#avasillars

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Ava in Sorrento | Week 5: Being halfway done, the end of my work experience, and more traveling around Italy

We are officially halfway through!

I cannot believe this point is already here, it feels like just a couple days ago I was navigating my way around the grocery stores and figuring out my schedule. Alas, I suppose the countdown begins for when I return home. Now I am definitely looking forward to seeing all my friends and family again, but I will also undoubtedly miss waking up everyday here in the heart of Sorrento.

Like I said before, the halfway point means the Summer 1 session ending, and the Summer 2 session beginning. All of us staying here for the 10 weeks had to tearfully say goodbye to all the friends we made who were only here for the first session, but we also get to meet all the new students in the coming days/weeks.

We of course all had to get I heart Sorrento shirts for our last night together

Practical Work Experience (PWE)

Additionally, I had my final presentation for my work experience where we present all the work we have done through our Wix E-Portfolio website. For those of you doing the work experience, every week you write a weekly reflection on the tasks you completed and any thoughts you have regarding them. You also get to include photos and videos of the work you are doing, so make sure to get lots of pictures! By the end of the internship, you have to complete several other tabs including an about me page, an international internship tab, and a final reflection. I will say waiting until the last day to complete all of those is not the recommended course of action since there is a lot to cover, but you will get to go over all of it with one of the work experience staff and they can give you further feedback on it which is very helpful. For our presentation we spoke about our experiences working for our respective companies, and many of the employers also came to listen in which was nice of them to do.

Getting to do this work experience was such an amazing experience and I highly recommend it if you are considering it. It most likely will not be anything like what you are expecting, especially when it comes to working a typical job in the US, but that's the beauty of it. Getting to experience the Italian work culture and fully immerse yourself with the locals is something that you cannot do anywhere else. You also are encouraged to get your employers information for future recommendation purposes, and they are all more than happy to help you in your future career!

The group of interns I was with and our amazing supervisor Domenico! (aka Mimí)

Along with the work experience, you will be receiving a microcredential though CIS so there is separate work for that. There are weekly modules for you to get through, thus I once again recommend pacing yourself and not saving it all for the last minute. All of the work you have to get done during the last week piles up quickly, especially if you have any exams in the other classes you are taking. Hypothetically speaking from personal experience, it's not the end of the world if you wait but once again I do not recommend it.

Capri

Back to our regularly scheduled programming of more travels, this weekend I visited the Island Capri! In order to get there, you have to take a ferry which is a lot simpler than it may seem. The port is really close to Sant’Anna which is nice, you just have to walk down a lot of stairs to get to it. I would recommend waiting to buy tickets until the day of when you get there because they are usually cheaper than buying online, and many companies don’t offer refunds if the trip gets cancelled due to weather. A round trip from Sorrento is generally anywhere between 30-45 euro depending on the company and times you select.

As soon as we arrived to Capri, we went to the famous Blue Grotto where the water almost looks magical because of how the sun reflects off the white sand at the bottom. You can either access the grotto by boat or foot/bus, and the entrance is 18 euro for the grotto itself. I will warm you, it is a lot of waiting around. My friends and I took a boat to get there since I heard from other people that if you take the bus it charges you for every stop the bus passes so it can get pretty pricey for just a round trip. Once you get there, you have to wait for your boats to turn, and then you get into smaller rowboats that you have to lie completely down in because of how small the entrance is (you also access the grotto by rowboat if you traveled there by foot/bus).  It was really pretty and the workers sang songs while we were inside which was quite entertaining, but if your heart is not set on going, I think the amount of time it took and the cost may be enough of a deterrent (we spent around 45 euro each for the boat, grotto admission, and tip). 

The view of Capri from our boat to the blue grotto and inside the grotto!

After the grotto we went to a chair lift which overlooked the coastline which was really pretty, and had a nice breeze. At the top there is a restaurant and a bar, as well as one or two small shops. We took a short bus ride to get there, and then we just walked around the shops by the chair lift and closer to the ferry port until it was time to depart back to Sorrento.

The chair lift and the view from the top–it was so pretty! You can also see the siren rocks from Homer’s Odyssey in the far left just off the coast.

