Name: Renzhi Hu
Type of Project: Study Abroad

For my STEP Signature Project, I participated in a 4-week study abroad program in Lecce, Italy. Our main focus was studying the Italian language. I took Italian language class 5 days a week, as well as Italian culture, society and cooking class. I also went to nearby beach cities for extracurricular activities on weekends.

During my stay in Lecce, I got to understand myself and the world in a way I have never experienced before. As an international student at OSU, I have always loved exploring other culture and Italy was my top one travel destination. Since I’m studying Italian, I thought it would be a great opportunity to improve my Italian language skills and deepen my understanding about Italian culture. However, my experience in Italy has not only consolidated my language knowledge, but also helped me to increased my awareness of international diversity and issues, my ability to remain flexible and adaptable and my independence and self-confidence.

My assumption about Italy was it was historical, full of tourist sights and people were very welcoming. But Lecce was a city I have never heard of before I applied to the program. I heard about southern Italy being chaotic and dirty, so I thought life in Lecce may be outdated and not very great. It turned out I was completely wrong. People in Lecce were extremely friendly, even though only a few knew English, and Lecce got everything I needed. Also, it has the best beaches and bluest water I’ve ever seen. My life there was nothing but pleasant. It changed my view thoroughly because I realized I will never truly know a place until I visit there and assumptions are sometimes false.

Although I was already an expert at living in a foreign country, living in Italy for a month was still intimidating for me. I was worried because my Italian was very limited, I didn’t know anyone from OSU that were also doing this program, and I have never been to Italy before. Luckily, I handled my life in Italy pretty well and enjoyed a lot. I picked up Italian words for ordering food quickly, make friends with other OSU and non-OSU students and travel around the Puglia area with our teachers. My broken Italian was an obstacle, but I could always use English and the universal sign language to communicate. My smooth experience in Lecce improved my independence and self-confidence.

I got to live with a host family in Lecce, so I could spend most of my time interact and engage with local people and events. They were super friendly and considerate and treated me like their own family. Living with host family helped me to gain knowledge about the most authentic Italian culture and language. Italian lifestyle was very different from American or my Chinese lifestyle, because they have lunch at 2pm, dinner at 9pm, stay up until 2am every day and have 5 meals a day. I was not used to this kind of schedule, so I have experienced some difficulties at first, such as getting super starving before dinner and being sleepy in class. However, I got used to everything after my first week and actually grew to enjoy this unusual schedule. It helped me become more flexible and adaptable and appreciate diversity.

This 4 week is absolutely incredible and unforgettable. The change and transformation are significant and value for me and my life because it made me a true global citizen. My goal was to learn language, but I ended up learning much more than merely language. The experience drives me to continue travelling and discovering the world in the future.