Hello, and welcome to my corner of the woods! I'm Lauren, a '27 from Munger, Michigan. On campus, I enjoy writing sports for The Dartmouth, going on as many DOC trips as I can, and hanging out with my friends. I also love Woccoming, doing the daily NYT mini crossword, and paddling!
I took this class as part of Dartmouth's first year writing requirement. We read a pro cyclist's life narrative, discussed research papers on controversial topics in sports, and wrote our own papers on a contentious sports technology of our choice. I really enjoyed this course's emphasis on discussion, and the small class size!
This was my first class in the classics department, which was super exciting as a classical studies major! We learned about the ancient Olympics and the connections between athletics and other aspects of ancient Greek society. I loved the final project in this class, which involved creating an argument about how the ancient pentathlon was scored!
To conclude my language requirement, I took Latin 3! This class was super exciting because we began to read ancient texts and poetry. We also took a class trip to the Rauner Special Collections library so we could physically handle and read some manuscripts. And as an added bonus, Latin counts as a prerequisite for my classical studies major!
As a part of my language study abroad in Italy, I also took a class on Italian history and culture! We went on field trips to the Colosseum and the Roman Forum, participated in walking tours of Rome, and watched a lot of great cinema in this class! I loved it so much that I decided to minor in Italian.
This class, in addition to being a pre-requisite for both my major and my spring study abroad, was super interesting! I loved learning about archaeology in a chronological sequence, and I feel so much more prepared for my trip to Greece after completing this class.
I didn't think anything could be better living in Rome for the summer while studying abroad—but I stand corrected. Recently, my cohort and I had the chance to travel to Orvinio, a small village about an hour outside of the city. When we arrived, we were matched in pairs with host families for the week and signed language pledges to do our best to only communicate in Italian (even with each other)!
At first, I was incredibly nervous. I felt like I didn't speak enough Italian to get by, and I didn't want to embarrass myself with my limited vocabulary. But my host parents, along with my "sister" for the week (Isadora from our cohort), and my professor encouraged me to try my best! I surprised myself with the amount of Italian I was able to understand and produce after just a couple of months of studying the language.
L: My host parents, Massimo and Marina, were the sweetest! (And our dog Yuma was a great sport).
R: Every sunset in Orvinio was stunning!
I loved the tranquility and friendly atmosphere of Orvinio, a village of just less than 400 people. Everywhere I walked, people knew that I was one of the visiting Dartmouth students, and greeted me with a smile. I even befriended the local stray cats as I walked to the main piazza each day to meet the rest of the cohort for our activities!
Our activities in Orvinio varied widely, from mountain-summiting day hikes to chill DIY workshops. I loved both, and was grateful to have the opportunity to work with my hands and get outside! Some of the crowd-pleasing activities were our pasta-making workshop and a ceramic plate painting workshop. These activities gave everyone a chance to show off their creativity, and I was super impressed with my cohort's abilities.
L: Asfand and Witt working together to make pasta for the first time!
R: Asfand's plate, inspired by pottery from his home country of Pakistan!
Another incredible aspect of our week in Orvinio was the chance to interact directly with Italians for an extended period of time. In Rome, we talk to locals when we can—but we don't often get that opportunity in the hustle and bustle of city life. Life in Orvinio is relaxed and focused on connections and family, so it was the perfect place to try having more complicated conversations fully in Italian. After our week in the village, I was incredibly impressed by the improvements everyone in the cohort made with their comprehension and speaking!
Orvinio was the perfect place to escape to as Rome experienced an early-August heat wave. I'm thankful for my Dartmouth study abroad program, which gives me opportunities to see parts of Italy that most tourists aren't even aware of! I hope that I'm able to return to Orvinio one day, and speak even more confidently so that I can reiterate my gratitude for the hospitality of not only my host family, but the entire village.
For now, I can say this—grazie, Orvinio!
L: Tug of war with the children of Orvinio was one of the highlights of the week.
R: A table set with glasses and a red tablecloth. In the background, there is a landscape of green hills and a bright sky full of clouds.
Every Dartmouth student is required to demonstrate proficiency in a language other than English. Here's my experience navigating the language requirement!
