As soon as I arrived and saw Sorrento, in a way it was everything I expected it to be meanwhile being a sight my eyes had never seen before. A coastal city nearing southern Italy with the most beautiful scenery. My apartment is literally facing toward the water. Because of this, my roommates and I are able to watch the sunset every evening.
In terms of the locals, they are so friendly. One of the things that surprised me the most was the way most people speak english which in a way isn’t as convenient because they default to speaking to me in English despite me speaking to them in Italian first. Most of the time I try explaining to them that I would appreciate it if they spoke to me in Italian and explaining how I am currently in the process of learning so they don’t expect too much of my speaking skills. Overall, it has definitely been such an adjustment for me as this is my first time in Europe.
Slang is encountered in all places and some of the words/phrases I have found to be interesting so far included “boh” which refers to “I don’t know.” I have found that people who tend to be younger are more inclined to such phrases. Prior to coming, I had never seen or heard this phrase before. Based on what I have noticed, this phrase seems to be used more commonly between friends and in a more informal way. I don’t know if I see myself using this phrase unless I were speaking to another young person who understood Italian to the extent of the slang.
Another phrase/slang that I have found to be interesting is “tranqui” which in other words means “don’t worry.” The reason why I have found this to be so interesting is because in Spanish this exact phrase is used. While learning Italian at Notre Dame, I never became aware of such abbreviations. The only difference is the pronunciation. This phrase is commonly used among most age groups across all scenarios. I have found myself using this slang quite frequently to anyone I am speaking with, if the scenario is appropriate. For example, this morning I used this phrase with the maid who comes and tidies up our apartment when she said she was sorry for forgetting to add a trash bag to one of the trash bins.
I look forward to continuing to encounter more colloquialisms throughout my stay here!
For this blog, I wanted to gather some opinions of Americans (both the country’s culture and the tourists we provide to cities like Siena) according to both native Italians and fellow students from countries such as Switzerland, Germany, and Spain. For this survey, I was certain to ask for their honest opinions excluding study abroad students like myself, since there would likely be some positive bias when accounting for Americans who come to Europe with the sincere intention of learning a foreign language and culture.
I first turned to my cultural professor for his thoughts, as dozens of Americans were chatting outside the Galleria dell’Accademia (the museum containing Michelangelo’s David). He remarked most prominently that it’s a shame that so many people come to grand cities like Florence to see the art and take pictures, but not to fully absorb its significance. Indeed, as I saw, it can be hard to find sincere, invested American tourists who aren’t only there for photo ops; however, my professor assured me that this is not at all exclusive to Americans or even all other Europeans. He explained, some cities just “become” fully tourist cities over time, and some of Italy’s grandest towns are great examples of this. As a result, even native Italians will see them as a site for their own tourism, much like how we Americans may spend vacations in hot cities like New York, Miami, or San Francisco. So, while it was comforting to know that this isn’t exclusively an American phenomenon, it’s rather unbelievable to consider that Italy probably has a much larger ratio of touristy cities to total landmass than the U.S.!
I spoke to my peers in Italian class more about how they view American culture. Did they feel like they knew a lot about it, and was it because of how easy it is to share media internationally these days? And how would they define the stereotypical American?
To answer the second question first, the response was fairly unanimous: loud and outgoing! I found that pretty fair, and added myself that American tourists like to see everything, but they often don’t take the time to understand it all. I think it says a lot when Italian business employees are impressed with a young American speaking their language as best they can, but it’s always a good sign that language schools like the one I’m attending have a steady influx of American students!
According to these students, they feel they’re inundated with plenty of American cultural references in online spaces, especially through mediums like music and fashion which can be found very easily on social media. The fact that they knew about the Fourth of July last week really demonstrates how much our country permeates the Internet! Entertainment, however, is generally the most reach American culture has for European teenagers, as they all have their own values and beliefs as influenced by their upbringing in their own home countries. I think this interview in particular was really great for having an extremely casual conversation to compare customs and interests across nationalities, especially among my peers.
