Last weekend Ava, Sophia, Emily, Tiffany, and I ventured to Monopoli in the Puglia region of the heel of the boot of Italy. We stayed in a gorgeous stone Airbnb in the center of the town. We first arrived past midnight, so we did not think much of the night life, but nearing our apartment there were crowds of people eating and walking around the main square. The first morning we grabbed breakfast and some fruit from a produce shop for the beach. I got a carton of cherries and Emily got some peaches. The man was nice enough to wash the fruit for us and we snacked on the way to the beach nearby. The beaches were sand, rock, and grass. We swam out to the sandbar and watched people cliff jump. Sophia, Emily, and I ventured to the beach with the cliff and got nervous as it was higher than it seemed. We jumped a bunch until I tried to climb back up and fell back almost taking the man behind me in the water with me. After I swam back to the beach, Emily told me he went up to her when she was looking for me and said “sta bene” meaning I was fine and then reenacted me stumbling back while explaining in Italian. We went back to get ready for dinner and ate at this place called Apluvia with local food. It was so nice and the food was awesome. We got octopus, lobster, and cuttlefish and laughed as Sophia tried to crack the lobster claw and it shot across the table. Afterwards we all walked around the town, got gelato, and explored. The next day we walked around and shopped. It was a little cooler from the salty wind so not really a beach day. We saw a man painting by his shop and the streets were so narrow that we had to go into his shop for the car coming. He started to explain all of his paintings in Italian. I was able to translate some from my high school Italian class, but it was pretty self-explanatory with the paintings in front of us. His name was Gianni Comes and he used to be a fisherman as a Monopoli native. He used fishing nets, fishing jackets, jeans, and wood from the boats as canvases. He then ran around to shut off the lights except for one and put the fishing jacket canvas in front of it. The light glowed through the negative space in the paint, it was gorgeous. All of us were so blown away. He let us feel the paintings textured with fishing nets and other equipment and explained his theme of the “due amore” (two loves) and life. There would be two people or two sailboats and then life of the flowers, trees, and the city of Monopoli. Each of them was so detailed and beautiful. We all bought little ones from the wood from the fishing boats and he wrote messages about each of the paintings on the back. That was truly a highlight of our visit and really showed what beauty comes from Monopoli. We ate lunch on a rooftop for a view of the sea and ate more delicious seafood this time scallops, redfish, and more octopus. We then caught our flight home all exclaiming how Monopoli would be a place to visit again.

 

With this being our last full week, I am trying to explore all of the things I have not yet. Monday Emily and I climbed the stairs to the Duomo terrace which was gorgeous. I pass it twice a day and had not been inside yet. The interior was colossal. The stained glass was so colorful and contrasting against the gothic architecture. We also got to see the archeological area underneath which used to be a baptismal font covered in mosaics. Another place I have been meaning to go to is directly behind Aparto. It is a car themed restaurant called Officina that used to be an autobody shop and the atmosphere was very cool with framed pictures, vintage mirrors, and car signs covering the walls. The food was so delicious I got cacio e pepe which I had been craving for some time as it is not as popular in Milan being a Roman dish. For our last weekend we rented a villa outside of Florence that fit the whole group. It was so much fun to relax by the pool and play games with everyone all weekend. The view was so vast overlooking the Tuscan vineyards.

This week we did not have class as we were given more time to work on our final project. One homework assignment was to watch Erin Brockovich and discuss the movie questions in a group setting. The movie was similar to A Civil Action where it was a true story about small town’s groundwater being contaminated by a nearby plant. This time it was a huge gas and electric corporation instead of a local tannery and the main character was not a lawyer but needed a job and investigated the case and decided it was moral to fight back.

