I have been in Italy for approximately four days and I can already state that I am in love with this new culture and environment. At first, I was hesitant to all the new and unfamiliar things that I would encounter coming to a foreign country. As the days progressed I immediately knew that I would be fine, and adapting would be easier than imagined. The atmosphere and lifestyle in Florence, Italy is significantly slower paced than it is in America. There appears to be no sense of time which results in a stress free environment. Dinners last longer consisting of multiple courses and people tend to stay up much later into the night. Also, I am shocked to discover that most everything is much smaller than in America. For example, the portion sizes are nearly half of what we are used to and the idea of personal space almost ceases to exist. The simplicity of this country is lovely and admirable. A concern that I had before coming abroad was the fear of a large language barrier. Shockingly, most Italians speak English and a variety of signs are in English as well. Even though this is the case, I have been striving to speak Italian in every opportunity given. I am thrilled to learn more in my beginning Italian class, for I will be able to utilize my learnings all around this beautiful country. I am beyond eager to experience and see what else Italy has in store for me this summer.
