Host Families

When students study abroad in Spain and live with host families the relationship between the two parties is mostly a business relationship. The student is paying (indirectly through their program) for housing, food, heating, water, electricity, etc. and the host family is paid enough to cover those costs plus a little extra to make having a student worth their while.

Now, even though I said that this is mainly a business relationship does not mean that students aren't able to get along with their host families; most of the students enjoy their host families immensely, myself included. The host families are very hospitable and do their best to make our stay as pleasant as possible, but there are the few horror stories where students receive the bare minimum of the requirements in order for the host family to squeeze ever dime possible out of the money given to them by our program. I have only heard of one or two of these things occurring in our program and normally it is nipped in the bud rather quickly.

I myself enjoy living with my host mother. I realize that living with her is a business relationship and that I should retreat it as such, but I am still able to get along with her very well and when my roommate and I go out she asks us where we are going, when we will be back, and she tells us to be safe, so she does care about us. I enjoy this grandmotherly affection from her. It is very comforting. The only problems I have had with my host mother is that sometimesvery different from the food in the U.S. and it isn´t the best, but this is a rare occurrence and I like the food she makes almost all the time.