Today is my last day in Rome. I can’t believe how fast the time has gone. This whole semester has been a challenging and life changing pilgrimage. In one of my classes I was asked to write a reflection about the semester and one of the quotes from our textbook The Italians particularly struck me. “A moment of revelation comes, it must be admitted, practically to everybody […] Each has his own way of reaching maturity. Some need the imperceptible passing of the years. It takes but a tiny incident for others; like the shaking of a kaleidoscope it precipitates an abrupt change of the picture” (176). Rome and all the other wonderful places I have traveled have all acted in their own way as the shifting colors of a kaleidoscope, shifting my view of the world. Being immersed in a culture where I don’t know the language and don’t know the customs has taught me to adapt in new ways. I have learned to love Italian cappuccino and cornetti and the culture that surrounds it. I know I will never be able to eat pasta again without thinking about one of the amazing dishes I’ve had here. The vino will never be the same and I’ll miss wandering around the city center and seeing masterpieces of Bernini on my way.
I’m ready to go home to see my family, and I know I will need every day I have before flying to China for the second part of my Ricci Scholar adventure. But that doesn’t make leaving any less easy. It is hard to think about not greeting my friends with a ciao or going out for some pasta and vino for a birthday. It is hard to think about leaving the city where I can go visit the Vatican when I need to say a special prayer. It is hard to think about leaving a place that I have grown to love. Rome has offered me the opportunity to embark on a pilgrimage that has helped me to mature and has changed my picture of the world and myself. Roma has taught me so much and has truly been like the shaking of a kaleidoscope allowing different colors and shapes to surface, changing me and the way I see the world.
Arrivederci Roma!My Blog will continue in January when I head to Beijing, China!
