By Lauren Viola (Boston College)
GlobalPost Student Correspondent in Italy
Piero approached us on a mountaintop that overlooked the most beautiful view there is of Florence. He offered in broken English to take a picture, so we posed and smiled and showed our thanks.
But when the elder gentleman, a Florentine from birth, heard me speak, he fell in love.
With my crippled Italian.
Suddenly, after I struggled through a few answers and asked him for directions to the church we sought, we had a tour guide for the afternoon more informed than any map, more enthusiastic than any paid guide and whose smile made me feel at home.
We were looking for a church, high up on a hill far from the city center and hidden from view even from the hilltop Piazza. At 5:30 p.m., the monks would sing a Latin Mass we wanted to attend. Little did I know that asking Piero where this church was — which I had to repeat several times in Italian to make myself understood — would be the greatest start of my first few hours in Florence.
Piero walked slowly, and used his hands as he spoke. He grabbed my arm sometimes for support, sometimes to emphasize a point. He smiled when I tried to speak Italian and would correct my pronunciation. He taught us about the church, its history, the cemetery on the hill and his city, his home.
The Mass was incredible, as we expected. The view was breathtaking, as we had been told. But we never anticipated being taken back several centuries to the time of the church's construction by a 73-year-old stranger, now friend.
Piero pointed out the exact valley where the green and white granite of the church pillars was quarried. He showed us where the author of Pinocchio was buried in the cemetery behind the cathedral. We walked along a footpath to see trees planted in memory of Red Cross members who died during both World Wars.
He kissed me and told me in his most basic Italian to make sure I understood that he was so grateful for us girls, but especially me.
“Comprendi?” he asked me.
“Si,” I replied. “Si.”
This report came from a GlobalPost student correspondent participating in a program to train the next generation of foreign correspondents.
http://www.globalpost.com/notebook/study-abroad/090923/first-day-florence-fall-love