This past weekend was our first weekend with no school orientation trips planned for us to attend. I still can't believe that we've barely been here for three weeks since we moved in! It feels like so much has happened since the beginning of the semester. I've made new friends, lost some, gained a few more, and found my own little niche in this foreign environment I now call home.
I realized that I shouldn't hold onto anything so firmly. I should let people, plans, and expectations come and flee as they please. For example, there is this girl who I have been friends with since the freshman year of college. Soon after we had arrived in Italy, her attitude towards me changed. I would say something and she would meticulously dissect a statement in order to extract any morsel of fault she could find. Countless times she would patronizingly tell me to be quiet when she, herself, would speak in the same volume as I was.
At first, I thought that the little quips she would make towards me were just due to jet lag or whatnot. However, after the first week or so, I realized that she was intentionally condescending towards me. I finally snapped at her when she tried to start an argument about some insignificant detail. I tried to calmly reason with her at first, but as she continued to poke and prod me, I proceeded to say, "You know what, I don't give a damn." She responded with, "Woah. Woah," and walked away as if she didn't understand why I had snapped at her. She came back an hour later to apologize then walked away when I tried to apologize and explain why I had snapped at her. I've tried starting conversations with her since then, but she would merely reply with one-word responses. Also, in the most recent instances where we'd encounter one another in the hallways she would coldly look away.
I realized that I do not need to trouble myself with such people. I've asked a mutual friend of ours if the former was all right or if something had happened that would make her start behaving the way she did towards me. This mutual friend of ours said she couldn't think of anything and tried to rationalize the behavior the former was displaying towards me (e.g., jet lag, known habitual mood swings, homesickness). I've tried talking to her after apologizing, yet I was always met with contrived gestures of amiability or coldly diregarded. I have no time nor reason to accommodate for the whims of such people. I've grown tired of wondering what I can do to please others when it is me who is wronged. Why must I consciously expose myself to insults and disrespect? It's absurd to do so.
In the past few days and weeks, I've come across people I can call friends and confidants. They don't intentionally initiate arguments with me, but instead work with me to come to a mutual understanding. I've found those that I can laugh with, respectfully debate with, and share myself with. Sure, I've come across others that I cannot get along with and I just let them be. There are those that cannot handle my vulgar sense of humor, my philosophies, or the fact that I am homosexual, amongst other things. That's what I've learned about this world: I cannot be friends with everyone I come across nor should I expect to be. The best thing I can do is offer my respect and desire to reach a common ground. Meanwhile, if such an offer is rejected, then there is nothing I can do but walk away.
I have in my possession an opportunity to experience new cultures, meet interesting individuals, and realize a different way of being. It's a chance for me to explore new channels of interests and attempt to connect with those that I never would have expected to build relationships with. What I must focus on throughout this journey, or perhaps even for the rest of my life, is to be happy and stay happy. I must grasp opportune moments while letting go of those that have no reason to stay.
This world is full of too much beauty and wonders. One must not worry him or herself with those that cannot improve the experience of such wonderful, worldly things.
KC
Showing posts with label College. Show all posts
Showing posts with label College. Show all posts
Monday, January 30, 2012
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Ventuno Giorni
I am a mere three weeks away from departure. I'm finally done with the semester and it's great to have time to relax. With every day that is passing I feel so much more excited. It feels more and more real that I will be leaving for the Eternal City in less than a month, and living there for the following three and a half months.
For the past few weeks, I've just been trying to prepare for my trip. I talked to my communications adviser, my psychology adviser, and the psychology internship coordinator in order to tie any loose ends before my departure. With my communications and psychology advisers, I wanted to discuss with them my progress in each respective major. Considering that I'm double majoring, it can get somewhat confusing as to what requirements I've already fulfilled, what else needs to be fulfilled, and how much time I have left in order to fulfill every requirement asked of me for both majors. Since I will be entering my senior year the semester following my study abroad trip, it's very important for me to plan everything quite meticulously to ensure that I won't have to stay an extra semester or so after my senior year. Especially with the internships, it's necessary for me to plan things out even further ahead of time than everything else. This is due to the fact that it's required of me to apply for course approval and search for internship sites all on my own before the semester I plan on doing them. Along with that, I must also track down certain course professors to request recommendations from them. So much to do in so little time!
