Sep
27
I’ve already noticed on this trip–I’ve had a lot of photos of sunsets, but just as many sunrises.
The day before yesterday, our Student Activities Council (of which I am Vice President) put on a 1990’s-themed dinner/movie night. This event, if I recall correctly, was originally inspired by the…eclectic music taste of shops and restaurants around Arezzo (one night, we legitimately heard Bye, Bye, Bye; I’m Like a Bird; and I’ll Stand by You back to back to back), and ended up including a scrumptious 1990’s-themed dinner, a sing-along of The Goofy Movie, and a viewing of the classic and often-forgotten Disney Channel Original movie Brink!
When the chicken nuggets were all ready, we shuffled through the food line, bobbing our side ponytails to the Spice Girls, scooping mac and cheese and PBJ sandwiches onto our plates. Between bites of grilled cheese, someone commented that the night seemed less representative of the decade, and more like re-living our childhood….
Well duh, I argued. It made sense, since we all are definite 90’s kids.
Photo credit Kaydee Dyer
So the night mmm’bopped on, but of course–being me–I couldn’t really get this thought out of my head. And by “this thought” I mean
**Am I seriously already old enough to be feeling the need to “relive my childhood?” **
I mean, last I checked, my childhood had not yet ended (though the premiere of the last Harry Potter movie felt like it at the time). But now, standing in a kitchen 5,000 miles away from my old playground, in a place where my wifi connection only sometimes allows me to talk to my parents (Hi, Dad!) there was no denying even to myself—I’m not a kid anymore. Even if I never technically “grew up” (at 5’2” most of the middle-schoolers I tutor are taller than me), I definitely became a grown-up somewhere along the line.
Okay, I’m nineteen years old, so this really isn’t news to anyone. But I’ve claimed to “feel like I’m thirty” since I was about fourteen, and never had a clue what I was talking about. I was petrified when I turned eighteen, because it was no longer acceptable to be the “kid who acts like an adult.” I was suddenly legally an adult, and I didn’t know how to handle it.
I had been conscious of this concept of “adulthood” for a while, but only the other night did I finally feel it, and even more than that, I finally feel happy about it.
I started thinking back to the past month here, and all that I have seen and done…
Before I even arrived in Italy, I backpacked through Scotland, England, and Luxembourg with only my best friend (and I made this
snazzy video about it). We navigated train systems and flight delays, language barriers and hostel rooming issues without any parents or teachers holding our hands. Once I arrived in Italy, alone, I started using a language other than the one I had grown up with. I moved into my first apartment. Then, a few weeks in, a couple friends and I decided on a Thursday to go out of town that weekend. We booked everything, made the four-hour journey, and then spent two days of total freedom in Cinque Terre—choosing where we ate, who we talked to, how far out we wanted to swim…. By day two, we hiked nine kilometers up and down a monstrous hill and through some scenic vineyards from one town to the next.
I still can’t tell for sure where the water ends and the sky starts.
By the time we got home, nothing seemed impossible anymore.
In the past few weeks, I have started innumerable lists of road trips and vacations I want to make once I get back to the states; in the meantime, I’ve booked a trip to Spain and planned a trip that involves an overnight train to Vienna to see my favorite band over Thanksgiving break; I’ve accepted that I’m just on the tip of the iceberg of things I can do in my lifetime. I can really do these things. In the past month, I have passed out of the realm of “when I grow up, it’s my dream to…” and into something far more exciting. I am grown up now. And I have started watching in amazement as those dreams I used to talk about have started coming true.
Forgive me for the overly-sentimental self-analysis! Now onto the corny stuff!
One thing I learned about Italy – We are stuck in a Dr-Who-eque time warp. Music from the 1990s, festivals from the 1600s, and spaceship motorcycle cars of the future. When am I??
One thing I learned about myself – See the 600-word composition above. Also, I love hyperlinks; this is a new discovery.
Best thing I ate – No competition. Craig’s masterful macaroni and cheese, which he amazingly managed to create senza cheddar, as this country apparently laughs at such mainstream formaggio.
