ABOUT ME AND EXPECTATIONS OF ITALY

My name is Kylie Miskovic, and I am a second-year pre-pharmacy student, soon to be in my first year of Professional Pharmacy school at Purdue. I knew as a pharmacy student I would never be able to study abroad for a whole semester, the curriculum is just too structured and the classes too specific to be offered abroad. But I also knew I wanted to travel when I was in college. To me, the Italian Discoveries maymester was perfect because it gives me that chance that I wanted to study abroad and go somewhere I’m very excited about. I’ve always wanted to go to Venice. If you asked me what one place I wanted to visit in the world, I would have picked Venice. I don’t particularly know why, it’s probably a combination of me over-romanticizing a life without cars and the beauty of the eclectic mixture of architecture. I do tend to romanticize places and experiences in anticipation, which means I am often disappointed by reality. But this is one case when I do not think I will be disappointed. The beauty of Venice is obvious from the photos I’ve seen, I’m sure it must be dramatically more so in person.

I’ve never traveled abroad before besides one trip to a resort in Mexico, so I really have no idea what to expect. I know it will be a life changing experience, I know I will think about it for the rest of my life, but while I’m there, I don’t really know what I’ll feel. “First experiences should be short and intense,” says John Julius Norwich says in the introduction to his book, A History of Venice. “When my parents took me to Venice in the summer of 1946, we stayed only a few hours; but I can still feel—not remember—feel the impact that it made on my sixteen-year-old brain.” I imagine in the future I may not remember specific details about this trip, but I hope to still be able to feel my emotions for years to come. Hopefully looking at pictures will take me back to the awe I will feel as I take them, marveling at the beauty of the world.

Another thing I am excited to get out of this trip is just a diverse set of experiences. We will go to the modern Milan, the medieval San Gimignano, and everywhere in between. I have lived in my same hometown in Illinois my whole life, and now I go to school in Indiana, which is not fundamentally very different. Going to college has given me the opportunity to meet people from different places in the country and the world, giving me viewpoints that I had never thought of before. I love hearing about others’ experiences and lives, especially when they are different from my own. It’s one of the things about the Honors College that I love- getting to work with people from different majors and seeing things from other points of view. I want to continue this expansion of my mind but to an exponentially greater degree in a different country with a different language and culture. I know that this will help me in the future be a better pharmacist and person.

As Alain de Botton reminds us in The Art of Travel, “We are familiar with the notion that the reality of travel is not what we anticipate.” I attended a workshop through the Honors College on how to prepare for intercultural experiences. There I was reminded that every place is as intricate and diverse as the one I live in. It is easy to forget that; we can see other places as one dimensional from an outsider’s perspective and forget that there is a distinct set of habits, values, traditions, and cultural norms there that we may not think of right away. For example, I am excited about Italian food. However, it’s too obvious to just think of pizza and pasta when you think of Italy. I want to stop at every small shop and food truck on the side of the road and taste the differences in the regional food. I know it’s impossible to taste everything, but I want to do my best to try and experience as a diverse amount of food as possible. In fact, the cultural differences in the way Americans versus Italians treat food is one of the things I’m most interested in. Growing up in America, I know that we have large portion sizes, add sugar to everything, and have an emphasis on packaged, processed food. I know these facts, and yet I don’t think I’ll really feel the impact of the differences until I am there and experiencing them.

To be truthful, I don’t really know much more about Italian culture. I know they dress more formally than us, loungewear and wearing leggings as everyday clothes aren’t really a thing there. I have heard Italians are very appreciative when you try to speak their language, even if you are bad at it. I know they eat dinner much later than us. I may not know much but I am excited to learn! Like I said before, learning about other cultures is a way to help you be more empathetic and just a better person in general. Even if Italy isn’t the most different from the United States in the world— it’s in Western Europe and some of their values may be similar to ours— it is still a different country, and I don’t think I realize how different it will be until I get there. I am truly excited for this trip, and I can’t wait until we are touching down in Venice!