I also had to make sure I have prepared every necessary document I need. Two copies of my whole passport, two photocopies each of my passport's face page and visa page, two copies proving international insurance coverage and a set of four passport photos. I finally have all the necessary documents together along with a simple weekly budget of how much I'm should spend on a weekly basis while abroad. The next thing I should do is compile a priority list of countries/cities I want to visit while I'm there and determine what would fit into my budget. I definitely have a few things to keep me busy til the time comes for me to leave!
Nonetheless, I am quite excited for what the expected future holds. I can't wait to experience everything that Europe will have to offer me in the following four months. I'm excited to return from my trip and live back in the city as a 21 year old with company I enjoy. I love my family and appreciate the support they give me, however I think that it is time to exercise my independence even further. A lot of positive, amazing things lie ahead of me and I want to get a full grasp of them. I feel that I've become more inspired and motivated to live my life to the fullest in recent months.
If you, dear reader, had met me a year ago or perhaps even no more than six months ago, I couldn't tell you what drove me to live or move forward. Now, I can say that I want to experience as much of the world as I can. I want to see things I only know from movies. I want to experience just as much as the next traveler. I want to fill my life with experiences and stories that I can pass on to friends, family, lovers, and strangers. I want to further and strengthen my curiosity. I want to learn more about myself through learning about my surroundings and the places that reach further than what I currently know!
As you can tell, dear reader, I am impassioned by the future. I like this feeling. I want to hold onto it as long as I can.
Until next time,
KC
For the past few weeks, I've just been trying to prepare for my trip. I talked to my communications adviser, my psychology adviser, and the psychology internship coordinator in order to tie any loose ends before my departure. With my communications and psychology advisers, I wanted to discuss with them my progress in each respective major. Considering that I'm double majoring, it can get somewhat confusing as to what requirements I've already fulfilled, what else needs to be fulfilled, and how much time I have left in order to fulfill every requirement asked of me for both majors. Since I will be entering my senior year the semester following my study abroad trip, it's very important for me to plan everything quite meticulously to ensure that I won't have to stay an extra semester or so after my senior year. Especially with the internships, it's necessary for me to plan things out even further ahead of time than everything else. This is due to the fact that it's required of me to apply for course approval and search for internship sites all on my own before the semester I plan on doing them. Along with that, I must also track down certain course professors to request recommendations from them. So much to do in so little time!
Nonetheless, I am quite excited for what the expected future holds. I can't wait to experience everything that Europe will have to offer me in the following four months. I'm excited to return from my trip and live back in the city as a 21 year old with company I enjoy. I love my family and appreciate the support they give me, however I think that it is time to exercise my independence even further. A lot of positive, amazing things lie ahead of me and I want to get a full grasp of them. I feel that I've become more inspired and motivated to live my life to the fullest in recent months.
If you, dear reader, had met me a year ago or perhaps even no more than six months ago, I couldn't tell you what drove me to live or move forward. Now, I can say that I want to experience as much of the world as I can. I want to see things I only know from movies. I want to experience just as much as the next traveler. I want to fill my life with experiences and stories that I can pass on to friends, family, lovers, and strangers. I want to further and strengthen my curiosity. I want to learn more about myself through learning about my surroundings and the places that reach further than what I currently know!
As you can tell, dear reader, I am impassioned by the future. I like this feeling. I want to hold onto it as long as I can.
Until next time,
KC
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Visto per Studenti (Student Visa)
Yesterday afternoon, my school's Office for International Programs notified me that they had finally received my U.S. passport from the Italian consulate. I must admit that I was pretty excited to finally take a gander at the Italian student visa posted on one of its many pages. At first, I thought that it would be a simple stamp. However, it looked far more intricate than I had thought. It looked pretty actually. It included a picture of me, my full name, its dates of validity, and an awesome metallic stamp. Again, it was far more than what I had expected. What made it even more exciting is the fact that it's the first visa to ever be posted in my passport.
I actually think that this signifies the start of something profound for me. It's like the initial event that will cause a chain of significant events. Now that I have one visa from a foreign country, I will want to attain more. It will be like a scrapbook of my adventures. In a way, each and every stamp or visa I get in my passport would symbolize my growth as a person of the world.
