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There and Back Again

The following is my Experience Letter that I had to send to the Scholarship Committee that made this wonderful experience possible for me. I thought I'd share it with you all!

 

SAI Scholarship Experience Letter

Complete honesty would force me to say that travelling to Italy for a semester abroad was something that filled me with apprehension in the weeks before I left. However, now that I am back home in the United States, my complete gratitude forces me to say that this semester benefited me more than I could have ever imagined.

I have never been outside the United States on my own before, and the three and a half months away from my family and friends at first seemed daunting. I did indeed miss home as anyone would, but I feel such pride in myself for gradually adapting to my new environment in the city of Florence. The concept of change has always been a struggle for me, but this semester encouraged me to challenge myself in every way possible. I gained much more in Florence than the knowledge given by my classes, and I think that that is the true point of studying abroad.

Academically, I was thrilled to have classes in a place where we could actually feel and see the history all around us. As an Art major, being able to visit the famous galleries in Florence filled me with excitement and more learning potential than I could have ever gotten from a textbook. Taking classes that truly interested me also encouraged my drive for success that I have maintained throughout my academic years, and it was a wonderful opportunity to learn about art, history, and fashion in a place that holds these topics in such high esteem.

Studying in Florence with a friend from home helped me adjust to some of the changes that I faced during this semester, and making new friends was also a great help for the inevitable homesickness. Above all, though, the greatest aid to my experience was the confidence that I gained by becoming more independent. Being able to navigate a new city, meet new people, tackle a foreign language, set up a budget, and plan my day-to-day schedule all were the results of this newfound confidence that grew from my time away from home. By the end of the semester, I really felt like a resident of Florence who could truly stand on her own.

As I reflect back on my time on the other side of the world, it seems like it moved so fast. The experiences that I had will stay with me forever, though, and the beautiful country that I called home will never fade from my mind. I wanted to study abroad to help myself grow as a person, and I believe that this goal was definitely reached. I now possess strength that could only be attained through the challenge of change, and I couldn’t be more thankful for all who have supported me on this journey. Whether financially or through simple emotional support, so many people have contributed to my experience and my gratitude for this is truly immeasurable.

Studying abroad was one of the most wonderful opportunities I have ever been given in my life, and all that I have gained from this journey will certainly not go to waste. The friends I have made, the academic information that I have learned, and the confidence I now have will continue to be integral parts of my life as I carry on towards new goals and experiences. It feels good to be home, and the pride in myself for coming this far fills me with courage to take on whatever comes next in my life.

 

Sincerely,
Gretchen Radtke

 

Thank you to all who kept up with my blog, and know that my adventures in life are just beginning!

Ciao! =]

Sany0669

Farewell, Firenze!

So this won't be my last post, for I will be writing up a nice reflective speech about how this journey really was a wonderful thing for me. Right now though, we are waiting for our shuttle to take us to the airport so I will continue this goodbye later! Wish me safe travels!

I will miss you, Florence...you gave me more than I ever thought I would need. For hopefully not the last time- Ciao! =]

Germany and Austria!

Last weekend Kim, Shannon, and I had the wonderful opportunity of going to Germany and Austria with the Educational Field Trips program, and it was so much fun! I was very excited, since Italy has been the only country in Europe I have been in and I thought it would be cool to go to Germany because my family is German, and to Austria just because Austria is sweet. I will now describe this adventure, and enjoy the pictures that follow!

We left at midnight on Thursday, the 29th, which was kind of unpleasant due to the 8 hour bus ride. I thought I would be able to sleep on the bus, but alas, that did not happen. However, when we got to Innsbruck and got out of the bus at a rest stop, I felt so much better because I saw the mountains!! It was so amazing to see those mountains, and it was actually snowing! That was the first snow I have seen since last winter, so it was pretty awesome. At the rest stop I had some apple strudel, which was delicious, and it made me think of Sound of Music when she sings about that being one of her favorite things!

In the city of Innsbruck, we met our tour guide, who joined us on our bus and gave us a tour as we drove around to see the major sites. We stopped at a few places, including some Baroque-style churches that were just like the ones I had just learned about in art history. Very beautiful! After the bus tour our guide led us around the "old city" of Innsbruck, pointing out other famous things in the region. It was very very very cold, but I couldn't really expect much else! After our tour, we had free time to explore the Innsbruck Christmas Markets, where Kim and I had authentic Austrian food that was so good! I felt so brave for trying the new foods! In addition to the potato type stuff I had for lunch, I also had a soft pretzel and a delicious cinnamon crepe. Crepes are one of my new favorite foods now! Anyway, the Christmas Markets were all really cool and I liked seeing all of the handmade ornaments and things like that. Lots of things had edelweiss on them, and I sang the song a lot, haha.

