For my study abroad experience I chose Venice, Italy. I was really excited to leave Texas and find myself in a new place surrounded by water. From the plane, I was able to see Venice which is made up of 118 small islands. Which made my excitement rise from 15 to 100 real quick. I was about to land in an unknown place full of people from a different culture and that made me feel like I was living to the fullest in my early 20’s.
The first time I went to the Ca’ Foscari Business School I was not impressed by the building itself but by the view overseeing the canals. At Texas A&M University, Mays Business School is one building. In contrast, in Italy, it was very interesting to see that each class had its own separate small building. Additionally, the transportation system in Italy stood out to me since most of its residents commute from mainland Venice to island Venice via tram. I really enjoyed the change of transportation from using cars in Texas to tram and train in Italy. In conclusion, I definitely felt like I was living a dream in Italy because of its stunning nature and architecture.
Traveling has opened my mind to understand people based on their background and culture and has inspired me to be more creative. In Italy, people are collectivist and not as individualistic as in the United States. They love to chit-chat and go out for drinks (spritz!). Also, Italians highly take pride in their sense of fashion and tend to dress nicely. In comparison, in the United States where people are more relaxed about their appearance and tend to wear T-shirts and shorts. It has been of great personal development to experience these differences and as a cause navigate life differently.