I recently studied spanish at school Nueva Lengua In colombiaI attended an immersion program with classes 8-noon 5 days a week. The school arranged for home stay with a family and at my request two meals a day. It was a wonderful experience. I found the school responsive to my needs. I had studied Spanish in college for two years and once spent 6 weeks in Peru, but this was 40 years ago! Although I did well on the placement test, it was clear the intermediate class was too hard so the school arranged for me to have special lessons until other students arrived who were at my level.

I spent 6 weeks in Cartagena which is a beautiful and romantic Caribbean city then I moved to Bogota for another 6 weeks. The school was very responsive in facilitating the move. In both schools the instruction was terrific and classes never larger than 8 and often smaller. Both home stays were very pleasant with a large room and bath nearby and delicious meals. In Cartagena the students were mostly European ages 21-32, single and looking for beach and fun. In Bogota students tended to be older about 1/3 married and living or planning to living in Colombia. Bogota had more to offer as a major city, but Cartagena was an old walled city and more manageable city to start.

The school in both cities planned activities for the afternoon which were cultural, social or touristic. I enjoyed many of these activities and found them a good way to get to know other students as well. In addition, the school was helpful in planning weekend excursions, but these were not generally under the auspices of the school; rather you got together a few others interested in the same trip or you went off on your own. I loved Colombia and plan to return.

This article was originally written in English