Lauren Podkowa
Year Abroad: Junior
Term: fall 2014
Majors: Secondary Education, Spanish
Minors: Mathematics
Program: Universidad Pablo de Olavide in Seville, Spain
Being from a small suburban town, having access to public transportation is incredibly wonderful. I am here in Seville, Spain and the public transportation amazes me. There is a Metro stop only about a five minute walk away, bus stops scattered around the city, and a plethora of Sevici stations where one may rent bikes.
While I find the single Metro line to be especially useful, many people in Seville feel that it is inconvenient. This is due to there only being one line. One night, it rained quite a bit and the following morning, one side of the railway was completely flooded leaving all of the commuters to use the other side. Also, it caused many students to either miss their classes that day or be incredibly late. Aside from this single occurrence, the metro is a very reliable route of travel with departure times varying only by a few minutes.
Another somewhat useful mode of transportation here in Seville is the bus system. There are bus stations all over the city and the buses pass on a regular basis. Furthermore, the buses offer far more options of destinations, including the airport. While this system is frequently used, the majority of Sevillians use the Metro system because it is far more reliable and faster than the other options.
Finally, a unique commuting system that Seville offers is called “Sevici” which allows people that would like to travel short distances within the city to do so with just a bike rental. All anyone has to do is find a rental station (which is not hard to do in the center of the city) and they can ride it for a minimal cost for only a half hour. At this time, if this person has not arrived to their desired destination, he or she only need to return their bike to the nearest Sevici station and take out a new one for an additional half hour. This is definitely one of the most frequently used means of transportation within Seville.
Even though Seville seems to be a large city, there are many ways to navigate it. While all of these manners of transportation are very helpful, you can’t go wrong with a long walk around Seville to enjoy the awe-inspiring views, the friendly people, and the vibrant culture.
