SAI Study Abroad: Florence University of the Arts (Italy)

My semester in Florence Italy was the best four months of my life. Abroad experiences are unlike anything else you can possibly encounter at home. Choosing SAI as my program for the semester was everything and more I had hoped for. I was able to complete my fashion internship abroad, meet some of the coolest people, and live in Florence Italy! SAI was there for me anytime when I needed it, and I never felt alone. In a place that can feel foreign at times, I never really felt that way in Florence studying with SAI. One time in Florence my roommates and I managed you get ourselves locked out of our apartment. We were able to call SAI and within minutes someone was able to help us. When we moved in to our apartment in January it was so cold, and for some reason our apartment wasn't staying very warm. Come to find out that our heater was partly broken. SAI fixed this for us quickly, and while we were waiting, provided us with extra blankets for our apartment. My list goes on about all the great things that SAI did for us. Go abroad and choose SAI for your abroad program! :)

I studied abroad in Florence, Italy in Spring of 2015. I had an amazing time abroad, traveling to 11 different countries and 46 cities. While I did have an amazing time traveling throughout Europe, Florence was definitely my favorite. Living in another country, learning the language, the culture, and discovering the beauty of the city is something I will cherish forever and never forget. Some of my most memorable experiences include attending a Toga Party at the Pink Palace in Corfu, Greece; holding a falcon at a palace in Budapest, Hungary; partying at the Bermuda Triangle in Vienna, Austria; and walking through the streets of Prague. Studying abroad changed my life and I am homesick every day for my life in Florence.

When you go abroad, more often than not you get caught up in how big an experience this is and you focus on all of these big things you have to do. For me, in Florence, Italy, I had to go to the Uffizi, see the David, climb to the top of the Duomo, go to the San Lorenzo Market, visit the Boboli Gardens, and so many other big events that I kept focusing on until one day, early in my semester abroad I decided to just sit for a little. I found a spot along the Arno river that splits Florence in half, jumped up on the cement wall that runs along the river and pulled out my little sketchbook. With my back propped up against one of Florence's elegant lampposts (yes, even the cities lampposts are beautiful), I gazed down the river at the Ponte Vecchio and began to sketch. People passed on the sidewalk next to me, tourists, residents of Florence, visitors from all over the world. Some tourists even paused behind me, watching the strange girl sitting on the wall sketching. I even had a few ask if they could take a picture of my drawing with the bridge in the background. They would stand over my shoulder for a few seconds before continuing on to their busy day. For once, I was the slow one. I was the one taking her time to really see every detail of what I was seeing, how almost every window on it was different, how little rooms jutted out over the river, held up by only a few supporting beams beneath it, how the sun created shadows on the river beneath the bridge. I watched little people walk over the historic sight, take selfies with it, take pictures of it but not really see it. This was the moment I realized that going abroad wasn't just about seeing the big sights, it was about these small moments. The small moments where you can take your time to appreciate something you might not have noticed if you were just a tourist because you're not a tourist. For four months, you're a resident, a Florentine.

Studying abroad in Florence, in one word, was amazing. For most of my life, I had heard stories from my father, telling me stories about my grandmother who made these delicious Italian meals and desserts. She used to tell me stories when I was younger about her vague memories of living in Italy, and I loved hearing her speak to my grandfather in Italian. I had always dreamed of traveling to Italy to explore my Italian roots and heritage, and studying abroad through SAI provided me the perfect opportunity to do so.

When I arrived in Italy, I contacted some family members who live there, whom I've never met before. They were more than willing to meet with me at some point, and we planned to meet during Easter time. Once the time came, I took a train from Florence to San Benedetto, a coastal town on the eastern side of Italy. My father and boyfriend had also came down to visit during that time, so they were able to meet my Italian family as well.

As I arrived at the train station in San Benedetto, my family was there to greet me. The night before Easter, we went to one of my family member's house, a beautiful home in the hills overlooking the town. All the food was prepared that day, fresh from the oven. Fresh breads, pizzas...things I have never heard or smelled before. All my family members (only a few could speak English) crowded over to my boyfriend, my father, and I, asking one family member to translate everything we said into Italian, and asked us so many questions. The room we were eating in felt warm and cozy, and we sipped on some homemade dessert wine, the strongest wine I've ever tasted. It was an amazing feeling, being surround by these people I have never met before, yet feeling so welcomed and comfortable.

For actual Easter day, we attended a church service. The service was beautiful, and it was the first service I had attended since being abroad. And being able to experience it with my Italian family members was such a special experience. For Easter brunch, we went to a family owned restaurant, and were served a five course meal. I had to force myself to eat everything on my plate, and it seemed like all my family members were able to get it down no problem. The stereotype that Italians eat a lot is in fact true. But the food was delicious...three different pastas, breads, veal, beef....holy cow!

After spending two nights there, we had to leave San Benedetto. It was harder to say goodbye to my Italian family than I thought. Their kindness and hospitality provided me with so much joy and feelings of togetherness. Today, I still keep in contact with some of them, and hope to make plans to visit them again someday!

I ended up living off of tomatoes, mozzarella and baguettes with balsamic vinegar because I would eat it twice a day! My roommates were addicted, as well! Make sure you're aware of how delicious mozzarella cheese is in Italy and plan accordingly (save money just for mozzarella balls)!

Florence is an amazing city and it is full of Italian culture and history. It was so cool to walk through the same streets as such influential people. I traveled a lot in my time and I think that was really important to my study abroad experience. With that said it was really important to me to find a balance between traveling, studying, and exploring Florence. Overall my experience was amazing and I would highly recommend studying abroad to anyone!

The first few days were difficult, but once a student gets involved in school and social events the experience becomes so much better! Those who did not enjoy all of their experience in Florence did not seek friends and involvement on campus. I personally enjoyed simply participating in the ABS class in the gym with the soccer coach and other school related activities which helped me meet other students and friends. The program was great, academics were a breeze compared to my liberal arts school back home but I still learned so much from my professors! They will be mentors for life and great to keep in touch with. Housing was good and nice and close to school (right next to Santa Croce).

I traveled through SAI to Florence, Italy. I really enjoyed my time and my class schedule was not overwhelming at all. It turned out that I only had classes three days a week so I had a lot of time to explore around Florence, Italy, or other places. I thought I was going to have trouble with the length of the classes (2.5 hours once a week) but it worked out really well for me. The SAI staff was also very helpful to me. If I ever went to their office with questions I would always leave with more knowledge and satisfaction because they were so pleasing to work with. I think the best part of my experience was just walking passed all of the attractions and beauty of Florence, especially on a day like walking to class; it could really boost up your spirits. Florence being in the region of Tuscany is a major plus. The landscape is beautiful around Florence and is great to explore. The biggest struggle I found when I was in Florence is having the time to see everything! There was so much I wanted to see in Italy and also other countries. Time just flew by!