Overall it was a fun trip, but it does just feel very similar to all of the other southern towns in Italy, including Sorrento. I will say though there are a handful of museums, gardens, and beaches there which we didn’t explore, but once again you can find all of those in any other coastal town of Italy.

Rome

For my second day trip of the weekend, I went to Rome! Now I will say many people choose to spend a night or the whole weekend in Rome, but the hostels were much pricer than I felt comfortable spending (around 50 euro per night) so I decided to just take a day trip there instead. I took the train early in the morning to get to Naples, and then I took a bus (about 14 euro round trip) from there to Rome which took about 3 hours. I got to spend about 6 hours in Rome which I do acknowledge is about the same amount of time spent traveling, but I definitely think it was worth it. 

We went on the first Sunday of the month, which is a day that many government owned sites have free admissions so we got to go into the Colosseum for free. Afterwards we saw most of the iconic places in Rome including the Trevi Fountain, the Roman Forum, the Pantheon, and the Spanish Steps. We walked around to each spot, took pictures, and then moved onto the next.

The Colosseum!

After our sightseeing we did some shopping, and then got some food before we left. There are a lot of luxury stores in Rome, but there are also several other stores that you can walk around. Overall I think it is definitely worth visiting, and is doable in a day if you plan it out right. However, if you want to take your time while you are there, staying at least a night would definitely be worth it depending on your own priorities and budget. We might go back for another day to visit the Vatican City, but tbd on that front.

A cathedral (left) and the Spanish Steps (right)

There was a guy playing violin on the streets and it felt so cinematic

The Trevi Fountain (left) and the Pantheon (right)

Next week I will hopefully get to update you guys on the start of my new class, and I will be traveling to Venice over the weekend to meet one of my friends from UM who is also studying abroad in Italy! And of course, I will be sure you let you guys know how it goes. Ciao for now, and see you next week!

Ava Sillars

Data Science Engineering

Engineering in Sorrento

[umichenginabroad]

Ava in Sorrento | Week 4: Locking in for Physics and Traveling to London

Welcome back!

This past week has been quite a busy and stressful week, but also one of the most fun so I cannot complain too much. I suppose since the whole point of being here in Sorrento is the study portion of study abroad, I should probably mention what it is like to take classes here at Sant’Anna! Currently I am only taking physics since I also have my work experience, but I will soon be taking another course once the summer 2 session begins. 

Classes

Physics is 3 days a week, and it lasts for 3 very long hours. Most of the classes here run for 3 hours so it can be quite brutal when you have days with back to back scheduling, but most professors give you a 10 minute break which is nice. I will say it was quite a stark transition from classes at umich since most classes only last for 50 or 80 minutes, but it just takes some getting used to. Most classes also have a midterm and a final. However, for all the classes I have heard about, their exams have not been too hard, and most people just take the night before to study for them. Physics differs slightly from the rest of the classes since it spans both summer sessions, so there are 2 midterms and 1 final. The exams kind of remind me of taking tests in high school, if that gives you somewhat of a gauge in terms of difficulty. The physics professor is very kind and understanding, and he is always open to answering any questions you may have. The main difficulty I have had during class is that it is often difficult to decode what he is writing on the board because some of the symbols are written very differently than we are used to. For instance, when it comes to writing numbers, they switch the use of the comma and decimal (eg. 1,000.56 is 1.000,56 in Italy). Other than that, the class is not terribly difficult, and is much slower paced than your average college course which seems to be a common theme throughout all of the courses offered at Sant'Anna.

The physics classroom!

Traveling Advice

Since I do not have classes on Friday, which is common for most students, I have been booking trips that begin either Thursday evening or early Friday morning. As such, immediately following physics class this past Thursday, a couple of friends and I quickly made it to the Sorrento train station to begin our adventure to London. The train takes about 90 minutes to get all the way to Naples, and then we took a quick bus ride to the airport from there. It was pretty easy to navigate so things were looking good until I got a notification that our flights were delayed. This being my first flight/out of country trip, I learned A LOT of things. 

