Featured Blog Articles – Page 2 – DEV – The Umbra Institute – Study Abroad in Italy

Randal Sartor, a rising senior at Northeastern University in Boston, has returned after his Spring 2013 semester at Umbra to complete a four-month Co-Op (Cooperative Education Opportunity) with La Nazione, a national Italian online and print newspaper. As part of the Co-Op program, Randal studied at the University for Foreigners this summer, brushing up on his Italian language skills in preparation for the Italian workplace. Now, Monday through Friday, he can be found at La Nazione’s local office in the heart of Perugia’s city center.

Randal already has a variety of exciting projects underway. He has begun translating articles from Italian into English, building their online article collection, to reach more international readers. Other projects include conducting interviews with locals and visitors about the happenings in and around Perugia and promoting the newspaper to communities of Umbrians abroad, including in the United States.

When asked why he chose a Co-Op at La Nazione and what he hopes to gain from the experience, Randal responded “This is my first work experience in a professional setting with deadlines and a real sense of responsibility to the city and the nation. I’m learning more and more about the newspaper’s relationship with the people and how best to communicate happenings to the public since we’re usually the first to hear about them.”

Students choose the Co-Op opportunity for a variety of reasons, some to explore career options, others to try out new skills. As a philosophy major, journalism and communications were fields he never studied but was always curious about. Less than a month in, Randal has already captured the essence of a true journalist in the making, “It’s about the creative process. This Co-Op has a lot of interaction with the people of Italy. I want to speak with as many [people] and listen to as many stories and perspectives as I can.”

For more information about Co-Op opportunities, check out the Umbra page: https://www.umbra.org/community-engagement-abroad/co-ops/

The Umbra Institute has seen many firsts this semester in terms of volunteer opportunities; a new partnership with Go Global: American School of English is no exception. This week three students started volunteering as classroom helpers, and will continue until the end of fall semester.

Go Global is an English language school located near Perugia. It was started last year by Marc Di Martino, a Boston native and long-time resident of Italy. Go Global offers a cultural approach to linguistic education, for anyone from kids to adults. The students will be volunteering as teaching assistants and classroom helpers in English classes for adults and children. Class sizes are small, ranging from 3-7 people. The Umbra Institute is excited at this new opportunity that gives the students a chance to interact with the local community, meet new Italians, and share the experience of learning a language.

Student Max Williamson helps Go Global student Sara during class

Last week, students enrolled in Umbra’s Food Studies Program stepped into the shoes of a pizzaiolo as they tried their hand at pizza making at local pizzeria, Pizza e Musica.

To provide a backdrop to their experience, Prof. Elisa Ascione treated students to a brief history of pizza and its cultural significance. Many were surprised to learn that while pizza is known as an Italian delicacy, it is not actually Italian in origins. What started as a form of flatbread to provide sustenance to our Neolithic ancestors has since evolved to the leavened delight we enjoy today. Pizza’s rise to fame within Italy came in 1889 when Raffaele Esposito, a pizzaiolo in Naples, was invited to make pizzas for the Italian King Umberto I and Queen Margherita. According to legend, the queen so loved his creation of tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and basil – coincidentally the colors of the Italian flag – that he named the pizza Margherita in her honor. Whether fact or fiction used to unify the newly unified nation-state, pizza has become an integral part of Italy’s national identity.

Joe shows off his finished pizza during the Food Studies Program’s Pizza Workshop.

Watching the skilled hands of Pizza e Musica’s pizzaiolo, Gerry, students were shown how to spread the dough, spiral the perfect amount of sauce, and top it off with fresh toppings and a drizzle of olive oil. Using the pala, or pizza shovel, Gerry seamlessly lifted the pizza from the marble countertop and placed it in the waiting wood-fired oven.

While Gerry’s skills are quite refined, Umbra’s students gave him a run for his money, each donning an apron and taking a turn at his craft. Final results varied from the classic margherita to prosciutto, mushrooms and fresh arugula, but all were delicious and served as a wonderful, well-earned meal!

Umbra’s Food Studies Program’s goal is to encourage students to think about food and ask basic questions about what we eat; where it comes from; is it important if it is local or organic; and the significance of labels, fundamental questions to life in a globalized world.

