A month in Italy for language immersion
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I am fortunate to have a great family and great friends, many of which are Italian. As I was learning the language over the last 7 years, they encouraged me to spend at least a month in Italy, immersing myself in the culture and the language. From September 13 to October 15 of 2018, I did exactly that. I documented my trip with a daily blog that I wrote in Italian, sent to my family (so that they could translate it and know what I was up to) and captured my learning process. My Italian improved greatly during the trip and I laugh sometimes when I go back and read the blog, with the early pages showing several weaknesses that I overcame. I surprised myself overall because I returned with my passion for Italy intact but my passion for wine ever larger and more intense. I immediately enrolled into the Italian Wine Professional Certification course and I have never looked back. I met Jess Helfand, my good friend and incredible wine mentor, and I have since studied wine for the last year as intently as I study Italian. This trip also led to an opportunity for my son, Max, to become a pitching coach in Castelfranco, Italy. The blog collection is below in PDF format. Enjoy it if you want to spend time flipping through to see the pictures and get a sense of my unnecessary adventure..... Why Unnecessary? Because I already had everything I needed in life and this was the first time I had done something so selfish and so carefree in my life. It was worth every minute. One last note: The most difficult thing about a trip like this and something that I did not consider was the fact I would eat alone so many time. I found that I missed the conversation with family and friends that one has over a meal. The next time I will go with an Italian speaking friend - maybe Max will speak well after next season!!!
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avventura.pdf | |
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