Elizabeth MacNeille
Second Reflection
June 8, 2017

Although it’s only been a little over a week, I have been learning so much about the diverse culture in Italy. One thing we’ve been dealing with lately that surprised me was with the type of things you have to pay for. For instance, in order to visit Venice for a day we had to pay $350 just to travel over the bridge to get there. Additionally, I do understand that if you need to use a restroom at a restaurant you should buy something first. This is very similar in America too. However, I was surprised by the scarcity of public restrooms for the people who don’t want to pay. The one restroom that we did find was blocked by gateways where you have to pay to get in. This just surprised me because in America if you have to go to the bathroom it’s slightly easier to get access to it.

One thing I truly appreciated in Italy was the respect for the environment. Although I was just complaining about our professor having to spend $350 to go over the bridge, I realize that this is more to help prevent air and noise pollution. Also, the rooms we’ve stayed at have also been very environmentally friendly. The hotel rooms don’t crank the air conditioning as much as they do in America. Additionally, I’ve noticed things like when you open the outside door of a hotel room, the air conditioning shuts off. Also, you need to put a card in a slit in order to make the lights turn on. When we visited Venice, we saw a statue of giant hands holding up a building. This symbolizes the efforts of holding up the city from sinking due to global warming. This shows that Italy is a lot more proactive about protecting the environment than America.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Vogel #3

As our trip winds to a close, I'm not sure if I can fit everything I've learned in the past two weeks into one reflection. We have seen and done so many things that I never thought I'd be able to do in my lifetime. Being immersed in the culture in Grado has been a great experience. Visiting Venice (although it was amazing) helped me realize how special of a place Grado is. One of my biggest takeaways since I've written my last reflection is the difference in how Italians eat meals and drink. It might just be because we've seen mostly an older crowd, but it is very different from America. At home I eat much quicker than they do here. Although my family does often have family dinners where it's basically a social event, they typically never last more than 30 or 40 minutes before we're on to the next thing. The lifestyle here in Grado is much more relaxed. Many more people eat their meals outside and are at dinner for at least an hour or more. Another thing I...
Read more

Third Reflection

Katie Ferriss June 12, 2017         The past two weeks have given me only a brief insight into the art history, culture, language, and views of northern Italy. I have come to understand the culture here is more casual and calming rather than upbeat, fast paced America. The people are gentle and kind with warm hearts, and they reserve and respect their history and faith. I have come to love and care for the people and culture here in Grado and everyone I have met on this trip. Our last excursion made me feel the most immersed on this trip. We went to the Dolomites and took a tram up into the mountains. As we stood a top the mountain looking over endless lands and views, I felt all of Italy just absorbed within me. It was amazing seeing the amounts of people climbing all of the mountain ranges, going down different trails and pathways just to find more views and beautiful sights of Italy. Throughout the excursions I also have come to appreciate how much of Italy has...
Read more

Reflection #3 Wade

       As our trip comes to its conclusion, I’ve reflected a lot on how different societies can shape natural resources and land. While in the Dolomites, we saw extremely beautiful places and small towns nestled between large mountain ranges. As we hiked, I noticed how clean a lot of these beautiful natural sites were. The mountain tops were free of litter or heavy graffiti and the crystal clear lakes seemed to have barely any trash floating around, even though they were right next to docks and beaches where people were swimming, fishing and eating. I am not sure if littering is less common in these areas or if cleaning protocol is different, but it was great to see such beautiful spaces so well preserved.         I also admire the energy conservation here as well. The way the hotel rooms function on a key system to start up certain electrical appliances such as air conditioning and outlets seems to be a very smart system. In the United St...
Read more