In less than one week, I will no longer live in Italy. I will be back in the U.S., working my day job as well as an internship. That being said, Sorrento, is my home away from home. I might not be fluent in the language or dress like Italians, but when you have been in a different culture for a small but significant amount of time, you start to become a part of it. It's a part of me that I will take back to the United States.
I have been saying it for a while and I will say it again: There's no place like Sorrento. From the lemon and orange trees, to the unique dogs(mutts, strays, and rather intelligent), and the jagged mountains that surround it, Sorrento is a little sliver of paradise. Located an hour south of Naples and neighboring the Amalfi Coast, it is no wonder why tourists come here for holiday. In my situation, I studied in Sorrento for four months. I saw it transition from a lonely outpost in January, to a popular destination spot with more than ten thousand people migrating into the small city for a weekend.
A little bit about my school: You enter through a big gate door and go up a driveway covered by arches with lights wrapped around them. The school, Sant'Anna Institute used to be a religious institution before it became an educational one. There are three floors, big windows that look over the Gulf of Naples, a lounge, and a library. It's quaint, small, and contains all the essentials including an espresso machine that I will miss dearly. The school is a cultural mixing pot, hosting American students, Chinese students, and Italian students who come to learn English among other subjects. As it gets later into the year, there have been faces of people who I have never seen before. It's almost like Sant'Anna is a hangout spot for the tourists who know about it. Whenever I travel outside of Sorrento, I can proudly say that I study there as I watch people reply with surprise, envy, and respect.
Before I came here, I knew Sorrento was in a unique spot, geographically speaking. One quick look on google maps, and you start to think about how cool it must be to live there. Sorrento is a peninsula on a peninsula, which makes it a bit hard to get to. Nestled in the mountains and on the coast, one has to take many twists and turns before they can arrive here. I told friends and family I would be studying there, and they would reply by saying "I knew someone who went to Sorrento for their honeymoon." They told me about how lucky I would be. Needless to say, they were right. When you walk down the main street "Courso Italia," your five senses become stimulated in ways you never thought could happen. The smells of sweet pastries mixed with dog shit is really like nothing else. The taste of dark espresso gives me a warm feeling, and simultaneously makes me a functional human again. The touch of the city walls(alleyways) is chalky, because they are made with volcanic ash. The views are incredible, with Vesuvius never being too far out of sight, watching you like a big sister. There are multiple piers, with crystal clear water perfect for swimming. If you're lucky enough, you can see dolphins swimming off the coast. Lastly, the sounds are spontaneous and random. On any given day, you will hear: Zooming vespas, unannounced fireworks, windstorms that slam your doors and shutters, and church bells that go off for no particular reason. Every now and then, maybe on a sunday night into monday morning, Sorrento will be so quiet that the only thing you can hear is your footsteps on the cobblestones.
I've had experiences here I won't take for granted. I got to swim in April. I got to go out on a boat and net fish only to eat them an hour later. I have been able to pick oranges and lemons off the trees for a midday snack. Lastly, I've learned a lot about myself and the world, because I have been able to examine how Italy and Europe operates. And although we do have our differences, our political-economic struggles are collective(Migrants, unemployment, partisanship).
And here I am, sitting in a park that overlooks Vesuvius. Even after four months, I can’t get sick of this view. There’s one Italian word for this place: Torneró. It means: I will be back.