One, it's not worth booking through third party sites if you can avoid it. For one, the site I used to book a hostel only charged me for 1 person, so I had to pay on the spot even though I reserved 2 beds online. With my flights, even though they were delayed, the airline did not offer me a new one since I did not book directly with them. Additionally, you have to pay for your own new flight if you miss a connecting flight (speaking from personal *painful* experience). 

That brings me to my second point: if you book a flight with a layover, I would allot at least 3 hours because most flights close the gates over an hour before you depart. They also do not announce the terminal you are leaving from until it is time to actually board, and you only get about 20 minutes before last call. 

Third, make sure you check-in through the airline in advance otherwise you likely will have to pay a check-in fee at the airport which can be around 50 euro extra per person. This generally involves inputing your personal information and passport details, as well as skipping past all the upgrades they offer. Personally, I have been only bringing a personal item since it costs extra to bring a carry-on. It has worked thus far, you just have to be mindfully conservative when packing.

My last points for now are regarding hostels. Just know they likely will charge you to rent towels and/or lockers, and you may need to bring your own lock in order to actually lock it. Also since air conditioning is not standard across Europe, oftentimes the rooms can reach temperatures even hotter than it is outside so pack breathable clothing.

London

Moving on from traveling insights, London was such a fun trip, I would highly recommend it if you are considering it. The main deterrent is that it is very expensive, especially since the USD to the British pound conversion is quite significant (currently 1 pound = 1.33 USD). However, there is so much to do and see in London for little to no cost that it is definitely doable on a budget. For transportation I primarily walked and used the tube which was pretty easy to navigate with just the use of google/apple maps. I personally prefer apple maps, but my roommate used google maps and they both have been working so far. I spent Friday sightseeing which included Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, the Kew Gardens, and many other iconic landmarks.

Westminster Abbey (left) and the Big Ben–you can also see the London Eye! (right)

Kew Gardens, which for any Bridgerton fans is where Queen Charlotte is set!

Chinatown (left) and Buckingham Palace (right)

On Saturday we went to see the crown jewels in the London Tower which was a bit expensive, but it was definitely a cool experience and very interesting to learn about if you have any fascination with that type of stuff. The only sad thing is you are not allowed to take any photos of the jewels, but you can of all of the other parts. You also can see the tower bridge right on your way in/out from the London Tower! Afterwards we did some shopping shopping in Soho, and then I went to see Harry Styles in the evening! Now I will admit I am definitely not his biggest fan, but I am an avid concert goer so getting to see a concert at Wembley Stadium was such a fun experience. I even went by myself since no one else I had traveled with wanted to go, and honestly I had the most fun at the concert. Everyone I talked to was so kind, and made the entire concert even more enjoyable.

Outside of the Royal Jewels and the Tower Bridge (which is much cooler than the London Bridge)

Harry Styles!!!

This has made me want to take a solo trip at some point so I will follow-up with you guys if I do! Overall, despite the many hiccups along the way (including getting stuck in Palma, Spain for almost 10 hours during our layover) I thoroughly enjoyed my trip and learned a lot about how to successfully approach traveling, so hopefully you don’t have the same things happen to you! 

Next week is the last week of the Summer 1 session which is both surreal and bittersweet. All the session 1 students will be leaving, but we also get to meet all the new session 2 students which is exciting. Further indicating the halfway point, my work experience is coming to a close and my second class is about to begin. I assure you that I will continue to update through the transition period, and am looking forward to my second half of Italy!

Ciao for now,

Ava Sillars

Data Science Engineering

Engineering in Sorrento

[umichenginabroad]

Ava in Sorrento | Week 3: My love for Sorrento, CIS Events, and Florence/Pisa

We’ve made it through week 3! 

I am almost a third of the way through my time here in Sorrento which is absolutely crazy to think about. Now that I have had a decent amount of time to adapt to everyday life here, here are some of my favorite things about studying abroad here. 

First, the scenery. The views all around Sorrento are all painstakingly beautiful, and even now I still cannot get over how picturesque everything is. Plus, being surrounded by water always makes the sunsets jaw-dropping.

