My month thus far in Siena, Italy has been nothing short of incredible. It was such a short time spent here and because of that, I made sure to say yes to everything and truly immerse myself in the culture around me. Immediately upon arriving, I was in a state of culture shock. I have been out of the country before, but never alone and never for this amount of time. The language barrier was a factor in my experience, and my anxiety lessened with it because we were taking Survival Italian as a class. If anyone can learn the native language of the country, you will be residing in for the allotted amount of time I would suggest trying it. It truly eased any possible fear of general interactions amongst other Italians. One of the best parts of this trip was how much we traveled Italy throughout. Siena to me was home because we were living there of course. It was the perfect area for someone coming to Italy for the first time and to live there no less. Our first stop was Val d’Orcia which is a small town in Tuscany. We went there for a day trip to visit three farms specifically: a honey, wine, and an olive oil farm. It was such an amazing experience learning about how each of these things are extremely significant to Italian culture and history.

Our next stop was Rome, and Rome was one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. What I didn’t expect was getting another wave of culture shock upon arriving there. Rome is a lot bigger than the little town of Siena and after getting used to such a small place, arriving in a big city like Rome was slightly nerve-wracking. Nevertheless, it was filled with so much more than I could have ever expected. Stores, food, people, etc., it was such an incredible experience. We spent our time in Rome going to the colosseum and we also went on a food tour which was some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life.

Lastly, we went to Florence, which was easily my second favorite place, next to Siena of course. I found that it was the perfect balance between Siena and Rome. It had that city feel, but it wasn’t chaotic it felt very comfortable and quiet compared to how fast-paced Rome was. And it still felt like a piece of Siena was there because it was smaller, and you would slowly start to figure out your way around and such. The highlight of the trip was visiting the Uffizi, no one could have prepared me for how life-changing it was going to be. We went on a guided tour through the gallery, and it was so interesting to hear the history behind each painting and artist. Many of the notable artists even had their rooms in the gallery designated for some of their most famous work.

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Learn more about this blogger’s study abroad program: Communication and Culture in Tuscany