When I first arrived in Italy, my main goal was to connect to the Italian culture. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, my family is Italian American and has immigrated to the United States from a small town an hour and a half away from Naples.
In the first week of April, I traveled with my dad to spend the whole weekend in Naples. That weekend was when I felt most connected to the Italian culture. The Friday of that weekend my father and I first took a tour of Pompeii. It was very eye-opening to see a once bussing city be swiftly wiped out in less than a day. Anything that the archeologists didn’t move for examination seemed right in its place. Time had stopped in the city when it became covered in ash and pumice.
After lunch at a local vineyard, my father and I hiked up to the top of Mount Vesuvius. The hike took up around 45 minutes to go up and back down. I am usually terrified of heights but I know that hiking up an active volcano is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so I mustered all my courage to hike up the volcano. Seeing the crater of Vesuvius with the smoke coming up was so cool to witness. After that day we both traveled back to the hotel to rest from the active day we had.
The next day my dad and I walked around the city for the day. We were hanging out at the beach, shopping at a couple of boutiques, and having lunch at the pier. It was so fun hanging out with my dad after not each other for a couple of months. On our last night in Naples, we went to a family-owned restaurant near our hotel for dinner. Singing and joy were emanating from the restaurant. Everyone sang many Italian songs while eating traditional Italian food and wine. It’s one of those moments I will never forget. On my final day in Naples, we walked around the city for the last time. Ate lunch and then waived my dad as I got in the taxi to catch my train back to Florence. Getting to visit where my family originated from was a great way to connect with my culture and getting to do with my father made it even more special.
Living in Florence, Italy, for a whole semester is an amazing experience I will never forget. I got to travel to places I only dreamed about before. Try amazing foods that I will try to recreate when I get home. Meet new people who have the same enthusiasm as me during our time studying abroad. Leaving Florence everyone had mixed emotions of sadness that study abroad is officially over and optimism to see our families again back at LAX. Looking back on the experience, studying abroad has given me more confidence to take on any challenges that come my way. To also break out of my comfort zone and travel to many different countries in the future.
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