For this blog, I wanted to discuss the most traditional and unique holiday in all of Siena’s culture: the Palio! To oversimplify, the main event of this medieval festival is a horse race between ten of the seventeen contrade, or neighborhoods, of the town that takes place on July 2 and August 16 in the central Piazza del Campo. I had read plenty of articles about it before arriving in Siena, but I don’t think anything but seeing it take place firsthand could have helped me recognize how central this event is to Sienese culture. To elaborate, I’d like explain how historians and average citizens perceive the Palio!
Our cultural professor at the Dante Siena program may not be a Siena native, but his extensive knowledge on the history and customs of the Palio is truly second to no one! As he explains, the Palio is actually more about the horse than its jockey. Some hours before the race, every horse is taken to it’s contrada‘s church to receive a special blessing: to go and return a winner! The titular “Palio” is the name for the large painted silk banner that the winning contrada will be able to display in their local museum. These often feature the flag patterns of the ten participating contrade and some graphic of a horse, but will always show an image of the Virgin Mary—to whom the race and the city are specifically devoted to.
In medieval times, as the professor explained, contrade were strictly divided, with various rivalries and alliances. This horse race was both an event to blow off some steam (as post-race fistfights between very devoted fans are accepted as part of the Palio culture even today!) and to establish which contrada would have rule of the city for the year. There’s plenty of customs that may come off as strange to foreigners, he adds, but it’s most important to note that the Palio is a nearly five-centuries-old tradition that tourists should respect. For example in my experience at the Palio the other day: the Piazza, even crowded with thousands upon thousands of people, must be in dead silence while the horses’ starting lineups are announced! And while not as grievous, most native citizens of Siena prefer that tourists who aren’t strongly invested in their culture do not wear the fazzoletti (bandanas or scarves featuring their contrada‘s flag).
I found that average citizens are more likely to talk about their own contrada in the Palio, and this is where the aforementioned rivalries and alliances dominate conversation. Speaking with my host the night of the race, she said, “So long as Valdimontone doesn’t win, everything is good!” Most contrade have a rival, and all will have at least one ally. Our contrada, Nicchio (“the seashell”) is rivals with Valdimontone (“valley of the ram”), and allies with Bruco (“the caterpillar”), Tartuca (“the tortoise”), and Onda (“the wave”). Allies are known to help each other out either financially or—as it’s whispered—with certain maneuvers during the race itself. My host adds: the gravity of these ties between contrade remains present all year! She rarely enters Valdimontone, despite it being a few streets away, because they are Nicchio’s enemy.
As extreme as some of these traditions may seem—and this doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface!—the spirit and excitement of the Palio truly can’t be matched. The dedication to this holiday even after five centuries is unbelievable, and I highly encourage anyone who is interested by what I have to say to read up on it or watch videos in their own time.
Thinking about my trip to Sorrento in July, I’m excited about all the pizza I’ll eat, the beach pictures I’ll take and the locals I’ll meet. Being in Italy rather than having isolated spaces to speak the language means that I won’t have my linguistic and cultural experience switched off at the end of class. I can go from expanding my vocabulary in the Sant’Anna Institute to using what I’ve learnt in Sorrento’s market to buy fresh fruit – I’ll never have to stop practicing my language skills.
In Italy, I can experience the culture first hand. For example, I can watch the locals perform their animated hand gestures as they discuss which pasta to have for dinner. I can’t wait to find out about local quirks in the language and how the town of Sorrento came to be what it is today; and what makes it the town it is.
Not only do I hope to develop my linguistic skills, I also hope that living and studying in Sorrento for five weeks will allow me to further my self-confidence skills by pushing myself to meet and talk to as many Italians as possible. I want to make the most of my time there by saying yes to every adventure offered to me, like taking a weekend trip to Rome or attending an Italian concert.
For this blog post, I’d like to discuss what a learned a unique ingredient that’s very special in Tuscan cuisine: the truffle! For those unfamiliar, this is a rare sort of mushroom with a potent taste and earthy aroma, and its extensive use in the kitchen has made it an expensive staple of upscale cuisine despite its unassuming, lumpy, brown exterior. But, just last week, I had the great opportunity to learn of this fungus’ wild origins in the woods of Siena!
