A Touch of Home

There is no feeling that compares to seeing someone you love after months of text conversations and short phone calls. When my mother stepped off the Tiburtina train, an undeniable sense of relief flowed over me. In that moment I realized just how much I had missed her. This revelation was strange to me. University of South Carolina is thirteen hours driving distance from my hometown in New Jersey. It’s rare that I see my family more than once during a semester, outside of the holiday break. I couldn’t quite comprehend in that moment why I had the overwhelming urge to hug my mom and never let go.

It took me almost the entirety of our ten days together for me to figure that out. I don’t think I’ve ever spent ten days with just my mom and me together. When you’re one of five kids, it’s just not realistic to send just one child and one parent on a trip to Italy. An entire week and a half just mom and I was a Christmas that came months too early. All my posts keep saying that the experience I’m writing about is the best experience I’ve had thus far, and this one is no exception.

We travelled to Venice for a weekend, took a water taxi, toured the Murano glass factory and got lost exploring a tiny but beautiful landscape. We spent four days in Rome, touring the Coliseum, the Forum and eating at some of my favorite restaurants, as well as some new ones. We travelled to Lucca and Pisa to visit our Italian family, whom my mom hadn’t seen in about six years. In addition to the places we got to explore, my mother was able to meet some of the friends I’ve made here. At first, I was struck with worry that having my Jersey life collide with my Italy life would be weird. These worries were easily set aside as my mother charmed every single friend and made it seem incredibly natural that we were sharing an Italian experience neither of us would have ever dreamt possible.

In those 10 days, I got to reconnect with my mom by showing my mom how much I have grown since coming abroad. Months ago, I was probably the worst person to give directions, and didn’t know how to read a map to save my life. In the ten days, I realized how well I had grown accustomed to figuring my way around without a severe dependence on GPS. I got to show her my world in Italy, something I never would have imagined occurring if it weren’t for the generosity of some very important people in our lives.

When most students talk about study abroad, they oftentimes forget to mention how much they miss their friends and family. I’m incredibly grateful that my mom was able to come and share even a piece of this opportunity with me. The memories we made in those ten days will be cherished for years to come, and it makes me even more excited to finish this semester strong at one of the best business schools in the world. It gave me a little perspective on the reason why I’m here and how I intend to use these experience to benefit others beyond myself. A touch of home was just what I needed to help me push through the semester’s end and enjoy the last eight weeks I have here.

Sunshine and Italian Time: My Easter Break Adventure

4 cities. 3 days. 2 Americans. 1 Lithuanian. 1 Dutch. This loosely describes the details of my epic Easter-break adventure that included nearly missing our starting train, waiting over two hours for pizzas, paying $20 for a shuttle that was thirty minutes late, and wasting nearly an hour trying to rent scooters before failing the test drive and being forced to rent a car. It seems every place we went we were just a little too excited, getting our start bright and early at 8am each day. There was no rest for the weary as we walked over 25km during our trip, exploring restaurants, monuments and viewpoints throughout the South of Italy.

Napoli was the first stop on our tour. Armed with an Underarmour backpack and a cross-bag, I was prepared for a dirty and dangerous town. To my pleasant surprise, Naples was not only beautiful—it was safe. We wandered through small side streets and bright shops all the way to Castel dell’Ovo, where we enjoyed a panoramic view of the city. We dined at Sorbillo, taking the classic Margherita and all agreeing that a two and a half hour wait was worth it for the food we consumed.

Pompei was our next destination, and the one that I was personally most excited about. After having one Latin class in high school, I had really been fascinated by Pompei. We arrived at the archaeological giant with just under two hours to visit before it closed for the evening. In those two hours we were able to explore the various shops, homes, arenas, theaters and brothels the relic boasted. I was in awe. It made the 2km walk to our hostel for the evening seem like nothing as our first day came to a close.

The next morning we got up at the crack of dawn to grab a quick breakfast and climb up the Pompei Tower. It seems we didn’t quite understand Italian time, as the tower didn’t open until 9am and we were there at 8:30am. The tower was worth the wait, as it boasted a unique vantage point where you could look over the remains of ancient Pompei from one side and see the new city rebuilt on the other. After the tower we realized we were going to miss the bus to go hike up to Mt. Vesuvius….or so we thought. After waiting nearly an hour to figure out a shuttle, we then bussed up to Mt. Vesuvius so that we could begin our hike up. Allotted two hours to hike up the mountain, see the crater, and hike down, we took off at a mad pace, wanting to be sure we could make use of those two hours. Not even thirty minutes later, we had seen the entire crater and laughed at ourselves for even thinking that we had to rush.

You’d think we would have learned our lesson regarding Italian scheduling when we headed to Sorrento, but alas no. As we attempted to rent scooters to take to Positano, we thought we were perfectly on time by arriving at 9am sharp, when the store was scheduled to open. After waiting thirty minutes for the owner to arrive, we went through paperwork and copying of driver’s licenses. It was then that they told us that the two drivers (not us poor Americans, who weren’t equipped with international licenses) would have to pass a test drive. Our Dutch friend passed…barely, but as our Lithuanian friend took to the bike, it was evident that there was no way the owner was going to let us leave the premise. Realizing that it was nearly 11 and we had to catch the train back to Napoli at 3pm, I rushed down the street to start paperwork on a rental car.

The day in Positano was fantastic—we hiked down towards a semi-private beach where we laid out and tanned in the sun. After dining in a restaurant that overlooked the ocean, we realized we would need to hurry a bit if we wanted to make our train. The drive back to Sorrento was peaceful, but as we neared the time for our train’s departure, all four of us realized we were going to have to hurry. We had arranged to drop off the rental car at the actual train station since the rental agency would be closed at 3pm due to ‘risposo.’ I dashed out of the car to go buy our tickets while the other three girls went to find the parking lot. I was getting nervous as we closed in at five minutes to departure time when Airida, our Lithuanian friend, wandered out from one of the doors, carrying no bags or telephone, I immediately asked her where the others were. She had no idea, she had gotten out of the car to ask for directions. My heart sank. If we didn’t make this train to Naples, we would surely miss our connecting train back to Rome. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Halle (American) and Charlotte (Dutch) sprint up the stairs towards the platform. Loaded down with all four of our backpacks and purses, I hurriedly distributed tickets and began to move towards the train. I was hoping I could hold the door open to make sure we could all make it. Halle was yelling to hold the train and Airida was trying to get Halle through the electronic gate despite the three bags she was wearing.

At the last moment, the four of us collapsed into a railway car, jeans, shoes, and purses strewn across the floor as we burst into laughter. Every single attempt we had made at being early and sticking to a schedule had gone completely awry, as wait times, unexpected driver’s tests, and late transportation methods kept knocking us off schedule. BUT, looking back, we were able to do all four cities we had planned too, seeing all of the major things we had planned to see, and doing everything we had wanted to do. Every meal we ate tasted fantastic and the pictures we have to remember the adventure by will be treasured. In three days I got a taste of Italy that I had not had in my one and a half months here, but every moment was worth it. It was an Easter break that I will always remember, with friends that I will never forget.