Bowdy’s study abroad trip

Monday was our last real “chill day” in Urbino. Most of us who didn’t travel that final weekend just hung out around town and took it easy. That night, Professor Rahn took the group that stayed behind out to dinner. I had one of the best pizzas of my entire life.

Tuesday was checkout day, so we spent the morning finishing up cleaning our dorm rooms and our classroom one last time. Throughout the day, everyone was packing, doing last-minute laundry, and trying to figure out how to fit three months worth of stuff back into a suitcase. Tuesday night we had our final dinner with the entire GEV staff-the people who run the study abroad program. They did a laurel wreath presentation, which was super cool because Italians traditionally wear laurel wreaths when they graduate. It made the whole night feel special and kind of like our own little ceremony.

After dinner, we took pictures with everyone, and then we were free for the night. Since it was our last night in Urbino, we decided we weren’t sleeping at all. We stayed up the whole night hanging out with our three buddies from UTSA and soaking in every last minute. Urbino at night, knowing we were leaving in a few hours, hit way harder than expected. I think we were all extremely happy and extremely sad at the same time.

We left at 4:00 AM Wednesday morning to catch the bus to Rome. Our flight left at 12:40, and after an eleven-hour flight we finally landed in Atlanta around 6 PM Wednesday night. It felt so good to be back home, but also super bittersweet leaving Europe behind. Me and my parents had Chick-fil-A after the airport and it was amazing-probably the most American way possible to end a study abroad trip. As I’m sitting here writing this blog, I am reflecting on how thankful I am to be able to study abroad, and it will always hold some of my most valuable memories.

This week was our last full week living in Urbino, so it definitely had a different feel to it. Monday we had our thesis teacher drawing day, which is when we randomly pick which professor will grade our thesis. After that little bit of chaos, the rest of the early week was super laid-back. Tuesday and Wednesday we didn’t do much-just hung out around Urbino and enjoyed our last normal weekdays in the city. On Wednesday, me, James, and Justin decided to go on a little hike down one of the small country roads near campus to get a different view of Urbino. It wasn’t anything crazy, but it ended up being really pretty and a nice break from sitting around or staring at our laptops.

Thursday – Day Trip to Perugia

Thursday was our big excursion day. We left early for Perugia and spent the morning touring the city. We started at the Giardini Carducci, which had a great overlook of the city and the valley below. After that, we visited the Etruscan Well-one of the coolest parts of the whole day. You get to go down underneath it, and it’s wild how massive and old the structure is up close.

We had lunch in Perugia and got a little time to walk around before heading to the chocolate factory tour in the afternoon. We weren’t allowed to take pictures inside, but it was still really fun to see how everything is made. The whole factory smelled like straight chocolate. I thought it smelled good but some people didn’t like it. We also hit the gift shop before, where the candy was actually way cheaper than in town.

Friday – Benelli Factory

On Friday we stayed local and walked to the Benelli manufacturing plant, which is actually close enough that we didn’t need a bus. We got a rundown of the company’s history, checked out a big display of their guns, and then walked through the plant to see how everything is manufactured and assembled. It was pretty cool seeing all the machinery and how precise everything has to be for the guns to function perfectly. This was definitely one of the coolest tours I had been on.

Weekend – Last Weekend in Urbino

For the rest of the weekend, we mostly hung out around Urbino and soaked up our last weekend actually living here. We spent time with the friends we’ve made, walked around the city, went out a bit, and just tried to enjoy everything before having to pack up and leave this place we’ve called home for the past three months. Nothing crazy happened, but it felt like one of those weekends you don’t forget because you know it’s the last one.

Monday–Wednesday:

This week started off as another round of thesis days. I spent most of the time reviewing and organizing everything for my final submission. By Tuesday, I officially turned it in, which was a huge relief. The rest of the time was just double-checking and wrapping up any small details before the trip later in the week. My thesis ended up being almost 300 pages.

