Abi's Semester Abroad: Florence, Italy

[abi-abroadventures]

5.17.17 FINISHED MY FINAL FILM 

Finals week has been very stressful. I had two finals on Monday for accounting and business governance and I PASSED! I was very anxious about my accounting exam and spent the majority of last week doing practice problems and preparing it. I even went to the library after the exam just to calculate where I currently stand in the class, and what score I needed on the final to get a good grade (I passed the exam 20/25, and I now have a B in the course). 

My final project for my filmmaking class has been an interesting process. We’ve spent the second half of the semester making this video from pre-production to post-production, my team faced many challenges. We all have different production backgrounds, and some were more knowledgable and skilled then the others. We also have different tastes and creative styles, so when it came to choosing a genre for our film, and coming up with ideas, we all wanted different things. Throughout the process of planning, filming and editing, we argued on how to approach each scene. It was a high stress, high risks project that was worth 40% of our grade, but it also came with high rewards. 

In the end, we overcame each struggle and challenge, and compromised, and made Un Fiore Per Te, a film based on the story of a girl experiencing grief from the passing of a loved one. With this overwhelming feeling, the girl turns to drugs and alcohol, and in being such a vulnerable stage, the girl becomes a target to a crime.

[abi-abroadventures]

5/13/17 8 Days Left

... in this beautiful place and I’m really sad about it. Three months a go, I was very anxious about the weather, being in a foreign place, and going without the comfort of my home, or my family and friends, but as I look back at all the adventures I’ve gone on, and the friends that I’ve made along the way, all those things that I was worried about just made the experience more surreal. 

I’ve been blessed with this wonderful opportunity to make one of my dreams a reality. Granted, I was forced to explore beyond the boundaries of my comfort zone, and do things that I’ve never done before. I’ve encountered challenges, faced some of my biggest fears (traveling alone to Venice to meet a friend, taking a chairlift to see the views of the Amalfi Coast from Mount Solaro even though I’m scared of heights, or taking multiple boat rides in a day even though I have motion sickness), and have truly grown as an individual because of these new experiences. I’ve become more independent, and more confident in myself in my ability to make my own decisions, trust my own instincts, and to adapt and adjust to survive in a foreign place. 

I’ve learned so much these past three months about the Italian culture, the history of Florence and various other places I’ve visited, and about who I am as an individual. Florence, and the memories I’ve made throughout these three months will always have a special place in my heart. 

This week I went to LdM’s farewell dinner at the museum (they had a buffet, a dj, and they served wine!), my friends and I walked around the Duomo very late at night just to admire its beauty, ate gelato at Venchi’s, and enjoyed a few drinks with my very close friends. This is my last weekend in Italy, and though I am very stressed out about finals, and my grades, I plan on making the most out of it. 

[abi-abroadventures]

5.7.17 

This past week has been eventful. I had my last cooking club where we made a dessert - Cantucci Al Cioccolato (a pastry usually made with almonds, but our chef wanted to make it a little bit sweeter so we substituted the almonds for chocolates), the first Sunday of month is always free entrance to certain museums, so this past Sunday was dedicated to the Boboli Gardens - the garden is absolutely breathtaking, and there’s so much to see and do. The garden is basically a maze, with the many different paths you could take, and all the different sceneries and sculptures you can see along the way, it will ultimately lead you to the same destination. 

It has also been a very stressful week. With only a two weeks till finals, a lot of my papers, presentations, and projects are due. My last project for my Corporate Governance on an Asian company was a success. Throughout the semester, we looked into three companies from three different countries - American Airlines, Alitalia and Singapore Airlines, and based on the information we found, we rated the companies on the basis of our governance rating system. I finished my 10 page Marketing paper, which focused on the ethical practices behind advertising and promotions, we wrapped up our shooting for my final film project for my filmmaking class which has been by far one of the most stressful projects I’ve done. With all the pre-production and planning that we have put into the project, our execution wasn’t the best, and had to continuously change our scenes due to our space, limited time, and creative conflict. 

