Submitted by Jordan Wax on the 2020 winter session study abroad program in Italy sponsored by the Department of Finance and the Department of English…
This program got me out of my comfort zone. Before this experience, I had only traveled outside of the U.S. once in my life. And Italy was basically another world compared to my daily life. So far through my first week in Volterra, I have come in contact with a ton of culture shock. As I have walked down the street of the city with my peers, I noticed how every local knows each other and greets one another like family. From my hometown this is an entirely different experience, I barely come across anyone I know, let alone greet them like they are my family.
My experience in Volterra has been amazing, but it has been tough trying to communicate with the shop owners. I had tried to prepare before leaving the United States by using different language apps, but no app prepares one to being thrown into a foreign country where most locals know only a few words of English. This first week has been a struggle in that realm, but through persistence and patience I have been able to work with the locals and figure out different means of communication.