Cait in Sorrento: Sant’Anna Institute

This spring semester I am studying abroad with the Sant’Anna Institute/Sorrento Lingue located in Sorrento, Italy.  This is a small, but growing, international study abroad program with a school that overlooks the Bay of Naples.

My program consists of four classes including Business in the EU and Italian Literature, but also includes a 3 credit internship with the marketing department of a local Limoncello company.  The opportunity to work abroad in addition to studying abroad seemed like an obvious choice.  Also, since I come from a small town in Rhode Island, I wasn’t looking to jump straight into a large, fast-paced city, but preferred a slower-paced, culturally rich environment. What I liked even more about this program was the fact that it is non-traditional in the sense that it is not located in one of the mainstream study abroad cities.  For this reason, the area is less filled with Americans and I am able to practice my Italian daily with the locals, as well as my host family. 

Here in Southern Italy, I am also able to live and experience the traditional, slower-paced Southern Italian lifestyle.  I knew that this program and its location seemed to be a good fit for what I was looking for, and I feel happy with my decision in choosing this program.  Since arriving, I feel more relaxed and already feel creatively inspired by the great writers and painters that once walked these streets, especially since I am a creative person at heart.

I love to paint, write, and read, but I also enjoy playing soccer since I have a competitive side.  I am majoring International Business and Italian, which is one of the main reasons why I am studying abroad this semester.  I also have always had this passion to see the world around me and to interact with the cultures that I have, thus far, only gotten to know through power point slides and online research.  Aside from a few weeks in Mexico, Canada, and Ireland, I have not had much international experience, but that is what has made this new adventure so exhilarating and already so fulfilling.

As soon as I arrived here in Sorrento, I first noticed how nicely every Italian dresses.  For me, dressing well is important and I take pride in it, but I was completely blown away when I found out Italians take it to a completely new level—I mean they dress to the tens! (Not the nine’s).  Aside from that, the pure beauty of Sorrento, and its surrounding area of Naples, is stunning.  The winding roads, the Roman and Greek architecture, and the prominent view of Vesuvius have already made my first impressions of Sorrento awe-inspiring and I cannot wait to experience more.

Submitted by Cait Scalise, Abroad101 Global Ambassador in Sorrento, Italy

 

Author