Cultural Immersion:

For this week we visited Verona, the City of Love. We had a walking tour through the city where our class was able to see Juliet’s balcony. We also visited the Arena, which translates to “sand” and learned more about the history and origins of the Arena. This weekend was Republic Day, so the city was extra busy and filled with tourists. The next day was Venice, the City of Water. Everywhere I went, I was able to see an amazing view of the canals that runs through the City. We stopped by the Rialto Bridge, the oldest bridge in Venice. We had a chance to try out a store known for its tiramisu, a popular Italian coffee-flavored dessert. Venice has been so far my favorite spot that I’ve traveled to.

Corporate Social Responsibility:

I really enjoyed this week’s class as we had debates about if it’s moral for banks to charge interest payments and a dilemma on vulnerable individuals getting scammed. The debates sparked engagements between the groups involved and each group challenged the other. I really love the free-flowing system of class and wish that I take more classes like this in the future. I continue to learn more as I read Wall Street Journal articles and listen to my classmate’s reports on their findings. I’m looking forward to future classes as we tackle the topics of corporations.

Internship:

For this week’s internship, a small group of people from a start-up architecture company visited our office. Mason and I, along with the group, were given a tour of the studio and learned more about the history of Franco Albini and his work. We learned about the various projects and ambitions he had. There were countless experiments and reeditions throughout his lifetime. His most famous work, the Luisa chair, took 15 years to become what it is now today. Albini was a man of constant innovation and functionality. He liked to keep his design simple, yet efficient. We continued to search for sponsors and composed a well-rounded list.