Hailey – Italy

May 15, 2025

Hi! My name is Hailey Tobin (she/her) and I am so excited to travel to Italy this summer!

I am a rising junior Theatre Education major, and I am also a part of the Honors College. In addition to this, I work on campus as a Pirate Navigator and give tours to prospective ECU students. I am also the social media manager for the Theatre Education Association (also known as TEA) and was one of the founding members of this club. I am so excited to travel to Italy because my Nonna is from Italy! I can’t wait to see all the great sights, make new friends, and of course, eat all the delicious food!

This is also my first time traveling on a plane by myself so I will admit I am a little nervous about navigating everything. I also tend to overpack A LOT so trying to pack everything into one carry on and a backpack has been challenging over the past few days. My goals on this trip are to make new friends, step out of my comfort zone when it comes to learning the language, and get better at finding my way around. My friends like to call me “directionally challenged” because I am so bad at navigating things and remembering how to get places! I hope to improve those skills and most of all have fun!

As a future educator I know that being exposed to other cultures and many different types of people is a huge benefit so while I am nervous, I know this trip will change me for the better! I can’t wait to take off in just a few days and I am so excited for the journey ahead of me!

May 28, 2025

Ciao from Venice!

I arrived in Italy three days ago and we took Venice by storm! This city was so beautiful and exactly what I imagined it would look like. The first day we got lunch at a beautiful restaurant on the water and then explored Venice for the rest of the day! On day two we got a tour of the entire city, took a Cathedral tour, and had the afternoon free to shop and do whatever we wanted. I walked around 15,000 steps on that day which is insane. I’ve attached some pictures of the Cathedral so you guys can check it out. I loved just walking around Venice it is such a beautiful city. If you didn’t know there are no roads or cars in Venice, the entire city is on water. Because of this you have to either walk or take a boat to get from place to place. It was so interesting to see the all the different boats such as the police boats, amazon boats, and even the garbage boats that collect trash.

On the next day we explored the islands of Burano and Murano. We had to take four boats to get to these islands and it was hard to navigate at first. Eventually we figured out how to read the maps, its similar to a subway map if you’ve ever read one of those. Burano was so beautiful! It had so many colorful houses and was a great spot to take pictures. Burano also has a big focus on lace and textiles, so we saw so many shops with gorgeous pieces. We then went to Murano and grabbed some lunch and then began shopping around the town. Murano is actually known for their glass making. All the shops had so many beautiful pieces. Jewelry, trinkets, mirrors, and so much more! I ended up buying a ring and a glass picture frame. The lady we bought them from actually told us that her husband made them himself! It was so cool to see all the beautiful artwork that most of the storeowners make by hand.

This morning was very chill, we only had the morning, so we all rode the gondolas which was probably my favorite thing we did- definitely don’t skip it! It was so calm and a great wait to see Venice and learn about it from your gondolier.

My favorite parts of Venice so far have to be the beautiful sights and the gelato! I’ve gotten it at least twice every day since we have been here. If you’re ever in Venice, I think that Gelato Nico is the best place, and it was super close to our hotel. As I write this, I am on the bus to Certaldo where we will get to explore the city and see our apartments for the very first time! I can’t wait to check them out and see all that Certaldo has to offer.

June 14, 2025

Ciao!

It is now one week until my study abroad program ends. I am currently writing this on the bus to Rome! I am so excited to visit this ancient city! Since I last wrote a post I have been to the cities of Siena, Volterra, San Gimignano, Lucca, Florence, Pisa, Sestri Levante, and Cinque Terre! And I have so much to share about all of these beautiful places.

Setting into Certaldo (our home base) was not too difficult. The main thing that took me by storm was the recycling and trash system. In the United States we have our trash and our recycling and that’s all. But here in Italy there’s organic trash (food), paper, plastic, glass, and the refute (things like band aids or feminine products). This leads to a very cluttered kitchen! It did take some getting used to, but eventually we figured it out!

I have made it my mission to try gelato from every city we go to. And so far the best is right at our home base in Certaldo! The gelateria is called Ma Ke. So if you’re ever in Certaldo that’s definitely the place to go! A close second is Gelato D’altri Tempi in Sestri Levante. If you go there tell Samuel we miss him! After staying in Sestri for 4 nights, he definitely got used to seeing our faces.

My favorite cities we have been to so far are Siena and Lucca. Siena was wonderful, it felt so homey and community driven. The whole city looked like it was made out of a fairytale- so medieval and historic. My favorite thing we did there was tour the Siena Cathedral. That was hands down one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been in my entire life. The ceilings were painted a dark royal blue and had stars painted across it. It was as if you were looking right at the night sky. The marble floors were also beautiful you can almost miss the views of the cathedral if you look at them for too long. I have attached some pictures here so you guys can check it out!

Lucca was also amazing in a different way! The city felt like people actually live there. I know that’s a funny thing to say but in big cities, it can be hard to believe people actually raise their families there. In Lucca you could see locals all over, playing in the grass, getting gelato, or listening to music. There were people playing instruments all over the city which gave such a great ambiance. I could hardly believe I was there. We ended up renting bikes and rode around the entire city! I totally recommend you do this- a lot of Italian cities have areas to rent bikes and it’s a super amazing way to get a good look at the entire city and get some exercise!

I love all the amazing things I’ve been able to do while I am here and I know I will miss these people and these places when I go home next week. This trip has helped me learn to problem solve, make friends, and get better with directions! I have also gone out of my comfort zone and tried so many new foods. I have had swordfish, rabbit, mutton, and pesto! All things that I would’ve never dared to try before coming here. I love all the pasta and I think it’s gonna take me a while to get used to the pasta in America again. However, I think I miss goldfish the most! I am such a big snacker it has been such a struggle for me here, which seems so funny.

I am having so much fun and I can’t wait to update you again after I am back home in the states!