At Giuba 80 this week I had one of my friends model some polos for the Amazon storefront and I organized prices and TPIs for bookkeeping as this season’s book was becoming full. Tuesday we had a networking event in which my boss and coworker came to and spoke to some of my other friends and their colleagues. It was a fun time getting to hear about what everyone did for the month at their internships and what they thought about working international versus back at home. My coworker wanted to show me a few things before I left so we went to a horse race with her parents who go all of the time. It was so fun as I jump horses for the Lehigh Club Equestrian Team but have never been to a race which is a very different experience. The first race we bet 3 euros on a horse named Moorland Spirit to come in first. He was close in second and pushed for first when crossing the finish line. We won 7.50 euros! The second and third races were excellent as it was fun to go to something casual in the area. She then took me for lunch to City Life which was the most relaxed city looking place I have ever been in. Even inside the mall was not really crowded. I will miss my coworker and boss and plan to keep in touch and to meet up if I ever come to visit Italy again. They have given me great advice over this month and great places to come back to.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This past weekend Emily, Sophia, Ava, and I went to Paris to walk around the city. We each had different things we wanted to see so we really got a lay of the land visiting each monument. Our first day we went to the Louvre and got lost in there for about 3 and a half hours as each exit sign led us to another exhibit. I was so excited to see art pieces I had studied in high school in AP Art History and led us around with my notes from the class. It was really interesting to read the stories and details put into each of the sculptures and paintings. After the Louvre we got in line for the iconic hot chocolate from Café Angelina. It was so rich I almost did not finish it. That night we went to dinner and then to watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle. Because it was the last time it sparkled for the night, as soon as the lights went the sprinklers turned on and everyone was scrambling to not get wet. It was like a scene from a movie. The second day we walked to Cedric Grolet Opera, another iconic bakery for breakfast. Emily and I split a huge orange blossom cream filled cake and then just for fun we went to the Starbucks that has fresco painted ceilings and walls. We walked off our pastries on the way to Sacre Cœur Basilica as it was a steep incline which Lehigh’s South Mountain campus prepared us for. The markets and shops around that area smelled so good that it was hard to keep walking past. The basilica looked like a small Tajh Mahal and had a overlook of the entire city. We then ventured to the Arc de Triomphe and debated whether to skip the line and just run across the largest roundabout in Europe but ended up walking back to our hostel along the Seine River. The vendors sold Art Nouveau posters and old books and I ended up buying at least one at each stall.

This week in class we recapped the movie we watched last class about a lawsuit. We discussed some questions about what more could have been done in the case’s situation with corporate social responsibility and ESG. One assignment was to read a case study on Apple’s CSR and having a group debate on what Apple could change about working conditions in their suppliers’ factories. One side took the point that Apple should have different standards for each country they are manufacturing in and the other was to have standard conditions across the board for all of the different countries. It was interesting to see the pros and cons of both sides and what could be done to change these conditions.

At Giuba 80 this week, I was tasked with inputting more TPIs on the excel sheet for Prénatal, which are the tactical sheets for each item of clothing in the collection. I took detailed catalog pictures of new autobody shop jumpsuits and jackets for Magneti Marelli. I packaged those into a parcel, as well as some medical masks for a dentist nearby from leftover COVID inventory. I also was taught the bookkeeping process for the upcoming winter season of children’s clothes and added some items to the collection. After work I had lunch with my coworker, Michela, at a local café and walked in a park nearby. She recommended a very nice bakery near the Duomo by Iginio Massari and I could not believe I passed it up twice a day. I pass through Piazza del Duomo to and from work so Emily and I decided to try it on our way home and met in the metro. We also ran into Professor Gupta who was shopping for mangoes, and he joined us on our journey to try some of the candies the bakery makes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are already halfway through the Lehigh in Milan program, and I feel like we arrived last week. A few of us started off the weekend with a local cooking class from a chef who formerly worked at a Michelin Star restaurant for 12 years. Chef Francesco taught us how to make gelato and a waffle cone bowl, as well as the correct way to make a Margherita pizza as it is from his Napolitano heritage. Everything was delicious and we were in the market outside the Milano Centrale station, so we got to explore afterward as well. I will definitely be making these recipes with my family when I get home since we make homemade pizza a lot, but never the correct way. Saturday IES scheduled an alpine trip in Aosta to Monte Bianco. We got suited up in our harnesses for the zip line course and were shown how to navigate the carabiners and zip line trolley. After completing the full 5 courses we realized it was nothing compared to a group of friends going on the actual zip line across the waterfall. The instructor in front of the group went first and once he got over the waterfall he went upside down hooping and hollering. Our jaws dropped as we were clutching our belongings standing on an overlook above the ravine. A group after us on the course also happened to have a Batman with them so it was funny to watch his cape fly as he zip lined. Our group then hiked to Lake Arpy, which looked like absolute paradise. There was also still snow on the ground, which was very apparent when some of us went swimming in the freezing lake.

