study abroad – Page 7 – Finding Florence

Home is Where the Heart Is

By Amber Wright

If you asked me how many places I’ve called “home,” I would say four – I grew up in California, now live in Washington, worked in Northern Ireland for a few months, and am now studying for four months in Italy. I’ve had to make a home where I am three times since I’ve left where I grew up, and each time my concept of home has changed.

When I first moved to Seattle, it was easy. My close friends in California had all moved, so it was generally painless for me to leave. I found all the things that made me feel comfortable and things that were familiar to me. I found my groove, and I made as many new friends from school as possible to surround myself with.

When I moved to Belfast, it wasn’t so easy. I was very secluded and separated from people where I lived, and the most familiar place I could go was Starbucks thirty minutes away. I hardly met anybody my age while working there and often spent days alone.

As excited as I was to be in Florence for a semester, I was nervous about moving to a new country again. With moving to Florence, I would be here longer and there was an added challenge of the language barrier in trying to make friends. How was I going to meet anybody? I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to make a home for myself here like I wasn’t able to in Belfast.

Three months later, Italy now feels like home just as much as Seattle does. When I first arrived, I had no idea what to do. I went the first week eating out every night and using a tee-shirt to dry off because I had no idea where a supermarket was or where I could buy a shower towel. Now, after traveling to amazing places like Germany, Croatia, and Spain, I get a sense of comfort, something I never got in Belfast, arriving at Santa Maria Novella Station, walking past the Duomo, and entering my apartment.

Italy has been very different from anywhere I’ve lived before, landscape, language, and climate-wise, but it has become normal and comfortable for me. However, this sense of comfort hasn’t come from knowing where to buy food or from decorating my room, it’s come from the community I’ve been lucky enough to form here. “Home is where the heart is,” “home is where your family is,” and my mother’s personal favorite, “home is where your momma is,” are popular phrases for a reason. Feeling at home is about the people surrounding and supporting you in that place, whether that be friends or family.

My study abroad program staff and the institution have done an excellent job of bringing students together and creating a community that people feel at home in. From taking day trips to having Thanksgiving dinner together, my program has become my family who I lean on for support.

The relationships you form over study abroad are quick and wild. You form friendships immediately because you all know you’re in the same position – a new country where you don’t know anybody. You go to dinner together that first night, then to Piazzale Michelangelo the next day, and then before you know it you’re exploring Florence with these friends every weekend. These friends will be the ones you climb to the top of the Duomo with and also get lost trying to find that one osteria in the far outskirts of city center. You’ll struggle though your Italian language class, and celebrate together when you have your first successful conversation with a local. You’ll discuss the culture you’re immersing yourself in, and also reminisce about the few things you miss about home. Finally, it’s three months later in December, still with two weeks to go, and you’re already crying thinking about leaving these people and leaving what and who has been home for the past few months.

Home isn’t a thing or a place, but a feeling that you get from the people by your side. My time here in Florence is intertwined with the people I spent it with, and I won’t be able to think about Europe without thinking of them. When I’ll look back on living in Italy and how much I felt at home here, it won’t be because of my apartment on Borgo Pinti. It will be because of the amazing friends and community I had surrounding me here making it feel like home.

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The Side Effects of Traveling

By Jess Pitocco

From Florence, it only takes an hour and a half to fly to Paris, France. From Paris to Lisbon, Portugal, it only takes two hours to fly. From there, it takes another two hours to fly to Barcelona, Spain. In my personal experience, I have never been at such ease while traveling by plane. Italy’s central location made it an easy jumping-off point for my ten-day trip to these places over the fall break. While I was at ease traveling, what I didn’t expect were the side effects of all that country-hopping.

My room was filled to the brim with laundry, and my brain was filled with anxiety about homework as classes geared up for the homestretch of the fall semester. I had been so used to switching languages that I resorted back to English instead of Italian when ordering a pizza. I had gotten so little sleep on my travels that I was constantly tired and needed three cappuccinos a morning to stay awake for class. The blisters on my feet were excessive, and my bank account was drained from eating out for every meal while away.

I was overwhelmed, and I still am. While traveling, you learn so much about yourself. You learn how to navigate a city without a data plan. You learn how to let go of the little things that go wrong, like losing jewelry or getting stopped at the airport for having too many liquids in your carry-on. You learn how to stand in a line without getting too impatient with the wait. You learn how to pack for ten days in a bag built for two.