Thursday – Reggia di Caserta & Sorrento:

We had an early 5:00 a.m. departure from Urbino and arrived at the Reggia di Caserta later that morning. The Reggia di Caserta is one of the largest royal palaces in the world, built in the 18th century for the Bourbon kings of Naples. The palace has over 1,200 rooms and massive gardens that stretch for miles, complete with fountains and sculptures. I learned that some scenes from Star Wars were actually filmed there, which made it even cooler to see in person. After the tour, we enjoyed some lunch and continued on to Sorrento. The views there were unreal-the cliffs overlooking the water and the overall scenery were amazing. We had free time that evening to explore and grab dinner in town.

Friday – Pompeii:

We started the day with a trip to Pompeii. It was super cool to see the preserved ruins and get a glimpse into what daily life was like back then. The scale of the city and how well it’s still intact after all this time was impressive. While walking through the ruins of Pompeii, we noticed several carvings and sculptures shaped like penises engraved into walls and streets. Our guide explained that these weren’t random- in ancient Roman times, these symbols were actually meant to bring good luck, fertility, and protection. They were also used as directional markers pointing the way to brothels, which were common in Pompeii before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. It was definitely one of the more unexpected (and funny) things we learned on the trip. Afterward, we headed back to Sorrento and had more free time to walk around and enjoy the city.

Saturday – Naples:

Our last day was spent in Naples, where we did a guided tour through parts of the city, including Spaccanapoli and the San Gregorio Armeno area. For lunch, of course we had pizza. Naples is where pizza Margherita was invented, so it doesn’t get much better than that. After lunch, we explored the city before we began the long ride back to Urbino.

Monday–Wednesday: Thesis Work

The first half of the week was focused on thesis as usual. Thesis is finally almost wrapped up.

Thursday: Day Trip to Assisi

On Thursday, our class took a day trip to Assisi, a historic town known for its religious and cultural history. The city sits on the slopes of Monte Subasio and overlooks the Umbria Valley. We visited key sites like the Basilica of San Francesco d’Assisi and the Basilica di Santa Chiara. Our guide explained how Saint Francis and Saint Clare shaped Assisi’s identity through their devotion and simple way of life.

Friday: Thesis + Halloween in Urbino

Friday morning we had another thesis work session to stay on track after the day trip. That evening, we celebrated Halloween in Urbino. Everyone dressed up and went out around town. We wore our Moroccan outfits and met some random guy dressed the same as us. It was nice to have a night to relax and have fun after a long week wrapping thesis up.

Saturday–Sunday: Weekend in Urbino

We stayed local for the weekend, just hanging out around Urbino. I caught up on some sleep, and watched football on Saturday. It was nice to take a break from traveling and get ready for the final week of thesis.

Monday–Wednesday: Thesis Work

The first half of the week was the same as always, just thesis days in Urbino. I made a lot of progress this week. I finished my schedule, which is the last big milestone of thesis. I’m finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Thesis is due November 10th, and we aren’t traveling this coming up weekend so I’m hoping to get as much done as possible this week, possibly even finish.

Thursday: Travel to Florence

Thursday morning started early as we loaded the buses and headed to Florence for the weekend. On the way, we stopped at the Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista (a church). Once we arrived in Florence, we checked into our hostel and had some time to explore and grab lunch before meeting for our guided walking tour of the city. The guide walked us through some of Florence’s most famous spots and gave us insight into how the city became the heart of the Renaissance. It was cool to see Florence, but it was pouring rain the whole time which made it not near as enjoyable. We were all soaking wet by the end of the tour. The evening was free so we grabbed dinner and went back to the hostel. We ate at a steakhouse and it was amazing. It was nice to eat a good steak.

Friday: Jobsite Visit and Piazzale Michelangelo

Friday morning, we visited the Trevi Jobsite Office to learn about the high-speed rail project happening in Florence. It was cool to see such a massive infrastructure project up close and hear from the site manager about the challenges of working in such a historic and busy city. We learned about AGF and how they implement it into the project. Artificial ground freezing is a method used to stabilize soil and control groundwater during tunnel excavation. It works by circulating a super-cold brine or liquid nitrogen through pipes in the ground, freezing the surrounding soil into a solid, ice-like wall. This frozen barrier prevents water from seeping in and helps keep the tunnel face stable, ensuring safe excavation.

