任何期望，保持开放的心态. 我很高兴我保持了这种心态，因为我真的很享受在那里的时光，并且会100%地回去.

My first time visiting 西班牙 with my family back in 2013. We did encounter some blatant racism in 巴塞罗那, and it shaped my opinion of the country ever since. When I decided to study in 格拉纳达, a city I had never heard of, 我很好奇, 但仍有恐惧. 当然，也有非裔西班牙人，但不多——在西班牙，作为一名黑人女性，你是少数. Stereotypes exist there much as they do anywhere, and in my two months there, I would classify my experience as eye-opening.

What intrigued me about 格拉纳达, and more specifically the south of 西班牙, 在今天的居民到来之前，丰富的历史和先前文明的影响是什么. From the outside looking in, 西班牙 looks like a racially homogeneous place, and while that holds true, there are a lot more layers I uncovered. 

The culture in the south had a very different vibe, and while strange in some ways compared to my “normal” in the U.S., I found it compelling. Coupled with learning the history, 我看到了一个比我们所看到的更多元化的地方. Before there was 西班牙, 伊比利亚半岛是一个名为安达卢斯的广阔穆斯林帝国, 非洲和中东文化影响的印记一直存在. 它存在于建筑、食物、人群中，让一切变得更加有趣. 我在学校里从来没有学过，我们今天所知道的西班牙大部分是非洲人和阿拉伯人建造的, 在南方, many locals can trace their ancestry to Northern Africa.

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当我到达格拉纳达时，第一件让我措手不及的事情是人们盯着我看——很多. 不只是匆匆一瞥，而是目不转睛地盯着你，好像有人想看透你. A couple of days later, at our first day of orientation, 一位项目主管问我和学生们是否注意到很多人盯着看, and shaking our heads yes, 她告诉我们，凝视在那里是很正常的事情，也是他们文化的一部分. 我想, Weird, because that’s the total opposite in the States; stare too long and we may have a problem. I was taught from young to never stare at people, so I thought to myself, 好吧, 好吧, I’ll just stare right back then, 如果是正常的.

Fast-forward two weeks: I was adjusting comfortably, building a strong relationship with my host family, and making friends with other locals and international students. 我的寄宿家庭的经历是非常积极的，我感到很幸运，因为我知道并不是所有人都这样. 我很幸运有两个寄宿父母，两个姐妹和一个来自伊利诺伊州的室友. The locals were generally welcoming, 我经常听说格拉纳达已经变成了一个主要的旅游景点和大学城，有很多来自世界各地的年轻人.

由于这些新发现的经历，我开始对西班牙形成一个新的、更积极的印象, 但还是会遇到别人提醒我自己与众不同的情况. The most isolated incident was in a store, where I walked into a dressing room, 到处都是女人, 眼睛盯着我, 听到了四个不同的声音在谈论和笑 “奇卡暗线.” 我听不清他们在说什么，但我懂的西班牙语足以辨认出“黑人女孩”.”

On a trip some friends and I took to Cadiz, 西班牙, 在狂欢节, I saw a couple individuals in costume dressed in blackface, and some as Native Americans. 这真的让我想知道在那里什么样的行为和想法是正常的, 因为在成千上万的当地人和来自世界各地的游客中穿成那样, and that it would be acceptable, 对我来说很陌生.

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我在格拉纳达遇到的多样性与在大城市可能看到的略有不同. 我看到了许多其他黑人，并了解到它靠近北非, there had been an increase in immigration over the past few years. As small as the city is, 我和一个朋友还惊讶地发现了一家美容用品店，在那里我们可以买到美发用品和化妆品 peluqueria (发廊)梳辫子.

格拉纳达是一个发展中的城市，我意识到我在那里有很多值得欣赏的地方. 我喜欢旅行的一点是，它就像一扇通往一个地方心灵和灵魂的窗户. 你从那个地方带走了一点你也在那里留下了一点你自己. The 多样性 I brought was very important, and studying abroad as a black woman meant more than just traveling; it was a learning opportunity and a privilege. 我之所以有机会，是因为我的前辈们为我铺平了道路, and I did not take that lightly. 我是在向那些在我之前没有机会享受我今天所享有的特权的人致敬. 它还帮助我解决了自己的一些无知时刻，并挑战了我对生活方式和必需品的看法.

While traveling as a minority, 尤其是黑人, 会让人望而生畏, 目睹另一个地方的生活方式和建筑，有很多值得欣赏的地方. 我的一个目标是在海外留学中看到更多样化的代表, 这首先要为少数族裔学生提供平等的机会——这意味着更多的奖学金, available information, 重组项目，使它们在国内和国外都能适应和支持.

Alexis Walker是CEA MOJO生活内容撰稿人，曾在格拉纳达留学, 西班牙, during the Spring 2020 semester. She is currently a student at Hampton University.