Ben Johnston
Degree: Bachelor of Construction Project Management / Bachelor of Arts in International Studies
ICS University: Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona / Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
I chose to study the Bachelor of Arts in International Studies so that I could gain a greater perspective of people, cultures, landscapes and languages of the world.
Ben completed his ICS in Spain in 2018
Blog #1 - Moving to Spain
Living and studying overseas for 1 year... What an idea. Who would be crazy enough to do that?
The days pre-departure were some of the happiest I’ve experienced in my life. Surrounded by family and friends, making the most of my time with them and the place I call home. However, a massive change was creeping up on me. 23rd of January myself and one other student said our goodbyes and boarded a plane with the final destination of Barcelona, Spain. I was beyond excited and didn’t manage to get much sleep on the plane.
The taxi ride from the airport to the city was one of my ‘first-time feelings’ that I will experience this year. Seeing the city I was going to spend the next 12 months exploring was an indescribable sensation. Upon arrival, we were introduced to a local who was good friends with past ICS students. I asked him, “Hey Dani, is there much to do around here?” and he just laughed and replied, "you know we are Barcelona, right?"
Three months in and I haven’t had a free moment; this city is non-stop with something always happening. From incredible nightlife, a huge range of gastronomy, galleries & museums, as well as sporting events.
You can leave the house at any time of the day and there will be something happening in the near vicinity; usually something you have never experienced before.
Since arriving I have travelled to Valencia, Pamplona, Mallorca in Spain, Porto in Portugal, Manchester in the UK and Les Arcs in France for some skiing.
My current accommodation set up is an apartment room located in the old town of the city, right next to the cathedral of Barcelona and surrounded by ‘antiguo’ architecture of the area. I am living with 3 locals and one other exchange student from France.
Some of my highlights so far include but are not limited to (I would be here for hours if I was to write them all): Seeing snow-covered trees outside the train window on my way to university and then going for a run along the beach in the afternoon, meeting up with other ICS students in completely different cities of the world, watching a music festival in an old bullfighting area & also just having a completely different mindset to the one I had in Sydney.
This year so far has been nothing like I could have imagined, and that’s half the fun of the experience.
Blog #2 - 5 months, 7 buses, 4 trains and 11 flights
The last few months have been non-stop with the final weeks of University and lots of weekend trips. I have been trying to make the most of my free days in between classes to travel as much as I can and lap up all that Europe has to offer. 5 months in and I have caught 7 buses, 4 trains and 11 flights to places all over Europe; well worth the lack of sleep.
However, with the semester coming to an end, some of my travel companions and other exchange students who are only here for a semester, are starting to drop off and make their way back to their home countries. Lucky for me, the European summer is really warming up here. The beaches here in Barcelona and Spain are a little different though as the amount of sand is in strong completion with the number of tourists, mojitos, cerveza and massage vendors.
In the last month, I’ve shared this good weather with lots of family and friends visiting Spain, which has been great. I did a weekend road trip down the east coast of Spain and a weekend trip to San Sebastian. All in all, it has been a great first semester with lots of friendships and adventures. Fortunately the next two months we don’t have university classes which means travel, travel and more travel. Ah, the tough life of a university student studying abroad for a year!
Blog #3 - Summer is in full swing
Semester 1 has come to an end and Summer is in full swing. With two and a half months off in between semesters I’ve made the simple decision to pack up and travel all around Europe. With so much to see, I’ve jam-packed 8 weeks of plans.
First up was a road trip over to France for a music festival in a forest. Next was Ibiza with some friends who were over from Sydney. I then went to Pamplona for San Fermin - also known as Running of the Bulls. Here I caught up with some fellow ICS students for some crazy nights and some of the oldest Spanish Traditions. Running of the Bulls was like nothing else but an event that brings the whole town to life.
Festivities continued as we travelled towards the north coast of Spain to Bilbao for another Music Festival on top of a mountain overlooking the city. Post-festival the body needed a rest, so I spent 5 days at a surf camp in Zarautz. The Spanish coastline is spectacular! It was great to get back on the board for the first time in 6 months, since leaving Sydney. After 2 busses and 16 hours of sitting, I then arrived in Lagos, Portugal for some more beach time. Lisbon is next and I’m looking forward to what the coming weeks have in store!
