New Experiences: Spring Term in Italy

The thought of traveling to a different country with acquittances frightened and excited me. I decided to do my spring term in Italy very last minute. Something kept telling me I need to get out of my comfort zone, to isolate from familiarity, and learn to change into a better me.

What’s cool about studying abroad is that the learning doesn’t stop when you aren’t in the classroom, you gain and learn a global perspective the whole experience. I only was here for two weeks since it was just spring term, but it was still an amazing opportunity that I am grateful to have.

This trip has taught me to communicate better with others and meet people I would’ve never meet if I didn’t come. I often don't speak up for myself and have a fear of being judged but this excursion in a different country forced me to ask questions and be bold.

A majority of the trip was packing small and moving around often. I have traveled a lot in the US and always check a bag so bringing a carry on scared me. But if I had to redo it, I would've actually packed lighter.

Another thing I learned was new ways of transportation. In Italy there is a variety of transportations such as train, bus, taxi, plane, vespa, bike, and boat. When traveling I kept an eye on my bags, stayed with others, and was aware of pickpockets’. The crime rate here is lower than America and is decreasing but I noticed people here want tourist's money. It was cool seeing how people get around the beautiful country. You can explore the country conveniently, but it can get confusing if you aren’t familiar. Most of the time we got lucky on making trains or arriving to our destination since we didn’t know where we were nor spoke Italian.

Overall, I can’t emphasize enough how thankful I am for such a short memorable period. This group of students and professors were all helpful and a bunch of fun. I saw famous monuments and artworks that I haven’t ever known about. If I had to pick anywhere to go, I know my typical self would’ve picked a beach, so it was educational and good for me to be pushed to enjoy architecture and explore a new republic.