Around the World with Dartmouth Soccer: Ally Dutton, Barcelona

2010 Around the World Main Page

Throughout the winter term, Dartmouth women's soccer players will be sending in updates from their travels around the globe. Team members are currently studying and volunteering abroad in a variety of countries thanks to the college's four-quarter Dartmouth plan system.

Ally Dutton (Granite Bay, Calif.), SO, B
Barcelona, Spain - Study Abroad

Spending the winter in Barcelona has been fantastic so far, and hardly a winter at all compared to chilly Hanover! I live in a flat that is 200 meters from the beach and an expansive boardwalk with my two teammates, Anna Chinco and Aly O'Dea. On sunny days we take our soccer balls out to the boardwalk and are usually joined by fanatic locals that run over ready to jump into the game.

When we aren't hanging out by the beach, we often spend time walking around the Gothic quarter of the city (only 10 minutes from our flat). This quarter is home to the famous Barcelona Cathedral and the old Roman center of the city. On nice days we can walk through this area on the way to our school which is only a 20 minute walk from our flat and an even shorter metro ride.

I am taking three classes while I am here in Spain: Geography, People's and Society of Spain; Urban Planning: Barcelona Perspectives; and International Economics. It has been so rewarding to take classes focused on Spanish culture while living in Spain as I'm immersed in what I am learning about every day.

One of the benefits of living in Europe is the accesibility to so many different countries. Before arriving in Barcelona, Anna and I, along with a few Dartmouth football players also in our program, traveled to Paris, France for New Years. Being at the Eiffel Tower to bring in the New Year is something I will never forget! I have also visited Girona, a historic city an hour north of Barcelona, as well as traveling to Rome with my teammates, and Madrid with my parents who were able to come and visit me! The ability to travel has been a huge benefit of my program as our classes are condensed into the beginning of each week leaving weekends free. Another memorable experience I will never forget was the FC Barcelona game I attended. Barcelona lives and breathes soccer and sitting in Camp Nou stadium watching some of the best players in the world was AMAZING.

I feel so lucky to have had the oppurtunity to study and live in a foreign country and I really have the D-Plan to thank for that. I know I will return to Dartmouth a more enriched and well-rounded student and person thanks to my time in Spain!