The Pizza is Square.

The pizza is square. This was my first thought as I chowed down on my first meal in Italy. After just over a week in this wine-induced and pasta-inspired land, I’ve learned so much more than I ever thought possible. In just one short week I’ve had to make adult decisions regarding apartments, phone plans, groceries, bills…the list goes on I promise. Each of these decisions has really allowed me to mature and become a confident American study abroad student.

The architecture here in Rome is unbelievablely beautiful. I haven’t even had a chance to see the Colisseum or the Vatican City yet, but I’ve found pictures to take and sights to read about every time I step out of my front door. The most wonderful times I’ve had here in Rome so far have simply occurred from wandering the city, finding parks and museums and hidden cafes that I never would have found just simply riding the metro into the City Center.

For never being out of the United States, I think I’m fitting in here quite well. Italians walk absolutely everywhere. The university I’m attending is a 40 minute walk (which at first I gasped about) but I’m finding gets easier to make each and every day. There is no shortage of outdoor markets and shops to peruse through on your way to anywhere. Everyone here is just a bit more relaxed I’ve found, even the Italian dogs! Many owners let their pets run free off the leash, and I’ve only seen one incident at a Carnevale celebration in which it became a problem.

I’ve seen so little of this amazing city, and I can’t wait to keep exploring and discovering. Before I sign off, I wanted to give a huge congratulations to the newest members of the IB department. I’m sure you guys are just as excited as I was to begin researching all of the different schools. LUISS in Roma is an amazing one, and I hope you’ll keep on reading my posts to find out why!

Alorra, I have to go to my last class of the day! Tonight, we have our last event for Welcome Week, where we get free admission to one of the best clubs in Rome (reserved JUST for the exchange students at this school!). Until next time, ciao!

It Happened to Us

Studying abroad is one of the single most amazing opportunities that being a college student grants you. You are able to fly to a far-off land you've dreamed of at a decent expense, exploring nooks and crannies of the world outside the hours of required classroom time. What study abroad also does is allow you to appreciate the University of South Carolina that much more since you don't get to see your gamecock family for [in my case] 8 months.

Just last week, our school was devastated as a murder-suicide took place on our campus. For those of us studying abroad, we received text messages and e-mails from Carolina Alert and follow-ups from the IB department and the Study Abroad Office. But for that hour, the hundred or so of us that are abroad were frozen solid, battling time differences and data costs to get in contact with our family and friends. No matter where we were at the moment, exploring the Louvre, wandering through the Sahara, packing our bags; we were all connected. We were far, far away from home, with our Carolina family praying that no one was injured or worse. The aftermath of the event is something we have to burden from afar, without a Horseshoe full of friends.

Being an International Business major means so much more than simply going to another university for a semester. It's about the university we're leaving behind. It's about how we are going to positively contribute what we've learned at Carolina to our new homes, and also what we're going to bring back to USC. The shooting paralyzed us all for a moment, an hour, a day. But the IB students are still going to grow, still going to learn, and still going to succeed in our time abroad. We have to. We don't get to see our home for 8 months, so it's our job to bring our home to someplace new. That's what I plan to do.

Arrivederci America. Italia, here I come!