My semester in Italy this spring was amazing! I had such a great time and was able to meet so many different people and experience new things. One thing that I really saw and was able to experience was the difference in how Italians live their lives. It was clear that Italians are very much a “stop and smell the roses” kind of people. They work to live and be able to enjoy their time and take things calmly. I realized this while walking to different site visits or different museums or restaurants. There were Italians and tourists walking on the street and enjoying the day. People sitting in cafes and restaurants will sit there for a while chitchatting and waiters will only come to the tables when called over.
I really enjoyed this kind of lifestyle and it was refreshing to be able to experience. Here inn the United States I feel like we are constantly moving so fast, living to work and not the other way around. It was nice to be able to sit and just chit chat with friends at dinner and not feel rushed, or not feel rushed at a cafe. However, after a while this lifestyle did become frustrating. While the culture around us was very laid back, our school and classes and expectations were not. Trying to make it to site visit classes on time or even following our professors was challenging as many people walked so so slowly, and tourists would also clog up the street. Since we had to eat out every night, sometimes it was tiring to sit through such long dinners when all you wanted to do was go to sleep. What also did frustrate me with the concept of “working to live” is that many times I would need to do an errand, and online the store would be open, but when I got there the store would be closed with no indication when they will open. It was frustrating if the buses were also being late or if I had to walk 30 minuted to get there. I feel as though I was still expected to rush and to complete a lot of school work and be moving fast when the world around me was moving so slow, or I could not be able to complete tasks. Except for the traffic and the driving. That was terrifying. There were no lanes in the streets, so cabs and cars and buses and motorcycles are just fitting into whatever space they fit. And they drive very, very quickly. It took a lot of getting used to, especially when trying to cross the street without any pedestrian lights. It was odd that for a culture that moved so slowly in all other aspects of life, they drove so fast.
These things, obviously, are normal to someone from Italy. It is normal for for people to be late, and to take their time at dinner, especially if its with a friend or two and there is wine. If people are going out for a walk, it is just that, a walk to be able to appreciate the day outside. Or if stores were closed for no reason, it was a normal occurrence. It is really just the way of life there, and enjoying life is important, not just something that you have to remember to do like we do here in the states.
I think that to avoid getting frustrated is remember that when you are not abroad, you might not have the chance to be able to have so many times in a day where you can just take a breather without being guilty about it. The slow nature of Italy forces you to stop and enjoy the nice day out, or really enjoy the walk that you are taking to your class or site visit, without feeling bad about it. Now in the future when facing different cultures to avoid misunderstandings I will remember that once the novelty wears off to just take a breather and ask myself why I am getting frustrated, and to slow down for just a second. To embrace the culture around me instead of trying to fight it.