In all fairness I want to say that leaving the United States and living in Europe changed my life, made me more global and more ambitious. Living in Spain opened my eyes to seeing life from different perspectives and thinking outside the box.
Here is what I liked about Spain: The chance to meet royalty from other countries, the chance to chat with other visitors fron around the world, paella & fried calamari, the opportunity to speak in Spanish all day long, the beaches, La Alhambra and the discotecas.
Here is what troubled me about Spain: Women have to be very careful when interacting with the males from other countries while in Spain, I believe prostitution is legal in Spain-therefore some men may proposition you in broad daylight if you are a female visiting Spain, the fact that at times people will not want to converse with you because your Castillian is not perfect, Zaragoza, there is not sitting water in some of the toilets until you flush, some households do not have electric stoves and switch a gas pump on and off to cook and sometimes you may not get a chance to see a doctor right away if you are very sick.
I lived and studied in a township of Madrid. I would love to return to Spain with my son to live but I believe I may have to surrender my American citizenship.
My advise to anyone who wants to go to Spain: Go! Study and work there but do not go alone. Go with a group or a few other people. Master Spanish before you go. Save up lots of money before you go and flip over some of your money to euros before you leave the states-Fifth Third Bank is a good bank for this. Do not live with a host family-rent out a furnished apartment and have is all set up before you leave. Set up arrangements to connect with members of your religion while you are there and definitely encourage your family members and friends to come out and visit you while your are there-and take advantage of the time. Take the weekends to see all of Spain- Malaga, Granada, Cordoba, Salamanca, Barcelona, Torrejon de Ardoz, Toledo , Segovia etc. Then if you can go to Morocco, Portugal, France, Italy, Siciliy and England while you are there squeeze it all in before returning to the states. One last thing-try to stay for a year if you can afford it and if you can secure employment and a work permit to live and study there stay for as long as you can.