Second, the people. Everyone here is so kind, and I have not met anyone here that would not stop and take the second to have a conversation, or give some friendly advice (other than the drivers–I will admit they can be kind of scary especially whey honk incessantly as they're going around all the curves of the hills and mountains around). Additionally, since it is more of a touristy area, a majority of the locals speak a decent amount of English so the language barrier has not been nearly as bad as I had been expecting.

Third, the weather. We have had so many nice sunny days, but also some nice cooler days with a bit of cloudiness or sprinklings of rain. The weather has been hovering around the high seventies, which has been perfect. I am especially grateful since many of the surrounding tourist cities have begun to reach the mid nineties. Although, I will say I am not looking forward to the scolding hot days once we get into July/August.

Now I could go on and on about how great Sorrento is and give you a never ending list if you couldn’t tell already, but here are a couple more, speed run style. The location being so close to Naples (for traveling purposes). The location of Sant’Anna is right on the water and within walking distance of almost everything you could possibly need. The cost of living is definitely not cheap, but also not outrageous like some other cities within Italy. And I have always felt very safe walking around whether its with a group of people or by myself, unlike some other cities (*cough cough Naples cough*).

More CIS Events

Beyond all of the things I have come to love about Sorrento, this past week has been pretty eventful! CIS offered both a Lemon Garden tour with a light lunch afterwards (I will never miss out on free food–and neither should you), and a sunset kayak experience. The lemon garden was fun to walk around especially since it feels so transformative. It is essentially in the heart of the city, and yet it's a whole 2 acre garden just full of lemon trees. It also is a great place for photos so if you’re someone who enjoys getting cute pictures I would definitely recommend it.

Lemons galore!

Now, I also did the kayak tour the same day as the lemon garden since I didn’t have any classes, but CIS does offer multiple dates for almost all of their events to account for scheduling conflicts. From the balcony of Sant’Anna, you can see where we took off in the kayaks, so it was really close which is nice. Pro tip: do NOT go in a single kayak if you have never gone kayaking before because you could tip over (not my own personal experience but still)! Anyways, most of us had double kayaks so it wasn’t too much of an issue. We kayaked around the coast and made it to a private beach which I wish we could have spent more time at, but we had to get back before the sun completely set. On the way back, the sunset was incredible to watch, especially being right on the water.

The beach felt like a hidden cove and the sunset from the water was unreal

Florence and Pisa

Besides the actual studying part of study abroad, I also visited Florence and Pisa this weekend! This was my first actual weekend trip and I absolutely loved it. My friend and I took an overnight bus on Thursday evening after classes and arrived in Florence around 5am. Now, anyone who knows me will tell you that I am absolutely not a morning person, but this was definitely worth it. We got to see all the main tourist attractions before there were any people around, and before all the street vendors set up in front of them. There are so many piazzas (town squares) within walking distance, as well as many shops and restaurants. Florence is especially known for its leather so there are whole markets that take up an entire block where you can find any leather goods you could possibly want. Beyond the shopping (which we did a lot of), we also crossed the bridge over the river and hiked up a small mountain overlooking the city–the views once again were astounding. The skyline was so intricate with all of the churches and towers that you can see. 

The view from the top!

The famous David statue by Michelangelo which is in the Galleria dell'Accademia

The Duomo Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore

After we spent most of the day in Florence, we took a train over to Pisa which only took about an hour, and went to see the learning tower of Pisa. It was in fact leaning! Other than the square with a couple other buildings right next to it, there isn’t much else to do there so after we got dinner, we headed back to the hostel we booked (which was also much cheaper than staying in Florence), and then left the next morning to come back to Sorrento!

This was definitely my favorite weekend trip so far, and it wasn’t terribly expensive for travel and accommodation so I would highly recommend it!

Next week I must admit I will have to lock in since we have our first physics exam (scary), and we go to the bay one more time for my work experience. Although after the school week is over, I will be going to London to see Harry Styles, so I cannot wait to update next week,

Arrivederci!

Ava Sillars

Data Science Engineering

Engineering in Sorrento

[umichenginabroad]

Ava in Sorrento | Week 2: Work Experience and more Traveling

Benvenuto!