What makes truffle so rare is its very specific needs: plenty of moisture, some shade, and even the species of tree whose roots it can sprout at are limiting factors for its growth. Additionally, it takes at least a month for these mushrooms to reach a harvestable size. The mild but wet climate of Tuscan forests facilitates their growth perfectly. But even then, truffles can be made unusable by insect infestations or blight. However, when hunts for this mushroom are successful, both the economic and culinary yields are rich!
The greatest part of my truffle-hunting experience had to be meeting the hunters themselves: two adorable dogs! With their amazing sense of smell, the two canines I followed along—named Moka and Pepita—sniffed out mushrooms for their handler, Alessandro, with pinpoint accuracy. Truffles, depending on the species, are typically either naturally exposed or just under the surface of the soil, but even the most trained truffle dog will only notice the scent of mature truffles—therefore ensuring that the ones collected are more likely to have a great taste.
I didn’t understand the popularity of truffles before the tasting experience at Alessandro’s little shop in the heart of Siena. But after sampling panforte (another Sienese specialty), cheese spreads, and even honey utilizing the ingredient, I realized how absolutely delicious it could be—especially complemented with sweet and savory flavors! What makes it a stellar part of a dish is when its used most authentically, straight from the mushroom, as opposed to derivatives such as truffle oil. Aside from infusions, chefs use truffle very conservatively: typically grated over food with the exterior layer included so that every last bit of it boosts the dish it’s in (often pasta) as a whole.
All in all, the most important thing I gained from this experience was the dedication it takes for truffle hunters such as Alessandro (and his dogs!) to uphold this niche but lucrative industry. Authentic truffles can only be natural, and only an amazingly small handful of people in Tuscany and the surrounding areas are practically the sole providers to such a unique element of the region’s cuisine. Though I don’t know when I will next have truffles considering the price tag, this experience as whole will remain a staple of my first week abroad!
I am incredibly excited to arrive in Siena, meet everyone in my program and start classes at the Dante Alighieri school. I believe this immersive study abroad experience will be vastly different from my studies so far and I have many goals for myself this summer. The biggest difference I expect is that I will have so much more time to explore places I am passionate about inside and outside of the classroom. While it was fun to tour around South Bend when I first started at Notre Dame, in Italy, I plan to go see something new everyday. Whether it is a new museum, view, walking trail, or even restaurant, I hope to discover new information about Italian culture and life every single day. On the weekends, I am excited to take adventures to other Italian cities. My top three cities on my bucket list right now are Cinque Terre, Milan, and Como.
During this exploration, I expect to use my Italian language skills and intercultural competences at almost all times. My main goal of this experience is to meet as many people as I possibly can and to speak to them in Italian. I look forward to forming new friendships and truly learning about life in Italy by conversing with the Italians I meet. I am specifically fascinated by Italian food and would be thrilled to take a cooking class or two while abroad. Another goal of mine is to learn more about Italian business, as I may be working either in Italy or with Italians after graduation.
I hope that after this experience I will be more confident in my Italian skills, better culturally versed, more independent, and better at adapting to what life may throw my way. After being in Europe for two weeks already, I believe I am already growing in these areas. I spent a week in Sicily with my family and have been in Paris for the last 5 days with my siblings. Staying in Sicily has already provided me with the opportunity to practice Italian as many Sicilians do not speak English. Talking with the people at the grocery store, restaurants, and rental shops was honestly one of my favorite things I have done so far. Traveling around Paris made me extremely appreciative of the Italian language skills I have as it was frustrating to not be able to converse with the Parisians. Sicily and Paris were extremely different, yet, I learned so much from both. Now I am on to London for a few days and will finally arrive in Siena. I cannot wait for this adventure to continue.