In the heart of Città di Castello, a small city located in northern Umbria, a variety of vendors gathered for Altrocioccolato to celebrate a culinary favorite: chocolate!

Amidst this diverse crowd of educators, patrons, and organizations, a group of four Umbra students got their hands deliciously dirty by volunteering at the festival.

Altrocioccolato is an annual festival that brings together Italian-based and international fair trade organizations, specializing in the education, promotion, and sale of fair trade chocolate. This year the festival ran from October 18^th-October 20^th. However, Altrocioccolato goes beyond just chocolate; vendors of various fair-trade products set up booths and informational sessions, entertainers staged live music and performances, and local vendors sold hand-crafted goods.

The students spent Friday assisting staff of the fair-trade store Altromercato at their stall. They kept stock, helped customers, handed out samples, and talked to the other vendors about their fair trade products and efforts. The students volunteered as part of the

Students Mark Koussa, Jr., Sathvika Reddy, Ariel Stern, and Daniel Smith, with coordinator Prof. Giordana Pulcini and Altromercato coordinator Milena — Students Mark Koussa, Jr.(left), Sathvika Reddy (second from left), Ariel Stern (second from right), and Daniel Smith (right), with Prof. Giordana Pulcini and Milena, the Monimbò store manager, at Altrocioccolato

INIT 350: Fair Trade Academic Internship & Seminar- Fair Trade, headed by Professor Giordana Pulcini. They prepared for volunteering by assisting with store operations and customer service in the fair trade store Monimbò. Afterward, they helped the festival coordinator prepare Altrocioccolato marketing materials in English in order to expand the outreach of the festival.

The internship with Monimbò and Altrocioccolato is designed to give students hands on experience in the world of fair trade. Prof. Pulcini explained that “It’s not really possible to understand what fair trade is without having a first-hand experience and without meeting people who are involved in fair trade projects and activities.” After a long, rewarding day, the students returned to Perugia with a better understanding of fair trade and the faces behind it, leaving a sweet taste in their mouths.

Earlier this month, students from Umbra’s HSIT350: History and Culture of Food in Italy found themselves picking their way carefully over uneven, muddy ground in the search of an Italian delicacy, il tartufo, the truffle!

This truffle hunting experience was led by Matteo Bartolini and his dog, Sole, at Agriturismo Ca’ Solare in nearby Cittὰ di Castello. Bartolini, a truffle hunter, farmer and president of the European Council of Young Farmers, provides students at his award– winning truffle school, with a basic understanding of how, when and why truffles grow.

“We think of truffles as an elite food item,” said Bartolini, “but it was the hungry farmer who first tried the food on his pasta centuries ago.”

Bartolini explained that truffles are actually an underground mushroom composed of two parts: the fruiting body and the invisible root system. There are multiple varieties, each emitting its own unique odor upon maturation. This odor attracts animals to the food source, ensuring release of their spores upon consumption. While traditionally small pigs were used for hunting truffles, dogs are now used as they are less destructive to the ground and are less likely to eat the mushroom. On his twelve acres of land, truffle hunters can find five varieties, Trifula (white), Nero Dolce (the prized black truffle), black summer, March white and black winter truffles, allowing for hunting almost every month of the year.

Following this lesson, students went truffle hunting alongside Bartolini and his dog, Sole. With man and dog leading the way, students were treated to more insights of the truffle business as they waited patiently for Sole to catch the scent of ripe truffles buried underground. Their patience was rewarded multiple times, as he dashed ahead of the group, sniffing fanatically to identify its exact location. Matteo used a medieval looking instrument then to complete Sole’s digging, unearthing the textured, distinct smelling mushrooms.

Umbra students and Prof. Ascione pose with Matteo Bartolini and Sole.

This field trip reinforces themes from class and encourages students to consider foods’ origin, in conjunction with sustainable and traditional food practices.

“In class we have learned a lot about the pride Italians have in their food,” commented University of Wisconsin-Madison student Joe Orner. “Since Italy is a large producer of truffles, due to climate and environment, it is not hard to see why, especially after truffle hunting and getting to experience it first-hand.”

