Prima i Compiti, Poi il Viaggio...

Hello! I hope you have had a wonderful week and are enjoying your Monday. Thanks for coming back to the next “chapter” of this blog!

Enhancing My Experience Through Learning Opportunities

About a week before coming to Italy, I was randomly checking my “others” email folder and came across an email from Gilman International Scholarship. They were inviting students who would be in an EU country this semester to apply for a study tour in Brussels to learn about the EU institutions. I spent the entire week writing and rewriting my essay, attempting to put my excitement into words. The days went on, the deadline arrived, the essay was turned in, and now it was time to wait. 

A few weeks later, I was selected as an alternate. I went on with my normal activities, not expecting anything, but then received an email that a spot opened up on the trip. I had one day to notify the program of my decision to attend. Fortunately, my university let me make up the exams I would miss during this week, and I accepted. 

In the ensuing weeks, my travel arrangements were planned. On Sunday, October 5th, I traveled from Italy to Belgium. 

At first, arriving in Belgium was terrifying! I had the “oh my gosh, what did I do” feeling. It wasn’t because of the location, it was simply my first time traveling in Europe.Thankfully, it went away when I heard one of my favorite songs on the airport’s speaker.

The following morning, we had a few meetings to learn about the various EU institutions and the role of the U.S. Mission to the EU. After that, the Commission. There, we listened to diplomatic presentations about the role of the European Commission, the European Council of Ministers, and the Council of the EU. We even had the opportunity to learn about ongoing research to understand how artificial intelligence is being used across EU institutions. 

Tuesday was my preferred day. Our study group learned about multilateral partnerships, toured NATO's public spaces, and visited the European Parliament. We were privileged to hear from more diplomats about democratic processes within the parliament. I became eager to know more about the connections between multilateral partnerships like these and the private sector. I hope to continue this learning in my course about the EU and beyond.

Wednesday was the last day. It began with a brief visit to The House of European History and ended with a seven hour trip back to Florence. I am, once again, very thankful to the European Union, Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship program, and U.S. Mission to the E.U. for hosting this program.

The Real Side of the Week Before Midterms

Moving on to this week! There’s not much to share other than it is midterms time. After Brussels, I immediately hit the books to catch up on classes, take missed exams, and prepared for the upcoming week. I am on hour 20 of studying for the past weeks, and am excited for midterms to be finished.

All of my exams will be paper and pen. I will be given a series of questions about the content and write a short or long essay in response. Each exam will be two hours long. For many, this is a drastic change from theory based questions or multiple choice. My study time has been spent understanding concepts more deeply and memorizing specific terms and definitions. I appreciate the critical thinking skills I am developing. Wish me luck!

Next week, I look forward to hanging out more and visiting some friends.

Side Notes and More:

A little p.s. 

I think Sunday mornings have come to be one my most favorite days. The bus I take before my Sunday meeting comes to my stop around 08:30. If the right one comes at the right time, a bunch of my friends start to get on in the following stops. It becomes the LDS bus for about ten minutes before we get off and finish the walk to church. 

A second p.p.s.

The mosquitos love my blood, and I hate giving it to them. Please wear bug spray.