Submitted by Deja Rodriquez-Santiago on the 2019 summer session program in Italy sponsored by the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences…
These past three weeks have been an experience like no other. Even as I sit and write this, it feels surreal that I’m actually here and have experienced all the things that I did. I don’t know when I’ll ever travel abroad again or if I’ll visit Italy in the future. Therefore, I’ll cherish the memories made here like they are the only ones I’ll ever have. This last week was a slower one. I spent a lot of time wandering the city and soaking as much of it in as I could. On the last full day in Rome, I went to a nice dinner with a group of friends. On our way there, we stopped at a bridge to enjoy the view of a sunset that cast a warm glow on the river. In that moment, I realized that even though the sun is setting, it rises somewhere else in the world to start a new day. Similarly, as saddened as I am that this program has come to an end, I’m ready to start a new day with a new perspective and appreciation of travel and diversity that I gained while on this program. With that being said, so many good things have come from this program and I have Italy to thank for showing me a glimpse of what the world has to offer and for changing the way I see it for the better.