The highlights of this past week are plentiful so I am very excited to update you guys on what I have been up to! First off, I got to visit the Ieranto Bay for the first time this past Tuesday. I will say it was quite a trek both there and back. Along with the 3 other interns, we had to take a bus by ourselves to Nerano, and then had a 45 minute hike. The views were to die for, but on the hike back we felt like we were dying (not actually but close to it). When we arrived we helped with setup and monitoring and then had a break, but afterwards is when the real work for our project began.

Views from the hike !

We got to choose which things to display for the day :)

Over the course of this 5 week work experience we will be creating an algarium, a collection of preserved algae. We put on wetsuits, flippers, and snorkeling goggles and went to work. First our supervisor showed us different areas of the bay where we could find various species of algae, and then let us collect as much as we could in pairs on our own. We collected the algae mainly off rocks by the shore, but there was also some diving involved in the process. I also had to take notes on this waterproof paper, which let me tell you was quite a struggle with all the sharp rocks and waves surrounding me. Once we collected what we hoped was a sufficient amount of algae types, we quickly dried off and changed so we could make it back to the bus stop in time for the bus. Again, the hike back was much more difficult since the hike is entirely flat or down hill on the way there, so after a full day's worth of work in the hot sun, it was quite treacherous. We did fortunately make it back in time (even with having to switch buses since we got on the wrong one the first time), and then we had to attend a 1 hour LEaD class that all the work experience/interns have to take. The following day we researched, sorted, and started the preservation process for all the algae we collected. Hopefully I will have further updates on the algarium next week!

The Ieranto bay & me sorting, identifying, and labeling all the algae we collected

Pompei and Train Transportation

Besides the mass amounts of time spent working with algae, I also furthered my travels around Italy over the weekends! Last Sunday, a group of friends and I traveled to Pompei where we visited the ancient city Pompeii (yes it is spelled differently–don’t ask me why). Pro tip: many government owned historical sites in Europe have free entry on the first Sunday of every month, so thankfully we did not have to pay for a ticket to visit. 

We took the train directly from Sorrento to Pompei, which, once you get the hang of it, it is not nearly as bad as you would think. You can buy round trip tickets at the main station in Sorrento, and then you walk upstairs to the main platform where they have a screen so you can see which platform you need to get on the train from. Then you can get on as soon as the doors open, and then you just have to monitor when you have to get off since they do not announce which stop you are at, but there are usually also signs you can see out the window. The train stops at several cities until it finally stops at Naples, which I would highly recommend especially if you are trying to travel to other places in Italy. Pro tip: it is almost always cheaper to travel somewhere out of Naples instead of Sorrento.

The Pompei train station and pictures from Pompeii!!

Once we made it inside Pompeii, it was very interesting to walk around and sightsee, however, I will say much of it looks the same once you’ve been there a while and it is very tiring to walk around due to the direct sun and how large of an area it is. Afterwards we went to a restaurant for food, and then went to a nearby mall which felt exactly like a mall in the US–it even had McDonalds and Starbucks.

The mall had so many stores, many that are in the US but also several that are not

Taking the Ferry to Ischia

After a full week of classes and working with algae, just yesterday I visited the island Ischia. My friends and I took a train to Naples and then walked for about 20 minutes to the port where the ferry leaves from. Again, there are direct ferries that leave from Sorrento, but it was less than half the price to leave from Naples, and the train is only about 3-4 euro round trip. We bought the ferry tickets when we got there instead of buying them online which is also much cheaper, and then grabbed some food from a nearby grocery store before the ferry departed.

The docks near where we got off the ferry in Ischia

When we arrived in Ischia, we bought tickets for the bus (3-4 euro round trip) to visit the Aragonese Castle. It did have a 15 euro fee, but I would say it was definitely worth it and I honestly enjoyed touring the castle over Pompeii. Both the castle and the views were gorgeous, especially since we were so high up.

