I have never really been the type of person to get homesick. As a sophomore in high school, I traveled to Australia and New Zealand for three weeks with the People to People ambassador program. I traveled with thirty-nine other high schoolers that I had never met before. Over the course of those three weeks, I never once felt homesick. I also traveled to Switzerland and Italy for a week during my senior year of high school. Again, I never got homesick. I am learning that three months is a lot different than three weeks.
The first few weeks of the Joseph S. Bruno program were so busy that I never really had time to slow down. Now that I’ve settled into a schedule, it has been easier to start missing home. When I start to feel homesick, I just think about the amazing opportunity I have as a student studying abroad in Italy. Every day offers the opportunity to experience something new! Ariccia is the perfect place for a study abroad program, because everyone in the town is so welcoming. They don’t get frustrated when I try to speak really bad Italian, but they try to help me as much as they can. Over the past five weeks, local business owners have started to recognize my face when I walk into their stores, and it makes me feel right at home.
I came into this program not knowing any other students. This made me really nervous at first, but I have been able to build great relationships with people here. My advice to future Chigi babies is to not be afraid to go on this trip if you don’t have a friend to go with you. You will have the opportunity to make nineteen new friends, and they will be there to help you if you start feeling overwhelmed!
Salute! (Cheers in Italian)
-DeForest Tuggle

I was able to travel to Greece with Taylor and Racheal who I didn’t even know before the JSB Program! Here we are in front of the Athena Parthenos in Greece.