Get ready to apply for a passport, pack your bags, and check out two "too-cool-for-school" international adventures. We caught up with an Italian and an American student, from the University of Bologna (Bologna, Italy) and Dickinson College (Carlisle, PA), respectively. They were at the opposite ends of a  

study abroad

  program from August 2003 to May 2004. Imagine foreign MTV, incredible ice cream, and country-hopping road trips where the world is your classroom. Literally.

Saying "buon giorno" became a daily occurrence last year for Sara Lybeck (pictured left with her mom), now a Dickinson senior. "[Studying abroad] was by far the best thing I have ever done in my life," she says. "I learned you can do things on your own that you never knew you were capable of."

Sara's parents were supportive of her decision to study abroad. "They knew it would be amazing, and since they would be paying the same amount of money for me to be on campus, why not let me go somewhere new?" she says.

Although some professors were Italian, they spoke English in their classes at the Dickinson Center in Bologna. (Sara flexed her Italian language skills when interacting with locals.) As for her course load? Language classes, History of Italy, Italian Art History, Sociology of Italy, Italian Politics, and the European Union. Since her classes related to Italy, work never felt like homework. "Our teachers didn't overload us because they wanted us to experience Italy," she says.

Through her art history classes, Sara visited places she studied. Her school also sponsored field trips to Venice and other cities. Side trips with friends included Sicily and the rest of Italy, as well as stops in Ireland, Scotland, England, Austria, and Prague.

The Food Factor
When living in an apartment with four roommates and no mom, good cooking skills were a necessity. "I was used to having my mom's or Dickinson's food, but in Italy [we got] a stipend to buy our own food," says Sara. "So, not only did I learn how to cook, I learned how to budget my money."

She also visited with an Italian family every Monday night. "They made this roll of meats with a hard-boiled egg in the middle. It sounds weird, but it was actually really good," she assures.

When she dined out, Sara enjoyed the richness of gelato - Italian ice cream. "I love gelato! It was such a part of the experience of being in Italy," she says. "Sometimes even in the dead of winter my roommates and I would get some."

In the apartment, Sara usually watched MTV, which was sometimes in English and sometimes in Italian. She also read a lot (her flatmates created an unofficial book club and lent books to each other), and shopped. "Italy has fabulous shopping," says Sara.
"I spent all summer paying my parents back, but it was well worth it."

Originally from Fiorenzuola d'Arda (Piacenza), a small town between Milan and Bologna in northern Italy, Marzia Cozzolino studied at Dickinson on a scholarship. While she was in the United States, she worked as a student assistant for the French and Italian departments, allowing her to experience the teaching and learning process from a different perspective.

"I am fluent in English now, but not at first," she notes. Imagine not understanding a professor and then translating it in your head! "It was frustrating," she admits. "During class discussions, I wasn't able to articulate my thoughts as I wanted, but that's just part of the whole process of being in a foreign country." At first, classmates referred to her as the "Italian girl," but soon they began addressing her by name.

College, American-Style
What better way to experience American college life than to live in student housing? While living in a house with 25 students, Marzia initially had to find the balance between socializing and studying. "This was the first time I was in such close contact with diverse people," she says. "I just loved it."

Since this was Marzia's first time in the United States, having only seen it in the movies and on TV, she also needed to adjust to American life in general. To experience bigger cities, she jetted to Washington, D.C.; Boston, MA; New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; Savannah, GA; Hilton Head Island, SC; and Seattle, WA.

After those study abroad excursions, Marzia enjoyed returning to Carlisle. "I started to develop a true love for that little town after seeing different realities," she says. Marzia got involved in campus life, too - it wasn't long before she started teaching spinning class at the Dickinson gym.

Above all, Marzia claims her year at Dickinson was the best of her life. "This experience has enriched me so much," she says. "The essence of studying abroad is not really learning a new language or visiting a new place; it's knowing better who I am, where
I come from, and who is around me."

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