By Katie Perrin

I woke up to and went to bed hearing the sound of the espresso machine in my ear, the best daily "Buongiorno," or – in English – good morning. That sound would mark each of my transformative 271 days in Viterbo, Italy.

Last year I left home for the first time to spend my junior year abroad in Italy for nine months, armed only with a love of exploring the unknown and of Italian culture. I didn't know how to speak a word of Italian when I first arrived. I had to adjust to living with a host family as well as adapt to a new culture in a foreign tongue.

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