That evening, we continued onto Munich and arrived at our hotel, which was pretty nice. We had free time again for dinner, and a few of Shannon's friends went with Kim and I to a restaurant called Zum Augustiner. I unfortunately did not eat too much, since what I ordered what not what I expected! They had good soft pretzels, though! It was a relief to rest that night after the long day.

The next morning we had a great breakfast at the hotel and then we had another tour guide join us on our bus to show us the sites of Munich. We even stopped at this palace, where there was more snow and swans and it was very pretty indeed. Our walking tour in Munich was once again very cold, but I bought some gloves later on which helped! After our tour we had lots of free time again, which was good because there was a lot to see! I ate lunch in the markets, and then Kim and I explored again, which was really fun. We enjoyed more foods such as chocolate covered apples and strawberries and more crepes! The market stalls were once again filled with wonderful trinkets and such, which were cool to look at but would be hard to transport if I bought any.

After getting lost for a while and getting directions, Kim and I made it back to the hotel and chilled there for a while until our whole group went to dinner at the Hofbrauhaus. I was very excited to go, since Grandma had suggested it to me! It was such a cool place, and we ate upstairs where it was this big hall with long tables and a stage in front. During our meal there were musicians playing German music and also dancers- it was really fun to watch. There were even these guys who all had whips and would crack them in time with the music- very amusing! Our dinner was great as well, and consisted of veal sausages (interesting but good), some potato salad that I didn't really care for, half a Bavarian-style chicken (sooooo good!) and the best apple strudel I have ever eaten! Kim and I also tried some of the famous beer, but didn't get a whole glass- they give you so much! Overall it was a very nice evening and a good rest followed it.

The next morning included the good hotel breakfast again, and then we travelled to the Dauchau Concentration Camp Memorial Site. Our tour guide did a great job in explaining the camp's history, and it was all very interesting. At the same time it was sad of course, but seeing the memorial statues that had been built was uplifting end to the tour.

The bus ride home was very long, but this time I actually was able to sleep for part of it. We stopped for lunch and dinner, but didn't get back to Florence too late. It was very good to relax after the long weekend, and I am so glad that I went on the trip. My favorite thing was probably seeing the mountains in Austria, and eating the wonderful food in Germany! It was all so fun, and I am glad that some of my friends got to go, as well.

Currently it is the weekend before finals, so I have some studying to do, but thankfully our exams aren't going to be as intense as I thought they would be. I pretty much have done everything I have wanted to do in Florence, so now only my exams stand between me and going home! Only 7 full days left and I couldn't be more excited!

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Caitlin's Visit!

For Thanksgiving weekend, I had a wonderful time with my friend Caitlin. She is studying abroad in Amsterdam right now, so coming to Florence to see me wasn't that long of a trip for her! It's funny that since she goes to school in Massachusetts in the US, I don't see her that often and we have to both be halfway around the world to hang out! Haha but it was great to have her here, and I showed her the very best the city had to offer. In addition to simply exploring the city and telling her about the places I walk past every day, we also visited the following places in Florence:

The Uffizi Gallery
Palazzo Pitti
Piazzale Michelangelo
The Boboli Gardens

It was awesome to be able to tell her about the things I learned in class, especially when it came to art history! She enjoyed going to all these places very much, and said that I am a great tour guide! We even climbed all the way up to the top of the Duomo, which was quite the steep climb up narrow stairs. The view was beautiful, though, and so worth it! Another thing checked off my list!

On the Saturday when she was here, we also went to the Truffle Festival in San Miniato (meaning the underground truffles, not the chocolate kind). My school program organized the trip, and Caitlin and I had such a fun time trying all of the foods there! So many samples, or "samps" as we like to call them. I tried so many things, you wouldn't believe it! See, you guys, I am getting so much better with new foods!!! My favorite at the festival were all of the cheeses, and I even had some with truffles in it! Caitlin had truffle ravioli, which she said was amazing. A very fun day!

We also went out to eat the night before she left, and we actually went to the restaurant that I went to on my first night in Florence. The food was great! Also, we of course went to La Carraia, the best gelato place in my opinion, quite a few times. Yum!

I am so glad Caitlin was able to come and visit me here in Florence. Even though we didn't have any Thanksgiving feast, it was still a great time and I hope we get to hang out again soon.

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Herculaneum and Pompeii!

Ciao! I am finally going to post about my recent adventures, so you are welcome! First adventure to discuss is the trip my "Daily Life in Pompeii" class took to (where else?) Herculaneum and Pompeii!

The adventure began on November 15th, and after a morning train ride to Naples we took another train to Ercolano. The first train was ok but the one to Ercolano was a commuter train that was crazy crowded and ah it was like people getting on the lifeboats on the Titanic...so intense, lol. We then had lunch in Ercolano where I had the region's famous mozzarella on a sandwich with prosciutto crudo (which I love now). After lunch we walked to the site of the ancient city of Herculaneum!