Sunday was more of a relaxing day, thankfully, since we walked around 7 miles up and down the mountain. I went to Lake Como with some friends and the weather was gorgeous. We walked and shopped around Varenna and Bellagio and found a not-so-secret beach in Bellagio. We definitely learned our lesson because it was all rocks and getting into the water was a struggle. At least there was a large dock out in the water so that was somewhat rewarding.

This week in Gupta’s class we watched the movie A Civil Action with John Travolta. The movie was very interesting as it is a true story about a case in a small town where a lot of the kids had died from leukemia and the parents were convinced it was something in the water that made them sick. Travolta’s character takes the case dragging his small law firm of two other lawyers with him. In the beginning, I was convinced it would be great outcome as all of the evidence was clear but, in the end, the whole firm mortgaged their houses and lost everything to continue trying this case and never got the outcome they wanted. It was clear of what really happened as the tannery in the town dumped their hazardous waste and it got into the water supply. This movie tied into what we have been discussing in this class with business ethics and more recently topics of ESG. We also have kept up the tradition of dinner with Professor Gupta after class on Mondays so this week we went to a local pizza place called Farini to eat.

At work this week I was tasked with inputting technical sheets into an excel file of collections that will be sent for an order. This included things such as the clothing description and image, category and article numbers, color combination, theme of the collection, fabric, price, quantity, and shipping dates. I had to make sure I stayed organized as each collection was for a different store. After work on the way to class, I walked past the children’s store in which most of the samples in the showroom are from and explained to my peers that Chicco is one of Giuba 80’s clients. One of my coworkers, Michela, has some of us over for lunch and made her mom’s recipe of creamy pesto pasta. It was amazing and she gave me the recipe to make with my family so I will be doing a lot of cooking when I get home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This week started off with a strong Milanese spirit as Sunday night was a football game between AC Milan and Hellas Verona. Coming from Verona earlier the Friday before, the group of us had perspectives of both teams. We had dinner near the stadium as we waited for everyone to get back from their weekend trips. As we walked into San Siro Stadio, an opening song began to play as the lights flashed and the fans sang along. “Sarà Perché Ti Amo” by Ricchi & Poveri is a huge anthem in Italy, but also for AC Milan fans. I knew of this song before coming to Italy, so I was jumping up and down with excitement singing the lyrics. We could not get over the fans in the Fossa dei Leoni, which means Lions’ Den, as we found our seats. They had a few guys at the bottom of the section leading them in chants through the whole game and they did not stop once. Even when we bought our tickets it was strictly written to not wear the opposing team’s colors since we were in the home section. I was very excited for the sport spirit, as back at home nothing is ever this intense in the stands. There were multiple flags being waved and flares being lit as the Milan Ultras (the name for the fans in the Lions’ Den) chanted and did hand motions in unison making it very intimidating for the small Verona section across the way. The game was great as Milan won 3-1 and there was a retirement ceremony for a loved player at the end, Zlatan Ibrahimović, which brought the stadium to tears as he is up there with Cristiano Renaldo and Lionel Messi for being a very decorated player. Everyone was wearing his jersey with number 11, and it almost had me tearing up, his ceremony was very touching as the fans cheered his name repeatedly.

Before the football game I had just come back from visiting my cousins who live in Torino. I took a train to Santhià and was picked up for lunch and driven through the alps to some castles to learn about the area’s history. Afterwards we met up with the rest of the family for dinner, as well as a new baby cousin Giovanni who was born the year before. It was nice to see everyone since the last time I visited was before COVID in summer of 2019. We caught up and laughed as I was told many things about the places I need to see when I come back to visit. That Sunday, before coming back for the game, my cousin showed me around the city of Torino and where he studies for dental school. It was great to see them after a lot of time and to keep in touch in the meantime.

This week in Professor Gupta’s class we watched a documentary on corporations. It was interesting to see how they are deemed a “legal person”. We also discussed a student’s article summary and if companies need to make statements on certain issues occurring and should we expect them to or not based on the issue or the company.

