Ciao Volterra!

Throughout the months of May, June, and July the twelve of us students spent almost everyday together and got to learn so much more than we could have ever imagined! We got to experience things including wine tasting, local art galleries, authentic Italian meals and cultural events. We also got to know a lot of the locals in Volterra, build relationships with them, and explore the city itself.

Volterra has so many amazing hidden gems, beautiful buildings, and we somehow kept discovering more and more every time we walked around to explore. Even after spending three months there we probably only experienced half of what Volterra truly has to offer.

Other than everything we learned in our classes, the best part of being in Volterra was the connections made with the people there and how strong the community is. On weekends there were markets where everyone was friends with everyone, the workers at the gelato shops knew our names, bartenders made us students fun drinks, and we all had fun watching the world cup at the bar while cheering on the teams! Overall, we genuinely became part of the community and had our local go-to spots for coffee, a snack, a nice peaceful view or even a quick workout. All of this made it so hard for us to say goodbye and accept that our time in Volterra was coming to a close.

But just like that, we reached the end of our Summer together and it was time to return home. Some people headed straight home and others travelled Europe for a little bit longer. The travelling included a range of countries such as Germany, Austria, Albania and Czech Republic. Most of us students also travelled during the semester to a variety of countries including Poland, Spain, United Kingdom, and also many other regions within Italy itself. We all took advantage of the ease of travelling within Europe and have developed the want to travel more!

Volterra will certainly be seeing some of us in the future, so bye for now and thank you for reading! Until the next adventure…

– Scarlett Ambedian