Be Italian!

Ciao my readers,
I am at a loss for words right now because I have experienced so much this past week let alone this weekend and  a part of me wants to talk about art history while another part of me really wants to talk about my acclimation to Italian culture. So though this is not to bore you, I am going to go with the latter. I promise my next entry will be filled with  art experiences.


 My Dear readers I am not Italian, nor is my name really Gianna, rather it is Jenna. I am just your typical american girl. Before Italy, my Italian experience included dining at an Italian restaurant and studying Italian at my local college.  Immediately upon arrival into Italy, everything from the way I dressed, to my mannerisms pegged me as american but now something amazing has happened. I am Italian! Now of course i say this more in the metaphorical sense since i will never be Italian thanks to my bloodline. However, if i were walking down the streets of Florence in no way would you guess i was an american.

My definition of studying abroad as opposed to others varies, for those of you who are unaware Florence is a major attraction site for american college students. Everyday on my way to school i will always run into those few select american students hung over from there gallivanting  that previous night.  I want to make it clear that Florence is a beautiful place and it saddens me so, that it has become such a party city.

My first few entries i was in major culture shock because i had never been exposed to so much partying and i felt like a wallflower in a completely different world. American girls are immediately branded as wild and vulnerable by any Italian man. My first few days i would get invites for free drinks and flyers to local clubs. I tried playing on these wiles but after partying a few times I felt  so ashamed of myself for becoming the definition of the american abroad. Therefore,  I sought to stay in my room, sulk and count the days until i would happily be back in America. Yet, after two weeks i came to the realization that going abroad is what you make it.  I decided I no longer wanted to be the American in Florence and so i sought to embrace this new culture.

In all honesty, acclimation takes a while and my first step in acclimating to Florence was getting my bearings: I remember my first few days where i would follow my house mates for dear life for fear if i didn't keep up with them,  i would lose my way home. I also recall standing in my doorway nearly in tears since i did not know how to operate the lock on my apartment door.   Ordering at my local gelateria and caffe bar were a chore in itself , the waiter corrected my pitiful Italian while the women at the gelateria sneered at my failure to specify cup or cone. This frustration with Italy continued, I had no sense of direction and a walk home could take an hour maybe more due to one wrong turn.

I have grown so much upon my arrival to Italy to where i am now. It's absolutely amazing  the effect a change of attitude can have on a person. Below is an account on a day in the life of myself in Florence:

This morning i woke up and decided i would walk to the central market and buy ingredients to make a delicious pasta dish  which my mother makes for me at home ( I rarely ever cook since i'm insecure about my cooking ). With ease i walked to the market and upon arrival went to the individual vendors and bought all my ingredients as well as lunch in fluent Italian. After my shopping trip, i went for a granite at Grom which is one of the best gelateria's in all of Florence however it is often packed with tourists for some reason ,though i really have embodied being Italian and i am never asked what ice cream i would like rather i am greeted kindly with a ciao.  Later, I decided to be even more independent and set up an account at my local library so i no longer  would have to study alone in my room. The local library is very Italian and can be intimidating  but to the the best of my ability i officiated the signing of my card and membership. There, I did homework for a few hours and then headed home to cook a delicious home cooked pasta dish with the ingredients i bought at the market .

I guess you could say my ever-growing eagerness to learn has allowed myself to integrate with a new culture. I came here to experienc  art and culture in new and exciting ways and now i finally am , I underestimated what lengths it would take to be a part of that culture however through all my mispronunciations and misdirections, I learned part of acclimation is making mistakes and learning from them.

A Presto
~Gianna