Study Abroad Blog

Some afternoons, I sit on the steps of San Lorenzo, with a book in one hand and a gelato on the other. In front of me, a Great Dane quietly sits next to it’s owner, while some kids toss a soccer ball back and  forth to my right. I see one of my classmates from afar, taking a stroll with an Italian boy she had told me about. I think  his name was Niccolo. Anyway, I’ve never seen her smile so big. It’s a sunny day in Perugia but the cool breeze alleviates the stings of heat on my skin.  It’s these little things, le piccole cose, that make up most of the in between. I’m not complaining.

I don’t know what it is exactly, but being in Europe makes you feel unstoppable. It’s as if the millionaire dollar advertising campaigns run by the likes of Orbitz and Expedia aren’t enough to convince me that travel within America is all that accessible or well, appealing. Whereas here, I have found myself in-flight more times than I can count on both hands. Here’s a little glimpse at what I’ve been up to:

Cape Sounion, Greece

Athens, Greece

Mykonos, Greece

Barcelona, Spain

Barcelona, Spain

Marrakech, Morocco

Marrakech, Morocco

Marrakech, Morocco

Sunday night was fantastic. Despite Italy not making it to the World Cup finals, the Perugian excitement for Netherlands vs. Spain was in full force.

Surprisingly though, the overall reaction to Spain winning didn’t seem to please most of my Italian friends. Something about having to “hear about it for the next 4 years.” Oh, boys.

But the celebration continued all night from real Spanish students who happen to make up a big portion of the student population in Perugia. Most of them are here through ERASMUS (European Region Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students), a program within the European union that gives students the opportunity to study at least 3 months to 1 year of their career studies in another country… The possible catch? Some of these programs require that the coursework is in the language of the country you’re visiting! My upstairs neighbor for example, Antonio, had to learn his art history in Italian, a language he knew very little of before arriving to Perugia. I can’t even imagine how difficult it would be to have to take one of my English literature courses in Italian!

Anyway, the point is that there are tons of Spanish students here. And they made their presence very known after Spain’s win on Sunday. Let’s just say there were many historic fountains invaded… (by overly enthused, quite likely inebriated, soccer fans).

Perhaps in an attempt to show off all the Italian they had been learning during their ERASMUS (or just to rub it in), they kept chanting:
“Siamo campioni del mondo! Siamo campioni del mondo! Siamo campioni del mondo!”

Every summer, Perugia hosts a 10 day jazz festival called Umbria Jazz. Now, this shouldn’t be mistaken for as some ordinary, run-of-the-mill music festival. In fact, it’s safe to say that Umbria Jazz is actually quite extraordinary.

As if I wasn’t lucky enough already, it just so happens that Umbria Jazz began Friday. I must admit that I am not well versed in the sounds of B.B King, Tony Bennett or Miles Davis, but this is the kind of festival that makes the never before jazz fan – well, a jazz fan for life.

For the next 10 days, Perugia becomes absolutely intoxicating (and I don’t just mean from birra e vino). But the free performances on the two main stages across the city center and the impromptu street shows, truly bring this medieval city to life. Not only do native Perugino’s partake in the fun, but thousands of people across the world come to this little town in central Italy to indulge in the music and melodies.

E una cosa bellissima.

Where do I even begin?

The mid-day strolls down Piazza Novembre? My love affair with a true Italian (first name cioccolato, last name gelato)? Or the fact that after a year of anticipation, in between rigorous (mostly awesome) Italian classes, I get to sit back on the steps of the cathedral of San Lorenzo, overlooking the subtle grandeur of Fontana Maggiore and really understand what that wise person once meant when they said, “La vita e bella”.

Being here is a dream.

One thing is learning Italian back home next to students who are more preoccupied with chatting about who they’re voting for on American Idol, and another completely mind-blowing experience has been having my peers each be from a different corner  of the world and collect in one open-air classroom, not because of the language’s world practicality or because they need the course credits, but because of the pleasure they get from the way each syllable in the word arrivederci rolls off of their tongue.

Our professors emphasize the fact that attendance is not mandatory, and that exams are merely a university technicality so what should really matter is how well you put to use what you’ve learned. For example, after day 1 of classes, I put it to very good use.

Me: “Salve, buon giorno! Posso provare un po di vaniglia?”
(I would have never figured out I didn’t like the vanilla gelato)
Me: “No, preferisco un cono piccolo di ciocolatto. Grazie.”

And so every morning at 7 am, Olga from Russia, Sofia from Spain, Dimitri from Greece, Mert from Turkey, and all of the others make it to class after what feels like a 20km cardio walk uphill.

Somehow, the risk of falling behind in basic introductory phrases is a risk not worth taking.