What you don’t learn is how to cope with all that change, both physically and mentally. Now that I am back in my temporary home of Florence, I cannot help but think how much more I want to see and how much more I want to travel. However, my body cannot take the lack of sleep and bad eating habits, and my mind cannot handle the stress of prolonged travel. I missed my routine in Florence; getting my coffee in the morning, walking to class, having dinner with my roommates, and even taking a shower without using miniature travel bottles. Traveling overall was an extremely positive experience. But, traveling is also a double-edged sword: I loved exploring the world, but I craved the stability of cooking in my own kitchen and sitting down to watch Netflix before bed.

I wouldn’t regret traveling, and wouldn’t discourage anyone from doing so. However, some words of wisdom: if I had stayed in one place longer I think I would have had a much more relaxing journey. I wish I had foreseen the complications, and taken it easier. I didn’t need to see four museums in Barcelona, but I did so anyway despite my body telling me to slow down. My advice for a long trip? Take it one day at a time, the world will still be there tomorrow.

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A Local & Two Foreigners: Our Favorite Places in Florence

By Amber Wright, Deborah Galasso, Jess Pitocco

Our mission this week between the three of us, Amber Wright, Deborah Galasso, and Jess Pitocco, was to write down the places that best symbolize or represent Florence, Italy. It proved to be pretty difficult; there are thousands of unique bars, monuments, churches and museums to visit in the city. It could take years to explore all that Florence has to offer! Even so, from each of our own perspectives, domestic and abroad, we chose our favorite spots in Florence.

Florence from the perspective of a local, Deborah Galasso, is full of art, culture, and cappuccino. Her favorite parks, restaurants and artistics centers that, in her opinion, best describe the culture and feeling of Florence, Italy:

Villa Bardini is a magical place where I go frequently. Today, it is an exhibition center that hosts temporary shows. Villa Bardini is a beautiful garden setting, and can be visited today separately with the same ticket that you would purchase at the Boboli Gardens.
Opera di Firenze is another particular place I visit as a fan of art, theater, and Florence’s musical works. I like the unusual and modern structure, and the theater’s interior is spacious and gorgeously decorated.
I always go to Anfiteatro Romano alle Cascine because I love art. This amphitheater located in the Cascine Park, and takes us back to past times. It’s a historic space for indoor and outdoor events in Florence, the best ones are featured in the summer.
Giardino del Drago, near Via Bolognese and a part of the Giardiano dell’Orticultura, is a relaxing place that makes you admire the beauty of Florence from another point of view. The distinctive and artistic statue in the shape of a dragon is at the center, and gives the garden its name. It is a place I visited as a child and remember fondly to this day.
Chiosco is a small bar/kiosk along the Arno near St. Niccolò. It’s great especially in the summer, because you can observe the river while having aperitivo. The bar is close to the Arno, is full of lights, and has a fun atmosphere.”

Florence from our perspective, Amber and Jess, two study abroad students, is a bit different. These five places represent Florence for us because they are landmarks to help us get home, great food and shopping, and places that make Florence feel like home since we’ve arrived.

We pass Piazza Gaetano Salvemini every day on our way to class at FUA’s J School. Whether in the morning or at night, there are always a myriad of characters in the Piazza, from tourists to locals. The old men play chess near the bike racks everyday, and the dog owners are followed by their pooches without leashes. There are helpful places on the edges of the palazzo: an ATM, Tabacchi, and 99 cent store. It is a place where everyone gathers for errands and meals!
Sant’Ambrogio Market is the most authentic market we have found in Florence, and conveniently one of us lives across the street from it. We love ordering a cappuccino at the bar inside, while listening to impromptu performances of the violinist and cellist in the center of the market. This indoor-outdoor market is cheaper than Central Market and offers everything from clothing, antiques, to any type of produce and food you could imagine – a gem for foodies!
La Milkeria is a small boutique coffee shop on Borgo degli Albizi. Every so often when we’re missing home, we go in there and get a good ol’ bagel. It’s our little secret how often we go in there to get a taste of home!
Walking east on that street, you’ll come to Piazza di San Pier Maggiore. This square used to be the home of the Church of San Pier Maggiore. While it no longer stands, the reconstructed arches of the church still outline the square. There is a fresh produce stand in front of the arches that is the perfect place to grab a piece of fruit on your way to class. We love stopping in this square to imagine what it used to look like!
Lastly, our favorite part of Florence are our own streets. We walk home and every time we stroll down our roads, we stumble upon a new shop or new restaurant. We continue to discover a mix of small boutiques, local restaurants, and vintage shops in our own corner of Florence. As we get closer to our homes, street art and familiar places welcome us home – our favorite places in Florence.

