Know Before You Go: A Quick Tip Guide to Florence | Florence

I'm not a planner by nature.  My way of thinking tends to travel along the lines of "I'll figure it out as I go along", but when traveling to another country it's nice to have a few tips in the back of your mind especially if it is your first time visiting.  I'm from Hawaii which feels like the smallest place on Earth sometimes, so traveling literally halfway across the world was a big change.  

I stayed with a host family while I lived in Florence and it really made my semester what it was. My university made it a requirement for all of their study abroad students which I was a little nervous about at first.  I have never lived away from my own home so the idea of living in another country with a local family was definitely something to think about.  But it turned out to be the best experience I could have asked for.  My roommate and I clicked from day one.  We "got" each other and meshed so well, becoming not only roommates but great friends.  My housemates were also amazing and I am thankful to have met them.  My host mother Anastasia was so loving and really embraced all of us girls as her own children.  We all really became a little family on Via della Colonna.  

A big part that also made my experience was the people I met along the way.  Our Hawaii group was small, only 6 of us, so we all hung out together and realized we actually genuinely like each other and hung out because we wanted to, not just out of comfort and security which you did see sometimes.  Some of the students in bigger school groups tended to stick together and not take the opportunity to meet and mingle with others.  I personally do not see the point of traveling thousands of miles to a new country only to do the exact same thing you would do at home.  Our friend group had people from New Jersey, Vermont, Boston, Wisconsin, Michigan, Chicago, Argentina, and many more.  

After leaving Florence and settling back into our daily routines at our schools and home, I asked some of my friends what their tips would be for others living and visiting Florence. 

Tyler Primavera, sophomore, University of Hawaii at Manoa

1. Buy a map, so you don't get lost. Sometimes a map is better than a taxi.
   
2. Don't be an "ugly American".  
   
3. Ask for help when you need it.  
   
4. Don't make eye contact with the gypsies. 

Erin Padavich, junior, University of Hawaii at Manoa

1. Don't be afraid to spend money to eat delicious food.
2. When out and about, speak the language. Period. 
3. If you have the option, stay with a host family.  Use the language with them and learn the culture.  DON'T SPEND TIME ONLY WITH AMERICAN STUDENTS DOING AMERICAN THINGS. 
4. Travel with the school or plan it yourself.  Stay away from tour companies catering to Americans (i.e. Bus2Alps) because they cost more, you don't see everything you'll see on the school trips, and you'll end up doing American things just in a different country.  
5. Travel if you want to or stay in the city you're studying in, just make sure you spend the day outside doing something different everyday.  Don't stay in your room talking to friends back home, watching movies, or even doing your homework.  Lose your map and find somewhere new to do your homework or just walk around and find something to do.

David Holt, junior, University of Hawaii at Manoa

1. Know the language and take a class that challenges you. 
2. Get acquainted with the city as soon as possible.  Find out where to go and ask questions to get the best info on where to go and what to eat and how to spend your time in Florence.
3. Take advantage of all the art and history in Florence.  Also the train where you can experience more of Italy like Cinque Terre and Siena.
4. Definitely do the excursions with the other students because you can meet and hang out with the other students.  When you get older you won't have the opportunity to travel a bunch of people and party with who are your own age.
5. Be open to all experiences and take advantages of all the opportunities.

Catie Bello, junior, Bentley University

1. Get to know locals, and find local places - they are often the best each city has to offer.
2. Look for restaurants that are student-friendly; you will find cheap but delicious food, and often great deals.
3. Try something new, whether it be food, an activity, or a class, you never know what you might gain from the experience.
4. The train system in Europe is awesome - you can get around for relatively cheap, especially if you book in advance, and you get to see the countryside in between cities.

Aimee Lia, junior, Bentley University

1. Talk to the older people (40/50+).  They were able to point out the random restaurants or neat things to check out.
2. If you really want to get to know where you’re living, it might be cool to try a tour, especially if you’re in a place like Florence where there is ligit history on every other street
3. Be aware of the perceptions Italians have of Americans (girls, watch out for some of those guys).
4. Beware the gypsies and pick pockets.

Stacey Snyder, junior, Saginaw Valley State University

1. Don't be afraid to wonder and get turned around, eventually you'll find your way. Or you can ask for directions, it's alright and can lead to conversations with locals or travelers like you.
2. Never go out at night alone, it may seem alright but it's not smart.
3. Take every chance you can to travel and see more.
4. Don't let little things bring you down, for example wifi and internet is wasn't great everywhere. Instead of being upset, think about how you can actually interact with friends and locals.
5. Try not to eat at the same place all the time and try finding those out of the way places.

