Three quick lessons in Milano

         As a group we took three Italian classes in three weeks, which was a lot to handle at first but some of our best experiences came from them! The first week was our Italian language class and we had two professors, Filippo and Maussimo, that switched between teaching the morning and afternoon session. They were such fun people and I actually learned a lot more than I expected to absorb because I have studied Spanish for six years and Italian is very, very similar. Getting comfortable in the school setting again was a struggle but they made it so fun that I hardly began to think of it as class. We learned so much from these two smart men and we were sad to have to say goodbye to them during the first week but it kept us hopeful for the next two weeks of class.
                                            
                                                                   Signoro Maussimo

The next week we had another interesting class where we learned a lot about the art and design industry throughout Milan and at IULM. It was fun to have a few different teachers throughout the week because they were each very knowledgeable about particular subjects like video games, music, and cinema. Guido was our main teacher who educated us on some Milan economics, but since he had some traveling to do during the week he arranged for the different teachers to come visit us. We did a lot of different things that week including a tour of the video game art exhibit at IULM, a tour of the high-end shops in the Duomo, Eataly, and a tour of the Trienalle exhibit. It was a lot in one week but it was worth even after an eight-page assignment in one day!

The last week was our fashion and design class and we were fortunate enough again to have an amazing, knowledgeable professor named Antonio Catalani. He has had experience as a consultant working with brand names such as Ikea, Prada, Ralph Lauren, and Armani just to name a few. You could just tell from the way he spoke that he is a very philosophical, experienced, and traveled man. He opened my eyes to fashion and design in a way that I have never looked at it before. We got to explore the stores of Armani, Prada, and Dolce & Gabana and also had to do a presentation on Etro, which is a brand I knew nothing about before this. It was so much fun to get to explore a different part of Milan and actually step into high-end stores such as these. I will never forget that day and all that I learned from Antonio.
                         
                                   Antonio Catalani with the group

            One last note about our classes, I absolutely loved our tutor Ilaria Allocca. She was the absolute best and helpful in so many ways. She did her best to find things for us to do and show us around Milan when no one else did quite what she offered for us. I was so impressed knowing that this was her first group to have for a study abroad organization. I even became ill and was taken to the hospital and she held my hand the whole way there while comforting me with lots of kisses and assurance that everything will be okay.  We will miss her the most and are going to stay in touch the best we can!

Our last picture with Ilaria!