Hi everyone! My name is Elise Fore, and I am a rising junior in AC 20. I currently have a position as the Director of New Member Education in Gamma Iota. This summer, I was fortunate enough to be able to study abroad in Florence, Italy with a few of my best friends. This was easily the most amazing trip I have been on- as it was my first time traveling without my family and my first time in Europe! My favorite memory of being in Florence was sitting on the bridge right outside of my apartment and watching the sunset with my friends. After class, we would walk together to dinner and reflect on our day and our upcoming trips. Spending each day with my closest friends and being able to travel around Europe together is something I will never forget. We traveled to a new place every single weekend, but my favorite place was Interlaken, Switzerland. I went with my former roommates in ADPi, and we did something that we called the “Switzerland triathlon” one day. We went kayaking across a beautiful lake in the morning, paragliding in the afternoon, and hiking up the tallest mountain in Interlaken in the evening. This day was unbelievable and really made me appreciate this earth!
When my friends and I first discussed studying abroad, it seemed like a distant dream that would never leave the group chat. Luckily, we cleared multiple nights to meet up at someone’s apartment to plan this adventure. Meeting up with everyone for our connecting flight in Atlanta and then actually taking off into the air, knowing that we would wake up in Italy was surreal.
I decided to take a class called Food, Culture, and Community. Having no idea what this entailed, I did not expect to be in the kitchen immediately after orientation. But, there I was, dressed head to toe like a chef. Learning in a way that was so hands-on ended up being extremely useful. Food is so important to Italian culture and being able to cook meals like they do made me realize how careful they are in the process. They really do cook with love as the main ingredient. My favorite day in the “classroom” was when we made eggplant parmesan. This recipe will stay in the Notes app on my phone forever.
This trip taught me a lot. I learned the importance of immersing yourself in other cultures. I learned to never take anything for granted and to say “yes” more, even when it is something out of your comfort zone. I realized how lucky I am to have such a great group of friends in ADPi that are determined and willing to make a trip like this happen. If you get this opportunity, I encourage you to say “yes!”
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