Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I would have never learned a language as fast as I did in Florence. Living everyday life is practice. For my Lifestyle in Renaissance Florence class, we sat in the classroom for 30 minutes, and were sent outside to actually see and experience what we just learned about. Great experience. My studio classes were just like at Hartford Art School, But they required us to write a paper, which I think is a waste of time. I could have been making art or visiting museums in the time it took to write the useless essays.

On-site administration of your program

They were great people, and helped with everything during our stay, but at the end when we were all in a jam to get on our planes that never took off, they didn't provide a shuttle or anything. And when were all in trouble and panicking when we had to make other accommodation to get home/had no internet because our contract was up, they were pretty useless. We felt pretty abandoned, and thankfully we were friends with our landlord, because they wanted us out of the apartment by 12 noon even though some of us had flights at 8 PM.

We were in a perfect area in Mercato Centrale, and our landlord, Anna, was a wonderful woman who even invited us to dinner at her house in the country! It truly made my experience unforgettable.

We had a refrigerator that was too tiny for the needs of 7 people. It was impossible to cook because excess had to be thrown out because there was no storage space. When we requested a tiny dorm refrigerator for the vegetarians, we were denied and told that all refrigerators in Italy were the size of ours. I visited friends studying with API, and theirs were substantially larger for half the people. The food was pretty good if you paid for it. It was hard to eat as a vegetarian. - Note: Sono vegetariana = I'm vegetarian

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I had dinner with my landlord and her husband in Pistoya, which was wonderful. She taught me how to eat like a Florentine, and she had a four course meal prepared with home made limoncello. Waking up and walking through Florence was an experience in itself.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

There was a fight between the Algerians and some of the Americans in the club. Note, the bouncers will not help if you get into a situation. Some Algerians also mugged two American girls at night before we left. Those were the only two instances of violence, so overall, it was pretty safe. Never let your guard down just because it's a safe city. Things are stolen all the time, and my roommates and I have had people follow us home on numerous occasions. It was always Algerians and other foreigners.

How well did University of Hartford prepare and support you for your time abroad?

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

Yes, I used Italian every day, but it's not necessary because everyone speaks English. I only used it with strangers because my Italian friends were trying to practice their English so they preferred we speak in English.

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• Apartment

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• Americans

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• Americans