My time abroad could not have been a better experience. Most people were very pleasant and kind, but it is also a very touristy city, so there were many tourist traps you had to look out for within the shops and around the island. I didn’t know anyone there, except the other student from Texas A&M that had gone on the exchange, but I found it was not extremely difficult to make friends. All the other international students are in the same boat and everyone just wants to meet more people and make friends, so everyone was very nice and open to conversation and spending time together. I was very lucky to make some amazing friends from many other countries, and they greatly contributed to my overall experience and why I will always be thankful I took part in the exchange program. I thought it may be hard to connect with people from such different places, but my perspective completely changed after I can now call people from across the world some of my close friends.
My initial impressions didn’t change much, I tried to speak the language more the longer I was there, and people were still very patient when it came to having to use English or decipher my below par Italian. The university and schoolwork was the biggest change for me, as I did not have much work to do outside of class. My classes were split into terms, so I did two classes the first six weeks, and another 2 the last six weeks. Overall, my understanding of different cultures has broadened dramatically, and that was something I had hoped to achieve on my time abroad. I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to spend my semester abroad, and I highly encourage this program to those that are curious about international business and hope to further their knowledge of global communities.
