Brief Retrospective

Until I had the ticket in my hand I never really believed that I would be going to chef school in Italy. I felt stuck. I didn't have enough money to go to school and the school I was going to was uninspiring and at the same time I had no clue what I wanted to do for a career. I had taken out school loans and had no interest in taking out more to waste when I wasn't applying myself as well as I can. I had always wanted to go to Europe and coincidentally Italian (especially Roman) history was one of my favorite subjects as well as my favorite food. (since then I have learned that gambardellas and every other Italian restaurant I have been too is not real Italian food. Anyway I knew Italy would be the perfect place for me. Even if I don't end up being a chef I believe in the quote of “Its not what you know but where you’ve been”. Traveling and meeting new people is so important. From the first step I took of the plane from Alaska to Germany I have been absorbing everything I can and trying to become the best person I can be. I have seen amazing things and met great people. Seeing the sistine chapel still has an impact on me. Put that together with Tuscan countryside, the Duomos of Milan and Florence, the statue of david, lake como, Leaning Tower of Pisa, St.Peters Basilica, amazing paintings, not to mention the incredible food I’ve tasted and learned to make. I have a decent understanding for the Italian I hear and speaking it is beginning to click. I’ve watched the sun set over Florence from the top of the duomo. I’ve explored the streets where Dante and Michaelangelo lived. I’ve heard Germans, Italians, Greeks, Japanese, Senegalese, Middle Eastern and Russians laugh and realized that they all sound the same. I feel more like a part of the world than I ever have. I know how to keep from being pick pocketed, how to find the right trains, what time to go to the fresh markets and many of the other little things that makes traveling easy. I know that using your hands when you talk makes the language barrier smaller. I know the italian words for pass, shoot, rebound and that the butt slap after a good play is international. I know that Mcdonalds is the same garbage whether its in Fairbanks or a quarter mile from the Duomo in Florence. I’ve made life long friends and dozens of acquaintances that I wouldn’t hesitate to look up. I learned to say “Prost” when drinking with the Germans at Oktoberfest. I’ve laid on a beach with my girlfriend on the Mediterranean Sea. Ive eaten Sangiovese grapes right off the vine. The dishes I learned in this 1st semester in my BEGINNERS class would make any restaurant in Fairbanks that served them the nicest one in town. I haven't watched TV in 4 months and haven't been to the movies in longer. I’ve learned how supportive my whole family can be and how generous they all are. This semester has been great and I’m looking forward to an even better next one.