Certainly, there are those that perceive the act of collecting foreign stamps in one's passport as a traveler's cliché. However, I connect it to a deeper, more personal meaning. For every stamp I receive, it would be a manifestation of all my experiences in a particular country. Other than the pictures I will take, each stamp will precede all that as a symbol of each adventure's beginning. It will symbolize a conceptual gateway to what I have and will come across. I find this to be quite profound and amazing!
In any case, I'm quite glad that I finally have my passport back in my possession. I have been waiting for its arrival since early October. It wasn't too long of a wait, actually. At most, it took four to five weeks for me to get approved for my student visa.
Now, the next step will be to get the permesso di sogiorno at the local post office once I'm in Italy and show them my passport (with the student visa), proof of international student health insurance, and lettera d'iscrizione (notarized letter informing of my duration of stay, place of stay, and the accepting study abroad program). Basically, the permesso di soggiorno is a stay permit issued to those staying in Italy for longer than 90 days. Those staying less than 90 days are considered "tourists" (therefore not needing a stay permit), whereas individuals staying for more than 90 days are considered "residents". Since I will be in Italy from January 11, 2012 to April 28, 2012 (totaling 99 days), I will be considered a resident (needing a stay permit).
Once I arrive in Italy, I will also have to go to the local police station (questura) and fill out a form called Dichiarazione di Presenza (Declaration of Presence) and get my fingerprints taken within eight days of my arrival. Basically, it's just to inform the authorities that I am legally in the country. If I fail to do so, I will face legal consequences that would include being deported out of the country. Since I'm studying abroad through a school program, I'm sure my school won't allow that to happen, nor would I personally be so negligent.
Along with filling out the Dichiarazione di Presenza and getting fingerprinted, I also have to make a photocopy of my passport from cover to cover along with the pages in between. I've already made two copies (one for my own records) and also made sure to keep a PDF copy on my computer just in case anything were to happen.
At the moment, I'm pretty much on top of every task I need to complete for my trip. Now, I'm just waiting to be notified of my dorm appointment, future roommate, and scholarship acceptance (or rejection). I must also start saving up my money instead of spending it all while I'm still in the U.S. Recently, I've been starting to perceive each expense transaction as "money that could have been spent in Italy". A classmate of mine who was in the same study abroad program last semester said that she spent close to three thousand dollars during her trip. Hopefully, I can save up one to two thousand dollars before my expected departure in about and a half months. I still find it quite surreal that it is only a mere one and a half months away...
In any case, until next time, buonanotte!
KC
 |
| Il mio visto per studenti |
I actually think that this signifies the start of something profound for me. It's like the initial event that will cause a chain of significant events. Now that I have one visa from a foreign country, I will want to attain more. It will be like a scrapbook of my adventures. In a way, each and every stamp or visa I get in my passport would symbolize my growth as a person of the world.
Certainly, there are those that perceive the act of collecting foreign stamps in one's passport as a traveler's cliché. However, I connect it to a deeper, more personal meaning. For every stamp I receive, it would be a manifestation of all my experiences in a particular country. Other than the pictures I will take, each stamp will precede all that as a symbol of each adventure's beginning. It will symbolize a conceptual gateway to what I have and will come across. I find this to be quite profound and amazing!
In any case, I'm quite glad that I finally have my passport back in my possession. I have been waiting for its arrival since early October. It wasn't too long of a wait, actually. At most, it took four to five weeks for me to get approved for my student visa.
Now, the next step will be to get the permesso di sogiorno at the local post office once I'm in Italy and show them my passport (with the student visa), proof of international student health insurance, and lettera d'iscrizione (notarized letter informing of my duration of stay, place of stay, and the accepting study abroad program). Basically, the permesso di soggiorno is a stay permit issued to those staying in Italy for longer than 90 days. Those staying less than 90 days are considered "tourists" (therefore not needing a stay permit), whereas individuals staying for more than 90 days are considered "residents". Since I will be in Italy from January 11, 2012 to April 28, 2012 (totaling 99 days), I will be considered a resident (needing a stay permit).
Once I arrive in Italy, I will also have to go to the local police station (questura) and fill out a form called Dichiarazione di Presenza (Declaration of Presence) and get my fingerprints taken within eight days of my arrival. Basically, it's just to inform the authorities that I am legally in the country. If I fail to do so, I will face legal consequences that would include being deported out of the country. Since I'm studying abroad through a school program, I'm sure my school won't allow that to happen, nor would I personally be so negligent.
