Home Sweet Home

I can’t believe we’re over ¼ of the way done with the semester already!! We are having so much fun and the time is flying by! The girls and I decided to go to Florence for a weekend and tour around the city. It is so big and there is so much to see. We are going to go back another weekend to see things we didn’t have time to see this time! We had a blast, probably the best weekend yet! It made me appreciate Siena so much more than I did before. Florence is full of people all the time. It can be overwhelming but we were able to find a hostel out of the crowds, which was nice. Siena is a lot more laid back with less tourism and though you can find a good amount of people who speak English here, Florence is very “Americanized” compared to Siena. I personally came to learn the Italian language and in Siena this is possible. Florence is a beautiful city, the buildings are unbelievable and you would never be bored there. However, everyone speaks English there. When we arrived back in Siena it felt like home. We had such a great time but we all decided this is what we considered “home”. We have become partial to Siena and the people here.

While in Florence we went and saw the Duomo and Baptistery. Words cannot explain how beautiful they are. We spent most of the day on Saturday at the leather market! What a great place to get gifts for family and friends- even yourself! We had lunch at the food market for a great price and the food was so fresh and delicious! For dinner we went to a bar and had “aperitivo” and we were so full! It was a great mini-vacation for us and it’s such a great time to visit other cities in Italy and see what else is out there. You learn so much from traveling.

Earlier on in the week we took a cooking class, paid for by CET! That was also an amazing experience! The chef was so nice and we were able to get the recipes to take home so we could make the food ourselves. This was a great experience for all of us. My roommate had been talking about wanting to learn how to cook since we got here and she finally was able to learn some tricks and has been making food more and more. We all are excited to get home to cook a true Italian feast for our families now!

We also got to meet our Italian Language Partners this week! We are partnered up with an Italian student who wants to learn English and it’s up to us to see each other again. You can speak Italian for 30 minutes then English 30 minutes…it’s up to you two. It’s great because it’s a one on one and you learn Italian as they learn English. It is great for both parties involved! I can’t wait to hang out more with my partner and get to know her better!

Overall this month has flown by. We have classes every day but I don’t feel overwhelmed with homework and reading. We have time to go travel on the weekends and meet up for dinner together at least once a week. I personally am staying in an apartment but two of the girls are doing a home stay. I feel so welcome to go visit them any time I want which is nice to feel so welcome in someone else’s home! Having free time and feeling welcome by the Italian people mean a lot to me. It has helped the adjustment of leaving my family and everything back in the States. Siena is a smaller city, it’s not as big as Florence but I truly feel as if I’m apart of the community here now. We’ve met a lot of people and see them on the streets and they always stop to say hi!

I was told to say how I feel both positive and negative in my blogs; however, thus far I haven’t had a complaint yet. If I ever needed anything I know I could ask anyone corresponded with CET and if that person couldn’t help or didn’t know the answer to my question, they would find out or direct me to the person I needed to speak with. I have strongly been thinking about staying another semester in Italy and one thing I really appreciated was receiving an email from a CET worker that was a graduate from my college back in the States. He was so helpful and told me things, both positive and negative, about staying in Italy. It meant a lot to have everyone go out of their way to give me one more person to help me make this major decision in my life.

Aimee Crouch, University of Iowa
CET Siena Student Correspondent

Cibo e Gelato!

Siena through CET Academic Programs is absolutely amazing. The opportunities we are given, the help, and everything else. I wouldn’t change a thing and I’ve only been here a week and a half! For example, the second night we were in Siena we had dinner with our Resident Director, Christina, my Italian roommate, Chiara, and the other three American girls! It was a blast experiencing the food and gelato, which CET paid for. It is so nice having these opportunities paid for by CET, which we may have never experienced ourselves. 

 The girls and I have explored Siena just about every day, it is small enough to walk everywhere you want to go. However, even though it’s smaller there is so much to explore! It is picture perfect here. The people are so nice and help us with our Italian everywhere we go. I feel so safe and willing to try new things. The time has just flown by and we’ve only been here a week! 

            All of the professors have been great thus far, too. They are all very knowledgeable about the subject they teach and will spend extra time with you if need be. We have met local people our age that speak English and it has been fun getting to know them and having them help us speak in Italian as well.