I am very excited about the opportunity to experience full immersion in Italy. In my past experiences abroad, although I had a great interest in learning the language of the respective countries, all of my learning came through immersion. In this case, I will have both classroom instruction as well as day-to-day immersion living in an Italian city. I expect this method of learning to be much more efficient than my classroom experience back home (of course). While at Notre Dame, I find a lot of outside studies are required to really learn a language. Although we do our best to learn in class, 50 minutes of study + homework in the evening is not enough to make great leaps in our understanding of the language and it is even difficult to maintain the level we establish in the classroom. Because of this, I spent a lot of time reading and seeking out listening opportunities through music, film, etc. to supplement my study. I am glad that study and daily life will be integrated so as to afford constant learning opportunities.
During my time abroad, my primary goal is to work on my rapid production skills while speaking and writing. It is very difficult to get good speaking practice at school. This past semester, I would often text or speak to classmates in Italian, and as great as that is, it is insufficient. Thankfully, this will not be my first experience with immersive language learning. During my time in Brazil learning Portuguese, I was able to acquire skills and a positive attitude towards effectively engaging with a foreign language and culture. Most importantly, I have learned how to learn from my mistakes and I already know that I will make many in the first couple of weeks.
I leave tomorrow and I am still not packed. Wish me luck. Arrivederci!
Fortunately, my first study abroad experience was last summer, on behalf of the School of Architecture’s generosity. I was able to study in Italy then as well, which increased my conviction that living in Italy greatly aided my learning of the language and regional cultures. I say “fortunately” only because I would not have recognized on my own how important studying abroad was for my personal growth and education, and because I was thus inspired to return. While I resided in Rome in Summer 2021, I had the opportunity to travel to Florence and Siena on a school trip. I was impressed by Siena, even from just one day spent there, and heard such high praise of the Dante Alighieri School program from my Italian professors. At this point, I have been back in Rome for two weeks already, and I am very excited to expand upon my language learning in Siena. I feel that this time now, living here and doing an internship with my architecture professor, allows me to “warm up” once again with the language and with the way of life.
I have been incorporating the Italian language when I can, which is fairly accessible due to being in Italy. This has taken many forms: listening to my professor and his colleagues speak about a design proposal and gleaning what I can from it; ordering a cappuccino in the late morning at a small café; practicing in Italian with my professor’s daughter; and so forth. And that is why I think that studying abroad, here in Rome and, shortly, in Siena, is so empowering for a student passionate about languages. While Italian language courses have allowed me to develop a strong foundation through an incredible support system, I always feel the nervousness of speaking up in class. But here, I realize the necessity to speak up, to use the language as often the only way I can communicate and connect with other people. Being abroad, I am not worried about what a peer might think if I mess up with a phrase or conjugation; rather, I recognize that whoever I am talking to will simply appreciate my efforts and might simply not be someone I see again, so there is no embarrassment to be felt. Not concerned about “messing up” allows me to grow, so I am eager to enter the immersive language program and more deeply understand the language. By the time I return to campus in August, I hope that feelings of hesitation will have washed away, so that I may more actively engage with material in the classroom.
As an architecture student with an interest in urbanism, living in Siena, paired with culture courses, will greatly enrich my studies of architecture and history overall. I plan to draw and walk through the city in a way that will help me better understand the planning and motivations behind architectural styles and urbanistic choices. The immersive experience will allow me the time to reflect on this. Furthermore, I enjoy learning slang and popular expressions in my target language. I think it allows me to be more in touch with Italian beyond just knowing vocabulary or grammar.
As a language learner, I recognize it is very valuable to make many mistakes to learn quickly. However, I also think matching the cadence or typical pronunciation of letters in the target language, to the best of your ability, is very beneficial as a learner. For instance, if I mess up the cadence or pronunciation of the first words I say when talking to a native Italian speaker, sometimes they may default to English. While I recognize they are doing this to help me out, I value even more the opportunity to keep speaking so that I may get extra practice. If I disguise just a bit longer that I am an early learner, i.e. pronounce words in a comparable way, then this affords me the chance to avoid this “default to English” and get more speaking time in Italian! So I would love to learn more about pronunciation and matching the rhythm of the Italian language, to allow my practice and conversation with locals to flow more easily.
