We recently caught up with SAI Ambassador Antonio.  Antonio answers some questions describing his recent semester in Rome.

What is your favorite memory from studying abroad?
My favorite memory from studying abroad in Rome would have to be all the group dinners my friends would have every week. We discovered so many different “hole in the wall” places and had some of our best memories together over dinner.

Sunny day of shopping down the famous Via Del Corso

What was your favorite thing to do in your host city?
Besides the dinners, my favorite thing to do in Rome was to walk with a “no end” destination around my neighborhood. There are so many streets in Rome and each one is not like any other so it made discovering new places so much better.

What is your most memorable interaction with a local in your host city?
My most memorable moments interacting with locals had to have been getting together with my extended family that currently lives in Rome. Some of them I have met before and some of the I have not and it was really fun getting to know that side of my family even more.

Excursion to Greece, a postcard view of Santorini, Greece

What has your experience taught you about the world?
This experience has taught me so much about the world. So many people come from so many different places in the world and personally, I love to learn about other cultures as well as teaching others about my culture.

 High up in the sky in Assisi, Italy

Do you have any tips for learning the language while students are abroad?
The biggest tip I can give for a student who is studying abroad is to go into your host country with the most open mind possible and to do at least one thing new every day because in the blink of an eye, you will not be able to try that one foreign thing you will always look back on.

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Antonio was an SAI Rome spring 2018 student from the University of Tampa.