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Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

As a hospitality and tourism major, studying abroad was one of the best things I could have done for myself. I learned so much from living in a different culture. Each culture has their own variation of hospitality and each person experiences tourism in a different way. All of the classes I took abroad transferred back as credit to my home university, so I was not behind at all. Since I was taught by Italian teachers (in English) I learned about hospitality concepts differently than I would have in the states, which gives me an advantage in my career options.

On-site administration of your program

SAI was so helpful during my entire semester abroad. They helped integrate us into the Italian culture with weekly emails about certain recipes, events happening, and other fun information. They also provided fun activities such as cooking classes or excursions to places that I would not have visited on my own.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I love all of my random roommates. I lived with five other girls from all across the United States. While we had our disagreements from time to time, I owe a lot of my positive experiences to those wonderful women. We had a great apartment that we stayed at in Florence. It was centrally located and was very spacious. While it was older than what I was use to in America, it had so much character.

I paid for all of my food while abroad (unless SAI included certain meals during a trip). However, I do not regret any purchase made on food because everything tasted great, even when I cooked! Going to the market to buy food was one of my highlights during each week.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I did meet some very cool local restaurant owners (shows how much I ate out) that were very open to sharing about their culture and even helping me with my Italian homework sometimes. If I could change one about my abroad experience, I would have volunteered.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

The only experience I had with healthcare was buying medicine for the common cold. During the orientation for the program, they did address what to do if we were sick and needed emergency help. They also provided the contact information for a doctor that spoke English and was available for appointments.

I very felt unsafe in Florence. Of course it is a city, so you have to be smart. I had a purse that was hard to pick pocket and it was also in front of me. During the day I had no problem walking by myself, however during the night I was always sure to have a friend with me. If you would not do it at home, then don't do it abroad.

They were always there when I needed them and helped me as soon as I got off the plane.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

I probably could have spent $50 a week on food if I lived minimally. However my budget skills were lacking.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

My professor was very encouraging. He took us on two or three field trips where we were able to try and communicate with locals. I think the locals appreciated our attempts to learn their language.

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• Apartment

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• Americans

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• Americans

• Airport Pickup
• Weekly emails on events/recipes
• Cooking classes

• Integration with locals

The Outright Urbanite