#stjohnsglobal

I was sitting in a plane on my second solo-trip abroad just starting out on the book that I’d picked out for the trip, and the perfect line jumped out at me: “Her colleagues at school thought it odd that she loved to travel solo, but for Lily, making her own way and answer to no one were her favorite parts of the adventure.” It couldn’t have been more fitting for the trip I was embarking on and the topic I’d decided my next post to be on. Especially at a young age in new countries where you might not necessarily know the language, travelling alone seems like a daunting task.

 However, in the modern age of technology I think that it is easier than ever before to have a safe and fun adventure on your own. Not sure how to order a hot chocolate in the native language? Have Google Translate up on your phone. If you or a loved one is worried about you being alone, there’s a variety of different services that allow you to share your location. For the entirety of my trip abroad, my entire family has had my location 24/7 in case something happens, even when I’m safely in my dorm. Even more, there are apps that can help you when you feel unsafe, ratings on cab drivers and Airbnb hosts that ensure their credibility, and more.

 I am not someone who tends feel comfortable going out to do things alone, such as sitting at a proper restaurant or taking a flight. My first trip alone was a slightly spontaneous one to Switzerland. To avoid paying for somewhere to stay, I took an overnight bus that arrived around 8:30am and then another overnight bus back to Rome leaving at 10:30pm. In the small city of Zürich, there are obviously things I missed out on, but the packed day made me feel like I made the most of my time in the city. I started off with a free tour, went and walked through two museums, and got some food along the way. Surprisingly, I didn’t feel very alone throughout all of it. Walking tours and museum trips aren’t generally places you’d be having a lot of conversation, so I didn’t miss having a friend beside me. Furthermore, I was able to go at my own pace. No one was running into me when I stopped to take pictures or wanting to go slower or faster as I strolled through the museums. Even more so, I didn’t have to compromise where I wanted to go and get food for someone else’s sake. My second trip was to Edinburgh, Scotland, which was different given that rather than a bus-ride, it was now a flight and a weekend rather than day trip. I went to a different airport out of Rome this time, which was a bit overwhelming due to the different set-up of it, but most airports tend to be alike, and I found my way.

 Even though it’s not that big of a deal, it still was a practice in problem-solving and figuring things out on my own. Getting into the Airbnb alone was a bit nerve-wracking, because I have always been in Airbnb’s with a friend. It was actually rather nice to have a host that wasn’t around much when I was. Not being able to figure out the key at first was stressful, but once I was in and got to have the full queen-sized bed to myself, it was quite luxurious to have that space after being combined at the hip with my roommate for the last 3 months. Although I met up with a friend while there, I still had time to myself to do a free walking tour and grab some different food along the way before being shown the city. I am always someone who has liked alone time, but travelling alone is an entirely different experience. It’s something that I would recommend everyone do. 

People say that travelling abroad is all about independence and finding yourself, and while I think that can be dramatic to an extent, I see the benefit in experiencing new cultures in your own way. Being able to do this in different countries also has encouraged me to consider doing similar little weekend trips around America. A bus or airplane from NYC can take you millions of places, and now that I have conquered other countries, other places in America don’t seem so scary. The reality of being in another country with friends is that not everyone’s financial situation is the same. Some people have the ability to travel every weekends, and others don’t, but whatever category you fall into you should make sure to make the most of your time abroad. Short trips alone are the perfect way make the most of your time and see as much of this world as possible while growing individually.

Hello everyone from Rome! So much has already happened and classes just started this Monday. I have had the opportunity to meet so many other students and visit a handful of different places in the city. Every day I still think to myself how insane it is that I am in Europe right now, but it is by far the best decision I have ever made.

As a stranger in this city, you would think it would be a struggle, but the locals here have been so helpful with speaking English or translating things for me. This kindness has led me to become more comfortable here in Rome and has given me the confidence to go out and explore more areas of the city.

Now I am not just on a vacation this semester as my mom likes to say, I am still working hard on my studies. The focus of my studies this semester is on the theme of migration and how it's involved in subjects like Theology and Art, which are the two classes I will be taking in Rome. I am truly excited about these courses as I will be diving into the history of Rome with my Art class and exploring how Theology is involved in the business world.

Each blog I want to include a song and tip that stuck out to me during my time abroad, so keep an eye out for them at the bottom of every post!

Song of the Blog: Il Giro Del Mondo by Alfa

Tip of the Blog: Eye contact in Italy can say a lot more than words can. If you want to cross the street make eye contact with the driver and “say” I am crossing the street now, otherwise they won’t stop.

Getting fresh out of an airplane into another country is an overwhelming task no matter where you are. In my case, stepping into Rome I had just gotten off a plane from a short stay in Paris, where I had been starting to get used to the sounds of the romantic language around me. Instead of the new familiarity of ‘bonjour!’, I was met with ‘buongiorno!’. I had to use my broken Italian that should be better after two semesters of the language to ask if people spoke English, and soon enough we were on our way in a taxi to the St. John’s University Rome campus.