           

 The first Saturday here we spent at the beach. It was absolutely beautiful. We woke up early and caught the early bus. We got lunch there, were able to shop a little and of course, got some gelato before we left! My stomach will be anything but short of gelato after I leave Italy! We will have a good amount of time to plan trips to travel around Europe and if you plan correctly you won’t be spending a fortune on the trips! It’s truly a once in a lifetime opportunity and CET has made the process of getting here easy and they are there for you every step of the way up! 

Aimee Crouch, University of Iowa
CET Siena Student Correspondent

Top 10

One upon a time, in 1979, there was a little program named China Educational Tours. It offered cultural trips to China for non-profit organizations, but it did not include any kind of academic credit for those who participated. In 1982 it extended its scope by teaming up with Wellesley College, and the tour included a language program to American students. Within 10 years, there were nearly 100 students participating each semester.  In 1994, this growth resulted in the creation of the CET Academic Programs. Today, CET Academic Programs offers study abroad opportunities to American students in China, the Czech Republic, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Syria, Tunisia, and Vietnam!

In honor of the 30 year anniversary of CET, I am supposed to compile a "Top 10" ranking of my activities/experiences in Italy. This could possibly be more difficult than the 6 page paper and 10 minute presentation I just finished! But, here's my attempt:

10) Venice/Murano - Venice is definitely not like anywhere else in Italy, but it has never been my favorite place because its so touristy. I enjoyed Murano and our exclusive look into the museum exhibit! 

9) Caribia Frappes - Caribia is our favorite gelatoplace, right off of the Campo. When we discovered that their frappes are to die for delicious, it was a regular meeting point after a long 7 hour class day. 

8) Our  American 4th of July - The night our group all got together to celebrate that wonderful day of American Independence was definitely one of my favorite nights. We were all together, and even though we loved the culture and the country we were surrounded by, it was nice to remember where we come from and the things we love and miss about it. 

7) Capri & the Blue Grotto - I've always been a sucker for beautiful beaches, but the beauty of the Blue Grotto literally took by breath away. Then to lay out and swim on one of the most beautiful beaches in the world was not too shabby either. 

6) Rome - Rome was my favorite city I visited with my parents, and it does seem true that all roads lead to Roma. The history is just so rich, monuments so ancient, there's a certain romance that even the medieval city of Siena is too new to have. Even getting lost in the streets of Rome was enjoyable!

5) Cinque Terre - This was our first weekend excursion, and I loved every minute! The hike on La Via dell'Amore was beautiful and the weather was perfect for us. I had never been to a 'beach' that was only rocks, and I love pesto, so it was my kind of place! 

4) PG & our Sienese Art & Architecture class adventures - We've slowly discovered our SAA professor may be world-famous. Or definitely Italy famous, at least. He is just the most intelligent man, and he is hilarious. From the 'spicy' frescos he showed us, to all the 'bullshit gossip' time we had about the painters or the stories behind the art, it was a great time. I've never taken an Art History class before, and I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to again because it just won't match up. 

3) Seeing Roberto Benigni live - After studying Benigni last semester, seeing him live had all the more excitement and significance! He was absolutely incredible, and I definitely want to see him again and continue to study his works. 

2) Renting a Tuscan Villa - The most relaxing weekend we had was in the Chianti Region of Tuscany. I don't think we'll ever know how we got that to work out, but it was one of the most beautiful places I've been. We spent the whole weekend by the pool in awe of how awesome our lives were. 

1) The Palio weekend - That was the weekend I saw the real Siena. I watched the city transform like nothing I've ever seen before. The Palio is life, the Palio is war, but even more so than that, the Palio is a time where Cantrade, families, friends, come together and unite to remember not only their personal histories, but the history of their home.