At the end of this long day of learning and hunting, students sat down to enjoy the fruits of their labor with a delicious multi-course meal, starring none other than the truffle.

This course fulfills the Umbra Food Studies Program’s goal of encouraging students to think about food and ask basic questions about what we eat; where it comes from; is it important if it is local or organic; and the significance of labels, fundamental questions to life in a globalized world.

Students in the Food Studies course, STFS 330 Sustainability and Food Production in Italy, are launching a new project this semester at the Umbra Institute. This project provides students with the opportunity to get out into the Perugian community and combine their class studies with real-world application. The students will be organizing and implementing a plan to introduce doggy bags at three well-known restaurants in Perugia.

The use of doggy bags or take-home boxes is not a common occurrence in Italy, as it is in countries like the United States. However, Italians tend to be very conscious of environmental and sustainability issues. This project is therefore aimed at introducing the idea of take-home boxes and doggie bags into Perugian culture, as taking home leftovers ultimately reduces the amount of food waste and promotes a more sustainable lifestyle.

The three Perugian restaurants that are the basis for the project, Al Mangiar Bene, Osteria a Priori, and Pachamama were chosen due to their current sustainability practices. The class has met several times with the restaurant owners, collaborating with them on how to execute the project. The project is sponsored by the city government and supported by the waste management company GESENU, which will produce the packaging.

The class was divided into three groups, each with a different task for the project as a whole: survey/data collection, logo/slogan creation, and marketing materials. On October 4th, students Mark Koussa Jr. from Merrimack College and Kirti Nahar from Babson College kicked off the first step of the project by distributing surveys for customers of Al Mangiar Bene. These surveys asked the patrons about their openness to using take-home bags and boxes. Osteria a Priori and Pachamama were visited in the following days. Of the 20 survey results so far, 75% of survey-takers are interested in using a take-home container.

The logo/slogan group is already busy designing their part of the project, and will be collaborating with an Italian graphic designer this week. Afterward, the marketing group will set up informational cards on the restaurant tables and distribute take-home boxes and bags to the restaurants.

We will post more updates on the progress of this incredible project as it develops! Until then, check out the websites of the restaurants our students are working with.

Mark Koussa Jr., and Kirti Nahar, adding their survey to the Al Mangiar Bene menu.

Earlier this semester, students enrolled in STFS 330 Sustainability and Food Production in Italy had the opportunity to meet world famous butcher, Dario Cecchini, at his butcher shop in Panzano in Chianti. This small Tuscan town is two hours from Perugia and provides breathtaking views of the surrounding, rolling countryside.

Crowding into Dario’s butcher shop, students and Sunday shoppers alike were greeted by blaring AC/DC music and trays of spiced salami and bread drizzled with olive oil and Dario’s specialty sea salt concoction. Taking a break from his work, Dario spoke to the students about his sustainability philosophy and his ‘whole cow approach.’

“This butcher shop has been in my family for 250 years. Growing up, we ate what was left over from the butcher shop, using peasant recipes to turn the “left-over” cuts into delicious recipes. Nothing was wasted and this is the philosophy that I follow today, that’s sustainability,” explained Cecchini.

His animals live long lives, graze in open land in Spain, and are treated humanely. While he could raise them in Italy, it is actually more sustainable and healthier for the animal to be raised overseas in open fields, as opposed to the confines of a crowded, fenced-in pen, eating manufactured grain. His cows are slaughtered in Spain, by butchers he personally trained, and then transported to Panzano in Chianti for butchering. Honoring the slaughtered animal, every part – from muzzle to tail – is then used as an ingredient in one of his recipes.

This field trip provides an opportunity to reinforce themes previously discussed in the classroom and encourages students to consider foods’ origin, in conjunction with sustainable and traditional food practices.

Lecture — Students listen to an onsite lecture by Prof. Elisa Ascione during the daytrip to Panzano in Chianti.

