Adelante Abroad

I signed up for Adelante Abroad as a way to have an immersive experience as an adult in my late thirties. I had previously spent three months living in Granada at an intensive language school, and this time I wanted something that felt more like truly living in the language. Adelante did an excellent job placing me in an internship. I'm in the process of transitioning from a career in tech to nursing, and they arranged a three-month hospital shadowing experience that was exactly what I was hoping for. Where Adelante fell short was in the housing placement. From the start, I clearly stated that I wanted a deeply immersive experience—that I wanted to engage as much as possible with the Spanish language and culture. My first homestay placement did not meet this expectation. The couple treated hosting as a business arrangement and more or less avoided interacting with me; we even ate in separate rooms. They also had another room open for foreign students, which was not disclosed to me. I requested a transfer and, given the short notice, accepted housing with another student from the U.S. Unfortunately, we had very different expectations. I was committed to speaking only Spanish, while she assumed everyone would speak to her in English. Adelante never mentioned that the homestay option might include sharing housing with other foreign students. Had I known, I would have found my own housing. I strongly recommend that, going forward, Adelante be more transparent about housing options. They should offer an option for applicants who are serious about language immersion to request a homestay with a family without other foreign students. I would have gladly paid more (within reason) for a full immersion experience.

I had a very good time with my Internship. I enjoyed training so often and had a great time with my training partners. I must say the communication however was lacking along with the placement of the internship being too relaxed for myself.

Oaxaca was everything I hoped it would be. I got so much experience improving my Spanish by speaking with the locals, and everybody I had the pleasure of interacting with was extremely kind and gracious to me. I also had SO many opportunities to expand and explore my artistic journey, including painting a mural, which led to two more opportunities for me to create art for businesses outside of the program. I made so many friends, and re-discovered my true passion for art and illustration. This trip sparked my interest in traveling solo more often, and I can confidently say Mexico has such a magical soul.