Making the Connections
Of course, as expected, this trip was physically demanding. The 18-mile hike from Monterosso al Mare to Riomaggiore in Cinque Terre however was a personal highlight because it, aside from allowing me to connect with nature and relive the days where the trail was the only way to go between towns, proved my physical strength. I was also equally in my element during the Appia Antica bicycle ride. Right - Photo credit Emmanuel Vega Arreola
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I feel that what I can take away physically is, aside from the trivial need to be more physically active, to explore activities that I am not used to doing. Granted, I did not have the chance to go snorkeling much less do much with the water, as there was so much to explore, so little time, and a hint of soreness from the hike - but I feel far more comfortable taking on those tasks in the future. This trip taught me to physically step out of my comfort zone. I cannot say for many places that I was near the edge of a cliff with a possible 5-meter drop if I took the wrong step, anyway. Let alone the cliff jump I did in Corniglia - that was just a start.
Physical Takeaways
Personal Takeaways
Hobbies
My main hobby is "railfanning", which involves photographing or videotaping railroad scenes. Trains are a fairly popular photographic subject and I enjoy it especially locally. I did not expect to see much from Italy as far as railfanning itself, even though I knew they had a great rail system. But, in Cinque Terre, I was able to sneak out and grab some images and video. Cinque Terre has to have some of the finest vantage points in the entire world. That being said, in a community where a lot of like minded individuals care too much about the look of the train itself (ie locomotives, what is it carrying), I learned to appreciate the location more for all that it has to offer. In a sense, as unusual as the hobby can get, Cinque Terre "validated" it, and the simple photos I got with my iPhone will lead me to step my game up in the hobby and cater to more aesthetically pleasing shots. Overall, for all my hobbies, I feel more inspired to do them with what I have seen and experienced abroad.
Art Appreciation
My mother is a ceramicist and my late aunt was a painter, so art runs well in the family. I have done all sorts of things, building scale models, some drawing and painting, and photos as mentioned earlier. Anyway, visiting the galleries such as the Uffizi felt like familiar turf, except that the artworks displayed within are far more historically significant. My takeaway from this comes twofold. So I presently display LEGO models at a local railroad museum. I want to consider displaying those models, and venturing into other works with the plastic brick medium, in different museums going forward. Why? Simply museums are a great place to express ideas, as I have mentioned for Firenze. I think the conversation that the works can create in other museums will prove more valuable, and the inspiration to others the same. The more important takeaway though is to interact with the local art scene here. I could not catch up with Wynwood's growth as a center for the arts. I was very happy when Vicky café opened locally, as that was fertilizer for the arts and these kinds of conversations. I see myself hopefully going to more events such as Art Basel, which I sat out from year after year due to final exams.
City Interaction & Adaptation
Admittedly, I felt homesick because Miami is its own unique community. I would not trade away certain customs I enjoy at home. My main fear with Miami though is that it is losing some of its flavor due to the influx of foreign investment, and the incredible developments going on downtown. Areas like Brickell do not feel like they once did, and sometimes as a local, I feel excluded from areas for which I'm supposed to be a part of. Venice and Cinque Terre have done their best to keep from this surge, and for the latter, such doing is perhaps why I like the region so much. Recently, as I was working this project, environmentalists shot down a ridiculous extension of the Dolphin Expressway into the Everglades. Granted not all development is bad, as is the case with Miami WorldCenter, but I feel that I need to be more concerned and proactive towards steering the city in the right direction.
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Personally I feel that I should perhaps get better acquainted with the newest parts of Miami. I need not immerse myself in the new lifestyle, but perhaps can mold strong aspects to myself going forward. Perhaps I should consider a side role in urban planning - because the piazzas gave plenty of value to the cities visited in Italy, and I feel that Miami needs some more sense of community in certain regions. This can overlap with the theme of multiculturalism which has been studied in this course, and Miami is a multicultural city. Perhaps adding more public spaces and activities is inevitable after all.
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Another idea experienced in this course was adaptation. We have to adapt to unforeseen schedule changes, unexpected breakdowns (my camcorder suddenly stopped working and that shifted my project completely), and various circumstances. But we can also adapt things we learn to our lives, and I feel that given what I have experienced abroad, there is plenty to adapt, and the ongoing idea of adapting what we can is not only a takeaway from the course, but from life in general.
