The turnaround between finishing finals at the beginning of May to only a week later sitting in a classroom thousands of miles away feels as weird as it sounds. But, the experience has been incredible and every day I wake up excited to be in such a unique place. One of my strongest first impressions of Florence is how accommodating it is to tourists, which has allowed me to dive deeper into exploring the city and feel more comfortable adjusting to things such as the time zone change and culture shift. Speaking of the time zone change, I will say that I underestimated the jet lag of going forward seven hours, but each day it gets easier and it is a unique feeling to wake up when everyone you know back home is going to bed. To confirm what has been said ad nauseam, Florence is beautiful and I am beyond impressed by the architecture and the upkeep of what is such as very old city. Italy shares in this beauty and I believe that the natural beauty of its mountains, rivers, and valleys has perhaps been understated. Moreover, the organic blend between the cities and nature is a harmonious sight that one must see in person. As a result of this trip, I hope to strengthen my self confidence through the potential challenges associated with living abroad for a month, I hope to become more globally minded through an enhanced understanding of a culture that is in many ways extremely different from my own, and I hope to form connections with those who are looking for similar things from this trip. Thus far, I have noticed several differences between the U.S. and Italy. For one, tipping at restaurants essentially does not exist as it can be seen as rude. Also, paying for water at restaurants feels strange but honestly makes sense. The Italians also prioritize living green in different ways, such as charging for plastic bags, limiting waste and saving water. Lastly, the comfortability with alcohol is very strange especially coming from a place where it is so taboo, but I think the importance of pairing it with food is very interesting. Overall, I cannot wait to see what more I can put into this experience and what more it has to offer.