Aside from school and activities, I’ve been trying to soak up as much of Florence as possible. I’ve been trying out different variations of food, walking around the city during my spare time and going out with my classmates to try to get to know them better. I only have a few more weeks of this beautiful city, and I’m trying to make the most out of it. 

[abi-abroadventures]

5/1/17 

Only 20 more days left to my study abroad program

There’s so much I want to see, and so many places I want to go, but I have 20 days left, and finals are coming up! I’ve been trying to soak it all in, planning last minute day trips around Italy, signing up the activities that LdM provides, and going to events around Florence. 

This week I made Pici All’ Arrabbiata, a Roman spicy pasta from scratch! We made the dough, rolled out each individual noodle - a tedious, yet rewarding task considering at all the noodles I had to roll out by hand, and how amazing the pasta tasted. I also had my wine and food pairing class in which we were taught how to properly taste wine -swirling it so that the wine opens up, softens, and gives off the aroma, smelling it, and swishing it in your mouth for 15-30 seconds to get all its flavor. We were also taught how to make pasta alla Norma, a red pasta with eggplants to pair with our wine. Today was the last day for the 81 International Handcraft Exhibition in Florence, and we were able to see all the different types of foods, and crafts from different countries... from Sangría, to salame, macarons, to leather handbags and seashells, today was definitely a cultural experience.  

What I enjoy the most about Europe, and Florence is that I could hop on a train, and go somewhere for a weekend, or even a day at a reasonable price. With Prato being a 5 Euro round trip ticket, my friends and I took a last minute trip to the second largest Chinatown in Italy. It was a good break from all the pasta, pizza and Italian food we were eating, and to be able to eat rice again! We also went sightseeing around the river, and the Duomo, and even attended the mass!  

[abi-abroadventures]

4/24/17

Pompeii, Sorento, Capri 

This past week has been quite an adventure! I started my cooking club on Thursday, and we made Arancini di Riso, a popular Sicilian cuisine (it’s sort of like a deep fried Rissoto). With my study abroad program ending in a few weeks, my classes have been very busy. This past week, I had to work on two presentations - one on the importance of MicroInfluencers for my Marketing class, and the second on the corporate governance on Alitalia. My film class have been focused on our final group project of a 5 minute original film - my group and I have decided on creating a film within the horror/mystery genre, and will be shooting within the next couple of days! 

With all my work load, it was great to take a break and go on the second trip UHM has signed us up through LdM. I got to visit the ruins of Pompeii, and through a guided tour, I learned a lot so much about its history, the people, and its culture. We headed off to Sorrento for dinner and Limoncello tasting from drinks, to limoncello candies and cookies. Although Limoncello is very popular, especially in the Southern part of Italy, it is an acquired taste. I personally did not like it as much, but a lot of my peers really enjoyed the flavor. 

Capri was absolutely beautiful, and in a way it reminded me so much of home. LdM has planned activities for us throughout the day, with a boat ride to Capri, a boat tour of the island, and free time for sight seeing (one of which is taking a train ride, bus ride, and a chair lift to the highest mountain in AnaCapri to see a 360 view of the Amalfi Coast). With my sea sickness, and my fear of heights, I was very anxious about some of the activities planned out for us. 

Through this study abroad program, I’ve been  pushing myself to take go on adventures, take on new challenges, and face my fears, and because of that I’ve been growing and learning. There was a point I wanted to sit out of the boat tour of the island, or stay down the mountain while my friends went up, but because I was able to face my fears, I’ve been blessed with incredible views, and I feel like I can do more things now. With three weeks left, there’s a lot I still want to do, and I’m trying to make the most out of everyday I’m in this beautiful country. 

[abi-abroadventures]

4/17/17

Since coming back from spring break, I’ve been making more of an effort to do and see something new every single day, or do similar things and find something new about it. With that being, I’ve been walking around Florence, appreciating the street performers, trying out new food, and admiring the view along the way. 