What largely prompted my desire to return to Italy this summer is because of how much I felt that my time here changed me. With each week that passed in Summer 2021, I felt myself continually in awe of the language, the various cultures throughout the country, the rich architectural history, and the walkable cities. I did not anticipate that my time abroad would have that much of an effect on me, but it did. I started to see what it might look like to be a lifelong learner. Were there course assignments when I was here last summer? Sure. But were the focuses of those the limits of my education then? Not at all. Even on weekend trips independent from academic study, I felt my horizons expanding greatly. I come from a more suburban area of Southwest Florida, so I had never been able to walk around a city everyday as my primary means of movement. I love my home, of course, but to walk around in Rome – Siena – Florence – Naples – Venice – etc. etc. finally brought to light the lessons of urbanism that had intrigued me in school, but had never really stuck until now. My two greatest passions are brought together here: design and language. And what really impressed me across last summer and this summer is how important applying your studies to everyday life is for understanding, personal growth, and increased interest. I trust that with the start of the Siena program, about two weeks away, I will delve deeper into what about the Italian language is so moving – and with that, the study of language in general – and into why architecture and urbanism truly shape the life of visitors and residents alike.
I’ve made a new friend with my professor’s daughter Livia, who is about my age. We have been spending a lot of time together. Another friend and I invited her into the garden here of the Notre Dame Villa in the Celio neighborhood one afternoon! Livia (left), me (right).
As the countdown to my departure to Siena draws nearer, I can only anticipate how incredible this fully immersive experience will boost my knowledge of Italian language and culture during those five weeks. Of course, the greatest difference compared to my Notre Dame Italian courses is that I will have the chance to practice my proficiency in the language all day, every day. Knowing few Italian majors, I had rarely had the chance to rehearse my skills in holding conversations. While in Siena, I know I’ll also be trying to interpret and absorb the many differences in cultural practices. Things like the expressive body language and dialectical variances have always been of great interest to me, and that’s surely something an Italian student can’t always get from lectures and textbooks.
I think this experience overall will be great for practicing my independence. As a youngest sibling and despite being from a large suburb, I have never been brave enough to branch out on my own. However, I hope to change that with this trip now that I’ll doing things mostly by myself. I’m very fortunate that I’ll always have someone like my host family in Siena to fall back on if I’m having trouble adjusting to this drastic change, but I am going to challenge myself as much as I can to embrace the immersion and individuality that this adventure abroad presents to me.
Going abroad will be an entirely brand new experience in all aspects possible. I have never been to Italy let alone Europe. As we know studying abroad is not just being abroad but learning in an entirely new academic setting and environment. I expect this immersive experience will be different from studying in a normal classroom setting because I will not only be enhancing myself academically but overall through exposure to a new culture, language, country, etc. I know academically I will be growing but as an individual I expect to grow as well.
I plan to speak and use English as little as possible as I am aware that I am also there to enhance my Italian language skills specifically by furthering my vocabulary and pronunciation. I know that as of right now my pronunciation needs a bit of refining as I tend to pronounce words by leaning on my spanish; I want to enhance the true italian accent. Considering the fact that I will be immersed amongst locals I am excited to learn and absorb italian from interacting with them. I am walking into this experience completely open minded. I am also excited to learn more in depth about the southern coastal Italian culture, considering most of my time will be spent in Sorrento. I know that the most authentic experiences will come from interacting with the local community. Meanwhile, I am there I also want to take advantage of learning more about the European Union in the business aspect as it is one of my goals to be able to work in the realm of international business. Of course I am also so excited to finally get my hands on authentic Italian food.
I expect to come back with a large level of growth and knowledge. I know that I will not come back being the same person who left. As I mentioned before, I am completely open to anything this experience has to offer me. My growth will primarily be from being able to understand and accommodate to a culture and language that is foreign to me. The exposure I will experience will lead me to having a grander perspective as I will be surrounded entirely by a foreign way of life and I couldn’t be more excited.
