Reflections on my Time in Italy

Traveling to Italy has truly been a remarkable experience for me. I have become more confident in myself, after being able to navigate my way through the Italian culture and cities so different from what I am used to. I think the greatest benefit of going on dialogue has been the appreciation I have for different cultures; Northeastern prides itself on developing globally-aware students and I believe that traveling on a dialogue or study abroad really is a great way to achieve global awareness. If I hadn’t transferred to Northeastern, I would’ve made time to travel again on another dialogue. It was such a great experience and period of personal growth. For anyone considering a dialogue or study abroad- just do it! You will have an amazing experience, and will learn things about an entirely different part of the world, but will also be humbled by the similarities between your own culture and the place where you will be living. Any apprehensions I had were gone within the first week, and I know that many other people also embraced the program and also felt appreciation for everything we were able to learn. The best way to experience a new culture is to immerse yourself in it, and a dialogue is a really great way to do this, because if you are nervous you have the “safety net” of other Northeastern students and professors with you- this network really helped me to explore my boundaries and become more open to new opportunities, and for that I am thankful!