At work this week I was tasked with organizing the show room. I enjoy organizing things, so I was excited to put my perfectionism to work. I sorted through polos, men’s wear, children’s, and maternity clothing and made sure the repeats of some of the samples went in a box. I also put together a spreadsheet of other companies in Europe that Guiba 80 could potentially sell through. This week I also had the privilege of meeting my boss’s niece for lunch. She took me to a place she used to go to a lot when she was younger near my work. It was delicious and was fun to exchange our differences since she is the same age as me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our first day trip with IES was to Lago Maggiore about an hour north of Milan. It was very quiet walking to the water as it was still very early. I brought my camera, so we took a lot of pictures as we waited for our boat to Isola Madre. We walked around museums and palaces before stopping at Isola dei Pescatori for lunch. Lunch was delicious as we all had to get fish being on the lake. A bachelorette party then decided to sit and clap every five minutes and out-yell each other for the bride to be. As we took comfort in everyone on the deck feeling the same way, we laughed and shrugged with tables next to us as if saying “what do we do?” since we could not hear one another across the table. After the loud lunch we took a boat to Isola Bella which was molto bella with another palace and this time gorgeous white peacocks. We walked through the town getting refreshments and shopping at the markets.

The second day trip with IES was to Verona on Republic Day, which is essentially Italy’s July 4^th so everyone had off of work. We had a winery tour and tasting when we arrived which was delicious. It was interesting to see how the Montressor family was innovative during the industrial revolution and created a blacked-out bottle so light could not taint the wine while being shipped by boat to America. This was followed by a walking tour in which we visited the city center, skipped rocks on the Adige River, and sang Love Story by Taylor Swift at the top of the arena before visiting Juliette’s balcony.

At work this week at Giuba 80 I was tasked with taking pictures of some t-shirts and polos for the company’s Amazon storefront as well as types of prints for an online file. Next week I am going to organize the show room for when clients come to pick out textiles. Walking back to Aparto after work I ran into a group going to gelato so I could not say no and joined them.

One of my favorite things is that there are about three or four gelato shops on every block, and when the weather is nice enough some of us walk to class instead of taking the metro and stop for treats on the way.

In Professor Gupta’s class this week some of us presented our summations of articles from the Wall Street Journal and talked about how this relates to corporate social responsibility and ethics in business. It was interesting to see different perspectives on some articles as we had to reply to another student’s summary of an article and sometimes more than one student did the same article. We also had our first internship seminar class and talked about the differences within Italian work culture and American work culture. Some of the differences had to do with how each country’s healthcare system or government system works so therefore it changes peoples’ ways of growing up and their daily lives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Taking a taxi from Malpensa airport in Milan was not what I expected. I passed futuristic skyscrapers and apartment buildings, a residential area, and ended up near trams and cars parked so close some were touching while coming to Aparto Giovenale (our student housing). This gave me an idea of how diverse Milan is and how wide the city really is. Settling in to our Aparto there were many differences yet similarities in how we were to live here. I had my first introduction to the Milan metro system on the way to our welcoming event for the IES in Milan Program. As I tried to remember the names of each stop and where to get off, I found comfort in traveling in a big group and felt like I was back on campus at Lehigh walking with friends to class. At the welcome event we were not exactly served dinner, but many small appetizers or aperitivos. This made it apparent that lunch was a big deal here taking at least an hour break to go out and eat.  Afterwards some of us in the group explored the area and went by the navigli or canal district which was lively with outdoor seating and lights on awnings as well as on the water. The night after we came back to the navigli district for one of the student’s birthdays and chose to go eat later in the night that way almost all of 20 us sat at one table and more joined later. Because of this we were asked for a tip, and we all pitched in. Later in our Italian class we learned that the tip is included as well as a cover charge and waiters sometimes target Americans for a little extra, so we learned our lesson.

 

On the third day we had a break between our Italian class and class with Professor Gupta. Some of us went shopping at the Duomo in Vittorio Emanuele II and indulged in some focaccia bread and gelato while waiting for the tram. Despite the designer stores being out of our price range we still enjoyed exploring the area by taking pictures and dodging pigeons in front of the Duomo. Our first class with Professor Gupta was very knowledgeable as we learned of Adam Smith and the origin of the free market and how it can benefit an economy. It was interesting to see that Smith wrote about morality and values in the economy in the 18^th century that are still very relevant today.

 

For the duration of this program, I will be working at Giuba 80 Srl, a textile and apparel company based in Bangladesh. Although I have not received any real projects yet, I was shown around and explained the regulations and terms of requesting a sample and filling an order of large quantity. This is very difficult as Bangladesh has different regulations than Europe does so fulfilling both is a challenge at times. After class later in the day some of us ventured to the grocery store, and I recognized the name as the employees’ uniforms are one of the current orders for Giuba 80. It was very cool to see and understand all of the behind the scenes and effort put into things you see in everyday life and realize that they are not as simple in actuality.