With the weather in Florence being warmer with the Spring season, I revisited Piazza Michelangelo and the Giardino delle Rose (instead of going up the stairs, the garden on the left provides another path to Piazza Michelangelo), and I was greeted with so much greenery and beautiful flowers! I signed up for a few activities that LdM has to offer - a cooking club that happens every Thursday, an Italian Food and Wine Tasting activity, and I got waitlisted on a course on the secrets of fresh pasta in which I learn about the process of making pasta. 

In my first cooking class, we made Gnocchi Sardi with artichokes and crumbs (we rolled out the dough, cut it into small pieces and made its shape by rolling each piece over a lined wooden panel), and crispy cakes of apples and raisins (we made the apple mixture and placed it on the puff pastry). The class was fast paced, and since I was partnered up with my roommate, and we both don’t have much cooking experience, we were slower than the rest of our peers, and needed extra help. Nevertheless, our meal looked and tasted delicious! 

Easter weekend in Florence was AMAZING! I attended church on Saturday at St. James Church, one of the very few english speaking churches in Italy. The church was very welcoming, and invited my friends and I to their Easter Agape potluck after the service. We ate food, played a few rounds of ping pong and I got to play the piano for them. It was really fun, and I’m definitely coming back. On Sunday, we gathered around the Duomo for the Esplosione del Carro. The Archbishop lights a rocket shaped like a Dove at the altar which then runs along a cable to set off the fireworks mounted on the Carro. According to tradition, if the Dove returns back to the altar, then the year will bring good harvest. 

[abi-abroadventures]

4/3/17

Spring Break: Amsterdam & Ireland

After a LONG and stressful week of midterms (which I’m hoping I got good grades - unlike UHM, the professors at LdM don’t really provide a study guide or practice problems, but will take a few minutes the week prior to the midterm to briefly explain key points and areas to focus on), I finally got to enjoy 10 full days sightseeing and adventuring around Amsterdam and Ireland!  

Amsterdam: Since watching the The Fault in Our Stars, I’ve been dreaming about the day I stepped foot in Amsterdam. With it’s canal system that reminded me so much of Venice, colorful houses, and lively streets, Amsterdam was nothing short of amazing. Though we spent the majority of the time in the exploring the city, we were able to find the smallest house in Europe which is about arm length’s long, found the IAMSTERDAM sign by the Vincent Van Gogh Museum, tried different types of cheeses, and as suggested by another friend, we headed over to Den Haag to try bitterballen - a popular Dutch snack!

Ireland: After four days, my friends and I headed to Ireland! We visited the Guiness Brewery - five floors that explains the brewing process, the brief history of the beer and Arthur Guiness, a beer taste testing, and on the fifth floor, guests over the age of 18 are given a free pint of beer. We also ventured to the Dublin Castle, the St. Patricks Cathedral (it’s a 6 Euro entrance fee, but if you attend the mass on Sundays, it’s free admission). 

Being an avid Harry Potter fan, my friends and I ventured out to the Cliffs of Moher which was used in the Half Blood Prince as a hiding spot for one of the Holcruxes. We also visited the Trinity College Library to see the Book of Kells, an intricate and detailed manuscript of the first four Gospels of the New Testament. The library went into detail as to how the book was created - showing the different types of feathers used, how the colors were derived, the binding process for the book, and the 183 goat skins that was used in the process to create the book. 

Here’s a few tips for traveling: 

- flying outside of Florence is always expensive and students will often opt to fly out of Milan or Pisa to save money. 

- budgeting is key to traveling, but bring an emergency fund... you never know when you would need it. 

- RyanAir and EasyJet are some of the go to airlines for cheap fares. 

[abi-abroadventures]

3/20/17

Firenze

This past week has been dedicated towards midterm preparations, and I’m glad to say, all the studying and sleepless nights are paying off! I took my first two exams today for Accounting 202 and BUS 377: Business Governance, and I’m pretty confident in my answers. I’ve also been receiving back my papers and previous work from my classes, and so far so good! Though studying abroad is a great opportunity, at first I was very anxious in balancing schoolwork and being able to see as much of Italy and Europe. But, I’ve been trying to about my time wisely to get the most out of my day... and stay in Italy, and so far I’ve been able to travel to various places, while keeping up with my schoolwork! 