Walkway to the castle, and the view from the top which was genuinely breathtaking

When we finished touring we ended up taking a taxi directly to the Negombo Springs since we were running late which was 10 euro a person (much more expensive than the bus but also more luxurious/comfortable) and began touring all the hot springs in the park. The thermal pools are one of the biggest attractions on Ischia so it made more sense to go since we spent a majority of our day there, but I don’t think it is a must do. If you want to relax by the pool or beach and take fun photos, go for it. Just know the price ranges from 35-40 euro a person which is even more in USD since the euro is more powerful.

Hot springs! There were about 20 different hot springs/pools you could visit in total

We took the bus back, which also is not extremely difficult once you try it for the first time. You can either buy tickets at a booth (which is about 50 cents cheaper)  or directly on the bus. Pro tip: for both the bus and train tickets, make sure you get them validated. For the bus they have little machines when you get on where you insert your ticket and then it stamps it and gives it back to you. For the train you insert your ticket at an entrance booth, or tap in and out with the same credit/debit card. If you do not get your tickets validated and they ask to see your ticket, you will get fined on the spot.

After the long day, we made it back to the port for the ferry, and then speedily walked back to the bus station so we did not miss the train (usually the last one runs around 10pm). I will say these day trips have some of my favorite parts of getting to study abroad since there are so many fun places to visit that are very accessible, especially if you do not plan on traveling outside of Italy. Anyways, I look forward to updating you guys with all of my adventures next week!

Ciao!

Ava Sillars

Data Science Engineering

Engineering in Sorrento

[umichenginabroad]

Ava in Sorrento | Week 1: Settling in and a trip to Amalfi

Hello again!

This first week has been a flurry of new experiences, sights, and faces. Since I arrived a couple days later than everyone else, this week has felt like an absolute whirlwind. The day that I arrived, CIS hosted a pool party for all of us which thankfully for me included food since I was still severely jet lagged and hungry after the long flight. This was a great way to get to know people since everyone was still getting to know everyone else, and there was even karaoke! Everyone from UM ended up going up together to sing Mr. Brightside which made going up there feel less scary. Something worth mentioning, the bus ride there and back was very hilly and had many tight curves so if you are prone to motion sickness I would definitely make sure to either bring or buy something to help since you are likely to experience that traveling everywhere around the coast.

The pool party was held on a villa rooftop, and the view was incredible

Classes have also begun, and currently I only have physics since my other class will not start until the next session. However, my work experience has also begun and our first onsite visit will take place next week.

Getting to Know the City

The main piazza of Sorrento

One of the big learning curves I noticed during my first week living here is getting used to how to shop. There are several grocery stores around, but they are nothing like the grocery stores we have in the US. Unlike a typical Target or Walmart, there aren’t any “super stores” here. The grocery stores are much smaller, and generally have a much smaller selection of goods (except for the pasta and olive oils of course).

Pro tip: do not just go around grabbing fruits and veggies because there will be a worker who bags and weighs fresh produce for you and will put a price tag on it. This is especially important at smaller vendors because they have a “you touch it you buy it” mentality.

Smaller fruit vendor. They even have a do not touch sign!

I will say I am not much of a chef, but of the groceries I have bought, everything has been noticeably fresher and you can taste the difference given there is not a bunch of preservatives and extra ingredients. So far I have made myself pasta and recently took on making a caprese sandwich (thank you very much - that will most likely be the extent of my cooking) as well as things like cereal and yogurt with toast.

Since grocery stores again only carry food, another place I have frequented are the local pharmacies. They are located almost at every corner and are denoted by a green cross. Basically anything you could think of buying at a typical drugstore can be found at them (other than food) such as OTC medicines, hygiene products, skincare, etc. They also all have doctors there who you can speak to and they can advise you on what to get given your symptoms (yes it's scary- but also very doable since most of them speak a good amount of English). The only thing is if you need anything that would typically need a prescription in the US, it most likely requires a prescription here too. If that is the case, you can fairly easily make an in-person appointment online or there are several doctors who can write prescriptions through a completely electronic process.

Amalfi & Atrani

On Saturday, CIS provided a bus and boat for everyone to travel to the city of Amalfi which total took about 2 hours. It consists of a 45 minute bus ride to the docks and then another 45 minutes boat ride.

