A presto, Milano

I'd never realized my eyes were closed until I opened them to the world of study abroad, in Milan. With the support of the wonderful IES staff, I embarked on an incredible adventure, l'esperienza di una vita ("experience of a lifetime"). There were three housing options, but I chose to live in an Italian dorm. In this way, I soon became a part of two unique and welcoming communities, that of my dorm and that of IES. I could practice Italian every day with the new friends I made, learn about life at other Italian universities, and learn about Italian cultural differences from people of different regions. At IES, I had my formal academic classes and heard about all the events, activities, and hidden gems of Milan that we should discover. Of these, for example, I attended a concert at the famous Teatro alla Scala (free tickets from IES!), visited museums on the first Sunday of every month (free in Milan!), and attended the wildly popular Artigiano in Fiera, a massive market with goods from around the world. Milan has so much to offer, and it is truly an amazing city where it's easy to explore via metro, on foot, or even on bike! I recommend taking advantage of all opportunities available- whether that be hopping on a train from Milano Centrale to Torino for a day, practicing Italian with one of the IES Italian community assistants, or taking a stroll around the city and finding a Roman ruin. I felt I learned more in a semester than I had in a lifetime, simply by absorbing these new things around me. I highly recommend studying in Milan; with IES as your guide, you too can discover la bellezza ("beauty") di Milano, just open your eyes and take it all in...