EYP - English Yellow Pages for Italy

Hi – I am a NZer living in Rome. Would love to meet other kiwis or Australasians who are living here- esp new mums! I am also looking for an english speaking baby group in Castelli Romani. Any help appreciated! Please email on picassostarlight@hotmail – Ann

originally posted by: Ann Stubbs

First Impressions

After a long flight to Italy, the last thing you want to do is deal with the stress and hassle that is common with any airport. However, flying into Rome, Fiumicino was relatively stress free in my case. Unless you have something to declare at customs, you can essentially walk into the country. After that, there will be short wait for a taxi and off you go. One unfortunate aspect of flying into Fiumicino is that the airport lies roughly 45 minutes outside the city, depending on your location of course, so expect a relatively long taxi ride. And yes, taxi is Italian for taxi, but they do not say cab, so leave that word in the states.

The traffic, while intense is not as stationary as it is in some U.S. cities. When I left the airport it was about 9:00 am and I had images of the San Diego freeway rush hour traffic stuck in my head, but it could have been much worse. It is also not too bad in the city itself, with somewhat steady movement throughout the day. One unique feature of Rome is the general driving attitude. Drivers in Rome are not particularly interested in lanes, pedestrians or parking spots. You will see taxis weaving throughout the street, scooters zipping by you and cars parked on sidewalks, curbs and just about anywhere they can fit. Also, some smaller streets are so narrow that you will find yourself hugging a wall to avoid your toes being run over.

Before you come, if you know where you are staying, take a look at the bus system. It is a good idea to be familiar with the buses that stop near your residence so you can avoid wasting a day just trying to figure out the transit system. Visit www.atac.roma.it for information on bus, metro and tram routes. You can even type in your address and the address of your desired destination and the site will load a map with the quickest route, complete with walking directions after you get off your bus.

The public transportation system is quite good in Rome. Although nothing really runs on a schedule, the various means of transit do run fairly regularly until late at night, when it becomes painfully unreliable. It can be confusing getting around the city though, so make sure you have a planned route. Do not just assume that you can take a bus and go in the general direction of where you want. Rome is thousands of years old and not built on a grid. There are winding roads everywhere that curve and dart all over the city.

originally posted by: Alex Sanjian

Hello,
Can anyone help me find a driver’s school that teaches in English? Looking for one in Bergamo, but Milan is also ok.

Thanks,
Victoria

originally posted by: Victoria with a C

Studying

Getting yourself motivated to study is probably the greatest challenge any student abroad will have to encounter, while in Italy. It is extremely difficult to take your attention away from everything going on both culturally in Italy and within the student body in which you are involved. Typically you will end up putting off your study sessions until the last couple days before midterms or even worse (if your like me) the last couple hours. Let me tell you first hand this method will make your GPA suffer. I know it really hurts to have to study, there is no better feeling then the feeling of having accomplished something out of you day.

I have decided to make a list of tips for a student to follow when encountering motivation troubles:

Tip 1

Get organized!
You should get all our notes and exercises together, kind of like a preparation for studying so that when you actually do study you will not be sitting there thinking what to I do now or where is that one paper I need. This may sound like common sense, but believe me some people including me most of the time end up not getting organized.

Tip 2

Go somewhere you can actually study!
Its hard to go somewhere you can study especially in Italy because there is almost always something going on that will distract you. The most important thing is to stay away from technology that you do not need. Facebook is a killer for me every time I sit at the computer I automatically go to Facebook and before you know it a half a hour goes bye. Libraries are usually the best place for me mainly because there is absolutely nothing to do other than study.

Tip 3

Work with people that will work!
When you study for the most part people like to get into study groups, which is a really good idea for the most part. The only warning that I would give you is that you should study with people that you know will study and not play around. Also study with someone who actually knows what they are doing, this way you can learn more than you already know yourself. Study groups are great when they work for a common goal.

Tip 4

Relax, Take a break!
You should take it easy your in Italy after all and you want to enjoy it. If you do the steps above and leave yourself enough time you will be fine.

Hope the list helps thanks for reading.

originally posted by: Michael C Hummel EYP Student Blog Editor

Look for a female student (18 years old or more)
who can help us to travel around Italy (6-7 days), France ( 6-7 days),
England (6-7 days). We pay her to take us around.
Share bedroom with my kids during travel. English speaking, if possible
American, Canadian or her mother tounge is English. We pay all the accomodation. If she can drive is
better, so we can rent car. She must be familiar with Italy or France, etc.
It is not necessary to have one student to take us around for all countries, unless she has time (summer time June-July) to travel with us during this
tour. If renting car is expensive, we can go by train. Well you know better than me which transportation is better and cheaper.

originally posted by: ist

Meeting Italians

Prior to arriving in Italy most students usually hope to meet Italians, which is something that is easier said than done. You will quickly realize that the language barrier between you and the average italian is really difficult to over come. You should also be careful not to stick too much to the International crowd. It is always fun to be with other english speakers, but while studying you should get to know at least one or two italians on friendly terms. I should also add that meeting italian friends is a lot easier for girls than it is for guys. As a guy often when you think are making friends with an italian guy you will realize that they are just talking to you so that they can meet your girlfriends next to you. This can be frustrating, but do not give up so easily. I eventually found out that I was making the mistake of trying to meet people at the late night bar scene, which is never a good idea. Instead I joined a softball league in Rome, which turned out to be one of the best decisions I have made so far in Rome. The league meets once a week and it is really easy going. It is a mixed group of mostly italian guys and girls with a few internationals here and there. All the people are so friendly and interested in meeting new people making it perfect for meeting friends. I am not saying you should join a softball league, but if you are interested in anything it could be stamp collecting I bet you that you could find a group of stamp collectors that would love for you to join. Use the English Yellow Pages they will definately help you to find whatever you are interested in. My advice to you is to find out what you are interested in and then find italians that are interested in the same thing. Those common grounds will help develope good relationships that will last longer than your short time here in Italy.