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Filistrucchi: Fake Beauty, Real Tradition

By Melissa Maize

Filistrucchi is a Florentine institution that makes the ordinary, extraordinary. FUA Digital Writing students recently visited the historic theater makeup laboratory and shop.

If you could be anyone, who would you want to be?

If you could swap faces, swap lives, even for only day, who would you choose? A Duke, a Duchess, Abraham Lincoln? Lady GaGa? At Filistrucchi, you can be anyone.

We all have little things about our appearance we’d like to change- smaller nose, thicker hair, higher cheekbones- and Filistrucchi was built on that need. Established in 1720, it catered to Florentine nobles, providing wigs and make up to suit their stylistic needs. It then developed into one of the leading make-up and hair providers to the Opera and stage, and later cinema. Gaining notoriety as masters of their trade, their clients soon spread as far as New York and Boston.

Perusing photos of their work, the shop owners recount stories of how they transformed men into women, women into men, old into young, the transformations often so complete that the clients’ families didn’t even recognize them.

It’s amazing to think that all that stands between you and complete anonymity is a few layers of make up. It seems to me that Filistrucchi has survived three hundred years and two epic floods not because beauty is timeless, but because the desire to look beautiful is.

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Art History: A Different Perspective

Visitors at the Uffizi. Photo by Jessica Pitocco.

By Nicole DeCosta

Alicia Deakin from London discusses how being in Florence has had a first hand impression on her perspective on Art History.

After the first half of the semester here at Florence University of the Arts, the students seem to be settling in nicely to the bustling lifestyle of classes during the week and exploring on the weekends. Sitting down with 21-year-old Alicia Deakin from Suffolk, England we discussed how she has had to adapt to this cultural change and new lifestyle.

With classes taking place Monday through Friday, Deakin said that her art history class is held twice a week.

“I’m happy that the class meets twice a week. Originally I found myself comparing my schedule to other semester students taking once a week classes, but I quickly realized just how much I enjoyed the class,” said Deakin. “I was feeling super lucky to be able explore the city of Florence and take part in the included field learning city activities offered through the class.”

Taking an art history course through FUA, Deakin said how amazing it was to experience this much raw culture within a class. When asked why this class was her favorite, she said how inspiring it was to be amongst some of the most amazing artwork she’d ever seen.

“Offering me new skills that I have not used in sometime, because I had taken a few years off from University, this class provides me an opportunity to study a new topic that both interests me and excites me,” said Deakin.

Noting the high quality education being provided to her through FUA, Deakin said, “the difference in my classes here from in London are so drastic, it is important to see how much the professors want to engage with you as students, while also wanting you to have the best possible experience in Florence.”

Since Deakin has never studied art history prior to coming to Florence, she said her favorite part is the novelty of the class, learning new topics, while also being placed within the Florentine environment. Knowing she is able to see the art firsthand, Deakin is thankful for the opportunity that FUA has provided her, and being here has allowed her to open her cultural perspective.

Offering students an opportunity to receive a strong education, while also an experience of a lifetime, including travel, cultural exchanges, and new opportunities, attending FUA, Deakin says, “is a once in a lifetime experience!”

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The Pressure to Travel

By Jess Pitocco

There is a pressure all study abroad students feel to travel, and travel often. In the months leading up to your departure, you get seemingly hundreds of Facebook invites and messages from travel companies urging you to book trips. Your friends tell you they are jealous of all the countries you will visit, and your older sister will say that traveling during study abroad was the best experience of her entire life.

How do you compete with that? How can you balance classes, getting to know your home city and still travel every weekend? Can you afford the big price tag of traveling from country-to-country seeing the sights?

