Au Pair Cultural Immersion Gap Year in Italy

Thanks to the consistent support and determination of the staff at Scotia Personnel, I was able to, not once, but twice able to explore Northern Italy. The families withwhich I stayed were always kind and welcoming to this stranger. With their help, I have been able to explore Milan, Turin, Sauze, Siena, Pisa, Ferrara, Lazise, Bardolino, Garda, Venice, Bologna, Ravenna, Punto Marina, Rome, the Vatican, Modena, Bussolengo, and Verona. I have seen works of art that I would have never dreamed of witnessing, like Michaelangelo's David, Leonardo's Last Supper, or Bottecelli's Birth of Venus. I have had a sip of Italian culture and it was worth every second.

The work was difficult but fair. I am a laboratory technician by trade and conversing with children does not come naturally for me. However, the challenge has made me into a greater person with more compassion than before. I have expanded the limits of my patience and have learned new strategies for communication barriers.

My time in Italy was spectacular, I wish I stayed longer. I fell in love not just with the beauty of the country but also its people, the food, and culture. It was such an amazing, and eye opening experience. I was so grateful to be able to experience Italy not just as a tourist but it was as if I was one with the people and culture, it made me miss home a lot less; it felt like I had another family here, and it was such a great feeling of being welcomed with open arms. I hope that I have the opportunity to go there again and experience the people and culture all over again. I hope that reading this will help you decide to go, because it's just too much of an amazing opportunity to pass up. It might seem a bit frightening to go when you know nobody and might not know the language all too well, but once you get there honestly all those thoughts of doubt get thrown out the window and excitement rushes in.

Hey my name is Shae-Lynn Way and I was so lucky to have had the opportunity to travel to Italy this summer and tutor children in English. I set off on June 19th and flew to Milan where I was greeted by two wonderful 8 year old girls and their families! Alicia and Chiara are best friends and I worked closely with both their families. With Alicia I travelled to Varenna, which is a small, quaint town on Lake Como, just on the southern side of the Alps! Varenna was definitely my favourite part of the trip. The views were absolutely breath taking and the overall culture of the town was very unique. I then travelled with Alicia, Chiara and their families to Livigno. Livigno is located right in the Alps, so the drive there was absolutely beautiful! Livigno is known for their ski slopes and trails so it was a wonderful place to get out and explore!
During the day I would work with the girls for one hour on English homework. I would assist them on different activities in their work books and helped them if they had any questions. Throughout the day we would play and go on different excursions with their mothers. There was always something different and new everyday. This was a perfect time for me to communicate in English with the girls and have conversations out in the real world opposed to their work books. It wasn’t always easy, because of the language barrier but we managed to made it work and it was great stimulation for the girls English skills.
On July 12th I unfortunately had to cut my trip short due to a sudden death in my family back home. On July 20th I was supposed to travel to Trento, Italy to stay for another month with a twelve year old boy named Luca who I would also tutor in English and travel with him and his family to the Dolomite Mountains. I was heartbroken to leave Italy and I am still so sad I never got the chance to meet Luca and his family! But I had such an amazing time while I was there and learned a lot . I gained so much valuable experience and was able to explore at the same time. It was definitely a trip of a lifetime and I can’t wait to go back and finish the rest of my trip next year!

Working as an English tutor in Italy was an experience I won't ever forget. I would like to thank Scotia Personnel for the opportunity. Having the opportunity to live in Italy for three months was amazing. My host family was great, they were very accommodating, generous and welcoming, and the kids I looked after and tutored became like younger siblings to me, and made me feel like part of the family. They even invited me to stay with them again next year.

When not working, I had time off on the weekends, where I would travel to amazing places around northern Italy, or hang out with my host family, where we would go on their boat around Lake Como, where we would swim, wakeboard, and occasionally watch fireworks. I also got to eat so many delicious foods as well as have ice cream or gelato almost every day, something I don't get to do in Canada.

My experience working in Italy gave me the confidence to solo travel and I was able to meet new and interesting people, as well as getting to experience a different culture, cuisine, and environment that I hadn't before. I would definitely recommend this wonderful opportunity and experience. Overall my time in Italy, and working as a tutor was great, and I would love to get the opportunity to go back again.

Scotia Personnel is a great company. They have helped my dreams of going to the UK possible. I had an amazing experience with a lovely host family in the UK for 2 years. I also was able to teach English in Italy for a month in the summrr which opened me up to a whole new culture. Scotia Personnel are very friendly and helpful, they make sure that you are safe and taken care of. I highly recommend this company to anyone with an interest to travel, make memories, experience cultures and just have fun.