Ciao

Guest post by Nouman Aijaz, a Foster senior studying Accounting and Information Systems. He studied abroad on the Foster Rome Accounting Program with which he received a GBC study abroad scholarship. 

Being able to travel to Italy for a study abroad program was an amazing experience. I had a ton
of amazing memories and made some very good life-long friends. If anyone were to ask me if
they should study abroad, my answer would be YES.

My favorite moment of the whole trip was during the first week we arrived in Italy. The
program allowed us to travel anywhere on the weekends, provided we stay in Italy no matter
what. That week was my favorite because it was my first experience traveling in a foreign
country with a group of four whom I’ve never met or seen outside of Foster. At the end of the
trip we become very good friends.

We all had decided to travel to Pompeii to see the ancient ruins. I still remember how hot it was
with the weather ranging around 90-100F. We took a train from Rome all the way down to
Naples, where we had to switch to a different train that took us to Pompeii. I will say, once you
get a hang of the transportation system in Italy, it makes traveling a whole lot easier. The Ruins
itself was an amazing experience to see; there was just so much history around the area. After
exploring the Ruins, we stopped by the Pompeii Amphitheater, which is the oldest surviving
Roman Amphitheater. What was funny was they had a shrine of Pink Floyd inside the
Amphitheater. I believe it was because he once played a small concert there.

The best part of the trip happened at the end. We had rented an AirBnB for our night stay at
Pompeii. We were lucky we found an amazing bed and breakfast with an amazing host who was
so welcoming. He and his wife treated us like we were family. When we asked him if he had
any advice on places to eat for dinner, he suggested we eat authentic Italian pasta with him and
his wife. The best part was we were able to watch how she made the pasta. I truly never
realized how bad I was at making pasta till this experience. We ended the night eating authentic
pasta on the balcony with a view of Pompeii at night. It’s a moment I will never forget.