Ciao, Italia!

The end of endless assignments and final exams brings the sweet, sunny freedom of summer jobs and lazy afternoons... for some. For myself, it means a whole month of summer school gaining the credits required for graduate school (because normal university wasn't stressful enough for me). But, before you throw me a pity party, my summer school is a study abroad program in Arezzo, Italy. Though I'll miss the eight-hour customer service shifts I normally work during summer, I am more than glad to swap them for sun-soaked afternoons of writing food blogs over copious amounts of pasta in the campus garden. I am finishing up my first week and I have already fallen in love with the cozy town's cobble stone alley ways and blooming ivy walls. As most international travel does, being immersed in a new culture has been incredibly eye-opening.

MY ARRIVAL:

After making it through the chaos of twenty students trying to find their luggage in a foreign airport, I boarded a bus with the study abroad staff and was soon off on a three hour bus ride. Plenty of time to wrestle with the fact that I was an ocean away from my family in a new country with Google Translate and Duolingo to speak for me. Thankfully, I was too exhausted to worry too much. My college center is based in a small town called Arezzo. It is the Italian equivalent of an tidy and quiet American suburb. But, instead of side walks with perfectly edged lawns and trash bins hidden strategically behind bushes, there are cobblestone streets lined with flower-laden terraces and local gelato shops. The rolling Tuscan hills peek through the break of tall historic churches and homes, catching my eye just often enough to remind me I'm really in Italy.

My First Meals (Don't Rush the Good Stuff):

No surprise that the food was what I looked forward to the most coming to Italy. I never thought I would be the one who comes home after studying abroad and complains about American food and how it's not nearly as good. I am not picky by any means when it comes to food quality and am generally always satisfied with my dish when I go out. But, the creamy pasta sauce and thick al dente noodles have raised my standards for better or worse.

Dining and food are crucial aspects of Italian culture. Everyone hears about the hours they take for one meal, the endless courses, and wine everywhere. Overall, a much more relaxing meal than the to-go chicken strips I normally down in a rush in my car. I didn't realize how different it was until I tried grabbing lunch between classes during a 50 minute lunch break. Pro tip: if you are on a tight schedule (which in Italy seems to be anything less than an hour) don't sit down to eat. Even though it took 20 minutes to come out, the crepes I did order for lunch that day had sweet, but earthy pistachio mush between folds of light and airy crepe. The salty pistachio nuts we eat in the States seem like a wasted ingredient once you taste the flavor the Italian way. Nearly every dessert you can get here, you can get with pistachio flavoring.

The multiple courses also contribute to the long dining time, but I will never complain about that. My dinners in Italy normally consist of two to three courses, with long breaks between when the staff will clear my dish and bring the next. Often times the chefs and owners of the restaurants come out to talk with my friends and me. They are thrilled to have students back after a year of COVID and dismiss our broken Italian with a wave and a chuckle. The first dinner I had, I sat down in a blooming outdoor terrace and started on my antipasti: bruschetta. The crisp, flavorless bread soaks up the juice from the sweet tomatoes and balsamic glaze to explode in my mouth. Next they brought out my first taste of the life changing pasta. The idea that the thick noodles and somehow creamy but light tomato sauce is the norm for some people in the world makes wonder why they would ever branch out. It doesn't matter what kind of pasta (Fetuccini, Carbonara, tortellini, pesto, tomato and basil), every sauce, filling, topping and noodle showcases the talent of the chef and quality of ingredients. That dinner was followed by another entrée rather than dessert. So, we had no choice but to stop for gelato. Ben and Jerry's finally has some stiff competition over here.

(Here's a quick photo dump of the few meals I've had here so far! Just in case you weren't drooling already)

SOMETHING OLD AND SOMETHING NEW

As a girl who never even had the opportunity to miss home, I was curious to see how it would be to live in an entirely new continent where I couldn't drive thirty minutes and be home or call my mom whenever I wanted (I don't understand international phone plans but I apparently only have two hours worth of phone calls for the month). There was never a moment when I second guessed myself on the journey over. But, that was probably less bravery and more the fact that what I was doing hadn't yet set in. However, after being here for a week with my roommate from home and plenty of new friends, walking in through the huge, Etruscan stone archway into Arezzo feels like wiping my feet on my "Summer's Here" doormat and stepping into my own house.

Having someone I know with me is like having your favorite oversized tee shirt. You know no matter how uncomfortable or stressed you feel, you know you'll always have that tee shirt to put on and feel comfortable. Regardless of if you're an extroverted, outgoing person who can strike up a conversation with anyone or a shy introvert who doesn't want to reach out, making friends is easier than adults crack it up to be. If toddlers can make five friends on one trip to the playground, we can ask the person sitting next to us a conversation starter. New friends are just as helpful to have when you're far from home. I have already met an incredible group of friends in Italy that are already as supporting as my friends and family at home. This has been a key part of acclimating to new surroundings. Without a strong group of friends, old and new, living in a foreign country for a month would be a much more daunting task. Knowing that I have friends no matter where I am or go in the world makes the farthest corner that much more approachable

COMING UP NEXT

Although, I have only been in Arezzo for one week, the days have so much packed in that I feel like I have experienced the same amount I would in a month! With classes starting to pick up, I'll be doing more food blogging and moving further along in our campaign for our client, a tourism company called Discover Arezzo. My friends and I brazenly planned a Venice trip this weekend which promises to host enough memories to warrant another post.