Leaving the country for the first time to study abroad for an extended period of time was an exciting but also frightening thought with so many things in the back of your head that could go wrong such as a delayed flights or lost luggage.  Upon arrival in Rome for the cultural introduction week of Italy I quickly realized my fears were just imaginary and SAI had everything under control for me, I could relax and be myself.

Everything about this trip was amazing, of course there were the memorable sites like the Coliseum, Vatican City and the Tuscan beaches but what really gets you is the feeling of being completely immersed in a new and different culture.  When walking home from class or a dinner out with friends and I would pass by the Duomo and would take it for granted because it is just a part of the city and I wouldn’t give it a second thought.  Then as my program and time in Florence neared the end I walked past the Duomo and just stopped to stare at it even though I had seen it countless times before.  It was this moment that I truly realized how lucky I was and how you just don’t see anything as mesmerizing as this back home in the U.S.

My fellow students that I met here and the friendships that I made will truly last a lifetime.  Everybody comes here with the same goal of experiencing a different culture, a historic city and just looking for an amazing adventure of a lifetime.  It is this that leads to an amazing atmosphere of everyone just trying to have fun with no worries in sight.  Thanks to the scholarship and support that I received from SAI they helped to make this amazing experience possible and even more enjoyable than what I could ever have imagined.

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Matthew Near is a student at Ohio State University studying at Florence University of the Arts during the Summer 2013 term.