My Day in Italy

By Michael Kroth

I wake early. I want to go over my lessons for the day again and sometimes that takes some time. My apartment is roomy — a living room, two bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom and laundry room. The laundry room is my favorite because there is a table for working and an open window where I hang my laundry to dry. I had not used clothes pins for many years but the apartment has no dryer. The very small washing machine takes a couple of hours per load. I imagine someone from the street below can spot the brand and current status of my underwear, shirts and other garments.

Out the open window sits the FIAT headquarters and sometimes I see a helicopter landing atop the building. More pleasing to me is seeing the ebb and flow of people walking by, perhaps on a Sunday stroll, perhaps headed to the Lingotto mall that sits next to the FIAT building, or perhaps walking to the metro or bus stop just a block and a half away.

The lessons I review are sometimes for the classes I am teaching for the University Studies Abroad Consortium’s (USAC) Torino program (http://usac. unr.edu/study-abroad-programs/ italy/torino). USAC is comprised of universities like the University of Idaho from around the United States. Students from those universities take courses all over the world in places like Torino, Italy, and faculty from those universities teach for the program. I teach a leadership class and a career development class. In addition to my U.S. students, I also have three from France, two from Poland, and one from Germany.

Other times, the lessons I am reviewing are for the Italian classes I am taking. At 61, learning a new language is hard but so very rewarding. I attempt to speak Italian everywhere I go and the Italians are unvaryingly helpful and appreciative that I am trying. Once, endeavoring to find lodging for the night in Venice, I walked into a hotel I knew was totally booked and the manager not only found a room for me but dropped the room rate by 20 Euros because I was talking with him in Italian. Or trying my best to do so.

Leaving my apartment each morning I walk across the street to a “bar” where I order a cappuccino, brioche, and sometimes a sprumata, which is fresh-squeezed orange juice. Luciana and Geno, the proprietors, know me well, greet me warmly, and help me with an Italian word here and there or share travel directions to places I am planning to visit. I ask them what it is like to live and work in Italy. They were excited when my wife, Lana, arrived for five weeks — they fell in love with her and vice versa — and sad when she left for home.

On the days I teach or take classes, I then make the five minute walk to school. I arrive just in time for class, enjoying being a student, and my Italian class begins. It lasts two hours and then, 15 minutes later, I teach for three hours. The long stretch is tiring but rewarding. I drop into the office to chat with the wonderful staff — Alyssa, Eliana, Daniele and Simona — who make my life so much easier. Every day I thank my lucky stars for these thoughtful, caring and expert people.

On the way home, I stop by a small restaurant for an inexpensive but tasty lunch of spaghetti. After, if I need supplies, down the street is the neighborhood grocery store. If my timing is not right, the shop is closed for an extended lunchtime period, well into the afternoon, as are many local businesses.

I spend the rest of the afternoon and early evening in my apartment working. If I have a free afternoon I hop on the metro or bus and head to downtown Torino or other nearby locales. I do not drive a car for the three months I spend in Italy. I do walk. A lot. An Italian told me that, despite the delicious food, many visitors actually lose weight during their time in Italy because they walk so much. This was not my experience.

I knew nothing about Torino when I arrived but it is filled with history, museums (the Egyptian museum is the second best in the world), palaces and awe inspiring churches. My last evening in Italy I decided that I would go to downtown Torino and visit churches. I wanted to visit a couple of churches I had discovered before for one last look. At times, I just decided that I would walk into every church I passed along the way. Each one touched my soul.

I am not a food aficionado, so my dinner is simple. My favorite, a margherita pizza, is said to have been named after Queen Margherita over a century ago, and has three colors – red (tomato), green (basil), and white (mozzarella) — representing the Italian flag. Occasionally, I get an urge for home and on the way back to my apartment, I drop by the cinema, not to see a film, but, to pick up some movie popcorn and a diet soda. Late in my stay, I discover the neighborhood bakery and sometimes take something home from there for dinner.

My last stop is the neighborhood gelateria where I buy a gelato, which is Italian ice cream. Many do the same, strolling down the street with cone in hand, which I find a very civilized practice. The store is run by Gio and Giovanna. Gio always makes friendly fun of me when I try to order in Italian, but after a certain number of times I remember the correct word, gender, and number and we have a nice laugh. Thankfully, it seems that everyone in Italy is my language teacher.

On days I don’t have classes, I study Italian or work. Sometimes, I catch a train and take a day trip to a town like Aosta not far away. Those trips, to places like La Sacra di San Michele (St. Michael’s Abbey) are sometimes as meaningful to me as more extended visits to Rome, Florence, Venice, Milan or Cinque Terra.

I am alone most of my visit to Italy. Lana is there for five wonderful weeks, arriving with two of our close friends who visit for a week and then leave for Rome. We see much together until she leaves for Boise and then I am by myself again. But I rarely feel alone because I begin to feel — just a little — like I am part of the neighborhood, and the folks at USAC have made me feel so welcome. Even though we all know I am a passing stranger, I get to know a bit about what it means to live less as a tourist than most and more like a piece of the interconnected community, which I value supremely.

I want to return to Italy, to learn more about the people, the language, the history, the art, the religion and the land. I feel so fortunate to have had this opportunity to learn, to grow, to experience, and hopefully to make a difference abroad.

Movement Sciences

Belle Baggs, clinical assistant professor, is part of the BASK creative interdisciplinary artist collective. Along with Alexandra Teague, assistant professor, English; Stacy Isenbarger, assistant professor, College of Art and Architecture; and Kristin Elgersma, assistant professor, College of Letters, Arts, and Social Sciences, the dance/poetry/sculpture/piano cooperative conducted a creative workshop that explored projections of strength, social expectations and creative boundaries for the UI community.

Baggs and Melanie Mehan, clinical assistant professor, conducted jazz dance clinics and workshops in partnership with the 2014 Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival with support from Gritman Medical Center.

Grace Goc Karp, professor and physical education program coordinator, received the Distinguished Service Award from the Idaho Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance state conference.

Chantal Vella, associate professor and director of the Exercise Physiology Laborary, is one of 25 international researchers to be awarded the Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine in 2013.

Movement Sciences students working with Assistant Clinical Professor Helen Brown and Goc Karp are exemplifying healthy, active lifestyles in their service learning projects. The students’ projects include:

• Working with the Moscow Farmers Market, with support through a grant from the High Five Children’s Health Collaborative, powered by the Blue Cross of Idaho Foundation for Health, in promoting healthy eating options for children at the market and increasing parents’ awareness. Through this grant, a team of UI students will be working to create a program in which children can have their “passport” stamped for various activities, including visiting a designated vendor to try a fruit or vegetable, attending a class at the market or participating in a physical activity. The grant also will support a paid summer internship.

• Working with Moscow Middle School P.E. teacher Jessica Shawley to enhance breakfast options and participation in the school.

• Working with McDonald Elementary School to teach students activities to practice at home and then perform at a Family Activity Night.

• Working with Russell Elementary School to encourage students to participate in activities with their families at local recreation areas around Moscow.

• Reviewing best practices for helping college students in alcoholism recovery and assessing what already is in place on the UI campus.

• Collaborating with Vandal Vending on revamping and assessing 25 machines on campus to identify high-use machines and stock them with healthier choices.