I tested positive for COVID-19 in March 2020, and I most likely got it when I was studying in Madrid.
Although we were jet setting nearly every weekend, my friends and I thought we were invincible. We were as cautious as the pre-COVID era warranted: we washed our hands often and sanitized every time we touched a shared surface. Madrid’s schools began online classes two weeks before USC—my roommates and I spent our days at home and nights in bars. Don’t get me wrong, we weren’t like those students “spring breaking” in Florida while officials warned them not to. The concept of social distancing was unheard of in Madrid. Despite the rising numbers of cases in Spain, bars and clubs were filled with people sharing drinks and giving hugs—myself included. My roommates and I weren’t oblivious to the virus: every hour we texted updates on cases by country, our anxieties rising with each number. Our hearts dropped every time our phones buzzed, praying it wasn’t USC telling us our program was cancelled. Our denial and unwillingness to accept that we might soon be forced to leave fueled our motivation to travel and explore Europe.
Looking back, it’s easy to see why most of my friends and I got coronavirus. However, the culture in Spain didn’t worry us—if everyone acted like it was fine, it was fine! Lockdowns hadn’t begun yet and in our minds: we were young, nothing would happen to our cohort of USC students. Coming back to the United States changed my perspective. Within a week of arriving home I took a test and found out I had the virus. Luckily, I had self-quarantined and my symptoms were a mere lack of taste and smell. While I’m grateful that I was safe and healthy, the impact of the virus was more emotional than it was physical. This disease had snatched away an experience of a lifetime. Evacuating my apartment and catching a flight back home within the span of 24 hours was not the study abroad semester I had dreamt of. In my two months there, I had fallen in love with Madrid. I had made friends with the cashiers at the grocery store down the street and could navigate around my neighborhood without Google Maps. My comfort in the city makes me certain that one day, when life is back to “normal”, I will return and finish what I started.