Buried in 79 AD by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, this city is better preserved than Pompeii due to the speed and heat of the ash that covered everything. Modern-day Ercolano was built on top of Herculaneum, and only this small part was excavated. The whole thing is pretty much in a pit with the wall of volcanic ash around it...we had to walk down a tunnel to get into the city. The walls of ash were amazing though- it was hard to imagine the whole city being dug out of there! It was also really cool that we could see Mt. Vesuvius from the city, but don't worry, it stayed quiet! Another interesting thing was that Herculaneum was a coastal city before the eruption, and the Mediterranean Sea used to right up against the buildings we saw. This seems very strange considering the sea is now about a quarter mile away!

Some cool things we saw in the city include a temple, some ancient stores, the carbonized wood that was preserved since the eruption (this wasn't present in Pompeii), the dents in the stone streets from wagon wheels, bath houses, beautiful mosaics, and other main buildings that were so interesting! Our stay in Herculaneum was shorter than the Pompeii tour, but it was still awesome and I loved it!

After we left Herculaneum, we took another train to Sorrento and once there we walked to the hostel we stayed at during the trip. The hostel was surprisingly fancy and very comfortable, which was great. My roommates were nice, and were from Kentucky and Nebraska. Everyone in my class was quite nice on the trip, and it was nice that there were only 10 of us, including our teacher. That night, our awesome teacher took us to a pizzeria in Sorrento, where I had delicious appetizers of more cheese and bread and the best prosciutto I have eaten in Italy! The actual pizza that we ate wasn't even my favorite part of the meal, haha.  The tomato sauce on the pizza here is sometimes too sweet for me, but the bread and cheese in it is always excellent!

The next morning, we had a great breakfast at the hotel and then took another train to Pompeii, where we began our tour! Luckily the weather was nice to begin with, even if it did rain later in the afternoon. I still had fun despite the rain! Pompeii is definitely on my list of my favorite things I did in Italy, because I was truly so happy to be there! I have been interested in the city since middle school and it was so cool to be there in real life and see all of the things from our textbook! There are so many details that I could share, but I'd suggest a book on Pompeii since I can't even begin to describe all the things we saw! Being in a town that looked pretty much the same as it was in Roman times was so surreal and I loved it!! Pompeii is quite large, too, so there was a lot to see. Things that really stood out for me were the Forum, the temples, the streets with the grooves from the wagon wheels like in Herculaneum, the frescos, plaster casts of the deceased Pompeiians, the theatres, the Villa of the Mysteries with its beautiful paintings, and most of all the amphitheater! I had to do a presentation on gladiators and being in the amphitheater, talking about the gladiatorial games that occurred there so long ago...ahh it was so cool!! I think my class could tell that I was very into my topic!

Pompeii was so amazing and going on the trip without knowing anyone else was a good thing for me. So many things here in Italy have improved my confidence and I couldn't be more thankful for that. Being in Pompeii was such a great experience and I had so much fun! Even though it rained at the end, it was still an awesome tour and I am so glad that I took that class.

That night, we went out to eat again with our teacher, this time to a lovely restaurant where I ate delicious cannelloni and veal escalope in white wine sauce. SO GOOD, and so fancy! A good end to our stay in Sorrento. The next day, we took yet another train back to Naples, where we visited the National Archeological Museum. Being in the Naples train station was kinda sketchy since the city is kinda rough, and I couldn't wear my jewelry for risk of theft, but nothing bad happened so all was fine. The Archeological Museum was great, though we were all pretty tired by that time! I loved seeing all the art that was found in Pompeii, especially the mosaics of guard dogs and statues of various animals. The museum itself was even awesome, with long, open hallways that are lit in a lovely way. I always enjoy going to museums, so it was delightful!

We had lunch in the train station that was rather sub-par, and after waiting for our train for a long while I was glad to rest on the trip back to Florence. All my Florence roommates were also travelling that weekend, so I had a relaxing evening before heading off to bed. Fun fact: I went on 10 trains in 3 days!! It was such a wonderful weekend and as I said, will be remembered as one of the best parts of my study abroad experience!

I took sooo many pictures, but here are some of the best ones. In my facebook album I describe each one a bit more, so if you are interested, check it out! =]

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Dog Photos!

Hello everyone! To start off my posting for today, here are the photos that I took for my photography midterm and final project. I wanted to photograph dogs because I really like how dogs think the same way in every country and even though the Italian people don't speak my language, the dogs here are just the same as dogs at home. That fact is pretty comforting in a place that is completely new. Their language is universal, and I tried to capture that idea in my photos. Enjoy!

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