Paige’s Journals

December 8, 2025

Il Tempo Vola

It is the start of my fourth month in Italy, and time feels like it is flying by. This is part of the reason I haven’t posted another journal until now. Life slowly became a routine: I woke up, went to school, spent time with friends or family, and the days started to feel as if they were running together. At the same time, these past two months have taught me a lot. I’ve realized that while I still have a lot of time ahead of me, this year isn’t endless. Because of that, I’ve started paying more attention to the small moments of everyday life. For example, on my journey to school that is partly a drive, and partly a walk, I look out over the hills, noticing the fog in the mornings or the sunrise (depending on the weather), and then walking the rest of the way trying to notice the things around me, like the fall leaves in the wind, or the little kids walking to school with their rolling backpacks. Those quiet moments have become something I really appreciate, and have helped to slow time back down.

At the beginning of November, my Rotary district took all of the exchange students in District 2060 on a trip to Venice. It was my first time visiting the city, and although the weather was rainy and gloomy, we made the most of it. The rain gave Venice a quieter atmosphere, which made walking through the city a lot more special. We began the day with a visit to Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace), where learning about Venetian history felt completely different than if I were to read about it in school. The architecture was beautiful, almost every room was filled with stunning art, painted ceilings, and secret passageways. Later, we went out to eat together, which ended up being one of my favorite parts of the trip. Sharing a meal, eating carbonara, and signing the flags of two exchange students from Argentina and Australia who will be returning home soon made the day feel more bittersweet. I am so excited to go back to Venice on the Italy Tour, because there is still so much to see.

Later in November, I got together with two other American exchange students to cook a full Thanksgiving meal for our host families. It sounded simple when we planned it, but considering that none of us had ever cooked an entire Thanksgiving meal before, we quickly realized we were in over our heads. We spent more than three hours in the grocery store trying to find ingredients that are common in the United States but not easy to find here, and we definitely bought far more food than necessary. Despite the chaotic beginning, we managed to prepare stuffing, corn, green beans, two types of potatoes, pigs in a blanket, pumpkin pie, soda floats, mac-n-cheese, vegetables on the side, and of course, a turkey.

The cooking itself was extremely stressful, especially after waking up at 5:30 a.m. to finish everything in time for lunch, but once all of our host families sat down together to eat, it felt incredibly rewarding. My host dad had mentioned before that he didn’t like mac and cheese, so seeing him enjoy it was a great victory. Near the end of lunch, our parents would say they were full, but then go back for a little more. After lunch, we spent a lot of time chatting, and I went home exhausted but proud. The experience taught me how important planning ahead really is, and also how meaningful it can be to share a piece of home with people who are experiencing it for the first time.

Another success this month was at my Italian school. Since I go to a liceo, school is a lot of work, and to me it is especially very challenging because I have to work a lot harder to keep up. A lot of the time I have no idea what the prof is saying in classes like philosophy and economics, but other times I can tell my language skills are getting better as I find myself following along to the lecture. Recently, I had a presentation in my human sciences class. It was a group project, and I felt so nervous to present my slides in front of the class. Yes, I speak to them in my not perfect Italian all the time, but doing it in front of the class for a grade felt so much more scary. I practiced so much because I didn’t want to mess up, and when it was my turn the quiet background chatter during my group members' parts turned into complete silence for my part of the presentation. However, everything went well and my teacher said she was very proud, and gave me an 8. (The grading is out of ten and the grading standards are a lot higher than my school in the United States, so I am very happy with that).

Looking back on these past couple of months, I’ve learned that even the most stressful moments, or times where I feel nervous, often turn into the most rewarding memories I value the most. This experience has also shown me how important it is to stay present, even when days feel repetitive. If there are any future exchange students reading this my advice is: appreciate the routine as much as the adventures. Yes, the fun trips and events are unforgettable, but it’s the everyday moments like the walk to school, family dinners, and small conversations with school friends that will quietly shape your exchange. Although sometimes it’s a struggle, learning to stay present has made this year feel more meaningful to me.