This past week, we had the opportunity to visit a leather school - Scuola del Cuoio for my Marketing class! We learned about the different types of leather (how much it costs, the texture, etc.), and the process from leather tanning, to the factory, and finally crafting each piece by hand. As for my filmmaking class, we’re finally transitioning from theory and the history of film, to the more technical side of camera work, audio, and editing! I’ve always been passionate about film and in creating a visual story, so to be able to relearn some of the basics and picking up new techniques is quite exciting! The goal for this unit is to produce a film: narrative, or documentary. 

Aside from school, I have been taking the time to decompress and destress from midterm preparations and I’ve been trying food from new places! 

Here’s a list a list of some of the best restaurants/ gelataria’s in Firenze: 

- Il Chioso Degli Sportivi - a place I frequent after class for a cup of cappucino and a delicious panini!

- Venchi - an Italian chocolate manufacturer with a chocolate wall! 

- Perche’ No - their homemade gelatos are AMAZING! The Gelataria was founded in 1939, and has become a popular spot for tourists and locals. 

- Pizza Man - a local told me this was their favorite place for pizza. All the ingredients are really fresh, and very tasty. 

- Gusto Pizza - heart shaped pizzas! 

- Yellow Bar - they have a section in the restaurant where customers can see the chefs make pasta from scratch. I ordered the Carbonara, and it’s by far the best one I’ve had. 

- San Lorenzo Marketplace - the top floor consists of various food vendors selling affordable meals from fish, sushi, burgers, pizza, etc. while the bottom floor consists of a marketplace where you can buy fresh produce! 

[abi-abroadventures]

3/13/17

Cinque Terre, Portofino, Portovenere & MIDTERMS coming up

This past weekend, we travelled to Cinque Terre, which consists of five towns along the coastline. With it’s colorful houses, beautiful beaches, and the fresh seafood, Cinque Terre (which is also the origin of pesto sauce, and is also famous for it’s anchovies) is by far my favorite place! 

Since we went on the trip with the school (LdM offers multiple trips throughout the semester for additional costs in which hotels, transportation, and some meals are covered), we spent much of Saturday touring the three out of the towns of Cinque Terre: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, and Corniglio. In a way I expected the school to give us a tour of the five towns, but instead we were given a briefing on the history of Cinque Terre, a map, and train tickets, and we were able to go on our individual excursions. 

Though the three villages we visited were all along the coastline, it offered different activities. Corniglio offered an open hike to Vernazza (they say you could hike through all five towns, but only two out of the five were open which were from Corniglio to Vernazza and from Corniglio to Manarola ), Vernazza offered a natural pier, and Monterosso, the biggest of the five, offered a sandy beach area. We spent Sunday traveling to towns adjacent to Cinque Terre: Portofino and Porto Venere. 

As for school, midterms is in a week! Last week consisted of presentations and papers, one for my BUS 377 course in which we presented our corporate governance rating system, and our rating on an American company, or in this case American Airlines. In ACC 202, we’ve been covering cost management systems, MKT 210 has been focusing on the group projects in which we have to create our own company, and develop a successful marketing strategy, while working on our own individual projects where we have to research and write a paper on societal marketing. My fun class - FVM 210 which is a filmmaking course has been focusing on the editing portion, and has us editing and presenting videos! 

[abi-abroadventures]

03/05/17

Venice, Naples, Sorrento 

The past two weeks have been quite an adventure: 

Last weekend, I met up with my friend Kristel (who is also participating in a study abroad program in Paris) in Venice. It was insane! Aside from experiencing the last weekend of the carnival, this was also the first time I’ve taken the train by myself. Though I’ve done some traveling since arriving in Italy, I was still very anxious about navigating my way through the train station, and since Kristel’s phone wasn’t working, there was no way I could communicate with her. 

I lugged around my carry-on the pouring rain for a mile so when I arrived in the train station, and managed to find my platform, I felt very independent and accomplished. 