Studying abroad isn’t about getting the perfect Snapchat story, Instagram post, or foreign fashion. It’s not about impressing your friends back home with how sophisticated and worldly you have become in such a short period of time. It’s about giving yourself the opportunity to explore the world, find yourself, and have a little fun while doing it. The pressure, anxiety, and apprehensiveness that goes along with that are normal. That’s what everyone experiences every day back home. What you have to remember is that this is your experience and your four months to get outside your comfort zone and really enjoy your time here.

So stay home one weekend and try that restaurant you always pass by and smell the goodies in the air. Try that cooking class instead of Skyping home and relaying every moment of your day, instead of actually living in that moment. Give yourself a weekend to be a tourist in your own city, and try to find a favorite spot to write in your journal. And if you do want to travel, do so not because everyone else is doing it. Do it for you.

Personally, I plan on taking advantage of FUA’s optional excursions because of their convenience and quality guides. I will be going on, but not limited to, at least two different trips within Italy: Venice & its Islands, Napoli, Capri and Pompeii, and more. However, I’ve had a lot of fun staying here in Florence for some weekends as well. I love visiting the museums on the first Sunday of every month because all admission is free! I also enjoy bringing a picnic to the Piazzale Michaelangelo to enjoy with the view. Figure out your favorite spot in Florence, and tag #MyFUA to let us know how much you love just being here in the city!

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Pane Sciapo: The Bread Conundrum

By Jess Pitocco

On my first day in Florence, I sat down at a restaurant in the shadow of the Duomo hungry from my flight. I had unpacked and was looking forward to food like a dog looks forward to playing fetch. So when I was brought the bread basket, I devoured each piece and noticed something strange. It was hearty but extremely bland and tasteless. I realized there was no salt! Salt, a seemingly essential ingredient, wasn’t in my first taste of Italian food whatsoever. I didn’t know at the time you should wait to mop up your meal with the bread, an Italian custom I had forgotten in my desperation to get food in my belly. So, after realizing this, I had to find out why the bread was saltless and sciapo (Italian for “bland”).

Chef Pietro Di Marco says the legends of saltless bread vary, and that if asked, every Florentine will give you a different story as to how it happened. A chef his whole life, teaching at Apicius since January, I trust his version of the salt-legend:

Throughout the centuries, the legends have been told. Nothing is on paper, but we all know about the bad blood between (the city of) Pisa and Florence. Pisa, long ago, was the only Tuscan city with access to the sea. Therefore, they were responsible for the distribution, packaging, and taxation of salt for Florence. Florence didn’t want to pay to bake their bread, plus the rivalry and battles between them didn’t help the situation. From there, the evolution of Florentine cuisine began.

The most common dishes involving Tuscan bread (pane toscano), and the most important dishes according to Chef Di Marco, are pappa al pomodoro and ribollita. Pappa al pomodoro is a bread-based tomato soup with herbs and spices, a rich and filling dish invented by Florentine farmers. Ribollita translated means “twice boiled,” and it is another soup reboiled with vegetables (like local white and black cabbage) and poured over bread. Chef Di Marco says it is easy to tell when dishes are made with old-school recipes or new-school recipes: the thickness of the soup, and the ingredients like olive oil, give it away. He says that every chef in Florence knows how to make these dishes, and that without them Florentine cuisine wouldn’t be Florentine cuisine.

Pane toscano can be made in about three hours time and takes a while to rise. This ensures its freshness for days, lasting longer than most bread you get at the supermarket. Its origin is from the province of Lucca, in the town of Altopascio, which still claims its fame to the crunchiest crust and the softest insides of all bread in Italy.

To learn about Tuscan bread, stop by Apicius, the hospitality department at FUA, and get a taste of it where it’s served daily at Ganzo, the Apicius restaurant. And while having a breakfast pastry or dessert at Fedora, the Apicius pastry shop, ask the baking experts there for tips and tidbits about it!

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Your Fall Guide to Fruits and Vegetables in Florence

The Central Market, photographed by the author.

By Jess Pitocco

Italy isn’t all about the carbs; fruits and vegetables play a huge role in Italian cuisine. Here’s everything you need to know this fall about the best fruits and veggies in Florence. Check out the best markets, what produce is in-season, and vegetarian-friendly restaurants and recipes!

