Florence, Italy, has been stunning so far. We only arrived a few days ago, but I feel like I’ve seen a lot already. This is such a historical city, and I’ve never witnessed anything more beautiful. It is an extremely important political, social, and economic city built between the 14th and 16th centuries. The streets are very lively with both Italians and tourists. I’ve really enjoyed the guided tours and walks we’ve done as a group. The food is also unlike anything I’ve tried before. I have learned much about Italian culture and business through the lectures and company visits. In the lectures, I was shocked to find out about the huge cultural divide between the north and the south of Italy. The north is more masculine and industrial and moves at a faster pace. Whereas the south is more feminine and focused on happiness over work. The company visits have been so cool as well. I really enjoyed learning about the work zerolabs is doing regarding leather upcycling and it was fun to be able to create our own wallets out of leather and see how much work actually goes into creating each piece that I see being sold so often here. I hope to gain a better understanding of international business, particularly finance, to carry with me into my future career. I’ve noticed many differences between Italian and American culture. First and foremost, Italians are much more outspoken about politics, particularly American politics. Also, everyone here is much more verbal, and they appear to have stronger feelings about things. The language is very interesting, and I hope to learn some while I’m here. Additionally people here in Italy tend to be more direct in their communication styles and are very outspoken. The fashion on the streets is far nicer than on an average American street because it is less casual and people dress up more. Italians enjoy their down time and generally move through life at a slower pace which I have been enjoying. Overall, I’m very excited to continue my studies abroad and to learn everything I can as a student living in Florence for the next month.
Florence, Italy, has been stunning so far. We only arrived a few days ago, but I feel like I’ve already seen and learned a lot. This is such a historical city, and I’ve never witnessed anything more beautiful. It is an extremely important political, social, and economic center, built between the 14th and 16th centuries. The streets are very lively, filled with both Italians and tourists. I’ve really enjoyed the guided tours and walks we’ve done as a group.
The food is unlike anything I’ve tried before, and I have learned so much about Italian culture and business through the lectures and company visits. In our lectures, I was surprised to learn about the significant cultural divide between the north and south of Italy. The north is more masculine, industrial, and fast-paced, whereas the south is more feminine and focused on happiness over work.
The company visits have been fascinating as well. I really enjoyed learning about the work ZeroLabs is doing regarding leather upcycling. It was especially fun to create our own wallets out of leather and to see how much work goes into making each piece.
I hope to gain a better understanding of international business, particularly finance, and carry that knowledge into my future career. I’ve noticed many differences between Italian and American culture. First and foremost, Italians are much more outspoken about politics, especially American politics. People here are also much more verbal and expressive, with stronger feelings about things. The language is very interesting, and I hope to learn some while I’m here.
Additionally, people in Italy tend to be more direct in their communication and very outspoken. The fashion on the streets is far more stylish than what I typically see in the U.S., with less casual wear and more effort put into appearance. Italians also enjoy their downtime and generally move through life at a slower, more relaxed pace, which I have been enjoying.
Overall, I’m very excited to continue my studies abroad and to learn everything I can as a student living in Florence for the next month
