Firenze, My Home Away From Home

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Being in Italy for three weeks has been such a life changing experience. I learned some things about myself that I didn’t know about. One thing I did miss pretty quickly was having alone time. I noticed I missed my friends and family more than I thought I would. I remember feeling home-sick a few days on the trip, which was more times than I had anticipated. I was shocked that I adjusted to walking everywhere pretty smoothly. But I never adjusted to the amount of stairs we’d have to climb at times. Being around others that you don’t know initially for 3 weeks can be challenging. It’s hard to connect with people that you don’t have any idea about, but the experience turned out better than I thought it would. I was surprised at how quickly everyone made friends, but glad of course. This was a good hands-on experience learning how to deal with multiple and different personalities. This trip helped me control my patience being in such a large group of people.



This experience has shaped my present and future in more ways than imaginable. The trip has made me want to implement some lifestyle changes. One of them would be being more organized and more punctual. I have also wanted to dress better on a day to day basis. In the Italian culture they dress nice everyday and I would like to make that more of a habit for me as well. The amount of walking we did each day has also encouraged me to be more active. I think this experience will benefit me in the future because I have lived and experienced a different culture and lifestyle. By having this experience, I will be more open minded and I will not limit myself or view anything as out of reach. I’ve always had the desire to move out of Kentucky when I was old enough, so being in Italy and experiencing a different lifestyle made that desire stronger. This trip has definitely made me want to travel more internationally and domestically. This trip made me want to get out there and see what else the world has to offer. I think I could realistically live in Florence, because I enjoyed it so much and enjoyed living the city life. It would take a lot of time and getting used to but I think I could do it. I adapted to the environment faster and easier than I thought I would. I don’t think I’d be satisfied with life if I just limited myself to staying in Kentucky and not getting out and experiencing the world. I am not saying I could live/travel anywhere but I wouldn’t be closed minded to it.



If I were to give any advice to anyone thinking about studying abroad I would advise them to GO! It is worth every penny. Having the opportunity to experience such a beautiful country and culture was priceless. I was initially not going to go to Italy. Right when it began to get hard for me to figure out the logistics of everything, I was going to just say never mind I don’t know if I want to go. But after the help and encouragement of my family and friends, I went and I am so happy I did. I never would have done or seen half of the things I did being alone in Italy. It was so surreal being able to live in Florence for three weeks, I wish it lasted longer. I never would have met or been around the awesome group of women I was with if I didn’t go. I wouldn’t have been able to be apart of such a rich and lively culture. When you study abroad, it’s like another set of eyes is opened and you see everything in a different perspective. I’m grateful for the new outlook I have on the world. I don’t think there is anything you can do to prepare for studying abroad and I think that’s the cool aspect of it. Everything is so new, fresh and unexpected. I was picturing Italy to be completely different than what I thought it was going to be, but it exceeded my expectations. There was no way I could have prepared for all of the things that we did on our trip. I could redo the entire Italy trip again from start to finish with the exact same experiences and still be happy with the outcome. I am grateful and thankful to have had this opportunity through EKU. I am also thankful for the professors Dr. Bush, Mrs. Harrington and Mrs. Kipp, because if it wasn’t for them this trip would not have been possible either. Firenze, will be in my heart forever and I will definitely be planning a trip back!



STEPS:

January 24^th: 17,171 steps

January 25^th: 16,566 steps

January 26^th: 9,831 steps



TOTAL: 43,568 steps

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