Under the Tuscan Sun: Is the sun really any different here?
In the literary version of Under the Tuscan Sun, author Frances Mayes writes, “Splendid to arrive alone in a foreign country and feel the assault of difference. Here they are all along, busy with living; they don’t talk or look like me. The rhythm of their day is entirely different; I am foreign.” Mayes captures the “splendid” feelings that all dreamers hope to experience when visiting Tuscany—notably the “assault of difference” and “the rhythm of their day.” Even though I have fallen in love with the Toscana region of Italy as Mayes did, my experience during our weekend trip revealed some different truths about Tuscany.
Prior to this trip, I visited Firenze twice with housemates to see the city and my best friend from Wake. Through those visits, I developed a sense of place in Firenze that is both spiritual and narrative, in the way that Jennifer E. Cross describes “sense of place.” My personal and emotional gain from this trip was a deepened sense of place in Tuscany because of feelings of belonging and the creation of my own narrative in the region alongside important people in my current state of living.
A developed sense of place in Tuscany helped my critical examination of citizenship on this trip because the towns were spaces with meaning, and meaning gave me more concern for the places we visited. Overall, each town was a good example of participatory citizenship. They were very small, giving me the impression that all of the residents know each other, thus allowing them to hold each other accountable as citizens. As a college student, I particularly related to the town of Siena. We learned during the information session that the students at the University of Siena comprise at least 25% of the city’s population. Additionally, the students live within the city, making the entire city their campus and learning place. One aspect of the Wake Forest house program that I enjoy the most is the opportunity to live and learn in the same place (no longer just a space). It allows us to be better citizens of the house and in the classroom by providing opportunities to apply what we learn. I imagine it is a similar experience for the university students. On a similar note, living within their community allows the city to become a place instead of a space; whereas, for many Wake students, Winston-Salem is only a space. Good practices of citizenship include involvement in the community.
A characteristic that tied the five towns together seemed to be their strong connection to the land i.e. wine country! The towns rely on the land for the local economy and tourism, but they don’t seem to take advantage of the land in a harmful way. Busing through the countryside, I received the impression that locals work with the land, not against it—a practice of good citizenship.
In my limited interactions with the citizens of Tuscany, I can agree with Mayes that “the rhythm of their day is entirely different.” I found it to be much slower and more healthily paced. Especially in the smallest of the towns, the citizens were older with biographical relationships to the places. Unlike Mayes, I did not “feel the assault of difference.” Assault carries a negative connotation; however, Mayes did not have the advantage of living in Italy for a few months nor did she have irreplaceable guides through the countryside.
Although not surprised by the cultural differences, there was some unexpectedness on this trip. Even with an itinerary, I didn’t realize how many towns we were visiting in such a short amount of time. I also didn’t expect to spend so little time in many of the towns, which leads me to my conclusion about the trip. Overall, I would argue that the trip was valuable for us as tourists. We were able to visit towns that I would not have otherwise visited due to their more inaccessible nature and my inadequate Italian. As students of citizenship, the trip could have been more valuable had “talking to strangers” been stressed more or if we were given specific things to learn from the citizens. When dropped off in a town for an hour, it felt like we had just enough time to wander, get a sense for the geographical layout of the city, and then grab a bite to eat to tide ourselves over until the next town visit. More preparation could have added value to the trip, but I also could have been more motivated to talk to strangers beyond ordering food. On a less academic note, I would not have traded the weekend for any other experience.
In the literary version of Under the Tuscan Sun, author Frances Mayes writes, “Splendid to arrive alone in a foreign country and feel the assault of difference. Here they are all along, busy with living; they don’t talk or look like me. The rhythm of their day is entirely different; I am foreign.” Mayes captures the “splendid” feelings that all dreamers hope to experience when visiting Tuscany—notably the “assault of difference” and “the rhythm of their day.” Even though I have fallen in love with the Toscana region of Italy as Mayes did, my experience during our weekend trip revealed some different truths about Tuscany.
Prior to this trip, I visited Firenze twice with housemates to see the city and my best friend from Wake. Through those visits, I developed a sense of place in Firenze that is both spiritual and narrative, in the way that Jennifer E. Cross describes “sense of place.” My personal and emotional gain from this trip was a deepened sense of place in Tuscany because of feelings of belonging and the creation of my own narrative in the region alongside important people in my current state of living.
A developed sense of place in Tuscany helped my critical examination of citizenship on this trip because the towns were spaces with meaning, and meaning gave me more concern for the places we visited. Overall, each town was a good example of participatory citizenship. They were very small, giving me the impression that all of the residents know each other, thus allowing them to hold each other accountable as citizens. As a college student, I particularly related to the town of Siena. We learned during the information session that the students at the University of Siena comprise at least 25% of the city’s population. Additionally, the students live within the city, making the entire city their campus and learning place. One aspect of the Wake Forest house program that I enjoy the most is the opportunity to live and learn in the same place (no longer just a space). It allows us to be better citizens of the house and in the classroom by providing opportunities to apply what we learn. I imagine it is a similar experience for the university students. On a similar note, living within their community allows the city to become a place instead of a space; whereas, for many Wake students, Winston-Salem is only a space. Good practices of citizenship include involvement in the community.
A characteristic that tied the five towns together seemed to be their strong connection to the land i.e. wine country! The towns rely on the land for the local economy and tourism, but they don’t seem to take advantage of the land in a harmful way. Busing through the countryside, I received the impression that locals work with the land, not against it—a practice of good citizenship.
In my limited interactions with the citizens of Tuscany, I can agree with Mayes that “the rhythm of their day is entirely different.” I found it to be much slower and more healthily paced. Especially in the smallest of the towns, the citizens were older with biographical relationships to the places. Unlike Mayes, I did not “feel the assault of difference.” Assault carries a negative connotation; however, Mayes did not have the advantage of living in Italy for a few months nor did she have irreplaceable guides through the countryside.
Although not surprised by the cultural differences, there was some unexpectedness on this trip. Even with an itinerary, I didn’t realize how many towns we were visiting in such a short amount of time. I also didn’t expect to spend so little time in many of the towns, which leads me to my conclusion about the trip. Overall, I would argue that the trip was valuable for us as tourists. We were able to visit towns that I would not have otherwise visited due to their more inaccessible nature and my inadequate Italian. As students of citizenship, the trip could have been more valuable had “talking to strangers” been stressed more or if we were given specific things to learn from the citizens. When dropped off in a town for an hour, it felt like we had just enough time to wander, get a sense for the geographical layout of the city, and then grab a bite to eat to tide ourselves over until the next town visit. More preparation could have added value to the trip, but I also could have been more motivated to talk to strangers beyond ordering food. On a less academic note, I would not have traded the weekend for any other experience.