In only two short days, I’m leaving Barcelona, and heading back to the US. While I’m extremely sad to go, I am even more thankful for being able to have had this experience. Not only have I been able to be completely immersed in the culture and language, but I have seen a ton of incredible art along the way. I have been pretty busy with finals and packing up this past week, so I haven’t had time to do many cultural events that had to do with art. So instead, I wanted to use this post to encourage anybody who is reading to seriously consider studying abroad for a semester.

Europe especially is the home of countless masterpieces and architecture that you have heard about in your art history classes. Seeing them and studying them in real life is a wonderful opportunity to have. Over the course of this semester, I’ve been able to go to tons of art museums for free or a reduced student price in Barcelona, and they’ve all been less than a half hour away. Also, once you’re in Europe, traveling around to different countries is extremely affordable—so taking trips to France (for the Louvre) and Italy (for basically everything) is extremely do-able. And seeing the art in real life, and not a slide, is priceless.

So I urge any art major who has the means, to get on a plane, explore a new culture, and most importantly, see some incredible art!