The rest of the afternoon was free to explore, then we all met up again to walk to Piazzale Michelangelo, where we caught sunset views of Florence. After that, we had dinner with our professors at a pizzeria.

Saturday: Duomo and Accademia Gallery

Saturday was another packed day. We started the morning by touring the Florence Duomo Complex, including Brunelleschi’s Dome, the Baptistery of St. John, and Giotto’s Bell Tower. We climbed up to the dome first thing in the morning. Later, we toured the Accademia Gallery, where we got to see Michelangelo’s statue of David. Afterward, we had free time to do whatever we wanted.

Sunday: Siena

Today we left Florence and traveled to Siena, one of Tuscany’s most well-preserved medieval cities. We started with a guided walking tour, where we learned about Siena’s history. The highlight was learning about the Palio di Siena, the city’s famous horse race held twice a year in the city square. Our guide explained how each of the city’s neighborhoods, or contrade, competes for the win, and how it’s not just a race- it’s a huge cultural tradition that defines Siena’s identity. We also toured the Siena Duomo and its library. We are now on the bus on the way back to Urbino.

Thursday we took a trip to Rimini and started the day with a guided tour of the city. The guide walked us through the main parts of town and gave us a quick history lesson- Rimini actually dates back to Roman times when it was called Ariminum. We stopped by the river that runs through the city, called the Marecchia River. She mentioned it’s part fresh water coming down from the mountains and part salt water from the Adriatic Sea, since it flows right into the coast- basically a mix of the two where they meet. After that we visited the Basilica Cattedrale (Tempio Malatestiano).

After the tour we had some free time. We found some electric scooters and rode around the beach area. We hung out by the water for a bit and ended the afternoon playing putt putt while waiting on our train to Florence to meet Jack’s parents.

Once we arrived in Tuscany we ate at Five Guys in the train station while we waited on Jacks parents to pick us up.

Friday we slept in a little bit, then did a wine tasting and explored some of the little villages around the area for the day. Tuscany was absolutely beautiful. We wore our “flat top” hats for the day and of course got stared at multiple times. It was funny.

Saturday we did just about the same thing. Another wine tasting and then just explored. We also went to a church. The little towns in the area were all connected by really narrow roads and lots of dirt roads (makes sense because it’s all countryside). It was interesting because we were in a big van that took up most of the road.

Saturday night we had dinner then went back to the air bnb and played spades (a card game) with Jacks parents. We stayed up until the Auburn game and Alabama game came on. They came on at 1:45. I stayed up until halftime of the Auburn game so I didn’t go to bed until 3:30.

Today is Sunday and we are just traveling back to Urbino as usual. Got on a train from Florence to Bologna, now on another train to Pesaro. We will get on a bus from Pesaro to Urbino. We are actually going back to Florence next weekend as part of the “school” scheduled trip. This week will consist of thesis and then right back to where we just were! 

Monday:

Rough start to the week. I was running on around 3 hours of sleep from traveling back from Morocco on Sunday, so getting up Monday morning was not fun. Spent basically the entire day on thesis work- started around 8 a.m. and went until midnight. Long, exhausting day, but I made some good progress.

Tuesday:

Worked on thesis all morning, then we took a bus to visit ISA. ISA is an Italian company based right outside of Pesaro, not far from Urbino, that designs and builds curtain walls and aluminum window systems. They handle everything from design to production and installation, and they work on a lot of big commercial and architectural projects. It was really cool seeing their setup- the offices, warehouse, and all the machinery used to make the façade systems. It gave me a better idea of how the stuff we talk about in class and work on in our theses actually comes to life in the real world. We also met with some of their project managers and they showed us some of the stuff they were working on. They use the same software that we did to 3d model our thesis project buildings. We got back to Urbino around dinner, ate, then kept working on the thesis until about 11.

Wednesday:

Again, thesis all day. Started around 8 and went late into the night again. Pretty much lived in front of my computer, but I’m finally seeing things come together, so it feels worth it.

