🇪🇸 Summer in Spain: Finding Balance in Salamanca
It all begins with an idea.
In Summer 2024, I spent six weeks studying abroad in Salamanca, Spain, where I learned as much about myself as I did about language and culture. I lived with a host grandma who was a little crazy in the most endearing way — opinionated, full of energy, and always ready to feed me more than I could possibly eat. Her home quickly became my base for exploring a city that felt both ancient and alive.
☀️ A Day in My Life
Most mornings began at 8 a.m. with breakfast and conversation before walking to the University of Salamanca for class from 9 to 12. Afterward, I’d head straight to the gym to lift from 12:45 to 2:00, then walk home for a long, late lunch — a Spanish tradition that always made the day slow down.
After lunch came siesta, a time I grew to love. I’d rest, shower, or edit photos by the open window as the city quieted beneath the afternoon sun. Around 5 p.m., I’d lace up my sneakers for a run or wander through Salamanca’s golden streets with my camera. I even brought my lacrosse stick and found a park wall where I could play wall ball — a small ritual that connected me to home in a place that felt entirely new.
✈️ Weekends in Motion
Every weekend, I set out to see somewhere new — determined to make the most of being in Europe.
Week 1: I flew to Amsterdam to visit my college roommate Jasmin Daaman, and met up with Alana, who was studying abroad in Italy. We spent days exploring canals and nights laughing until sunrise.
Week 2: I traveled to Florence, where Milligan, my brother, met me. We flew back to Spain together, and he spent the week with me in Salamanca.
Week 3: We met our mom in Marrakesh, Morocco, for five days of color, chaos, and adventure. After Milligan flew home, my mom and I visited Málaga and Madrid, with a quick stop in Salamanca so she could see where I was living.
Week 5: I went to Paris, planning to see Megan Thee Stallion in concert — but instead, I stayed with my cousins in the city and then spent the weekend at my high school friend Sabrina’s family château in the French countryside.
Week 6: For my final trip, I joined my study abroad group for a weekend in Porto, Portugal — a vibrant, colorful ending to a summer that already felt surreal.
📸 What I Took With Me
Spain taught me balance — structure in the mornings, stillness in the afternoons, and freedom on the weekends. It showed me that sustainability isn’t just about the planet; it’s about how we move through the world, how we spend our time, and how we connect with the places around us.
When I look back through my photos from that summer, I see more than places. I see growth, independence, and light — the kind that changes how you see everything.
These are my frames of Spain: moments of motion, color, and calm that shaped the way I see the world.
🏙️ Boston: Framing Design at Harvard GSD
It all begins with an idea.
In the summer of 2023, I spent six weeks immersed in the Design Discovery program at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) — three weeks online, and three weeks in person in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was one of the most educational and inspiring experiences I’ve ever had — an introduction not just to architecture, but to a whole new way of seeing.
💻 Three Weeks Virtual: Learning to See Differently
The program began online, where we built foundational skills and explored how design translates through space, context, and structure. Every day was packed with lectures, sketching sessions, and discussions led by Harvard professors and practicing architects.
Even from home, it was immersive — learning tools like Rhino, building small-scale models, and experimenting with perspective and material. I learned to observe space differently: not just what was there, but why it was there — and how people, light, and landscape all interact.
🏗️ Three Weeks In Person: Stepping Into Design
When I finally arrived in Boston, everything I had learned virtually came to life. The studio was alive with energy — students from all over the world sketching, modeling, and pushing ideas late into the night. Days blurred between site visits, critiques, and long hours in the Gund Hall studios.
Our projects focused on contextual analysis, spatial relationships, and materiality. My site was Eastie Farm, a community garden in East Boston, where I studied edges, alignment, symmetry, and texture. I designed architectural interventions that connected the garden to its surroundings — considering not only the lot itself but the neighboring buildings, facades, and street edges.
The program challenged me to think about how design shapes behavior and community. Every drawing, model, and critique taught me to refine ideas, to communicate visually, and to see architecture as both art and responsibility.
🎨 Beyond the Studio
Outside of class, I explored Boston — its blend of history and innovation mirrored what we were learning in the studio. Evenings meant walks through Cambridge, photographing brick textures and reflections on the Charles River, or grabbing late dinners with classmates who quickly became collaborators and friends.
Every conversation felt creative — about space, cities, and possibility.
✏️ What I Took With Me
Design Discovery taught me that architecture isn’t just about buildings — it’s about people. It’s about designing environments that shape how we move, gather, and feel. The program pushed me to see design as storytelling, each line and model a frame in a larger narrative about community and place.
When I look back on those six weeks — the virtual sketches, the studio chaos, the taped-together models, and the final critique — I see a turning point.
These are my frames of Boston: late nights in Gund Hall, light through tracing paper, and the beginning of seeing the world as a designer.