Following the shop visit and a hike through Chianti vineyards, students were able to taste Dario’s ‘whole cow approach’ in Ristorante Solociccia (“Only Meat”), one of his renowned local restaurants. Collaborating with the restaurant’s chef, menu items are crafted from what the butcher shop has at the moment, allowing for fresh, original dishes. The full menu included a muzzle broth with fresh vegetables for dipping, spicy ragù on toast, roast beef with rosemary potatoes, a boiled meat and vegetable salad, and a raw meatball, flash seared on the outside and served warm. Platter after platter was passed around the table as students wrapped up an educational visit with an excellent meal and good conversation.

On October 7^th, a group of eight students from the Umbra Institute participated in a friendly game of hoops against the Fondazione Onaosi Perugia basketball team. Fondazione Onaosi is a dormitory in Perugia for Italian students. Although the students from Umbra had never before played together, they brought strong spirit, sportsmanship, and energy to the game. A large group of more than 15 Umbra students and four accompanying Italian tutors also attended the match to support and cheer on their peers. Even though Team Umbra did not win, it was evident that the students enjoyed the challenge and the new experience of playing against an all-Italian team.

The team was composed of:

Michael Ioffredo

Anni Villeme

Bryce Loebel

Joe Orner

Kevin Schaddock

Matthew Czuj

Tyler Houston
Emma Cordell

The simple coffee bean. It’s amazing how it can produce so many delicious drinks! But there’s more power in coffee beans than being the basis for tasty beverages. The majority of Umbra’s students are familiar with coffee culture in the United States, but at this year’s Coffee Workshop, 15 eager participants received an insider’s look (and taste) into the deliciously fascinating culture of coffee in Italy.

Professor Elisa Ascione, coordinator of the Food Studies program, first spoke to the students about the robust impact coffee has had on Italian culture and history. Although coffee is not originally from Italy, it was scooped up en masse when Arab merchants first brought it through the ports of Venice. Since its arrival, a vigorous cultural following has grown around the preparation, consumption, and enjoyment of coffee. Today, most Italians visit cafes for their caffeine fix multiple times each day. They tend to frequent the same cafes, building relationships with the owners and other customers while sipping their favorite drink. The tradition of going out for coffee has, in turn, become a social event.

While students enjoyed six different concoctions of espresso, milk, and water, Prof. Ascione highlighted the differences in what they were drinking. Cappuccino, for example, is enjoyed only for breakfast. An espresso (a single shot of strongly-brewed coffee) can be made lungo, with more water, or ristretto, with less water. Different quantities of milk and foam added to the coffee create different results, such as the caffè latte or latte macchiato. The different names can be confusing at first, but the group quickly mastered the terminology and discovered their own personal tastes for these delightful beverages.

The Umbra Institute’s Urban Spaces: Rebuilding Community in Perugia class has officially gone where no students have gone before!

On Monday evening, the attic of the famous Chiesa di San Domenico, which is normally closed to the public, opened its doors to welcome Urban Spaces students and Professors Ray Lorenzo, Giampiero Bevagna (Archaeology) and Philippa Stannard (Photography). The church’s original building was constructed in 1304, and was consecrated in 1459. The subsequent centuries of maintenance, expansion, and elaboration eventually produced the current Gothic exterior unmistakable to any resident of Perugia’s historic center.

The Chiesa’s glorious sunlit attic provided the perfect backdrop for discussing the challenge currently facing a monument that has already survived so much: the constant threat of being forgotten. As daily life no longer revolves around the activities of the church or even those of the “old neighborhood,” the place Perugia’s many landmarks hold in the hearts of the people needs to be re-evaluated and reframed in the context of modern city living.

As Professor Bevagna explained, buildings such as the Chiesa provide the local community with a sense of identity and, all too often, as the buildings are forgotten so are the communal bonds that once linked family to family, generation to generation.

The task set to Urban Spaces, then, is to collaborate with local community leaders and activists to reinvigorate a neighborhood’s sense of responsibility to its monuments, and a sense of joy in Perugia’s incredibly rich history. To that end, two Umbra photography students set their lenses to documenting the group’s tour through the Chiesa for the local neighborhood association. For foreign students dedicating their time to preserving local history, there is no better place in the entire commune to be inspired than in San Domenico’s attic.

Click here to learn more about Urban Spaces: Rebuilding Community in Perugia.