There are two things that just can't be put on the top 10 because they are too important to me: Seeing my friends from Clarke County in Italy and my experience in my home stay with Sylvia. I am so grateful for the friendships I have had for all these years, and I will never forget how I met up with two of the coolest girls in the world in Italia! I also don't have enough good things to say about Sylvia and my home-stay experience. I really believe my Italian improved so much because I was always speaking it at home, and I am grateful that Sylvia creates an atmosphere that is homey enough to not be worried about making mistakes and how she is always willing to answer my "Come si dice (insert word in Italian)?" or telling me about the little cultural nuances and history of Siena that only a native Sienese would know. I will miss the dinners she cooked and the discussions we had around the table, as well as our fusion of cultures on the nights Molly and I made food. Sylvia gave me a home here in Italy, and I will always be in her debt because of it!

So, in 2 months, I completed 3 classes and 9 credit hours, had many adventures, conversed in a new language, and made memories I'll never forget! Now to go out with the group and celebrate!

Photo Cred: Alvaro Anspach

Photo cred: Zoe Kemp

Photo cred: Zoe Kemp

A dopo!!


"The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark."
-Michelangelo 

Stefani Bell, Siena Student Correspondent Summer 2012

Il Dolce Far Niente - The Sweetness of Doing Nothing

This week was definitely a 'down week' for our group, we took it easy as far as night life and tried to get more into the mentality that finals are just around the corner somehow, but we still had some pretty good highlights.
 

Thursday we went to Monteoliveto, a Benedictine monastery in the hills of Tuscany started by Bernardo Tolomei. There were dozens of beautiful frescos by Luca Signorelli and Sodoma, and we got to see the Abbey, which was pretty cool. Some parts of the monastery are still strictly cut off from outsiders, so we didn't see all of it, but we did get to visit the library and the pharmacy. It was crazy to think that people never had to leave that place for anything. 

Afterwards, we went to Pienza and learned about how Pope Pius II (whose family was from Siena) basically wanted his own perfect Renaissance town, so Leon Battista Alberti created it for him. Its interesting because the main cathedral doesn't have any Christian symbols like Mary or Jesus on the facade, but only the crest of Pope Pius II, which according to our professor proves that the town was to assert and boast the power of the Pope. The main square in Pienza is formatted in the same manner as an ancient Roman Theater, with a clear focal point in the center of everything, proving it truly is a perfect Renaissance town. 

This weekend, our group truly came to understand the meaning of the Tuscan phrase 'Il dolce far niente" - The sweetness of doing nothing. 

This was our last weekend to get away without having to worry about school, because next weekend is the weekend before finals and no one will want to go too far from Siena. We have been kind of burnt out by the hustle and bustle of running around big cities littered with tourists and long lines, so we decided renting a villa in Tuscany would be the perfect way to spend the weekend. It took a long time to find one that slept 12, wasn't too far, and that was within our price range, but luckily, Nicole came through again and found a great place in the Chianti Region near Monte San Savino! 

 

Friday afternoon we took a bus to Monte San Savino, and the people we were renting from sent a big van to pick us up from the stop and bring us to the grocery store. We ran into the store and proceeded to buy way too much food, and when we brought all of our bags out the guy who was driving us must have thought we were crazy to have bought that much food for 3 days.  After filling the entire trunk with our groceries, we hopped in and drove to our Tuscan paradise! As we pulled into the driveway we all started freaking out, it was absolutely gorgeous! Our own little secluded oasis - complete with an infinity-edge pool and an outdoor balcony! We spent all of Friday and Saturday by the pool asking ourselves over and over "What did we do to deserve this?!" We all decided we have to say "Thank you Mom and Dad!!"

This morning it was full on cleaning-brigade to make sure the house was left the same we found it. We realized we didn't have return tickets to Siena (oops..) and we didn't know where the closest ticket office was (double oops). We asked the lady who we rented the house from and she said that her friends could drive us back in their car for 10 euro each. We've come to realize we have a 'Study Abroad Goddess' looking over us, who consistently has been getting us out of could-be problematic situations. So, rather than paying for an hour long un-airconditioned bus ride, we took about a 35 minute car ride with the music turned way up.

So, tomorrow starts our last full week of class, Friday we're going to the beach, Saturday we're going to Florence to see Roberto Benigni's "Tutto Dante" (Everything Dante), and then next week is our last week in Italy. After this weekend of relaxation, with a chance to recenter, and again be reminded of the beauty that exists in this world and in this life, I'm ready to make the most of the next 13 days. 


"Happiness is a consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it."