As a first time international travel, my first week abroad has been very enlightening. Although I have only been in Florence, Italy for one week, my experiences have gone beyond solely witnessing the beauty and history of this great city.
Every evening, my roommates and I have been able to walk around and explore on our own. During these explorations, we have been able to observe many cultural differences Italy has from the US, the first being how they spend their time and days. Italians are very leisurely and tend to do things later than we do. This is very helpful when wanting to try popular restaurants just go a little early! However, it has also helped us to slow down ourselves and enjoy our trip by taking in the scenery and people around us. The city of Florence is also very walkable, which I feel creates a sense of community, heightening the awareness of the friendliness of Italian culture. If you put in the effort to get to know an Italian, they become very welcoming and passionate. This has been a welcome trait, as it makes being in a foreign county less isolating.
In terms of the business program itself, the learning has far exceeded my expectations! In just this first week we have toured the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and Duomo, as well as participated in a walking tour of the city where we hit four different, historically important sites. Through this method of learning, we have been able to enjoy the beauty and architecture of the city while learning about the business practices that facilitated the creation of Italy and the Roman Empire. Standing in the places where great world leaders created practices, such as banking, that are still in use today makes the learning much more enjoyable and easy to retain. Not only has my time studying abroad been fun, it has been effective too!
Already, I have experienced tremendous growth in my confidence since beginning my journey abroad. As I continue through the program I hope to be inspired by the Global Leaders we learn about and become more confident in my ability to lead as well. In terms of personal growth, I hope to experience as many places as I can and grow my independence through the process of traveling abroad.