The boat ride view! Also apparently LeBron James was in Amalfi while we were there

I will say Amalfi was very beautiful and the sights were gorgeous, however, I think I, as well as most of the other students, prefer Sorrento. It was very busy and full with tourists, and there were not very many accessible food options other than more formal (and very expensive) sit-down restaurants. Despite the food options being limited, the gelato was not. There were several gelaterias around the piazza that served lemon gelato in a giant hollowed out lemon which was definitely worth the wait.

St. Andrews Cathedral and the tiktok famous lemon gelato

Other than that, it was fun to window shop around Amalfi, although most of the shops offered very similar things to what you can purchase in Sorrento. I will say the beaches looked very nice, but I did not personally spend any time there. Many of my friends said they enjoyed their time and that the water was great, but that the sand was just really hot. 

Admittedly, my favorite part of the day was walking around Atrani. You have to walk through a bunch of tunnels to get to the town, but it only took about a 15 minute walk, and the sights were gorgeous. There was also another beach which seemed to be much less crowded than the main beach on the Amalfi coast. It was much less crowded and touristy, and walking around the streets was much more enjoyable. I will say the downtown is much smaller than Amalfi, but there were still a couple of cute stores and restaurants right off the water. I would definitely make visiting here a priority when you travel to Amalfi, and if you want to spend the day at the beach, I would recommend coming here instead of going to the beach that is right next to all the docks when you first arrive.

All of Atrani was GORGEOUS–I could have stayed there the entire day

Next week will be my first trip to the Ieranto Bay for my work experience which I am immensely excited for, and I hope to do some more traveling over the weekend! Looking forward to updating you all next week!!!

Ava Sillars

Data Science Engineering

Engineering in Sorrento

[umichenginabroad]

Ava In Sorrento | Week 0: Getting Ready and Future Goals

Ciao! My name is Ava Sillars, and I am a rising junior studying data science (engineering). While I am staying here in Sorrento, I will be taking Physics 240/241 which spans both of the 2 sessions Sant’Anna Institute offers over the summer, a practical work experience at the Ieranto Bay during session 1, and a special topics human rights course during session 2. I am beyond excited to experience everything this program has to offer, and I can not wait to document the process!

Whenever someone asks me why I chose to study abroad, I always say it is because of the person I hope to become by the time this program is over. I find it so interesting and insightful to learn how other people live their lives. Having lived in the US for essentially my entire life, I am excited to learn the different customs, traditions, societal norms, foods, etc. that I have never been exposed to before.

As for a mental to-do list I have for myself, I know I want to go to a concert while I am here. I am an avid concert goer, and I recently discovered Lorde will be performing in Milan while I am here which I am so unbelievably excited for. I hope to learn at least a little bit of Italian (besides ciao and grazie–which I must say I think I have perfected). I want to visit some of the major cities in Italy and some of the surrounding countries (and not go broke doing so). And of course, try as many restaurants, coffee shops, bakeries, and gelaterias as I possibly can.

As for my pre-departure experience, it was quite a rollercoaster. I have far too many clothes so packing light was a struggle, however I used packing cubes for the first time in my life which were definitely a game changer. I also went shopping for things like substantial walking shoes and nicer wedges, a digital camera, and some business casual clothes for my work experience. Additionally, I ordered plug adaptors online, and went to a foreign exchange place to get some euros for any shops that will not accept cards.

My frenzied packing the night before I was supposed to leave

Once that was all said and done, after I packed the night before my flight and mentally prepared myself for this immense undertaking, the morning of however, my flight got cancelled. Not just once though, my flights got cancelled 3 times. I ended up arriving a couple days after everyone else which I was nervous about, but now that I am finally here, my prior worries have started to dissipate.

When I finally departed on my 4th flight attempt, 2 days later than intended

Given how long it feels like I have been in preparation for this trip (ever since sitting down to write my application 6 months ago), I am as ready as I ever will be for these upcoming 10 weeks here in Sorrento. Thank you for joining me on my journey, and I cannot wait to update again soon!

Ava Sillars

Data Science Engineering

Engineering in Sorrento