Italian Word of the Week: Well, technically it hasn’t been a full week since my last post, but what the heck? Today’s word of the week is “cervicalgia,” meaning “neck pain.” One of my roommates was using this word repeatedly, and I was quite baffled until I had the sense to pull up Google translate.
And finally,
Travel Quote of the Day
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain
“Follow your feet,”
(name the movie for brownie points!)
Sep
25
Hi!
As promised in my last entry, I’m going to do a bit of catch up and move forward at the same time…as best I can.
I know I’ve thrown around the enticing word “joust” at least once. And yes, I have been literal this whole time—Arezzo is host to a bi-annual jousting festival, which has historical roots as far back as the days of Dante. (see picture below)
See Prof. Houston! I have been paying attention in class!
The town is divided into 4 competing neighborhoods or “quarters” who all submit 2 horsemen to ride against a mannequin with a target. There is a points system, and a golden lance trophy that everyone makes a huge deal of. I have never seen such community togetherness as in the entire week of parties, parades, and banquets leading up to this tournament. Here is my album from the event, if you’re anxious for the flashy pictures and exciting stuff…and now for the boring (except I don’t find them boring at all) details!
Jousts pretty much went out of style after the 1600s, but in the 1930s when the Fascists were trying to get Italy all excited about being a united country, they went around arranging a bunch of events to unite the community under the banner of their rich history. One of these projects in Arezzo was to re-instate the joust. So, one thing I have learned since coming here…
Italy has a lot of shady history
I’ve always known that Italy was one of the Axis powers, however…I don’t think I had ever really processed the way that World War II affected individual communities here. You think about WWII and what are the topics that come to mind? Germany? Nazis? Jewish holocaust? Maybe Japan and the A-Bomb? Italy gets forgotten, but in the past few weeks, I’ve been overwhelmed to think about these little things, like the joust being a fascist installation, or half of the city being newer than the rest because it was bombed to the ground seventy something years ago.
We watched the extremely poignant movie La Vita e Bella, which partially takes place in Arezzo, and this fact finally—and painfully—hit home.
Sep
23
Ciao a tutti!
My name is Lane and I am studying abroad in Arezzo, Italy this semester! I have officially been here in Arezzo, Italy for over a month now! I can not believe time is going by so quickly. I am completely in love with this place, it’s people, and it’s culture. I can only imagine what the next few months will be like!
If any of you have seen or read Eat, Pray, Love then you may understand the title of my first post! Eat Pray Love is one of my very favorite stories and I watched it right before I left to begin this great new chapter in my life. Throughout the story, the Italian phrase “Dolce far niente” is mentioned multiple times, it means “The sweetness of doing nothing.” and it’s a phrase that has really begun to make sense to me during my time here. At home in the US, for me especially, it is so easy to get caught up in watching my favorite TV shows or seeing whats new on Facebook every thirty minutes. My life at home is busy and chaotic and very technology oriented. But here, my life has dramatically changed. Lack of a television, and wifi outside of my apartment, has changed my perspective on my days and requires me to do things other than what I’m used to. Often, this free time includes “Dolce far niente”.
In the past month I’ve spent my time getting to know this place I now call “home”. I’m comfortable with my whereabouts and know how to get around, have small (very small) conversations in Italian, and most importantly, I’ve located the grocery stores! Arezzo is a beautiful city in the hills of Tuscany, literally. Here is a view of the hills from my kitchen window.
View of Arezzo from my kitchen window
Sitting on the wall that surrounds Arezzo!
My apartment is inside of the city walls, which adds to the feeling that I’m truly living the “Italian” way of life! I am a block away from Piazza Grande, which is a beautiful piazza with restaurants, shops, and of course, gelaterias! If you’ve seen the movie “Life is beautiful” it’s based here in Arezzo, and many of the beginning scenes take place in Piazza Grande!
