I’ve been to Italy and back and forgot to update. I guess I just wasn’t sure where to start.
In all, the trip was a very positive experience and has made me more apt to participate in professional-type conferences, and perhaps continue researching my topic. It’s amazing how quickly things come back to you, like “Dove e la stazione centrale?” Even knowing how to pronounce words was helpful–like the fact that a “c” is actually a “ch” sound (chentrale).
I met and spent time with some super smart people in the advertising world–many of whom are professors. Andrea Scott teaches advertising at Pepperdine (congrats again on tenure). She presented a wonderful allegorical storytelling piece about the ad industry.
Charlie Robertson, founder of planning agency Red Spider, is another person whom I had the pleasure to meet. He and Professor Kim Sheehan gave a really fascinating and entertaining presentation about Nation Branding.
Between the panels, frequent eating breaks, red wine, shopping, walking and Happy Hour (Milan’s happy hour tops anything else– you buy one drink and gain access to a buffet!), I packed a lot into those 4 days in Milan.
Next, I packed my rolling suitcase for the small town of Pavia, where my friend and fellow Honors College-r Chris Bradley has been living, teaching and studying. He showed me around town, took me to happy hour, and then on our way home, we stopped by the town duomo for an Italian English Gospel concert. And gelato.
Just real quick: Chris lives in what very closely resembles Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Check out his dining hall, complete with long banquet tables and a Gothic look.
After that, I headed out to find George Clooney in the more comfortable and less mosquito-y Lake Como area. This area suits me much more than the muggy, land-locked Milan. I didn’t even mind the overcast, and was content with hiking, reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and eating kebabs, pizza and gelato. By the way, I don’t recommend fig-flavored gelato.
The way home was rather uneventful, and I was please to be sitting next to a neurologist on the way home because we could talk about my favorite podcast, Radio Lab, and his friend (!!!!) Oliver Sacks. He also calmed me down during some turbulence by distracting me with questions.
In other news, excited to move in with this guy tomorrow… Happy 3-day weekend, everyone!
