Ciao da Firenze!

Hey IBAers! My name is Tiffany and I’m a sophomore in Stern studying abroad in Florence this semester! It’s a little hard to believe that I’ve been in Florence, among traveling to other Italian and European cities, for almost two months now. I’ve been having a great time traveling around, but today I’ll be focusing on the wonders of the NYU Florence campus.

After spending freshman year in New York City, it was definitely a huge change coming to Florence. Not only do I go to school on a campus now, but I also had to get acclimated to the Italian language, culture, and lifestyle. Although it was a bit difficult at first, I really wouldn’t have it any other way.

Florence is a beautiful, historic city full of Renaissance art, monuments, and architecture. This is in part what makes the NYU Florence campus so special because it has structures that have been around since the Renaissance.

The campus is located just outside of Florence on a 57 acre estate with five villas and extensive gardens and olive groves all around. The most prominent villa on campus would be Villa La Pietra. It is a stunning 15th-century villa that has been owned by numerous notable Florentine families, and it now houses a museum that contains a collection of early Renaissance art and home furnishings. I’m actually taking an art history class in the villa, called Florentine Villas, and it is a little surreal learning about the prominent villas of Florence, in one.

As the villas are an important aspect of NYU Florence, so are the gardens and olive groves. Just last week, I participated in the Annual Olive Harvest. We picked the olives off the trees, and then these olives get turned into olive oil at a local mill. Once the mill is done with the process, I get to take home a bottle of my very own La Pietra Olive Oil! Not only did I learn about the detailed process of making olive oil, but also the importance and history of olive oil production in Tuscany.

The campus is truly a place like no other, but this is all for now. I hope y’all learned a bit more about the NYU Florence campus! Arrivederci!