ArRIVAderci
Trip Start
Unknown
1
33
Trip End
Ongoing
Riva San Vitale, Ticino, Switzerland
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Riva San Vitale is located on the very Southern tip of Switzerland. It’s super close to Italy, maybe a 20 minute drive. And yes they speak Italian there. So even though Milan is the big city everyone goes to for their 'city needs’- the airport, shopping, etc.- I repeat, this is not Italy. It’s a surprisingly little known fact that they speak Italian in Switzerland, don’t feel bad if you didn’t know, it surprises a fair number of Italians too. Switzerland actually offers three or four official languages to its residents- French (20%), Italian (7%), and German (64%). There’s also Romansh, but I refuse to believe it’s a real language (it’s kinda archaic). They just keep it around because obviously these people aren’t good at choosing a single language. It’s definitely crazy that this country has 3 very distinct groups of people, then again, Americans should understand this right, a Texan is pretty different from a New Yorker, huh?
So yes, being in this Italian speaking part of Switzerland south of the Alps (called Ticino) is like being in Italy, except not at all. These people are not Italian, do not call them Italian if you want to make friends. They’re different: a little more stuck up (sorry Swiss people, you’re kinda stuck up), their trains run on time, they’re probably richer, they root for the Swiss in soccer, they probably drink less wine and care more about things like the environment.
So back to little Riva San Vitale itself. This is either a love it or hate it kinda place. It’s only 2,500 people. Heck, its Wikipedia entry is under 300 words! It’s a sleepy town, so cute and quaint, it has beautiful weather, you can count on it being quiet after 10 PM (government mandated). The landscape around it is pretty ideal- Alps on either side with a beautiful lake right next door. The downside lies more in the surrounding amenities. There are two bars, two restaurants, a grocery store that would probably only qualify as a convenience store in the US, and a gelato shop that’s only open 4 months a year. Want anything important after 7 or on a Sunday? Out of luck. So it’s great if you are there to hang out and bask in the scenery. Less fun if you want to A. go out and have fun B. live the lifestyle you’re used to in the US. Spending three months there was great! Any more might have been pushing it a little bit.
The actual house I got to reside in was a 18th century mansion that was renovated for our cause. At one point it was the center of the Riva San Vitale rebellion. Apparently this area made its own country at some point 200 years ago. I’m not gonna lie, I don’t think it would last too long, considering you have to travel to the next town to get a full range of vegetables at the grocery store! Anyway, the place is really old in a pretty way. The downstairs has the lobby, the offices, the fireplace room, and the dining room where we eat meals. The middle floor was reserved for the other Liberal Arts students, and the top floor was all architecture. We had our studio up there and right off of it- my bedroom! I literally lived in studio. I had a quaint little room which I share with my cool roommate Abby, who is from VA Tech. The bathrooms were downstairs and shared. If you were late for class and wanted to shower you had to walk right through studio during the middle of class. Not so fun. When the weather got nice the best part of the house was the lanai (no this is not a chic Italian word, we picked it up from watching Golden Girls DVD) aka the huge lawn on the side of the house which was perfect for sunbathing and drinking coffee (with saucer, also probably mandated by the Swiss government).
There were beautiful mountains you could hike up into in no time at all. You could go sit by the immaculately clean lake and enjoy your gelato. There was a great running trail right outside. The people were friendly enough although real communication was almost impossible due to language barriers.
I’m going to put up some of the pics of and around RSV from throughout the semester. Some are kinda random, but they should explain what was up this semester.
Comments
This is my fav entry. For 6 months I wished I knew what Riva looks like. Love your bedroom. Never complain about the lack of drawer space again.