Piazza Grande
I have already been able to travel outside of Arezzo a bit! A few weeks ago, some friends and I went to Cinque Terre, which consist of five villages connected by hiking trails! It sits on cliffs that overlook the Italian Riviera! This was by far the most beautiful view of the ocean I have ever seen.
I have also been able to go to Florence twice, once at night and once for the day! We saw many of the famous sights to see, they were all stunning. The Duomo was my favorite! We also shopped at the Italian leather market, which was incredible, and I bought my first purchase since being here in Italy..an Italian leather purse!
My classes here are going well, so far I am really enjoying all of them. My professors are passionate about what they’re teaching us, which makes class much more interesting. In a few weeks we are taking a trip with OUA to Pompeii, Sorrento, and the island of Capri for a few days! I am excited to begin traveling as it’s a major passion of mine, and I can’t imagine what the rest of the world will be like if this small piece of Italy that I live in has already captured my heart!
Alla prossima!
-L
Sep
22
Buongiorno, friends!
Starting a blog post is hard, so I’m going to skip to the middle of it. But before I do that, I should come back towards the beginning about a quarter of the way and provide you with some context for this blog, since you probably don’t already know me half as well as you should.
(And in honor of Bilbo Baggins’s birthday today, I should let you know that I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve. J.K. but seriously.)
I’m Chris, and I’m a super-junior Computer Engineering major studying in Arezzo this fall. I say super-junior because this is my fourth year, but I have already committed to an extra year to throw in a Master’s degree in Computer Science, and I’m finishing my bachelor’s degree halfway through that extra year thanks to Algorithm Analysis. Anyway, super-junior. It’s a thing.
I should also let you know that I am a gigantic nerd. As if the Hobbit reference, Computer Engineering/Science, and my enthusiasm for grad school didn’t already give that away, I’ll just tell you know that I love school, learning, and working in my field(s). I’ve averaged 17 credit hours per semester for my college career, and I’m enrolled in 18 this semester. While driving my mind to the limit (and sometimes beyond) on campus, I’ve also been busy interning and researching since the end of Freshman year, on top of all those classes. I stay pretty busy. I love it.
So, oddly enough, one of the hardest adjustments I’ve had to make here in Italy has been to work out what “studying abroad” really looks like for me in Arezzo. In a city in which almost every business owner closes up for a few hours in the afternoon and picks an additional day not to even open besides Sundays, my let’s-go-get-it-done American industrious/pragmatic self has had to learn how to slow down a bit. A lot. We’re a little more than a month into the semester and I’ve only had one test/quiz, and it was in my Pass/No Pass Intro to Italian class. I should also let you know that test day is my favorite day.
I’m doing an internship with La Fabbrica del Sole this semester, and my initial plan was to draw upon that for my Honors research this semester. The only problem is, they’re busy being the Italian Dharma Initiative and doing their cool experiments and building the world’s first urban hydrogen pipeline, not hanging out, waiting for their American interns to arrive. As such, my very first meeting with my boss is not until next week. Not a problem, unless you’re trying to bang out an Honors thesis in a semester, right?
So it’s been a little bit crazy for me this semester because of how busy I haven’t been so far. I’m so used to running around that I don’t know how to stand still. It’s been nice – sometimes I walk around and take pictures of the city for hours, or stay up past 4 A.M. designing T-shirts, or blog (oh hey!). I’ve gotten to know some great new friends over espresso, gelato, and Sherlock late into the night. Though I’m still doing my best to pursue the furthering of my knowledge in engineering and build on my experience for my imminent job search, and I’m working very hard in my classes, I’m learning that perhaps the most valuable area of study for me this semester is the one that’s not going on my transcript: life in a brand-new context.
They do seem to stay pretty busy at Pagani, though.
Coming into this semester, I thought I would have to choose between being a student and being a traveler. That in order to accomplish my academic goals for the school year, I would have to pass up some of the more “vacation-like” experiences of studying abroad. I also had a little bit of a sassy attitude about people who only go abroad for a good time, and feel like they don’t even have to try to be good students while they’re there. I’m happy to say that I couldn’t have been more wrong. I’m still a student, only now more portable. Next month, I’m going to Spain and Sweden, and we’re hitting up Vienna and London in November.
