Christopher Hancock, Verrazzano Class of 2020, completed major in History
Graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree with a major in History (a year early), my Capstone project had me reflecting of my time as an undergraduate student in the Verrazano Honors Program.
One of the best experiences I have had as an undergraduate student was having the opportunity to study abroad in Florence, Italy! During the Winter 2020 Intersession, I studied for a full month in another country on the other side of the world. While in Italy, I attended Lorenzo de’ Medici, The Italian International Institute (LdM). During my time at LdM, I studied Palaces of Florence, which was an Art History course that focused on the numerous palaces all across this beautiful city (and there were a lot of palaces).
Not only was I studying in Italy, but I also had to become accustomed to Italian society and way of life. Some may say that this was an easy adjustment, but let me just tell you that it was one of the hardest and most challenging experiences I have ever went through, and yet I came home upset when the program ended. Travelling to another country is hard within itself, but travelling outside of the United States for the first time and the fact that I was by myself made it even more challenging. My second day in Italy, I was too afraid to call my family and tell them that I was homesick, so who did I call? Cheryl Craddock. Cheryl has helped me numerous times throughout my years in Verrazzano, and it definitely will not end with me graduating. I spoke to Cheryl for about five minutes and after hearing her advice, I stuck with it and continued my adventure in Florence, Italy.
While I was in Italy, every morning I went to this little cafĂ© right next to my apartment where I would get an espresso and croissant. The funny thing about this was that the place was actually called “Verrazzano.” I am a huge believer in signs and I felt that this was a sign for me to remember home and to stay in Italy. One day while I was eating my croissant and drinking my espresso, I learned there is a whole process on how to drink espresso the correct way. First you have to cleanse your palate, which is done by taking a shot of sparkling water. Then you can drink the espresso. The person who worked there, Marco, said that this is the best and correct way to drink espresso because you can get the most authentic taste of the intensity of the espresso bean. While I was sitting there, an idea clicked in my head. I thought that I should write my capstone on Italian History.
When I got back to my apartment, I emailed my mentor, Professor Jacob Collins and asked him if he could mentor me through this process and he came up with the theme, “Italian Cinema and its Relationship with Postwar Italian History, Feminism, and Politics”.
All in all, if you ever have the chance to study abroad, DO IT!! I was so afraid and even wanted to leave the third day in and when the program ended and I had to head home, I didn’t want to leave. I loved my time in Florence, Italy and I wish that I did a full semester abroad in this beautiful city.