Along with filling out the Dichiarazione di Presenza and getting fingerprinted, I also have to make a photocopy of my passport from cover to cover along with the pages in between. I've already made two copies (one for my own records) and also made sure to keep a PDF copy on my computer just in case anything were to happen.
At the moment, I'm pretty much on top of every task I need to complete for my trip. Now, I'm just waiting to be notified of my dorm appointment, future roommate, and scholarship acceptance (or rejection). I must also start saving up my money instead of spending it all while I'm still in the U.S. Recently, I've been starting to perceive each expense transaction as "money that could have been spent in Italy". A classmate of mine who was in the same study abroad program last semester said that she spent close to three thousand dollars during her trip. Hopefully, I can save up one to two thousand dollars before my expected departure in about and a half months. I still find it quite surreal that it is only a mere one and a half months away...
In any case, until next time, buonanotte!
KC
Monday, November 14, 2011
I Miei Corsi (My Classes)
Last week, I enrolled for my classes for my Spring 2012 semester. Fortunately, I was able to enroll into all my first choice classes. The John Felice Rome Center doesn't schedule classes from Friday to Sunday, so I will have a three-day weekend every week. I'm sure they structured the academic week in this way in order to give students the chance to actually enjoy what Italy, or the entirety of Europe for that matter, has to offer. So this is how my academic schedule will be for the Spring 2012 semester:
Mondays
2:00 PM - 2:55 PM -- Italian 2
Tuesdays
9:30 AM - 10:45 AM --Masterpieces in Translation
2:00 PM - 2:55 PM -- Italian 2
3:40 PM - 4:55 PM -- World of Late Antiquity
5:30 PM - 6:45 PM -- Modern Western Civilization
Wednesday
9:30 AM - 12:30 PM -- Art in Rome
Thursdays
2:00 PM - 2:55 PM -- Italian 2
3:40 PM - 4:55 PM -- World of Late Antiquity
5:30 PM - 6:45 PM -- Modern Western Civilization
Friday/Saturday/Sunday
No school
Basically, I won't have school starting from Friday up to Monday afternoon of the following week. I can fly back in from a weekend excursion in a different European country and still make it to class the same day. On Tuesdays I start the day at 9:30 AM and won't be finished until 6:45 PM. However, I will have a few hours or so in between classes. I can have un caffè or un gelato as I people watch. It would be a nice break in between classes. On Wednesdays, I only have one class which will be about three hours long. What's really special about this class (Art in Rome) is the fact that it will take place on-site. This means that for lectures pertaining to the Sistine Chapel and the Roman Coliseum, I will actually be standing right in front of these works of art. I will be done around noon, which will give me time to further experience the places we visit for lectures, even for just a few hours more. Thursdays aren't bad either since I won't even start until two in the afternoon.
At the moment, the thought of actually being in Italy and experiencing such an adventure still seems so surreal. However, it seems more concrete than ever before. My enrollment for my Spring 2012 courses in Italy feels like reassurance that I am not dreaming. I find myself making a mental note for my future self to acknowledge that no, it's not a dream. It's close. Not to lose hope. And to fall in love with this dream and let my heart be led by these desires.
Mondays
2:00 PM - 2:55 PM -- Italian 2
Tuesdays
9:30 AM - 10:45 AM --Masterpieces in Translation
2:00 PM - 2:55 PM -- Italian 2
3:40 PM - 4:55 PM -- World of Late Antiquity
5:30 PM - 6:45 PM -- Modern Western Civilization
Wednesday
9:30 AM - 12:30 PM -- Art in Rome
Thursdays
2:00 PM - 2:55 PM -- Italian 2
3:40 PM - 4:55 PM -- World of Late Antiquity
5:30 PM - 6:45 PM -- Modern Western Civilization
Friday/Saturday/Sunday
No school
Basically, I won't have school starting from Friday up to Monday afternoon of the following week. I can fly back in from a weekend excursion in a different European country and still make it to class the same day. On Tuesdays I start the day at 9:30 AM and won't be finished until 6:45 PM. However, I will have a few hours or so in between classes. I can have un caffè or un gelato as I people watch. It would be a nice break in between classes. On Wednesdays, I only have one class which will be about three hours long. What's really special about this class (Art in Rome) is the fact that it will take place on-site. This means that for lectures pertaining to the Sistine Chapel and the Roman Coliseum, I will actually be standing right in front of these works of art. I will be done around noon, which will give me time to further experience the places we visit for lectures, even for just a few hours more. Thursdays aren't bad either since I won't even start until two in the afternoon.
