Trying to process all the new inside jokes, things I’ve seen, learned, and experienced, there I was sitting in my bedroom all alone in disbelief that the best trip of my life was over. I went from being surrounded by friends and laughter every second to being in a big, empty house all by myself with only my new memories and dog to keep me company.
This summer, I had the amazing opportunity to participate in a study abroad program offered by my Italian teacher, Dr. De Tollis, and the Italy Study Abroad Association (SAA Italy). It was a surreal learning experience where I had the privilege of traveling to Italy with my best friends, and where I made new lifelong friendships, memories, and learned numerous new things.
Learning new words and eating 24/7 was my daily routine for about 16 days. We departed on June 28th, and after almost 12 hours of traveling, we arrived in the region of Marche, in a small town called Jesi. We stayed in Hotel Federico II, whose staff and hospitality were great and offered us unique rooming experiences. Once we arrived, we all took a placement test to find out our level of Italian: Intermediate or beginner. As for me, I was placed in intermediate because I had already taken three years of Italian here at West Boca. As a result, some of my friends and I got separated, but after our lessons, we would debate what we learned and compete over whose class was better.
Ogni giorno, (every day) we would wake up at 8:30 am, have colazione (breakfast) where the hotel served their delicious breakfast buffet, with a wide variety of cheese, yogurts, drinks, and pastries. Without fail, every morning, my friends and I would eat our dreamy Nociolla-filled croissants and dream about eating them again the next morning. The food was heavenly. After eating everything at the breakfast banquet, we would get to class at 9:30 am, some more puntuale than others, and we’d stay there for two hours.
Our classes were completely in Italian with authentic Italian teachers. The intermediate class would have conversational-style lessons that significantly improved our speaking and listening skills, whereas the beginner, bambini, class would learn grammar and speaking as well. My teacher, Veronica, was the best! She was such a welcoming, kindhearted, and amazing teacher that I’m so lucky to have met. After two hours, we would have our ten-minute coffee break, where my friends and I would either go outside, listen to my friend, Carolline, gracefully play the piano, or take a quick nap. After, we’d hop back into class and study for another hour.
After class, it was time for Pranzo (lunch). For those with the meal plan, we would go into the hotel’s restaurant and have the traditional Italian four-course meal first, starting with antipasto (appetizers), primo piatto (first course; carbs), secondo piatto (second course; protein), and dolce (dessert). It felt like royalty having complete meal courses every day, and I got used to it too fast for my own good. After our elaborate lunch, we would get ready for our excursions! This was the best part of the day! We would meet with our kind and intelligent tour guide, Luca, from whom we learned our history everywhere we went! Every day we would go on an excursion in the afternoon, and back to the hotel at around 8 pm for yet another elaborate meal.
We travelled to an abundance of beautiful places and submerged ourselves in the Italian culture. Everywhere we went, we would befriend Italians and practice our conversational abilities, from asking local kids to ride bikes with them, playing volleyball with locals, to just ordering a gelato; we put ourselves out there and spoke Italian any chance we got. Not only did we make Italian friends, but Russian friends as well, who were also participating in the study abroad with us, along with people from other parts of Europe. It’s surreal to think that we now all have European friends in common!
During our daily excursions, we would go to caves, the Grotte di Frasassi; beaches like Numana and Sirolo, and towns like Forli, Loreto, and our beloved Jesi. Everywhere we went, we had so much fun exploring the monuments, sightseeing, shopping, and eating! During the weekends, we would stay overnight in different places, such as San Marino, Bologna, Naples, Vatican City, and Rome. It was all incredible, but Bologna had the best gelato and the best, of course, tagliatelle al ragu! San Marino was such a unique experience, being the third-smallest country in Europe, for many of us, it was our first time in Europe, and everything took our breath away. We soaked in the culture, art, history, and music in these cities, even when we would create our own music by singing unapologetically in the streets of Forli and inside the Frasassi Caves.
It’s been tough to put into words how incredible everything was. However, this trip wouldn’t have been possible without our amazing chaperones, Domenica and her husband, Ben. They have both participated in study abroad associations for years, and Domenica is part of the Italian world languages department at the University of South Florida. They were truly incredible and did their best to meet everyone’s accommodations, satisfaction, health, and safety needs. Domenica was our motherly figure throughout the trip, and Ben was always ready to help out! I am so thankful that they were our chaperones and wouldn’t want it any other way!
If you are interested in doing a study abroad, sign up for this one now! This was my first study abroad experience, and because of it, I will definitely do more in college! The program will be available again this upcoming summer. Contact Dr. De Tollis for more information if interested in participating in an experience that will offer you a lifetime of memories, friends, and unforgettable experiences!
Contact Dr. De Tollis at: [email protected]