As for me, I have to say that I agree with everything they said.  Here are my quick tips to Florence:

Kiyana Higa, junior, University of Hawaii at Manoa

1. Definitely don't be afraid to get lost and roam around.  You stumble across the greatest things and when it doubt look up for the Duomo peeking out at the tops of the buildings and use that as your central point.  You know how they say all roads lead to Rome? Well in Florence, all roads lead to the Duomo.  Find that and you'll never really be lost.  
2. Budget wisely but don't be afraid to dish out on the things that matter the most to you.  Food is something I will never regret purchasing, as long as it's something I want and crave.  Ask for student discounts too.  Many shops and restaurants around the city and near your school will offer student discounts so take advantage of that!  You'll get to talk to the shop owners and practice your Italian.  
3. Push yourself outside of your comfort zone.  Routines are great but now and then push yourself and do something different for the hell of it.  You're in Italy baby, live it up.  
4. Do something you never thought you'd ever do.  Singing at a jazz club? Dancing on a table? Running a marathon? Striking up conversation with strangers only in Italian? DO IT.  It'll be those memories that make looking back at your time so great.  
5. Enjoy it.  Seems simple enough but sometimes you'll catch yourself just doing things and not really taking it all in.  All of us agree that a semester was not nearly enough time to spend and soak up Italy.  When you get there 4 months seems like forever but the days will start slipping away and the next thing you know you've blinked and a 2 months have come and gone.  Make a list of the things you absolutely must do before leaving so you have a starting point.  From there fill in your days and time with things you hear about, read about, and are invited to.  And if things don't work out, don't fret and dwell on it.  The best things happen organically so while one plan might have fallen through move on because there is always something else to take its place.          

Florence is so amazing and I would give anything to go back there right this instant.  For those of you contemplating it I would say do it, without hesitation.  You have so many things at your fingertips being in Florence as well as access to all of Europe that you just can't beat.  It truly is magical so believe in magic you Muggles and go find yourself in Italy.

Much More Than An Evening in Roma, Part Two | Rome

We woke up bright and early to what was a beautiful day in Rome, even at the ungodly hour of 7:30 (college students here, mornings don't exist on the weekends).  We ran to the Conad, a supermarket in Italy, and picked up some things to eat for breakfast on the go.  The beautiful thing about Italy is that even the supermarket bakeries and hot-food kitchen is delicious.  We walked to the Roma Termini, the main station in Rome and hopped on the Metro to take us to the Vatican City.

To get to the Vatican City you can take one of three methods: walk, bus, or Metro.  Walking is great but it'll take you forever and you'll be tired as hell by 10 am.  The bus can be sketchy and most pick-pocketing happens on crowded and often extremely hot buses.  The Metro is the fastest and fuss-free option.  You hop on and hop off in a matter of minutes and it's not as crowded as the bus as there is more room.  There are only two Metro lines too so there is not too much confusion.  A third line is currently being built but even then, that's only three you'd have to navigate which is totally do-able.  We bought our Metro tickets in the underground station and hopped on the Metro Line A and got off at the Ottaviano San Pietro station.  A quick walk and you'll be at the grand wall surrounding the smallest country in the world.

We decided to visit the Vatican City in the early morning so we could work backwards through the day across Rome since the Vatican is the furthest thing in Rome.  We waited in line for the Vatican Museum for about an hour which was not at all bad...until you heard the constant scamming of "tour guides" trying to get you to pay an arm and a leg for a advance ticket and tour.  When you see the lines forming to get into the museum outside you'll notice there are two.  One closest to the wall where you wait if you are NOT with a group or have purchased advance tickets, and the other which basically acts as a Fast Pass line in Disneyland.  All along this line you will be bombarded with people trying to get you to pay to skip the line with a tour.  I'm not sure on the validity or how much these people know about anything you want to see but I do know you'll end up paying waaaaay more than you would have if you just dug deep for a little patience and waited.

Travel Tip: If you are a student, make sure you bring along your student ID so you can get a student price which was about €8ish.

Once we got in it was madness.  With Rome you can't escape the tour groups.  But there is so much to see in the Vatican Museum that you'll be blown away with the vast volume of things the Church has collected over its history.  I was completely mind blown with what I was seeing but I do have to admit that half way through I was getting anxious and completely overwhelmed with all the people in the museum.  Make sure when you're entering rooms you remember to look up.  The ceilings and interior in the museum is a collection in itself.  But by the end of it I felt like I was just following the heard just to avoid getting trampled or suffocated by all of the tour groups.  We finally made it to the Sistine Chapel at the end of the museum and it was crazy surreal.  It is literally, un-freaking-believable.  With all of the representations and images of the Sistine you see growing up, to be inside and looking at the real deal, it's hard to wrap your mind around it.  I have to say though, actually being inside is a little hard to handle.  You're literally shoved into the chapel with what feels like every person in Italy and the guards are constantly telling people to move in, don't stop in the middle, and for the love of all that is holy and right in the world to not take photos.  So please people, for once in your life resist the urge to take a photo.  Be in the moment, live it, and enjoy it.

After taking in all we could from the Sistine Chapel, the four of us were ready to get the hell out and remove ourselves from the madness.  We walked to St. Peter's Square to take a look at St. Peter's Basilica.  The line was way too long for our liking so we decided it was enough to just admire beauty of the outside and take a walk inside the square.  It really is a beautiful sight to see and so surreal to be in.  After our adventure in the Vatican City we headed off back into Rome to check off more sights on our list.