9 Cose Che Mi Mancheranno in Italia (Nine Things I Will Miss in Italy)
Ciao a tutti! (Hi everyone!)
As my semester at JCU is coming to a close, I want to mention nine things I will miss in Il Bel Paese (The Beautiful Country)!
1. Il Tiramisú
A well-known Italian dessert, layered with ladyfingers and dipped in espresso, Tiramisu is something I will definitely miss! However, to be honest, I’m not really a coffee person, therefore, I was quite surprised when I tried Tiramisu for the first time. The coffee wasn’t exactly overbearing but just the right amount of flavor. In fact, I believe Tiramisu gives coffee a good name!
2. Roma Termini
As Rome’s main railway system, Roma Termini has taken me all the way up to Northern Italy and all the way down to the South. Therefore, I will definitely miss how cheap it is to get around by train in Italy compared to America. At Roma Termini, I traveled to so many Italian cities such as Verona, Venice, Naples, Florence, Cinque Terre and etc. Therefore, I’m totally not ready to take the NYC subway again!
3. Parlare italiano (Speaking Italian)
In fact, in terms of Italian, I’m not ready to go back to speaking English… at least not just yet. Ever since I came to Italy my listening and speaking in Italian has gotten so much better! I’ve been able to practice my Italian with so many locals at the grocery store, the train station and in my apartment building. Therefore, I hope I can find a welcoming Italian community to interact with once I go back to the United States.
4. Il Vino (The Wine)
Oh my goodness.. the vine in Rome is fantastic! In fact, I will definitely miss being able to drink legally in Rome. Since I’m still 20 years old, once I go back to the United States, I will have to say goodbye to drinking it. In fact, when I first arrived in Rome I had my first bottle of wine here and it was amazing. It’s called Bellini, which is a mixture of Prosecco sparkling wine and peach puree` or nectar. I highly recommend it if you ever get to try it! They always have a plentiful supply at Elite Supermercati.
5. Travelling Around Europe at a Low Price
With Rome as my home base, I was able to travel to 5 different countries so far such as France, The UK, The Netherlands, Sweden and Spain. I’m grateful for all of the money I saved up prior to studying abroad or else I wouldn’t have been able to book so many flights. Therefore, I wish traveling around the U.S. was cheaper compared to traveling around Europe. In fact, if Ryanair could bring its services over to America my life would be complete 🙂
6. Italian Supermarkets
For some reason, whenever I enter a supermarket in Rome the grocers are always so nice! In fact, there’s actually a supermarket underneath my apartment. As I’ve mentioned before, it’s called Elite Supermercati a place where I can read almost everything that’s written in Italian. In fact, compared to American supermarkets most of the food items in the supermarket are at a low price. However, if you’re looking for some good wine then it will almost always be a little pricey.
7. The Attention
Ever since I came to Europe, I’ve never gotten so much attention because of my skin color. In fact, I can’t go even go one day without hearing “Ciao, bella” from at least one Italian man. The attention I got even progressed when I went to other countries. In Spain, when I first arrived, a Spanish man simply greeted me by saying “Hola”, after I responded with a warm greeting the moment I started to walk away he uttered “guapa”. Looking confused, since I’m only taking one beginner course in Spanish I had no idea what he meant by that word. At first, I thought he was calling me a fruit such as “guave” but when I looked it up on Google Translate it actually means “beautiful”. Therefore, I really appreciated the fact that some European men take the time to uplift the beauty in black women. The men in this continent take any chance they get to make you feel special. Once, I return back to the United States, I will truly miss the attention that a lot of black women are not used to in America.
8. My Apartment
My apartment in Rome is the best one that I’ve ever lived in so far. Since it is newly renovated, the interior of the apartment looks elegant and well put together. During my semester abroad, I had a single room where I dwelled in my own privacy. In fact, since I am staying in JCU’s external apartments my roommate and I had the privilege of getting a cleaning service. Once I go back to the United States, I will definitely look back on the memories in my Roman apartment, such as gazing down on “Viale di Trastevere” from my balcony or simply writing my journal in the privacy of my own room.
9. Living Among History
Lastly, who wouldn’t miss living among Roman history! The Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon are about 20 minutes away by public transport from JCU. Therefore, in between classes, I like to visit the Trevi Fountain so that I can throw another coin in it every single time. In fact, after an eight minute walk I tend to read one of my favorite Italian books on the Spanish Steps. Also, if there’s even more time left I like to head over to the Villa Borghese gardens for a quick stroll. Overall, I will definitely be feeling so much “romesickness” once I cross the U.S. Border in the coming weeks! In fact, I’ve decided to extend my stay in Italy for another 14 days so that I can make the most of my time left here.
Thank you so much for reading my post and I’ll see you at my last one!
A presto, (See you soon!)
Jade
