Last year on my 21st birthday, I got on a plane to Italy and started my semester abroad. My parents came to the airport bar with me so I could get the experience of “my first drink” on my birthday. I ended up not even getting carded because my dad was the one to order for us, but I appreciated the sentiment nonetheless. Fast forward about 8 hours and I found myself stepping off the plane into the Rome airport. Already overwhelmed by the weight of leaving the U.S on my own, the Rome airport was the last place I wanted to be. It’s essentially a giant mall inside of an airport, and you have to walk through crowded stores of zig-zagging people trying to get to their gates. After making it through the maze and eventually finding my ticket counter, I was able to board my flight and begin my trip to Florence.Â
If you’re considering studying abroad, this is your sign to do it. Take it from me, as someone who has suffered from anxiety their whole life, had nightmares prior to leaving the country, and was dreading the thought of living in a 6 person apartment—it was the best decision I ever made. If I’m being honest, my time at Pitt hasn’t been quite what I hoped. Maybe I overhyped the college experience, or maybe I just wish my college housing never had mice, but either way, by sophomore year I was looking into transferring. The combination of gray weather and bad South Oakland landlords was weighing on me, and I couldn’t imagine spending another year in Pittsburgh. However, transferring didn’t really feel like an option either. I had just switched my major from Psychology to Media & Professional Communications, so my credits were all over the place. I didn’t want to sign myself up for an extra year and more college loans at another university. I stuck it out and decided to stay. Thankfully, junior year I found a better apartment, but I was still miserable. After some digging, I decided at the last minute to apply for the Pitt in Florence program that Spring.Â
Getting into the program was both exciting and terrifying. I had bouts of insomnia, stress headaches, and thought about rescinding my application a few times, but with the encouragement of my family, I confirmed my acceptance and moved ahead. Over the next few months I received countless emails about my next steps, registered for classes, filled out housing forms, and started the confusing process of getting my student visa (you’d think they would streamline the process, but each website has more links than the last). After I got through all of that, it was only a couple of weeks until I packed up my life for the next 4 months into 2 suitcases and a personal item and departed Pittsburgh.
I think studying abroad is a great idea, no matter where you decide to go; however, I highly recommend going to Florence. The city is walkable and every street is filled with unique coffee shops, vintage stores, and various other small businesses. Public transportation is not too hard to figure out, but experiencing the city by foot is so much better. None of my friends joined me on this program, and I was scared of feeling alone in a foreign country. If you have the same fear, don’t let it stop you. Through random housing assignments and my classes, I met some incredible people who I’ve stayed in touch with after Florence. Sometimes, I think it’s crazy that we were all strangers at the start of the program only to become close friends by the end. Studying for classes, exploring the city, and traveling to new countries together is a great way to create lasting relationships with new friends.
I don’t think there are words to express how much I loved my time in Florence. Going on this program alone was scary, but I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. Coming back from abroad helps to put a lot of things into perspective. I feel like a lot of the things that used to make me anxious just don’t anymore. My problems in the US seem a lot smaller when I think about having navigated life in a country where I didn’t speak the language for 4 months. It also helped me appreciate my college experience at Pitt more since I’m now in my senior year and will be leaving here soon. If I had the chance to do it all over again, I would go to Florence 100 times over, and if anyone ever needs recommendations, I’m always happy to talk. And to the city of Florence, all I can say is “Grazie!”