Submitted by Alyssa Wronski on the 2024 Winter ITAL/LLCU program in Siena…
One of the key components of the Siena study abroad program that sets it apart from other programs in Italy is where we stay during the month. Aside from the first few days in Rome where we reside in a hotel, every student lives with a host family for the duration of the month. This really enhances the cultural experience and allows each of us to truly get a taste of what it is like to live in Italy. Every host family is different, they are different age ranges and sizes. My two roommates and I live with one, retired woman, who LOVES to cook, and she is just absolutely lovely.
Staying with a host family can be nerve-wracking because you aren’t just meeting new people, but you are living with them. The first day I was a little worried when I met my host mom because she does not speak any English. However, in my opinion, this is the best type of situation. I will learn more Italian in one month than I probably ever would in a classroom just from the real-life experience of communicating with my host mom. It has been about a week and half since moving in and I have already seen an extreme amount of improvement in my ability to speak and understand Italian. I am learning so much every single day, both in the classroom and in the real-life settings of being at home, eating at a restaurant, or going shopping. I make a strong, conscious effort everyday to speak to my host mom and express my thoughts with as little help from google translate as possible. Something interesting I have experienced that makes this a bit more difficult is actually my knowledge in another language. I speak Polish, semi-fluently I would say. I understand everything, but my speaking is not always correct and is
not as easy for me. I have noticed that when trying to speak Italian, sometimes only Polish words will come to mind and I think of how to say a phrase in Polish instead of Italian. This is so interesting to me and I never would have expected this being that I am not fluent in Polish. As the days have gone by with more and more Italian, this has luckily not been as much of a challenge. It is so intriguing to me how our brains understand and comprehend language. I love learning how different languages overlap and intersect. Even moreso, it amazes me when people are fluent in three or more languages, that takes a lot of skill and discipline!
One of the best aspects of my experience living with my host mom is the amazing home-cooked food everyday. We all eat dinner together daily at 7:30 p.m., and it usually consists of some type of pasta, followed by a salad and a main protein. I look forward to seeing what dinner will be everyday, and it is always so delicious. I love that I get to experience what the traditional meals are like in this region and that I get to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner just like a local. Moreover, we get to have wonderful conversations with our host mom every night and we learn so much from her. There is truly no better way to experience Italy than this (Submitted on January 16, 2024)