When you’re driving through the streets for the first time in a new place, it’s always overwhelming. Even moving to Staten Island, N.Y. from my home outside of Philadelphia, Pa. felt like a different world at first. Immediately, I was comparing what was different to places I’d been before and what was the same. Now that I have been in Rome for a few weeks, it’s surprisingly a lot like living in New York City (sans skyscrapers). The streets are lined with businesses - clothing stores, mom-n-pop shops, a McDonalds here and there - with apartments or offices on the top. It’s always bustling, whether it’s a rainy day or one of the more beautiful days since we’ve gotten here. There’s even a slight smog in the air, very reminiscent of that familiar and somehow comforting New York City dirty air.

Since coming to Europe, I’ve been spending a lot of time comparing life here to life in the United States. Personally, I have always looked at cities in Europe such as Paris and Rome as romantic, old cities. As if they still live in the past. Cell service should be unimaginable, and everyone comes together every night for a traditional family dinner. This idea has been quickly wiped away. Rome is just like any other city in the US, just built around something much older.

When studying abroad with St. John’s University, all of the classes and Cultural Mentorship Programs that we are required to attend are focused on a main theme of migration. Because of this, I have learned more about Europe in the first three classes than I have ever in my life. Most stereotypes that I had were smashed, and it has just furthered that Hollywood’s Europe is nothing like the reality of Europe. While I was in Paris, I had a lecture that explained the current Yellow Jacket Protests revolving around an underrepresented rural community, very similar to the group that ended up voting for Donald Trump.  Here in Italy, they are dealing with an immigration crisis with many people entering from the south illegally. Sound familiar?

I am greatly looking forward to my next few months in a place that is already starting to feel like home. The home-ness of it definitely has to do with the similarities between The Big Apple that has quickly become my home. Even though I’ve only been in Europe for almost a month now, I have a great appreciation for what coming here has already taught me. The world is more global than we think, and places like Italy aren’t as foreign as media has led to believe.

       Studying abroad is about many things but so often it becomes a race to the finish, a contest about how many countries, cities and world landmarks you can fit into our small duration of time while studying in a foreign country. Most of the time when encountering another study abroad student the conversation goes as follows:

“What school do you study with?” “What are you studying?” “Where have you gone so far?” “Did you like _______ (insert country not yet visited)?”

        Not only are we getting accustomed to our new home in a different country, but also who knows when we will get the opportunity to return to Europe, so the program encourages weekend excursions to other countries in and around Europe. Often traveling between countries in Europe can be comparable to traveling between states in the United States. Not only is the price range similar (or less for that matter), but so is travel time. It takes longer to get to Florida from New York than it does to get to Athens, Greece from Rome, Italy.  So many major world landmarks are accessible once settled in Europe and it’s less intimidating because now they are only an hour and a half or so away, as compared to the nine hours these popular bucket list items would be from New York.

           Initially, the first trip is always intimidating. While studying in Italy my first weekend abroad, I chose to stay in country and visit Venice for Carnivale. This is a wonderful masked festival that takes place at different times throughout the first couple months of the year in Italy. The planning of these trips is a bit frightening: everything is up to you! All of a sudden you have to find 1. Timeframe, how long do you (personally) need in that area? Is a day trip enough? Will you need the whole week of spring break to see all that you’d like? 2.  Transportation: How will you get there? Trains, flights, bus, a way to and from not only to the city itself but from an airport, train station, bus station, or wherever you are getting dropped off 3. You have to find your own accommodations (Airbnb, VRGO, hotel, hostel, etc) 4. Touring! This also consists of seeing everything regarded as important throughout the area in such a short time span. 5. Food. Sometimes accommodations have kitchens and for longer trips, this may be more feasible and save money for more important things like the 45 euros it takes to see the Last Supper painting by Leonardo Di Vinci in Milan, Italy, or the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, France.

           Sometimes it becomes hard to make the decision of where to go or if we’d just like to see the place we are taking up residency. Because St. John’s has students located in so many major cities around the globe (Paris, Limerick, Rome, and many other exchange programs) I can speak confidently for us as a whole when I say that we all have so much to see in so little time. It’s more common to see that students have mapped out every weekend until we leave to catch early deals on expensive flights or make it to certain events in different countries (St. Patrick’s Day in Dublin, Easter in Rome, Carnivale in Venice, etc). Sometimes there are so many things to see, it becomes hard to just slow down and enjoy what is right in front of you. I live a ten minute walk from the famous Vatican City and have only been there twice since arriving four months ago. However, I will never regret the numerous adventures I’ve found thanks to St. John’s University’s Global Studies Programs.