Florence has been everything I imagined it to be. The people are beautiful, the food is like nothing I’ve ever tasted, and every aspect of the city is inspiring. My favorite thing so far was going to the opera, one of the extracurricular activities organized every month by Student Services. We went to see Nabucco by Giuseppe Verdi at the Teatro Comunale of Florence: it’s something I’ll never forget. There was so much to watch, like the conductor jumping up and down, the people on stage, and (thankfully) the English translation on top of the screen. That experience encompasses all that I had expected of Florence, which was beauty, romance, and culture. Another aspect of Florence that I’ve fallen in love with is the food. I don’t know how I’ll go back to eating dining hall food. Yes, sometimes I miss ketchup and peanut butter, but it’s a minor sacrifice for the rest of the food I get to enjoy. In the future, I look forward to attending all of the ballets, operas, and shows and making sure that I try a new restaurant before each one just to make sure I get the real Florence experience.

Serena Conforti, University of Connecticut