originally posted by: Michael C Hummel EYP Student Blog Editor

I just returned from Venice this weekend and a group of my friends gave me some great travel advice. Never make assumptions and when in a different city or foreign country it is better to be safe than sorry. My friends arrived in Venice Thursday night and had a return flight very early on Sunday morning. They decided that they could save money by only booking a hotel for Thursday and Friday night. They assumed since it was the beginning of the celebration of Carnevale that Venice would be an all night party and getting a room on Saturday night would have been a waste of money. The city of Venice pretty much shut down by 2 am, and while some people were still out, there was not enough to keep them occupied or more importantly warm for the night (at least it was not raining). Even though I only got three hours of sleep that night before I had to wake up and catch my train to the airport, having a place to stay was worth every penny.My friends gave me some great advice this weekend, unfortunately for them it was a hard lesson learned. When you travel, there are many ways to avoid costs, but you should always make sure that you have your basic needs met. A place to sleep should always be first on your list.

originally posted by: Matthew Chiarello

Food is such a huge part of Italian culture and by simply allowing yourself to enjoy a traditional Italian breakfast, or buying food at an open-air market, you can learn so much about Italian life in general
A big thing that I have noticed, with myself and with other students who come over, is that food really becomes an issue of comfort. Last semester after a couple of weeks all I wanted was some bacon (I know there is pancetta, but it is not the same). An Italian breakfast is a lot different then an American one. A caffe and a cornetto will not usually cut it for a person who is used to eating eggs, bacon, toast, cereal, etc every morning.
I have also heard a lot of people complaining about Italian coffee, in America where Starbucks will get you anywhere from 12-20oz of coffee it can be hard to get used to only a mouthful of espresso.
Minor issues like breakfast and coffee can rapidly turn into major problems if you let it happen. Most of the students who came to study abroad probably decided to come for the same reasons that I did, to experience a completely different culture and set of experiences. You cannot fully immerse yourself in another culture if you are still hanging on to your home culture.
Comfort foods are great every once in a while, especially when you are feeling a little home sick. Still it seems silly to travel thousands of miles away from home to get half rate version of the food you could get if you just had never left. So while you are here, because you may never get this opportunity again, take advantage of everything. Even if it just enjoying a smaller but equally energizing espresso.

originally posted by: Matthew Chiarello

Affording Italian Life:

As the excitement of spring break approaches, the dreaded bill also looms. Midterms, spring break and traveling make Febuary a tough month for any student abroad. As if studying abroad was not expensive enough, now I also have to come up with enough money to travel for a week during spring break. Although its too late for me (I have to bite the bullet and fork up cash I do not have) its not too late for you, which is why I have decided to make a list of three helpful tips on how to not only save your money, but also to use your money wisely.

Tip 1:
The number 1 thing students waste money on is going out! Its not bad to go out and have fun, but be careful not to spend all your money on drinks. Bars jack the price up on drinks and food. Instead pre-game at home with wine, which is always the cheap yet classy choice.

Tip 2:
Number 2 on the list of most expensive things students waste money on is eating out! You should be going to restuarants occasionally, but you should also cook for yourself regulary. Make your own food and do not waste it. Buy some containers from the cheap euro stores and put your left-over dinner in them over night. This serves as a really good lunch for the next day at school.

Tip 3:
The 3rd biggest student expense is traveling! It is a great idea to travel expecially if you have never been to Europe before, but just because you are traveling does not mean it has to be expensive, The biggest money saver is planning ahead, truly plan ahead and you will be fine. Plan out your trips before you get here and if you are already here start planning all of them now. There is nothing better than having everything planned out early and at the best price. Ask a travel agent for help they might be able to do better than the internet.

Hopefully those three tips above can help you save some money, if you master the art of saving money in Italy then you have mastered the art of saving money in any country. Use these tips, commit them to common practice and you will find your bank account that much healthier at the end of every month.

originally posted by: Michael C Hummel EYP Student Blog Editor

A Weekend in FlorenceSpending the weekend in Florence was quite euphoric. Everything about the trip was enjoyable and I strongly suggest going. This city is complimented by various galleries all containing probably the most important pieces in the world. Michelangelos David was the most impressive. It was so big, perfectly sculpted you could spend an hour just looking at him. The city has a main street that runs from the Duomo all the way to Piazza Signoria. The Piazza holds several copies of works, which provide a great aesthetical value to you while sitting in the piazza. Right next to the Piazza is the Uffizi Museum where many of the most important Renaissance paintings sit. The nightlife in Florence is great with lots of students studying there and a variety of bars. The drinks are not that expensive compared to other Italian cities like Rome. People were really friendly and I am pretty sure I met the guy who played the Russian Astronaut in the movie Arnageddon, which was really fun. The hotels are not to bad and the train station is really close to the city. If you go for a weekend trip like I did I would suggest you also fit some time in to go to Pisa. Pisa famous for its leaning tower is only 1 hour by train from Florence and it only cost about 5 euro each way for the ticket so that is 10 euro roundtrip, which is not bad at all. If you are going from Rome to Florence like I did the train from Rome Termini is 30 euro each way and it takes like something close to 3 hours to get there. The actual city of Florence is really easy to figure out because of its layout and small area. The city is packed with landmarks at almost every corner making navigation a breeze.

originally posted by: Michael C Hummel EYP Student Blog Editor