live in italy

How I did it: When I was going into my sophomore year of high school, my parents convinced me to go on a two and a half week trip to Italy and Greece. At the time, I was extremely reluctant because I was very shy and did not know anyone else going. I had never traveled abroad before I did not really look forward or particularly enjoy the experience as much as I should have.

Months and years later, in relating anecdotes or through random conversation topics that drew on my knowledge of the trip--I realized how awesome it was that I went and became increasingly grateful for the experience.

When college rolled along, I was looking for something to round out my first term of credits. My dad asked me, if I had to take a language, which would I take? My immediate reaction was "Italian" (after three lousy years of Latin--I think I just wanted to use it for something). He replied that I had read his mind.

I took a year of Italian my first year of college and followed up with a second year over the summer before my junior year.

I always expected I would study abroad at some point, I also wanted to go back to Italy and make-up for my original foot-dragging experience. One of my favorite studio instructors highly recommended that I do so and told me "travel as much as possible while you can." Over Christmas break, I was checking my email and found that they had extended the application deadline for the Rome Architecture study abroad program through my school by a month. I took it as a sign.

Due to the program requirements, I had to write a couple of essays, have two letters of recommendations and submit to an interview. I immediately fired off my requests to an adviser and my former instructor for recommendation letters. I also crafted drafts of my personal statements over the next two days and had them sent by the end of the week.

I was accepted into the program--they ended up still having more spots than they could fill that year. A lot of paper work followed: I had to renew my passport, fill out my personal information so I could get a visa and then some. Luckily, our school had a deal with the San Francisco embassy so they Study Abroad Coordinator could take all of our applications as a batch, saving us each the individual trip. I had to book my ticket so I could get my visa and provide some bank statements to prove I would be financially able to support myself while studying in the country. Those few things happened way too last minute for comfort and I was worried for a month about my application being denied.

The week before we departed, the class had an orientation for our project and got to know each other a little bit. We also got our room assignments. Again, I wasn't very good friends with anyone in the program, but I at least knew a few people, which helped curb my anxiety.

Here is where things almost went awry. For months, people had asked me when I was leaving. A cursory glance at my itinerary told me that I was leaving at 8:05 AM on Sunday--I repeated as such about 30 times. Without ever really checking again, I basically convinced myself that was when I was leaving. All of my OCD tendencies and paranoia out the window, I put everything on an assumption.

That night, I was already getting a bit nervous about going and being away from my friends (and boyfriend) for a few months. I ended up accidentally falling asleep early at the boy's house without ever double checking the itinerary. We woke up around 5 AM, which was when I knew I needed to start getting the wheels moving to get to the airport. We got back to my house and I figured, "hey, why not glance at the cities I will be flying through." Imagine my horror when I realized that my plane was leaving at that very minute without me. Apparently, 8 AM was when my connection out of Phoenix left.

My heart dropped out of my stomach. I immediately tried to call my travel agent, but to no avail because she never provided me an emergency or after hours number (it was a Sunday). I called my parents in tears and then proceeded to call the airline. Apparently, all flights were booked until Tuesday and they would apply a credit from my last fare but due to my late booking it would cost me an additional amount--basically the same price as my original ticket. I booked another ticket and emailed my professor. It was pretty emotionally draining and literally one of the worst experiences (and most expensive mistakes of my life), I am just glad I have understanding and loving parents.I think I took a nap immediately afterwards I joked later that it was "the most expensive vacation in Eugene of my entire life."

Tuesday, I had my act together, especially because it was the exact same itinerary as before. This time I made my flights on time. When I got to Rome, there were some complicated instructions about getting from the airport to our building. That was a bit traumatizing after a long plane ride, I had to figure out the trains and then find a cab to get me there. Luckily, I had no issues with this.

The program, for the most part, was a lot of school but not as usual. Studio in Rome was such a different experience. I can't really begin to summarize what it was really like because it turned into a summer's worth of journal entries.

At times I was extremely homesick, which was really weird for me because it had never happened to me before (even after moving thousands of miles away for school). The culture shock was not terrible and my Italian came in handy quite a few times. My two defining experiences came as the result of a weekend mini-trip out of Rome.

We took in a sunset on a pier in Naples and met an old man with a tiny little dog, Cici. He started trying to having a conversation with us and eventually I realized I could understand and communicate back, even in my limited and forgotten Italian. It made me really happy to have learned the language.

Later that trip, my roommates and I accidentally caught the wrong bus in Sorrento and ended up stopping at the top of the hill (instead of going down). I was able to ask the bus driver if and when it would be returning, which was awesome. Unfortunately, due to some outside cirumstances, this became the unraveling of my relationship with one of my roommates. Long story short, she extremely offended me and I ended up heading to the train station immediately while they decided to stay the rest of the day in Sorrento.

I got back to Rome and realized I didn't have a map on me. After being there for about a month, I decided that I was pretty sure I could figure it out on my gut and instincts for the city. I walked all the way across Rome without getting lost back to our building. It was a defining moment where I no longer felt like I was really visiting the city, but really actually lived there and was part of its order.

After that, despite the homesickness and the further disintegrating relations with that roommate, I really savored the experience and took more excursions alone. As horribly as it could have ended up, the fight actually made me rediscover my independence and probably saved the experience for me.

Though I was pretty disgruntled again about the experience immediately after my trip, as is pretty obvious--I am really glad I went back. The more time goes by, the happier I am that I took the chance and risk and tried something completely out of my element and comfort zone. Experiences and conversations in retrospect have really only heightened my appreciation for the opportunity to live and study in Rome.

Lessons & tips:

• Study maps when you get there, try to learn to navigate by landmarks and cardinal directions early. Ditching the map will really help shed the whole "tourist" feeling.
• Find a favorite local gelato place to frequent on the usually steamy days.
• Learn some Italian, especially anything to do with transportation (buses, cabs, trains), telling time and greetings.
• Make sure you either invest in a money belt or some kind of money hiding device to avoid pickpockets. Always keep your belongings in sight, i.e. use caution when wearing a backpack on a crowded bus.
• If you are in Rome, make some trips across the river to Trastevere. It's beautiful and the night culture is awesome.
• If you feel homesick, find a Hard Rock Cafe. One bite into that burger and I felt instantly rejuvenated, I wish I were kidding (refillable soda!)
• When going out to eat with groups, try having each person order a course and share, family-style. Americans are so used to eating their own plate of food, you will miss out on all the incredible aspects of a meal if you just order from one course.
• For women: keep a shawl or large scarf on you if you plan on visiting churches. Many of them do not allow you to enter with bare shoulders and short shorts/skirts. It will allow you the flexibility to visit, without forcing you to wear long sleeves that impede your ability to stay cool in the balmy weather.
• Before going, think about investing in a cooking class or two if you aren't familiar with Italian cooking and cooking with fresh ingredients. Shopping at a grocery in Italy is very different than they US: there are ample grocery stores full of almost everything you could want, but you are pretty much limited by what you can carry. Processed food is also rather limited, so don't rely on living on Easy Mac for a few months. Try learning some words for produce in Italian so you can stop by some of the fresh produce market (try the one at the Campo di Fiori).
• Journal your experience so you can read back and appreciate it down the line, it will also make it easier if you are feeling a bit homesick to reflect and spend some time thinking about the positive aspects of the trip.

Resources:

• Sketchbook, Pencils & Watercolors
• Digital camera
• Bus passes
• "Roma Pass" Museum tickets
• iChat & iSight for video chatting/free calling home

Feb 03, 01:21AM PST | 0 comments | 2 cheers