Though I was lost multiple times - Venice consists of more than 100 small islands which are linked by bridges, I was mesmerized the the carnival celebrations where people wore fancy suits and intricate masks, there were street performances on every corner, and a huge celebration took place at the Marco Square. 

This weekend, I visited Naples and Sorrento. Though Naples is one of the oldest cities in the world, and they are known for the Neapolitan pizza, and red wine, the city is quite dangerous. On our first night while we were in search for pizza, my friend’s phone was stolen as she was using it. We were a group of five girls crossing the street, when a guy decides to reach over, grab her phone, and run away. It was a very traumatic experience, that reminded all of us to use caution, and be aware of our surroundings. 

On our second night, we ventured to Piano di Sorrento, and I celebrated my 20th birthday! I met my Godmother, and some of my extended family for the first time, and they opened up their home to me and my friends, and threw me a surprise birthday party. It was amazing, It reminded me so much of home. 

Back in Florence, I’m becoming a regular at Caffé Fiorentino (a place I frequent after classes for a cup of coffee) and Forno, the bakery right across the street. The workload for my classes has been piling up, though still very doable, I’ve been having presentations, papers, or a group project due almost every week! With midterms right around the corner (10 days to be exact), I’ve been hitting the library and taking my readings on the road. 

Since museums are free on the first Sunday of every month, and I was back home from Sorrento, I went to the Galleria dell’ Accademia to see the statue of David, and the Palazzo Pitti. 

Here are the other state museums that are free on the first Sunday: 

- Uffizi, BargelloMedici Chapels, Boboli Museum, Palazzo Davanzati, Medici Villas

[abi-abroadventures]

2/21/17 

Piazza Michelangelo, Pisa, and Lucca 

I thought the view of Ponte Vecchio was stunning, but Piazza Michelangelo (which overlooks Firenze) was something else. What I thought would have been a casual walk to this famous landmark became a hike on a steep hill, and a whole bunch of stairs that took us to the top, but when we got there the view was AMAZING. 

This past Saturday I visited the leaning tower of Pisa and Lucca. Depending on where you stand, the degree to which the tower is tilted changes. At some parts, the tower may even look straight. But nevertheless, the spot was full of tourists aiming to take a photo of themselves either pushing, or even kicking the tower (I’m guilty of falling into this temptation). Aside from the tower, and the various religious buildings surrounding it (Piazza dei Miracoli, Camposanto Monumentale - Monumental Cemetary, Pisa Cathedral, and the Campanile), there’s only so much to do in Pisa, so my friends and I took a four minute train ride to Lucca -the city adjacent to Pisa. 

Lucca, which is famous for its renaissance-era walls that circumscribe the city is by far my favorite place in Italy. Unlike Florence, Lucca is less crowded, has smaller buildings, and has a touch of green (the tree-lined pathways, and the mountains in the horizon). We visited the Torre Guinigi - one of the few remaining towers in Lucca that overlooked the city, and had a garden of Holm Oaks (which symbolizes rebirth and renewal) growing at the top. We also visited the Gelatarium (a self serve ice cream shop with swings!). 

The places I’ve been able to see and visit have taught me so much about Italy - history, its culture, and the people, and it makes me appreciate this experience so much more. 

Here’s a few tips when traveling: 

- Book your tickets way in advance, though if you’re lucky, you might be able to score some good deals - I booked my roundtrip ticket from Florence to Pisa and Lucca the night before, and it only costs me 20 euros! But for places that are farther, booking in advance will save you a lot of money. 

- Make sure you bring enough cash with you as most places do not accept card. 

- Do a lot of research before traveling. Make a list of the places you wish to see, and find out something about it - it’s history, importance, etc.. Knowing something about the place adds to the experience, while knowing where you want to go before you travel saves a lot of time and effort compared to trying to figure out what you want to see when you get there. 

- Stay hydrated, and bring a lot of snacks! You’ll be walking everywhere. 

- Have fun! But of course, use common sense, and have extra caution, especially in places you’re not familiar with. 

