Through the support of the Honors Abroad Grant, I was able to travel to Florence, Italy. Florence is an incredible city, and I enjoyed living there tremendously. My classes at the abroad center were fascinating, my professors were extremely helpful, and I made numerous new friends. I’m also extremely grateful for my internship at Labsitters and the people I met and experiences I had there. The city itself is rich in history and culture as well. There was so much to learn and discover; it made every new day exciting.

Going into the experience, I expected to discover new food, but I didn’t realize just to what extent. Italian food in the United States is very different from what I ate in Italy. My host family were amazing cooks and showed us new Italian dishes and the stories behind them every day for dinner. There are so many new recipes I have taken with me and lifelong memories of trying these new dishes or even foods completely. My favorites are tortellini in brodo and aglione (a type of garlic) in a red sauce.

I plan to keep learning Italian on my own and stay in touch with my host family and everyone I met while abroad. I also plan to study abroad again in my junior year.