While studying abroad, I’ve found that ‘abroad’ itself is a very nice thing to study, if that makes any sense.
Sep
17
Ciao! Per Piacere! My name is Nicole Grant and I am currently studying abroad in Italy with the OU in Arezzo program. My life has been uprooted and moved half way across the world to Tuscany. I am originally from a big city in Texas so moving to a small town in Italy has been quite the adjustment. I am an European International and Area Studies major and I am loving it! I speak 3 languages fluently and I am currently working on my fourth. I can speak French, Spanish, and English and now Italian! I am loving learning Italian in a country that actually speaks Italian. I get to practice hands-on with people here even though communication is mainly just “coppia piccola” or “un’etto di proscuitto per favore” . I am a lover of Mexican food, so eating only Italian food has been a struggle! I love tomatoes and Ziti, but not for every meal of the day. I understand I must eat all of this in order to immerse myself fully into the culture of Arezzo and Italy. My favorite thing to do in the United States is shop and thank goodness fashion is a major part of the culture here! I love walking up and down the Corso and seeing all the beautiful shops. So much to look at and so many things to discover everyday. I still wake up and giggle to myself, because it is unbelievable I am in Italy. Instead of birds chirping outside my window in Norman, I get mopeds and cars and regular city noises. This experience has already been quite the roller coaster, but keeps getting better everyday! I better get going on my Dante close reading paper. Until next time amichi!
Ciao!
Nicole 
Sep
17
Did the semester really start almost a month ago? Inconceivable!
I’m ashamed to admit I have been so overwhelmed by how much catching up I need to do that I have continued in my procrastination and only put myself more behind. For a while, I might make it a habit to touch on one current thing that’s going on and another that passed by un-blogged in the past twenty-nine days.
But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Let’s try this again.
Well hello there, Tuscany!
Ciao a tutti!
My name is Shelby Stillwell; I’m a sophomore currently studying in Italy with the OU in Arezzo program. I am a history nerd and bookworm, a writer and a former theatre kid (though it never really leaves your system). I love stories and adventure, and am on a mission to make my own story one big adventure.
I am currently double-majoring in International Studies and Broadcasting and Electronic Media. After college, I am hoping to go into either International Education (Study Abroad councilor? Educational tour guide? World history teacher?) or Travel Media (Travel Channel? National Geographic? Lonely Planet’s digital media branch?) or some kind of creative combination of the both, which I have yet to imagine. Clearly I don’t have it all exactly figured out yet, but I’m only a sophomore, and I’m working on it. If I have any revelations about it throughout the semester, I’m sure you’ll get to read all about it.
I’m going to leave you at this for now, and if you have managed to get all the way through this introduction I applaud you! I promise it will all pick up from here. I still have to retrospectively tell you about Joust Week, a weekend trip to Cinque Terre, and generally what it’s like to be living in Tuscany (Oh my goodness, am I seriously living in Tuscany??) plus all the adventures to come.
But for now, I have to get back to my homework–yes, studying actually is a part of Studying Abroad, oddly enough.
“Live long and prosper!”
Shelby Stillwell
Sep
15
Well, the direct translation isn’t yank on stomach. It’s actually “pull stomach”. However, that doesn’t do reality justice. It’s more like yank/tug/jerk stomach. Kinda like an internal combustion engine working overtime through the intestines. And I have it. This is not unexpected. Almost every foreigner (well, Westerner), gets it within one or two weeks of an extended stay in China. I mean, it’s totally understandable. The food here tastes amazing. Especially the food you can get on the street.
Every time you make a purchase, even if it’s the same food purchased from the same little mart, could taste just a little different than you remember it, but still taste incredibly good. Unfortunately, stomachs of most Westerners must go through its own version of culture shock as it deals with the reality of a different flavor of food. The results can be quite impressive. Exhaustion is just one symptom after a long sit in the thinking room.
