SDXCO Essay Italy 2024

Danaka Rodriguez
Glenwood Springs High School, Roaring Fork PreCollegiate
SDC Italy Mare Splendente Program

I have always wanted to study abroad, and this experience only solidified my aspirations. I learned and saw so much, and I want to see more of what the world has to offer. I want to experience all the culture shocks the world has for me. I know that I want to find a college that offers semester abroad programs.

The best thing that happened this summer was learning and experiencing how people in another country live their daily lives. Throughout this whole program I had more than my fair share of cultural shocks. I was shocked by how physically close everything and everyone was, two toilets in one bathroom stall, how small the shops were and even the difference in soda selection. To me these were all interesting and weird traits, but I
realized that it wasn’t “weird”. I just had different experiences, and Italians would think the same thing about America if they were to visit for the first time. I’ve learned to be amore accepting and spend much less time judging others.

My group members were very social people by nature. Ever since we met at the airport, they were already talking and interacting like we were friends since elementary school. They made me feel comfortable since the first moments. We joked around and never did they make me feel like less of a person even thought I am shy. I learned a ton about the different places they all grew up in around the USA and how it influenced them.

A new skill I developed this summer was how to help other people learn to swim. I’m on my school’s swim team, and I’m nowhere near as good as those swimmers. But in Italy I learned I was the best swimmer in my group, and I learned that my group mates from cities do not learn to swim. There were many times where I would see my group members afraid of the water and struggling when they went into the water. I couldn’t
just let them be; but I was nowhere near qualified to fully teach them. But I actually did. At first, I was freaked when another person would need my help swimming or hang on me in the water, but I got better. I realized they were just scared, and I decided to lock in and help them to the best of my abilities. I got better at swimming helping them.

An experience I will always remember was eating breakfast with my host sister. She had taken the time to find an American breakfast place for us to eat at. When we sat down we just started talking. She had seen a game character on my phone and stated she played the same game. She asked about the movies and shows I like to watch and told me she enjoyed many of the same ones. My sister had almost identical interests to me and it surprised me because despite living a very different lives on different continents we were almost the same person. We talked for many hours after that while
walking through town and similar interests kept the conversation going and going. It was amazing, and I hold that memory and special experience close to me.

I think the most important things I learned about during out travel in Italy was the food. I know it may seem cliché, but the culture and history of the foods in Italy are astonishing. When we were in Napoli making calzones and pizza I couldn’t help but be Visiting traditional trulli houses in southern Italy amazed by how well they handled and respected the food. Making pasta from scratch, using techniques that had been around for centuries, I felt a sense of wonder. Food is one of the central factors of the world, everyone can agree food is great. Being able to learn and see how these otherwise normal people make amazing and delicious food, using ancient techniques and methods with fresh ingredients was so important to me.

Now that I am back home, I hope I’m able to share my learning those close to me.