The high-carbohydrate diet many associate with Italian cuisine is a falsehood: Italians may eat carbs, but their lifestyle, portions, and eating habits are much healthier. That’s why when the New York Times reports on Italian eating habits, the focus is not on how to eat a low-carb diet while traveling, but rather why Italians are some of the healthiest people in the world. Fruits and vegetables, though filled with those ‘nasty’ carbs, are absolutely essential not only to a healthy diet, but also to Italian cuisine. That’s why including some apples, asparagus or zucchini in your basket while on your daily market trip is important to the Italian experience.

If you haven’t been to an Italian local market yet, give yourself an afternoon to go and explore one of the best parts of living in Florence. There are more than four big Florentine markets, not including the San Lorenzo Market, that you should visit to get the best, and freshest, produce (and even some clothing, music, plants and pastry too!)

However, before going to the market, know what fruits and vegetables are in season. Check out this chart to see that apples, blueberries, grapes, tomatoes, green beans, and cucumbers are just some of the fruits and vegetables that are at their best in September.

Want to visit some renowned vegetarian restaurants in Florence? Try Le Fate on Via S. Zanobi, for it’s fully vegan and vegetarian menu inspired by the signs of the zodiac and recommended by Travel + Leisure Magazine. Dolce Vegan and Il Vegetariano both have extensive vegetarian and vegan options as well, both a less than 10 minute walk from one another in the center of Florence. Still want more options? Silvana Vegan is an additional option, on Via dei Neri near the Galileo Museum.

If you don’t want to eat out, FUA Professor Cecilia Ricci, who often teaches food and culture courses, swears by this traditional Italian recipe for fruits and vegetables:

Cold Barley Salad, with Shrimp, Anchovy Fillets, and Cherry Tomatoes

Ingredients:

300 g Pearl barley
200 g Shelled shrimp
15 g Extra-Virgin olive oil
150 g Cherry tomatoes
3-4 leaves of basil, cut in julienne
Black pepper
Salt
8 Anchovies fillets, preserved under oil

Directions:

Boil the barley in a pot with 1.5lt of water with salt. Once the barley is cooked, strain it and place it to cool down in a bowl. In the meantime, wash and dice the cherry tomatoes. In a casserole pan add the extra-virgin olive oil, heat it at medium temperature, and let the anchovies fillet to melt. Once the anchovies are ready add the shrimp and sauté them in the oil for 2-3 minutes. Add the barley in the casserole, stir and mix all the ingredients together for 5 more minutes. Then, remove all the ingredients from the pan and place them in a bowl, add the diced cherry tomatoes, basil, pepper, salt, and mix. Refrigerate for at least 30-45 minutes before to serve. And enjoy!

After buying your fruits and vegetables, make sure you pay attention to how long they keep. Basically, how long the fruits veggies last is based on where they are from. If they are fresh from the market, your fruits and vegetables can last 3-4 days without rotting or refrigeration. If they are from the supermarket, the produce can go bad within a day or two because it has been refrigerated and prevented from becoming ripe. That way, as soon as they leave the supermarket your fruits and veggies can become ripe faster and ultimately rot faster. Buying fresh produce from the local market is a better way to ensure it will last (and it will taste better too!)

Click here for a guide to eating out in Florence, provided by FUA’s hospitality department.

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Il Palio: More than a Horse Race

By Monica Humphries

For us, it was a fun race, but for others, it was an event they had waited for all year. From the moment we stepped off the bus in Siena, we learned what the Il Palio means to the city.

Il Palio is horse race held twice a year in the heart of Siena. Piazza del Campo, the city’s main piazza, transforms into a race track. Dirt is packed down on the cobblestone, and fences are built to create the course. The city is divided into 17 districts (contrade) but only ten districts will compete in the race. The jockeys ride bareback and wear their district’s colors. Throughout the day parades and celebrations take place to prepare for the race. The horses are blessed, the bets are made and everyone gathers to the center for the race to start.

The race isn’t about coming in first but about beating your rival. Everywhere you look you see people with colorful flags tied around their necks, cheering for their district. To truly embrace the race, I picked the Tartuca district to cheer for and wore a yellow and blue flag embellished with a turtle, the district’s symbol.

As thousands trickled into the city center, anticipation slowly built up. The race was three simple laps around the track. Months have gone by in anticipation for those three laps.