Anyway, I thought I had beat it. I was set. Last night, I went to bed early. I woke up early. I felt great. I had some bread for breakfast. I had some potstickers for lunch. Lamb was on the inside. I didn’t think lamb would upset my stomach as I figured pork would. Anyhow, my taste buds thanked me profusely for such a tasty meal for lunch. I finished studying. Half-an-hour flies by. No eruptions are immenent. Maybe I had beat the tide. An hour goes by. Nothing on the horizon. I think I’ve beat it. Now, to go out with friends and check out the Olympic Stadium.
That’s when it hit. Not before I left my room. Not when I was waiting downstairs for my friends. Not even when we left the apartment. But when we stepped across the university gate leading to the outside world, I noticed something concerning. A distant rumbling warning of things to come.
Now, for a foreigner, there is something that must be understood about China. The toilets here are not exactly of the sitting nature. Rather, they are of the squatting family. I’ve never been a fan of that brand of commode. This is my third extended trip to this part of the world and I have yet to be put in a position where balancing my weight in a squat position is my only option. However, it seems that Beijing has even fewer assisted squatters than Shanghai or even Taiwan. It seems that the old fashioned way of doing things is my only option if I’m caught outdoors in a dire need to find someplace private to do my business.
In other places in this part of the world, McDonald’s is a trusted place to find something to sit on. However, in Beijing, even McDonald’s has not imported this most luxurious of Western cultural artifacts.
So, we begin this trip. Within five minutes of our travel, I am concerned. Thirty minutes in, we’ve reached the Olympic Stadium. I can’t hold it any longer. By this time, squatting and getting rid of the constant pain within seems better than trying to hold it in. I search for a stall. I figure, if anywhere in Beijing has something to sit upon for me to do my most important business, it’s got to be the Olympic area. I mean, the Chinese served thousands of Westerners not four years ago. They had to have provided something to sit on, right?
Fortunately, the answer to that question is yes. Unfortunately for me, and much to my chagrin, the one thing they did not provide in that private compartment was toilet paper. In none of those stalls could toilet paper be found. There wasn’t even any paper towels. They’ve gone green in their effort to conserve waste. So, I take care of business, learn some lessons and return home.
After I clean up, I have some dinner consisting of crackers and peanut butter. Surely, my stomach will welcome such old and familiar products. Not quite. In fact, not until I break down and grab some sprite and gatorade does my stomach calm down and begin to rest.
This time, however, I will not underestimate the power of the Pull Stomach. A friend is hooking me up with some medicine tomorrow as well as yogurt that kills stomach bugs. I shall conquer for I will never give up! And I will never accept defeat! I will endure! And I will succeed!
Sep
11
Around the world in 90 minutes…Impossible? No. Astronauts do it all the time. Us normal people? Maybe a little more difficult. Until now. Leave it to the Chinese to figure it out.
In the southwest corner of Beijing, there resides a park dedicated to showing off the world’s greatest structural wonders throughout history. Each section of the park is dedicated to a certain geographic area of the world. Europe. America. Africa. Middle-East. Ancient Egypt. Ancient Greece.
This is one twenty-fifth of the actual size…
Ever want to see a pyramid or the Coliseum but never had the money to travel to Egypt or Rome? Now you can see both and much more up close and personal on a smaller scale. But you need to travel to Beijing first. The White House. Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial. The former skyline of New York City complete with Twin Towers. Denmark’s Mermaid. Belgium’s water basin. London Tower Bridge. Venice. Paris. All are there. Some even that I’d never heard of before. Each on a scale varying in size from life-size to as small as one-fourtieth of the actual size. Each, however, much larger than a human. And all seen in 90 minutes. Flat. Well worth the $10 US it cost to get in. And I can now say I’ve been to all the most important places in history throughout the world.
Of course, I was not the only one there. Besides my friends from school, many Chinese congregated around the various parts of the world for pictures. Not just any pictures mind you. Engagement/wedding pictures. Tall, thin, short, stout, all types of Chinese were there dressed to the nines to capture that special moment next to those historical markers. Making history next to history.
