Written by Grace Mirande, Ohio State University | ISI Florence Fall 2024
Learning Italian 101!
As my time in Florence draws to a close, I reflect on the past few months with immense gratitude for all the unique experiences I was able to have. Each day brought a new adventure and opportunity to learn, but one day in particular stands out as my favorite.
When I arrived in Italy, I had two items at the top of my bucket list: to hike in the Dolomites, a beautiful section of the Italian Alps, and to make at least one Italian friend. However, I came to Italy not speaking a word of Italian, so I knew that in order to build meaningful friendships, I would have to devote time to learning the language.
Fortunately, ISI Florence requires all students to take an Italian language course, according to their level of proficiency. Since I had no prior knowledge of Italian, I enrolled in the introductory level course. The semester began with learning basic phrases to help us navigate everyday situations, such as introducing yourself, checking out at the grocery store, asking how much something costs, or ordering at a restaurant. It was extremely comforting to feel equipped to do these basic tasks, especially while adjusting to the changes that come with living in a new country. Over the course of the semester, my vocabulary expanded as well as my knowledge of grammar, and I was gradually able to communicate increasingly complex thoughts in Italian.
While most courses at ISI Florence meet twice a week, the Italian courses meet for an hour each day to continuously reinforce and practice what we have learned. Several times throughout the semester students from the University of Florence would visit our classes, and we would have the opportunity to practice Italian conversational skills with them. I found this activity extremely valuable, probably my favorite, because it is open-ended, unscripted, and forces you to improvise like you would in a real-world setting. If you don’t know a word, you try to find another way to communicate what you want to say, even if it’s not perfect. This activity made me feel much more confident and less scared to speak to people in Italian.
Hiking in the Dolomites
Because of my Italian language course, I was able to fulfill my dream of hiking in the Dolomites and making Italian friends on the same day. At the top of a stunning viewpoint of the Seceda hike, a group of three young guys approached me and asked “Puoi farci una foto?” (“Could you take a photo of us?”). I happily agreed, and afterward, we struck up a conversation. I explained that I was studying abroad and only spoke a bit of Italian, while they explained that they only knew a bit of English. They told me they were heading to a nearby rifugio (trans. Eng.: mountain hut) to grab coffee and invited me to join them, which I gladly accepted.
As we walked toward the rifugio, I asked them a few questions in Italian, and I learned that their names were Emanuele, Muno, and Filippo. They were from Verona – two of them were on a week-long hiking trip, while the third was visiting for a nearby soccer match the following day. As we sat down, we enjoyed coffee and a delicious lunch and continued our conversation. All four of us shared a love of hiking and the outdoors, so the four of us compared our experiences and marveled at the beautiful nature and perfect weather. They had plenty of questions about America, and I was able to ask questions about Italy in return.
The conversation exercises we had done with the Italian students in class prepared me well. There were many occasions when I did not have the vocabulary to fully express myself, so I had to get creative and find alternative ways to make my point. Once I did, they were usually able to teach me the Italian word or phrase I had been searching for. There were also a few hilarious language misunderstandings, which only added to the fun and learning experience as we worked together to figure out what we were each trying to say.
During lunch, we discovered that we were all planning to hike the same route, so I continued on through the stunning mountain landscapes, chatting with Emanuele, Muho, and Filippo for the next four hours. Once we finally parted ways at the end of the day, I felt a deep sense of gratitude that I got to share such a beautiful hiking experience with kind strangers-turned-friends and learn so much from them. I also felt a strong sense of pride in not shying away from making mistakes, and actively practicing my Italian throughout the day.
As I reflect on what is perhaps my favorite experience from the semester, I have a few takeaways. First, it reminds me of just how important language is in understanding a place or a culture. While much can be learned from merely observing, having even basic knowledge of the language around you allows you to ask questions and engage with people directly, and on a much deeper level, which expands your potential for learning exponentially. Secondly, even though it may be intimidating, just making a valiant effort to speak the language will gain you a lot of respect and appreciation from those who speak it. I have found this to be true in this experience and many others over the course of the semester; if you attempt to speak Italian, even if you make mistakes, people can often still understand much of what you are trying to say and are more than willing to work with you to fill in the gaps.