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Hello there.
My name is Tess and I'm currently studying abroad in Padova, Italy.
I'm a junior studying early education
and I'm from Cambridge, Massachusetts,
which is right across the river from Boston University.
This is one of the many reasons why the first question I had for
my academic advisor at BU was, "How can I study abroad?"
I've been in Italy for two months now,
and it has been the most amazing experience of my life.
And I've had so much fun.
I've been traveling.
I've been trying new things.
I've been learning about culture
and food and language.
And it's so hard for me to describe this in words.
So, I'm gonna attempt to show you this experience
in videos and clips, and I truly hope you enjoy it,
and that it encourages you to study abroad,
and apply if you have the chance.
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Padova is located in the Veneto region of Italy,
which is in the north.
It's historic, and actually claimed to be the oldest city in Europe.
But it's lively impacting students.
It's known for its connections
of science and religion.
And throughout the centuries, famous scientists taught and studied here,
including Galileo Galilei who actually called his 18 years in Padova
the happiest of his life.
This is Prato della Valle, which is the main square of Padova
and also the largest square in Europe.
The botanical garden here is the oldest botanical garden in the world.
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St Anthony's church is part of this most important religious site.
Millions of Roman Catholics from all over the world come to Padova just for this.
Padova also contains the only 9/11 monument here in Europe.
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The outdoor market here has been a staple and operating in the city for over 800 years.
The market operates every morning from Monday to Saturday
and has everything from clothes to fresh food.
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>>Piazza dei Signori is one of the most important squares here.
It was the headquarters of the [FOREIGN] or rulers of Padova.
It's centered around Torre dell'Orologio,
which is one of the oldest clocks that tells the time, date,
and position of the sun in the zodiac.
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To go to school and get around,
there's a lot of different options for transportation.
It's the perfect place to walk, or you can e-bike,
or you can take the tram, which is like a cross
between the bus and the train.
Hey, Gift.
And the BU center is near the center of Padova.
So, the Italians and the European studies programs is designed for
students with all levels of Italian language ability.
Here's the center.
Hi Mata.
Hi Imani.
We take elective courses in English or Italian.
Here students can find any support and resources they need.
The staff are amazing, supportive, and lovely people.
One of the main things the program offers is on site classes and trips.
>> [FOREIGN]
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We go to cafés to practice our Italian.
We go to chapels to study art history.
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We even got to go on a food tour for our Italian food industry class
and try different traditional Padovan foods.
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I take one class at the University of Padua, which is called Intercultural Education.
I'm one of the two American students in my class,
and it's a great place to meet friends and learn in different ways.
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I do live with a host family here in Italy,
and housing is very carefully selected based off of student input
and what families are looking for in host students.
So I was very lucky to be placed with a wonderful, generous, awesome family.
They have two small, adorable children
and I've learned so much from them.
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>> [FOREIGN]
>> Living with this family, I've learned more than I thought
possible about Italian culture, and food, and language, and way of life.
And it's been so helpful to speak with the children
and the family and learn Italian.
I'm currently painting my host father and his daughter,
so here's a little picture of that.
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One of the many great things about living in Italy is being able to travel.
The logistical position of Padova allows easy access
to not only places in Italy, but places in Europe.
Trains throughout Italy are cheap and easy to take,
and there are cheap planes that go throughout places in Europe.
There are monthly program trips and events
organized throughout the semester by BU
sometimes combined with the Venice students.
But there's also plenty of opportunity for travel by yourself or with your friends.
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Friends and I have taken full advantage of this easy access to travel,
and we've been somewhere almost every weekend.
We started off by going to closer places like Venice and Verona,
and then we went to Milan for Fashion Week
and we flew to Palermo, which is in Sicily, for the beach.
I met my aunt and my cousin in Napoli for the Arte Cinema Festival.
And we ventured to Capri and rode around on motorcycles.
As a class for BU, we went to Genoa, and we stayed in a monastery
and talked to the ghosts.
And we went to Dublin, Ireland and walked through the Cliffs of Howth
for Halo weekend.
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For someone like me who hasn't had a lot of experience traveling,
it's really been the most eye opening experience.
And it's been really interesting to see the ways that language,
culture, and life differentiates between different places.
[CROSSTALK]
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For someone like me who is obsessed with food, it's hard not to love the amazing
rich food culture that's so present in Italy.
So I've been in heaven here trying all these different foods.
Some highlights for me has been every single cheese
that I have had the pleasure of trying has been mind blowing.
The pasta's delicious.
The prosciutto is amazing.
Cappuccinos are absolutely amazing.
I didn't like hot coffee until I came here.
The seafood is delicious, and there's so many more things.
The arancini, which are these little rice balls with fillings inside,
are mind-blowing.
Obviously the gelato is amazing.
I mean, I could go on and on.
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I truly hope that this video encouraged and inspired
anybody who's even thinking about going abroad.
If you can apply, apply and take that chance.
You will not regret it.
There's programs all around the world that lead
to all different experiences, and I hope that as many people as possible
will experience similar things that I have here in Padua.
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