Florence Fever

The six weeks I spent abroad in Florence captures some of the best memories in my life. I was able to see Florence through a sojourner's lens and this made my experience incredible.

CAPA's orientation and tour of the city started my journey off overwhelmed: I knew Florence was a beautiful, historic city, but seeing the Duomo and being in the piazzas for the first time was absolutely surreal. That feeling developed my Florence Fever as my days went on studying abroad there.

A normal school day consisted of walking half an hour to the CAPA center, which was conveniently near the city center. I would pass the locals selling fruit, newspaper stands, and tons of coffee shops with pastries on my way. Classes were fun and relevant to the city, so it was neat to be on site and learn about the language, culture, and art history in the context. My professors were very knowledgeable with the courses, and that reflected in their teaching. We would take trips and learn about the Medici Palace, or visit the San Lorenzo Market and test our Italian at a local cafe. CAPA also provides a museum and bus pass, which made it easy to visit museums such as the Uffizi Gallery, Boboli Gardens, and the Accademia as many times as I wanted.

The staff at CAPA is friendly and extremely helpful. They checked in with our accommodations, suggested great activities and places, taught us useful phrases in Italian, and were there to give the students the best study abroad experience possible.

Aside from academics, the culture definitely made my time abroad come full circle. Living farther from the city center, I was in an apartment complex with all local Italians, and my roommates and I were a block away from a famous gelato place, which we took advantage of. We became friends with the pizzeria owner down the street, and the guy who worked the deli across the street was so proud when I successfully ordered in all Italian (after a non-successful game of charades my first time in there). The cuisine is phenomenal; pizza will never be the same to me again. I loved walking around the city and enjoying being in a foreign environment. The architecture is fascinating, and panoramic view of Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo is something I will never forget.

I am so happy with my experience and time abroad through CAPA Florence. I learned a ton about not only the city, but myself as well. I cannot wait to go back!