[abi-abroadventures]

2/11/17

It’s only been the first week of school, and I already have a lot of homework! I’m taking four classes: accounting 202, corporate governance (a writing intensive), principles of marketing, and digital filmmaking. All of them require A LOT of work (presentations, papers, company tours, and for my filmmaking class, a final project that consists of an original film!). They’re all quite interesting, and although the course load is much more than I’m used to, it’s definitely going to challenge me to grow in both my field, and in my passion for film. 

This week, I went on a few adventures: I finally went to the Ponte Vecchio (a stunning view that I’ve been googling for the past two months), watched a few street performances, and on a rainy night, drank a cafè latte with my roommate with a perfect view of the carousel. 

Although Italy is stunning, I have been getting a bit homesick lately. I’ve been missing my friends, family, and the food a lot (especially my rice, and poke). So lately, I’ve been surrounding myself with my new friends, spending some time with my roommates, and since I live just three blocks away from a Chinese and Japanese restaurant, I’ve been using some of my lunch breaks to indulge on rice, sushi, and a whole lot of fish. 

[abi-abroadventures]

2/4/17

Florence is AMAZING! It’s only been four days since I landed, and it still hasn’t really hit me that I’ll be spending the next four months in such a beautiful city. 

Here’s a quick recap of what happened so far: 

- It was exhausting to fly to Italy: two lay overs, three plane rides, and I missed out on a day flying here! I flew from Hawaii to San Francisco, and since I had a nine hour layover in San Fran, the free wifi came in clutch. And since my travel companion (Courtney - a student from UH Manoa, and is doing the same study abroad program) knew a friend from San Francisco, we were lucky enough to catch the sunrise from Twin Peaks, visit the Golden Gate Bridge, drink some hot chocolate at Ghirardelli, and watch the sea lions at the Fisherman’s Wharf. From San Francisco we flew to Frankfurt, Germany and after a two hour layover, and another two hour flight, I, and my baggage finally made it to Florence! 

- I met my host grandmother Anna. She’s a sweet 71 year old vegetarian (which is a good thing considering that I don’t eat meat, but she still provides meat options for dinner for my other two roommates - Naomi and Jaida). Anna does not speak English, and although I’ve been trying to learn Italian, google translate has been helping us communicate. 

- For the past three days, I’ve been attending orientations where I’ve met my counselors and advisors and received a finalized copy of my class schedule! For the most part, these orientations were very dry and repeated much of the information by the Study Abroad Center in our informational meetings. Aside from these meetings, I did have a chance to go sightseeing... I finally saw the Duomo, the replica of David in the Palazzo della Signoria, and visited the fontana del procellino (the famous bronze statue) at the Plizza del Mercato Nuovo - they said if you touch it’s snout, there’s a big chance you’ll return to Florence, and I did just that. 

The past three days have been quite an adventure and I look forward to seeing more of Florence, (and Europe) and the lessons this beautiful city will teach me. 

[abi-abroadventures]

6 days...

My name is Abigail Olipani. I was born in the Philippines, and moved to Hawaii when I was six years old. It’s been thirteen years since the big move, and since then I’ve been taken on a few hobbies such as playing the piano, film/photography, and have been exposed to opportunities I would not have otherwise such as being part of UH Productions (a student run media organization that focuses on video production within the university community), attending college, and of course, studying abroad in such a beautiful city: Florence, Italy. 

In less then a week I’ll be leaving behind the familiarity of home for a new, and exciting adventure. As excited as I may be to experience a new country, and a new culture, I’m also very anxious. For one thing, I’ve always lived on this beautiful island of Oahu and have yet to experience what it’s like to be in the cold weather (weather in Florence fluctuates between 30 and 50 degrees), and though I’ve been doing some research on how to keep myself warm (layers, layers, layers), I still feel very unprepared. I also don’t know what to expect from this experience.

 Though anxious, I’m still very excited that I’m finally making my dreams into a reality. This opportunity would not be possible without the tremendous amount of love and support from my parents and loved ones, and the generous contribution of the Florence Hutson Driskel Scholarship. Here’s to an AMAZING journey ahead, and to the triumphs and tribulations that will expand my horizons, and shape me to become a better person.