Submitted by Submitted by Hannah Watts on the 2018 winter session program in Italy sponsored by the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics and the Department of English…
This was my first week in Italy, and while I get occasional feelings of homesickness, a look out the window or a walk down the street makes me immediately feel amazed once again that I’m in Europe for the first time, and in beautiful Italy, nonetheless. On the agenda this first week were lodging and a walking tour in Verona, lots of group meals and a visit to Venice. One thing I noticed my first day here was how many dogs there are. I’d say that for every tenth person or so on the street, there’s a dog. Being the canine-loving person I am, I have loved this, and while it wasn’t true for Venice (because of how few people actually live in Venice), it was true for the whole time we were staying in Verona. I hope this is true for the other cities as well!
While I didn’t ride a gondola in Venice, our group enjoyed guided tours of the Doge’s Palace and the Murano Glass factory. We also were in Verona during Epiphany, and got to watch the burning of Befane, the witch! The town square was packed with families and tourists all waiting for the burning to happen, after which it was dinnertime.
