College Admissions Essay: My Summer in Europe :: College Admissions Essays

My summer in Europe    I spent six weeks in Florence, studying renaissance art and art history. After this, I traveled across Europe for three weeks and experienced the many beautiful countries and cultures that exist on this continent.    Studying renaissance art in Florence, the place of it's birth, was literally a moving experience. To see works that I thought only existed in books and also to live in the same city that housed the masters, was amazing. I took a drawing class as well in Florence. This proved to be a challenging and beneficial class. Drawing street scenes, landscapes, figures, or anything for that matter, is always a challenge. However to do this in a city where there are masterpieces lining churches and museums all around you, made the action a bit more challenging. It was a wonderful and astounding resource to be able to refer to a Michelangelo sculpture or a Botticelli painting. The museums in Florence proved to be my most favorite pastime and the greatest tool for any artist. The Uffizi and Pitti Palace house some of the most famous and also not so famous (but just as wonderful) works.    Living in Florence for six weeks was such a wonderful learning experience. Each day was an adventure. By buying food and asking for directions, I slowly learned enough Italian to get by. Sadly, I found that like many places in Europe, Florence has also become Americanized. English was just as prevalent as Italian. Honestly, it was convenient to know that my waiter would be able to converse with me in English. Yet, at the same time, I felt a little guilty in knowing that through tourism, Italy has lost a small part of its culture and history.    After my stay in Florence, I had the chance to see more of Europe. I went to Salzburg, Prague, Lucerne, the Italian and French Riviera, and Paris. Three weeks of trains, hostels, new places and people proved to be an exciting and tiring time! I saw the Alps, the Mediterranean, the historic neighborhoods of Prague, and then Paris. Each day I woke up with excitement, ready to go and explore the new place we were in. And each night I fell asleep, and dreamt of what tomorrow would bring. It was a beautiful and simple three weeks. My only job was just to experience and see all that I could of a place.