What I completed in thesis this week:

I finished up my financial analysis this week. Basically, I defined and analyzed my company’s financial position, used last year’s income statement and balance sheet, and then projected numbers for the upcoming year. It included figuring out salaries, labor burdens, and how those relate to overall revenue and profit margins. I also calculated key ratios like gross margin, net margin, ROI, and current ratio, then wrote about what those numbers actually mean for the company’s performance and growth. Basically, it was a deep dive into the business side of construction- seeing how the numbers tell the story of how strong or efficient my company really is.

I also finished up my structural analysis section this week. Basically, I broke down how my building carries both vertical (gravity) and lateral (wind) loads down to the foundation. I used section cuts and 3D visuals to show how everything transfers through the structure. I also had to include a temporary structure design and explain how it fits into the construction sequence. It was a lot of technical detail, but it really helped me understand how the building actually stands up and stays stable during and after construction. Next up, the overall project schedule!

Friday morning me and 3 of the guys woke up at 4 am to ride hot air balloons at sunrise. It was a rough wake up but it was so worth it. We sat and waited until everyone showed up. They provided coffee, tea, and croissants for us while we were waiting. It was a cool little spot.

I can’t decide whether I liked camel/atv riding or the hot air balloons better. It was one of the prettiest views I’ve ever seen. Jaycie said some of the pictures I took look like a Microsoft wallpaper.

After hot air balloons we went home and napped/hung out at the house for the majority of the day. Later that night we went to a well known bar in Marrakesh and had some drinks to end the night. We were absolutely exhausted but this was our last night to do anything fun.

Saturday we slept in and enjoyed our last day relaxing. Because of sleeping in, our sleep schedules were super messed up and I didn’t go to bed until midnight Saturday night. I only got about 2 hours of sleep. We left our place at 2:45 am this morning (Sunday) to head to the airport. We had a 3.5 hour flight from Marrakech to Milan, now we are on a train from Milan to Pesaro for 2.5 hours. From Pesaro we will get on a bus and have an hour ride to Urbino. We should get there around 7:30 ish tonight. Surprisingly I am not near as tired as I thought I would be, but I’m sure I will crash once we finally get back to Urbino. This was definitely a great way to spend my last fall break in college. I will say, I never want to eat chicken tangine again!

We booked a camping trip to the Agafay desert for Wednesday night. It included ATV riding, Camel ride, dinner, and breakfast. It was the most fun we’ve had in a while. (I may of gotten in trouble for drifting my 4wheeler)

Straight after the ride we hopped on camels.

After our camel ride we went to our “camping” spot. It was way nicer than what we expected. We had beds, a bathroom with a shower, and even a mini split air conditioner in the room.

There was a pool as well. We changed into our bathing suits and swam until dinner. The pool was freezing cold but it felt great after a long hot day. They brought us some mint tea and some type of homemade crackers to the pool .

I forgot to take a picture of the meal but it was so good. It was more tangine, including chicken, beef, and veggies. Everybody was feeling a little sick the next day so we think this is the meal that got us. After we finished eating we got up and danced and sang with the guys giving the show. It was actually hilarious because it was us 8 college guys, and then everyone else in the room were couples. They seemed like they were all on their honeymoons. To say the least, we were definitely a good source of entertainment for everyone.

To finish off the night we sat by the fire, drank some tea, then played some pool and just hung out for a little while before bed.

Thursday morning we had breakfast and got in our van to head back home. It was about a 2 hour drive. We had free lunch that day at the house because they messed up the timing of our breakfast the day before. Guess what it was? More tangine. This time it was beef and was served with couscous. After lunch we went back to town to the Souks one last time. We ate a restaurant called “burger n shake” for dinner before heading back home. We were sick and tired of tangine at that point and wanted something we were used to eating.

Tuesday we didn’t do anything other than hangout at the house all day. It was nice to have a free day and just relax. We had a super nice backyard with a pool, trampoline, ping pong table, soccer nets, and also had a pool table inside.

It was only 30 Euros a day to have the cook come and cook meals for us. They prepared chicken tangine for lunch again.

For dinner we had kebabs and veggies.