Blog #4 - Catching the travel bug
The past month of my ICS has been nothing but travel. With the ease and affordability of moving about in Europe I have managed to tick off 8 countries so far.
Last blog, I was in Lagos relaxing on beaches and enjoy the European sun after a cold winter. I slowly made my way up the coastline in a rented camper van stopping off at every major town and swimming at nearly every beach. From Portugal I made my way to the famous city of Rome where I caught up with friends from UTS. After a hot few days there exploring ruins and eating spaghetti, I travelled to Budapest, Hungary for Sziget Music Festival.
This festival was like nothing I’ve ever seen before with 500,000 plus people. Post-festival the body needed a detox and early nights so I travel to Slovenia with two mates from back home. Not knowing a huge amount about Slovenia, rather basing our decision off Google images we booked ourselves into an adventure week in the mountains surrounding lake bled. The week turned out to be one we will never forget in combination with views our eyes could hardly comprehend.
Last stop is Croatia before I head back to Barcelona for semester two of ICS. All this travel has made me realise how much of the world there is to see. I think I might have caught the travel bug.
Blog #5 - Heading back 'home'
With Croatia set as the last stop of summer travels realised how small Europe can be… bumping into 5 other UTS students in Dubrovnik. Australians really do love to adventure and explore.
Three months of travel down and was time to head back 'home’. Home to Barcelona. One of the biggest international cities in the world.
Feeling a bit burned out from moving around so much, it was a very nice feeling to come back to Barcelona where I was looking for to kicking my shoes off and put my feet up for a few days before university started and I had to get back into the swing of things. There was only one slight issue. Being a uni student I couldn't afford to pay rent for a room over summer which I wasn't going to live in. This meant I had moved out before the summer and had to find a new place when I got back.
Testing the ‘find a decent size decent price room’ ropes last semester I set myself 4 days to find a room before a mate arrived to stay with me. Once settled I had an influx of visitors from home as well as friends I had met in my first 6 months of ICS.
Blog #6 - Balancing study and travel
After settling down into my new place priorities were to get my studies sorted.
With any sort of organisation progress seeming to be quite the challenge in Spain, a few trips out to the campus were in order to get my subjects sorted. During my first semester, I found that if you balance your time and organise yourself well enough you can not only get through your studies but also make the most of the close proximity of other countries and cheap travel cost within Europe (ensuring that your bank account permits). Having only been home for a short amount of time, I couldn't resist and packed my backpack for another weekend adventure.
I finished class and headed to Munich that night for Oktoberfest - every beer lover's dream!
With my budget quite out of sorts from Summer, I caught a 17 hr bus to save some cash. After a very sleepless weekend, I headed back to Barcelona for another week of classes. Trying to make the most of the free couches from other UTS students in Spain this year I flew up to Santander in the north of Spain for a relaxing weekend with some friends.
Blog #7 - Settling into a new routine
Back into the swing of things with regular classes up and running, I have been able to settle into a somewhat weekly routine.
Caving into the opportunity of more travel, I once again headed off on another weekend adventure, this time to Madrid. Blown away by the capital city, I spent 4 days visiting fellow exchange students and exploring the heart of Spain. Autumn was in full swing with incredible sights to be seen all over the city. We spent hours roaming the parks as well as eating tapas.
With only a few months left of my time living in Barcelona, I have decided to reduce the number of weekend trips with the aim to really soak in the lifestyle that is on offer in this incredible city. Being an international student there is no doubt you are going to be provided with a mountain of social activities and an incredible nightlife, particularly in Spain.
Blog #8 - Hitting the books
With the semester coming to an end university work has started to pile up in addition to our major project. As weird as it sounds it's hard not to procrastinate knowing that we have so much time on our hands. However, with Christmas break only weeks away I wanted to ensure that I have could make the most of the holidays. With more travel planned, the last few weeks have consisted of me starting assessments early and hitting the books. In addition to our class-free days, we have also been faced with a handful of protests recently (nothing out of the ordinary here in Barcelona) which have prohibited the daily routines. All of which have been very interesting to experience as they aren’t something we witness very often in Australia.
The temperature has started to drop in Barcelona with a few cold fronts moving across Spain. I will definitely miss the warmth of the European summer but with winter comes snow, so hopefully, we will be able to plan a few trips to the mountains.
More information about ICS
- Read about the Bachelor of Arts in International Studies
- Read about In-country study in the UTS Handbook