Submitted by Matthew Slawik on the 2024 PHIL program in Italy…
This last week in Italy has been a lot of fun. Last Tuesday we left Rome and took a train to Florence. I loved Rome but it was a nice change to go to a different city. Walking through Florence, you see how little has changed in the city over the centuries. You can still see the house Michelangelo was born in or the neighborhood church Dante went to as a child. One day we decided to climb a hill that overlooks the city. Me and a small group hiked up the top. Along the way we met a group of older British tourists who accompanied us up the hill and told us about their experiences in Italy and life. Once we got to the top, you could see the entire landscape of the city. Towering over the entire city was the Duomo which was built during the early Renaissance. It’s obvious in the design the difference in construction between that and later Renaissance works. After we were finished admiring the amazing view, we met up with some more of our classmates and decided to watch the sunset. It was nice sitting up there with everyone while someone played the guitar in the background. Even though I had just met these people only 15 days before, it felt like I knew them for years.
This past week in Florence really has been a great experience. Although we may not have seen as many historical sites or had as much to do as in Rome, just walking through the old streets imaging what it must have been like hundreds of years ago was enough. I also feel like I have grown even closer with everyone on the trip, we get along great and everyone truly cares about one another. This trip to Italy has been one of the best experiences of my life and as we enter the last week of the trip, I am excited to see what we see and explore. (Submitted on January 20, 2024)