learning – Finding Florence

In Florenzia: A Day In The Life

written by Makayla Sims

When I wake, the black-out curtains of my apartment that are cracked only let in a sliver of light to let me know a new day has come. I’ll lay in bed for a couple (see: 30) more minutes and then decide it’s time to go face what has come to greet me. Today is Tuesday, so it’s my slow morning. Normally, I will make myself breakfast, but Conad was busy last night with locals, tourists, and students alike shopping, so I figured I’ll go out for breakfast before my anatomy class later in the evening.

I make my way to Le Vespe Cafe, a little American breakfast spot off of Via Ghibellina and where I find myself if I ever miss a taste of home. Currently, I’m studying abroad until mid-December, and I’ve been here since mid-September. Slight homesickness is a part of the gig, I fear. When I step outside of my apartment, I catch a glimpse of the Duomo, not even five minutes away from my front door. Despite my sentimentality, I will miss it greatly when I am gone. My ten minute walk to Le Vespe is accompanied by October rain, and the pumpkin latte I end up getting reminds me of how beautiful it is to have rain during the fall.

I still have a couple of hours before my next class, and there are a couple of things I want to do today before my three and a half hour lecture.

The first place I want to go to is the Boboli Gardens. For my 8 am class, Grow, Cook, Heal, Therapy for Wellbeing, that I have on Wednesdays, we have an assignment where my group must tour four different gardens from different neighborhoods. Then, we must take and upload photos as well as a brief history and description of the grounds (as you can see, nothing too bad).

My twenty minute walk to the gardens features a major staple in Florence, as we (me and my friends) cross the Golden Bridge. It’s hectic and loud and crowded, and by far has one of the most beautiful views of the Arno River I have seen. Still, hold onto your phone and your friends- with these conditions losing one of these is not unlikely.

Boboli Gardens comes attached with a ten dollar entrance fee for the day. We enter through the Pitti Palace, but skip that tour because that isn’t what I’m here for. Instead, we climb the slanted, small, long stairs to the beginning of the garden’s grounds. It’s beautiful here, undeniably so, with a beautiful clearing for the main statues and ponds. To the left and right, the grounds spread out behind a wall of shrubs, with a maze to get into and out of those sections of the garden. If you continue straight all the way to the top, however, you see one of the best views in Florence (apart from the top of the Duomo).

This picture does not do this view justice.

For a moment, I forget about the assignment and just stare. I’m in Italy, I’m in Florence. And the bustling cityscape, the rolling countryside behind it, that’s been my home. For the rest of my life I can know for myself that I, at one point in the distant past, lived there. The beauty of the art, the people (most of them), the food, my friends. It’s just-

Beautiful.

I finish up taking notes of the different architecture and landscapes, then I make my way to my second destination before my anatomy class.

There’s this little record store called Contempo Records that I pass everyday on my way to FUA’s lecture halls. Everyday I pass it, I want to go inside. I don’t have a record player, but my sister does. I know she will appreciate a little memento. I walk inside and am greeted with spiraling ceilings and records stacked to the nines. I don’t end up getting anything, but it makes me feel at home.

After enduring my three hour lecture, I know that it’s time for me to get some homework done. FUA has a library in the same building, but it closes at 6pm and my class is done at 6:55. So I go to, quite genuinely, my favorite place in the city.

The Giunti Odeon Libreria e Cinema is a bookstore/movie theater. Up in the rafters, there are old theater seats for visitors to read or work on homework while a movie plays in the background. Almost always it’s really, really warm inside and almost never can you hear the movie. I love it.

I sit there and work till about 8:30 pm, which is when I make my way back to my apartment. My friends and I have decided to cook ourselves dinner, with some gnocchi pasta, green beans, and focaccia. Before I head inside, I take one last look at the Duomo. How can anyone not be romantic about Florenzia? I wonder.

A City Full of History & Chaos

written by Isabella Tecchio for SPELL: Journalism

I know very well how to work an espresso machine. Better than a lot of people; at least I think. I know exactly how each pasta dish served to me here was made, what is inside of it, each and every kind of pasta there is, and how long each ragù took to cook. I grew up around Italians, an Italian family that came from Veneto.

I felt that I knew a tremendous amount about the culture, and a tremendous amount about the people. I do believe I still do, but because of the large difference Italians and Americans have culturally, it is impossible to not be overwhelmed. I had an idea that I would not need as much cultural integration because I am already so aware of the culture, but it is simply not true. I am an American, born and raised in upstate New York. Although raised around the culture it does not separate the fact that I am not from Italy.

Arrival in Florence

Florence is stunning. Stunning, and completely shocking for an American from a small town. How can so much history be packed into one city? Into one country? It is something I cannot grasp. With this incredible art and history come tourists. Many including me look in awe at everything around them. How can the outside and inside of the Duomo be so incredible? Genuinely, I wish I could express my amazement. Each minor detail was carved so long ago, each detail painted and worked on from centuries ago. I can go on and on, and for this reason I will always look like an American tourist. First of all because I am, and because of the utter astonishment I am in every time I walk by this masterpiece.

The amount of people that pack into the city center freaks me out. More than freaks me out, it scares me. Never in my life have I been around so many people, or lived somewhere so close to the center of something so important. I can continue to use the word overwhelming but unfortunately this word does not cover it. Walking outside and making one left turn I see the Duomo, and every designer store you can imagine. I believe this is the most tourism-filled part of the city. Understandably, since this is also the home of the Uffizi Gallery, something I cannot wait to see.

