Deepening Connections and Experiencing Awe with my Compagni di Classe

I've been studying Italian for about three months now.  Here's a glimpse into why I love my classmates at ARCA Bologna so much:

A little over a week ago, our Italian conversation instructor invited us each to prepare a presentation about something important to us that we know something about.  What followed was one of the best weeks of connection, appreciation, and awe at school I have ever experienced.

Erica (the blonde in the middle of this picture) invited Jennifer (the student right next to me) to share about Buddhism as she practices it with her mother's Thai side of the family.  Jennifer told us all about the history, goals, and practices of Buddism and also about the Hindu influences in the Thai culture.  We learned that you can choose a Hindu god to pray to and that this will shape your daily life, including what you eat.

Next up was Blake (the last in the line in the class photo).  He's an importer and works with many natural wine makers in Italy.  He walked us through the history of wine from ancient times to current natural wine making processes, including the modern use of sponataeous fermentation and terra cotta amphorae.  Blake shared favorite grapes to try in regions all around Italy- delightful homework!

When it was my turn, I talked about the Danish Folk School movement; from it's start in Denmark in the 1830's to its reach in the US later that century, including intersections with my great-great-grandparents lives.  I shared a bit about the Highlander Folk School in Tennessee and its service as a learning and incubation space for the American Civil Rights movement, also about Danebod family camp and how we live the folk school traditions today.  I think this might need its own blog entry.

Kaue is shown here serving us some gelato from one of his favorite gelaterie in Bologna. He told us all about the history of gelato, starting back in Egypt.  Kaue came to Bologna to attend Carpigiani Gelato University.  We learned about finding the proper balance between water and sugar content to make perfect gelato, adding alcohol to gelato recipes without getting gelato soup, and that 'gastronomic' flavors aren't new, they've been around since the beginning.

The highlight of the week was Mano.  She's in Bologna studying Opera Lirica, and for her presentation she walked us through the history of Opera, pausing to illustrate her points with examples from operatic works from Monteverdi, to Mozart, to Puccini.  She may be tiny, but her beautiful voice draws a crowd.  Another class stopped what they were doing to come listen and applaud.  Click below to hear Mano sing an excerpt from Così fan Tutte.

I love my classmamtes!