Category: Italy

Halfway Reflections

Published on by carolinepotterLeave a comment

Amidst the chaos of cramming for my midterms, I realized that aside from the tests I would have, this week marked the halfway period of my abroad experience! Before I came abroad, I got advice from anyone and everyone- I just wanted to be prepared. The one thing that I kept hearing was “Abroad will fly by in the blink of an eye!”. 

If you had asked me my thoughts on this the first week here, I would have said that it couldn’t feel further from the truth. I missed my routine at home. I missed my favorite Trader Joe’s items. I missed watching Brooklyn 99 with my mom at night. I missed being able to drive over to my friends house in just 3 minutes. The days felt like they were going painfully slow- although I loved all of the time to go indulge in aperol spritzes and gelato, I felt like there were gaps in my day that were impossible to fill. 

Now, just 8 weeks later, I cannot believe that I only have 7 weeks left in Florence. I have built a whole life for myself here. I have optimized my “plan of attack” for getting in and out of Conad (our local grocery store), gotten into a routine of walking along the river every morning and listening to a podcast. I have made new friends who I couldn’t imagine life here without. Although I could be sad and pout about the fact that I only have so much time left, I want to try to squeeze every last moment I can out of Florence!

Here are some of the things I would want to tell my week 1 self:

Just say hi! Going up to people from DU that I recognized during orientation events, even if it was something that I felt a little nervous doing ended up being one of the best decisions! It is how I met new friends that I now get to travel with almost every weekend!

Go out of your comfort zone! For a naturally introverted person like me, it can feel super scary to push myself out of my comfort zone. But doing small things like speaking up a lot in class build up confidence over time and make things like class presentations feel more manageable. Going on a solo trip felt extremely daunting, but I booked one to Scotland and it ended up being my favorite part of fall break! It was something that a year ago I could never imagine myself doing, but I was so proud of myself for!

Incorporate pieces of home! Things that I regularly do at home- like going on long walks, baking, and water coloring are all things that I have added into my daily life here in Florence that give me not only something fun to do, but make me feel more at home. 

Focus on your life! With many of the people that I follow on social media also being people from DU traveling abroad, I really struggled with comparing my life to what I was seeing on Instagram. People would be traveling to far-flung corners of Europe, while I was staying in Florence for a weekend to get adjusted to my new surroundings. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of FOMO, which all of my friends know, is something I struggle with- even at DU. I decided to delete Instagram and TikTok off of my phone, so I wouldn’t find myself scrolling every free moment I had and instead could only look at them on my iPad during time I dedicated to being on a screen. 

Don’t be afraid to ask for help! This in perticular is something I have always struggled with. However, in a country where things can be completely different, asking for help can make all the difference. For example, I needed to find batteries at the grocery store last week for a food scale. I wandered to where I thought they would be and after not seeing them, I decided to ask a cashier for help on where to locate them. It did take me a moment to find them (included me mistakenly walking into the store bathroom) but with more help and a few laughs, I made it back to my apartment, AA batteries secured.

Embrace down time! This last takeaway may be the most impactful for me. Back at DU, I would schedule my days down to the minute, planning what I was going to eat, what clothes I would wear and most importantly, having something to do so that I would not feel that I was being “lazy” by having free time. However, an Italian motto that I was told on the first day of being abroad was “piano piano”. It means to take things slowly. The Italian way of life is one that embraces taking breaks- from afternoon relaxation time where shops close to the people meandering through the streets (opposed to my speed walking around). I have loved having time where everyone is relaxing, so I don’t feel as though I am not doing as much as my peers at any given moment. 

As I am writing this, I am just returning from my week-long fall break that took me to Switzerland, Scotland, and the Netherlands, so look out for a recap of that trip soon!

Arrivederci,

Caroline

The Perfect Parent Visit

Published on by carolinepotterLeave a comment

The past 11 days, my parents visited me abroad and we spent the time traveling around Italy in between my classes. Before planning this trip, my mom had no idea what the best layout for a trip would be, so if you are in the same position, here is a brief itinerary you can use as inspiration!


Day 1 (Travel): My parents flew into Rome because it is the most convenient if you want to fly directly from the US to Italy. I met them after my classes were finished on Wednesday. They were both exhausted from travel, so we grabbed dinner at a spot near their hotel and then went to bed early.

Day 2 (Rome): We woke up and hit the ground running in Rome. Walking around, we ended up seeing the Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, Colosseum, and Roman Forum. Then, we got dinner at Cesare al Pellegrino, which had the best cacio e pepe I have ever had. 

Days 3-5 (Positano): We took the train to Naples and then had a driver to Positano. We spent our days here relaxing at a beach club, walking up and down endless steps, exploring the cutest little shops, and eating lots of pizza. Some of our favorite spots here included: Saraceno d’Oro (Margherita 2.0 is the best!) and Yummy Gelato (I went with my classic pistaccio and chocolate). The last morning, we played cards at Cafe Positano overlooking the most brilliantly blue water. Then we drove to Naples and took the train to Florence from there.

Days 6-8 (Florence): In Florence, I was able to play tour guide for my parents and show them some of my favorite spots here in between my classes! They went on tours of the Uffizi Gallery, Gallery de Academia, and saw the duomo from the outside, but the line to get up the cupola was too long. Seeing sunset from Piazza Michelangelo was a must-do and we got the best sunset I’ve had yet! We spent lots of time just walking around the city and trying new spots for food that are now some of my favorites! A few food highlights from Florence include: Cibrèo Trattoria, Cantina de’ Pucci, and Parione (which has the best Tiramisu ever, according to my dad).

Days 9-11 (Tuscany): After my classes finished for the week, we drove to an Airbnb we had outside of Siena. On the way, we stopped in Montemorli at the vineyard and farm. We took a cooking class where we made the best pasta and panne cotte for dessert! We also got a wine tasting of the wine they make there following a tour of the vineyard and cellar. The rest of the days in Tuscany, we visited different towns in the area, went on a bike tour through the countryside, and spent lots of quality time together (minus my loss at the card game gin rummy, Dad- we need a rematch). I also had some friends from Florence come to join us for a night which was super fun because my parents got to meet the people who they have heard so much about! We then all came back to Florence together and my parents went back to Rome from there to fly home.

Their visit went by like a blur and I already miss them so much but was so happy I could show them my new home (for the next 2 months)!