Lifestyle Changes & Differences

Living in a space where I am able to see the Duomo from outside my window is incredible. The way of living is extremely different. Americans love to waste energy. We keep our air conditioning on for hours at a time, leave the water running in the shower, and keep the lights on. At least these are things that I do…

If my roommates and I use too many outlets at one time, the circuit blows. By too many, I mean charging three computers at once, or someone wants to blow dry their hair. Conserving energy is taken more seriously, as well as the environment. Partly because I don’t think the same choice is given to waste energy, but also because it is of an almost cultural importance. I was always told to shut off the lights, turn off the fan, to not leave things running all day, and it puts things into perspective as I learn more about Italy, and how connected my family remains.

Environmentally, Italy is very in tune. They separate glass, paper, and organics, usually maintaining five different bins for what Americans would just call trash. I don’t want to group all of us into one realm of not recycling, but at least in my home, even when we do recycle, the garbage truck puts everything into one bin. I have seen it happen every single time. Unfortunately even if we want to be as environmentally friendly, I don’t know that we care enough. There is a care for their country that I do believe we lack. Americans I know in Florence I have seen not separate their trash and recycling, which is very sad. If we don’t have respect for other countries, how can we have respect for our own?

I do believe that we can turn this ideal around, but witnessing it in front of me has brought me not just a cultural shock, but also sadness. I would like to point out how exciting this is for many Americans as well, to see another country caring so much about the environment to separate everything, and following it.

In the end

I love Florence, and I love the country. I love being here, although overwhelming and the fact that it has taken me a bit to adjust; I don’t know that I ever will be fully adjusted. There is a comfort and a calmness here that the U.S. lacks, at least for me. Life here is based on taking care of yourself, feeding yourself, doing your work, being social and seeing friends.

The social aspect here is something we simply do not have in the U.S. as well. Walking culture and a thousand other things that make for a healthier life. Health is valued and cared about, activities and speaking to people is valued. I miss home, but for now home is here, and I am excited about it.

Bio Fashion Lab: The Thoughtful Retail Experience

written by Lily Carroll for Special Project: Experiential Learning in Journalism

Through experiential learning at FUA-AUF, I’ve gotten the opportunity to interact with Bio Fashion Lab, an independent boutique dedicated to responsible, ethical shopping. The store’s owner, Debora Florio, has spent over nine years in the fashion industry, seven of which were in fast fashion, an industry worth approximately 103 billion U.S. dollars in 2022, projected to reach 291 billion U.S. dollars in 2032, according to PR Newswire. This experience has driven Florio to conduct extensive research, educating herself about consumer behavior, the fashion industry as a whole, and ethical solutions to the extensive problems it creates. With her findings, Florio started Bio Fashion Lab, a space designed to invite others to join in this mission for change.

Upon receiving a degree in Economics, Florio realized that she wasn’t dissatisfied in this line of work. She says that at the time, unfortunately, shopping for clothes was what brought her the most joy, so she decided to find a job in the fashion industry. Unaware of the many unethical practices implemented in the industry, Florio slowly uncovered the ways we harm people around the world and the environment when we support fast fashion. She learned that these stores use minimal human resources, producing thousands of the same products at low prices, 30% of which wind up in landfills. Just one of the many ways this industry is creating crises everywhere.

“I realized what was behind the scenes of production in terms of social injustice, and the negative impact that this industry has on the planet, I decided to take action,” Florio said. “I started studying consumer behavior, marketing and whatever lies behind the mechanism that triggers our mind to go and shop for ourselves.”

Florio continued to work in the fashion industry, this time with a seemingly ethical brand. It was there that she met a woman with a crippling shopping addiction, spending thousands of euros a week with no satisfaction, and an insatiable desire that could not be fulfilled. This woman inspired her to create a solution for people to shop responsibly.

So, Bio Fashion Lab was born, to promote emerging, ethical designers using natural materials and equitable production. Offering a healthy way for customers to shop in a manner that does not promote overconsumption, and respects the environment and all who inhabit it.

“Whenever you start to go really deep in the research, you see the truth with your eyes. I’ve never been to Pakistan, Bangladesh, places where these issues are most prevalent, so we do a lot of calls with different unions and government workers on the other side of the world,” Florio proudly states. “We can hear their testimonies and see that it’s quite real. It’s there. When you really understand what’s going on, you can never go back.”

Florio says that the clothes are just a small part of the ways she educates others on the fashion industry, and how we can improve it. Through documentary screenings, workshops, and panels. Bio Fashion Lab strives to educate this generation of consumers to make the right choices. An environment that encourages shoppers to ask themselves, “Do I really need this?” especially when faced with a cheap, overproduced option. Bio Fashion Lab teaches us how to say no, and explore another option.

To learn more about Bio Fashion Lab, visit https://biofashionlab.com/, where you can read about the movement and upcoming events. On Thursday, 13 June, Bio Fashion Lab will host its first fashion show entitled, “Fashion Under Construction,” making light of the construction that currently surrounds the store, highlighting the store’s call for unconventional ways to shop.

How Gratitude Shapes Culture Shock: Navigating Overwhelming Unfamiliarity

By Makenna Sowards

Studying abroad is no easy feat. You are dropped into a brand-new world with different etiquette, standards, expectations, and languages. It’s an overwhelming feeling, to say the least. My first week here, I think I saw every one of my new friends cry at some point.