At the moment, the thought of actually being in Italy and experiencing such an adventure still seems so surreal. However, it seems more concrete than ever before. My enrollment for my Spring 2012 courses in Italy feels like reassurance that I am not dreaming. I find myself making a mental note for my future self to acknowledge that no, it's not a dream. It's close. Not to lose hope. And to fall in love with this dream and let my heart be led by these desires.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Scholarships
I've never applied for a scholarship before. If I did, I probably would have saved a lot of money on my student loans... Anyways, I decided to apply for a few scholarships sponsored by the study abroad program I'm going to Italy with. All I really had to do was fill out a one-page application and write a 250-word essay with the following criteria:
_______________________________________________
There comes a time in our lives when we realize our responsibility for the world we live in. We come to acknowledge the potential we have to improve society for ourselves and our posterity. From this, a desire is born to learn from a world larger than ourselves and have an proactive influence upon it. From my studies, I hope to learn from the new ideologies, people, and challenges I will encounter. Being a non-native English speaker, I hope to provide a unique perspective that my peers can benefit from. Ultimately, I look forward to embracing the cultural disparities I encounter and hold myself accountable to a world different, but united through a human commonality. I hope to learn, share, and befriend those I come across regardless of physical and political borders.
During my stay at JFRC for the 2012 Spring semester, my expenses (i.e., tuition, room and board, fees, etc.) will be afforded by money I will have raised working a part-time job during the semester preceding my expected departure, a private student loan, and a monetary amount my mother (my only income-earning parent) can contribute. This scholarship would provide me the opportunity to see more of the world (and greater community), in which I wish to be more of an active participant. This scholarship would prove to me that there are people who share and support the same philosophy as I do in improving society through knowledge and its dissemination through education and social interaction.
- How I would benefit from the study abroad program?
- What impact would the scholarship have on my study abroad plans?
- How my presence in the program would enhance the program environment?
- How I plan to finance the trip?
_______________________________________________
There comes a time in our lives when we realize our responsibility for the world we live in. We come to acknowledge the potential we have to improve society for ourselves and our posterity. From this, a desire is born to learn from a world larger than ourselves and have an proactive influence upon it. From my studies, I hope to learn from the new ideologies, people, and challenges I will encounter. Being a non-native English speaker, I hope to provide a unique perspective that my peers can benefit from. Ultimately, I look forward to embracing the cultural disparities I encounter and hold myself accountable to a world different, but united through a human commonality. I hope to learn, share, and befriend those I come across regardless of physical and political borders.
During my stay at JFRC for the 2012 Spring semester, my expenses (i.e., tuition, room and board, fees, etc.) will be afforded by money I will have raised working a part-time job during the semester preceding my expected departure, a private student loan, and a monetary amount my mother (my only income-earning parent) can contribute. This scholarship would provide me the opportunity to see more of the world (and greater community), in which I wish to be more of an active participant. This scholarship would prove to me that there are people who share and support the same philosophy as I do in improving society through knowledge and its dissemination through education and social interaction.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Lo Straniero
Hi! I’m Kenneth and this will be the place where I’ll be putting my thoughts, ideas, and photos of my study abroad experience(s) in Italy. I know that I won’t be leaving for another three months and four days, but preparing for my trip is definitely worth writing about (along with the whole trip itself). This is/will be an exciting journey for me as I have never been to Europe before, and I hope to find an eternal piece of myself during my travels.
The title of this post is Lo Straniero meaning “The Stranger” in Italian. What I hope to accomplish with this blog is to successfully record my whole experience to the fullest that I possibly can, share those experiences with you, and hopefully change our relational status from “strangers” to gli amici or “the friends”.
So, dear stranger, would you be willing to share this journey with me?
KC
The title of this post is Lo Straniero meaning “The Stranger” in Italian. What I hope to accomplish with this blog is to successfully record my whole experience to the fullest that I possibly can, share those experiences with you, and hopefully change our relational status from “strangers” to gli amici or “the friends”.
So, dear stranger, would you be willing to share this journey with me?
KC
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