Now, we weren’t planning on seeing these artifacts when our journey began. Originally, we were only going to see Marco Polo Bridge. We saw it. It’s historically significant. It was there when Marco Polo visited. It’s that old and still in use. Polo said that that bridge was a marvel. The dragons on top of each of the bridge’s pillars has a different facial expression. But it’s just a bridge. It took all of 10 minutes, if not less, to get what we wanted out of it. So, we did the next best thing: checked the iPhone and found the World’s Park 世界公园.
Traveling is fun. All places have so much good. The world’s greatest monuments will always be preserved by historians, books, pictures and now actual models built to scale. In China.
Sep
9
First week is over. What a relief. That first couple days of getting settled in, realizing my Chinese wasn’t as good as what I thought, and dealing with the hassles inherent in moving somewhere foreign are finally over. And you know what? I’m glad to be moving forward.
I’m about the only American in my program. I’ve seen white people running around every now and then and yelled out to them only to have a foreign English accent respond. Consequently, I’ve made friends with people from all over the world: Cameroon, Belgium, Spain, Denmark, Korea, Japan, China, Germany, etc.
Girl looking just right before taking her picture at Forbidden City
What an amazing opportunity for me to experience the beauty of this world and life through becoming friends with people of completely different nationalities and cultures. It’s amazing to me just how marvelous this life is and how similar we all are to each other all over the world.
Before I became friends with so many, I took the opportunity to sightsee. I saw Mao’s resting place. I saw Tiananmen Square where so much history has taken place. I saw many more things. But then I got to focus more on school activities.
We had opening ceremonies and get to know each other games Friday
Split up into teams for games
. Everyone had the deer in the headlight look. Everyone. So, we set about getting to know each other using the most common language available: English with a dash (if that) of Chinese.
But now, the real fun begins. The tests are in. The results are back. Textbooks are bought. Classes begin 8 a.m. tomorrow. Four months from now, our Chinese should be much better. Friendships will have deepened and important experiences gained.
Sep
4
Moving to a new country is fraught with uncertainty and unexpected requirements. Sometimes, that means more headaches and frustrations than one ever wants in a lifetime. Like when you have money, but no way to access it. Or when you have a visa, but got the wrong category of visa.
Both things happened to me yesterday as I was signing in to school here in Beijing.
First. I had to sign in to my apartment. I couldn’t register with the school until I signed into my apartment and got a form of temporary residence from the apartment. The apartment manager handed me my key and said, you owe the equivalent of about $1,200 US for the semester.
“Can I pay month to month?” I ask. “Nope,” they say in Chinese. “All up front.”
“Can I pay with my credit card?” I ask. “Nope,” they reply. “Only cash accepted.”
I say ok and go to a bank. I put in my credit card and pull out some money. Or at least that’s the idea. Nothing happens. I had already maxed out my daily limit. It was Labor Day in America, so no one would be at work, which meant I couldn’t contact my bank or those who owe me money.
So there I was. Effectively broke with no access to any money, which meant no apartment, which meant no registration for school, which meant…well, I didn’t want to think about that.
Fortunately, a friend of mine who picked me up from the airport spotted me the money and said to pay him back when I could. I said I would pay him back through Paypal.
With the apartment taken care of, next was registering with the school. Things went smoothly until the very last step. They looked at my visa and said, “you have an x visa. You need a physical done.” Now, what I was told before coming to China was that I didn’t need a physical if I stayed here less than six months. However, they didn’t say that I needed one if I had an “x” visa. Had I gotten the work visa “f” then I wouldn’t need the physical.
Unfortunately, by the time I found that out yesterday, everyone had gone home. So, tomorrow, I’m off to the hospital for a physical. Hopefully, nothing will go wrong from here on out.
Lessons learned. Expect complications. Be prepared for anything. Have a friend with you who can help you out in a crisis. And don’t give up. Two steps forward and one step backwards is still moving forward.
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