Above the crowd I could see the brightly colored jockeys ready to race. Decked in black and white, yellow and red, or blue and white with distinguishing patterns, they all sat on their horses pacing for the start. The rules of the Il Palio involve a complicated tradition for starting the race, so it could start at any moment.

Twenty minutes passed, a shotgun was fire and the race had begun. We could feel a gust of air as the horses passed us. We felt the dirt kicked up from the horses’ hooves. We watched as the horses circled the track and competed to finish first.

When the first horse from the Lupa contrada crossed the finish line, the entire town erupted into emotion. The district hadn’t won a Palio since 1989 so emotions ran high. Immediately people were jumping over fences to congratulate the winning jockey and hug their friends and families. Tears of joy ran down some faces, while others cried with disappointment. Tensions broke out, people hugged and the race was over. People paraded down streets in celebration, while our group stood in amazement. The race itself was incredible, but the aftermath left us in shock. This wasn’t a silly race, but a long-lasting tradition built up over centuries. People took pride in their district and celebrated their culture.

The race itself was short but the day was long. Seeing firsthand a tradition that dates back to the 14^th century isn’t an opportunity I come across often. On one hand, it was amazing getting to be a part of the tradition. But on the other, I still felt like an outsider. I had no investments in the race, but felt the heart rise as the horses cross the finish line. At the start of the day, the Il Palio felt so foreign to me, but by the end, I had grasped a better understanding of a city and its culture.

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Exploring Culture Through Italian Cuisine

By Morgan O’Reilly

With clamped eyelids and the flicker of a burning candle, I contemplated my wish. As my life’s dream reemerged back into my conscious thought, my eyes flicked open, I peeked at the wax “10” in front of me, and I blew. Underneath, in place of a conventional birthday cake, lay a cannoli; I looked up from the red checkerboard table and saw my cheering family under the light of the Macaroni Grill sign. My wish was to travel; little did I know that I would be enjoying an authentic Italian meal in Florence only 10 years later.

Growing up, I had always loved food. I sat at dinner tables scooping mussels from shells and openly trying international cuisine. To this day, I actively search for new flavor combinations and cooking techniques. Despite my culinary openness, my perception of Italian cooking has changed dramatically since my arrival in Florence. I grew up with the mac and cheese, breadsticks, and spaghetti of Italian restaurant chains back home; and despite trying my hand in Italian home cooking, I really didn’t know what the “real thing” entailed. For me, I was coming to the land of bread, cheese, and pasta; and I was 100% fine with that.

Upon arrival, I aimlessly wandered Florence’s winding streets as I gripped my list of recommended panino and aperitivo places. After tasting some of Italy’s fresh pasta and coming to the harsh realization that meatballs are not an actual thing here, I realized how skewed my perception on this lifestyle was. My day to day life in town surprisingly never included the bread or pasta-induced food comas of the “Italian” food that I was accustomed to, and instead, I felt physically and mentally satisfied with what I was putting into my body. In fact, although the study abroad 15 has proved an irritating reality, I have never felt as good about the food I was consuming.

After a few weeks, once the initial excitement died down, I started to eat in more. Whether at the farmer’s market or grocery store, I slowly began appreciating the seasonality and freshness of what I was consuming. Although eating in does not seem like the optimal way to seize the day while abroad, learning to utilize fresh, regional ingredients in simple recipes gave me a deeper appreciation for the food I was eating and for Italian culture. My roommates and I have made everything from roasted vegetables to pork chops to shrimp with lemon asparagus; and the simple act of learning to work with seasonal, simple ingredients has shown me more about Italian culture than I would have ever expected.

Looking back, my experience with food while abroad and my deeper appreciation for what I eat has mirrored my sense of appreciation for all aspects of culture. Like expanding my knowledge on the slow food movement, biodynamic farming, and the third wave coffee movement through conversations with locals, I have learned to step out of my comfort zone and challenge my perception of Italy, travelling, and on life in general. This experience has opened my eyes to finding value and culture in the tiniest of details; whether it be a tablespoon of olive oil, my daily walk past the Santa Croce, or a genuine conversation with friends from around the world. Above all else, studying abroad has taught me to openly seek out culture in every aspect of living, and it is something I cannot wait to apply beyond the walls of the city I now call my home.

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