Hello! My name is Wes Ford, and I’m a Junior Computer Science major at CofC. I’ll be spending this semester studying in Bolzano-Bozen, Italy. I chose the program at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano because of its ties to the Computer Science department at home, and the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano seemed to be one of the best possible options for students of the computer science department. I also chose the program because of its location. It’s smack in the middle of the Italian Alps, so snow-topped mountains are all around. It is also located within a few hours’ train ride of some of the major Italian cities, as well as a short trip away from countries like Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.

Before coming, I did some research on Italy, and more specifically Bolzano, and found that the history here runs deep. Bolzano is in a region called South Tyrol, or Alto Adige. South Tyrol was part of Austria until the end of World War I, when Italy annexed the region. Because of this, there is a heavy influence of German and Austrian food and culture. In fact, German is still one of the official languages used in the city! Bolzano is also home to Ötzi, Europe’s oldest natural mummy.

I have goals for both education and travel while I spend my time in Italy. From an academic standpoint, I hope to perform well in my classes and use them as an opportunity to meet new people and have an exchange of ideas that I may not normally be able to get at home. From a travel standpoint, it is easy to reach a lot of central Europe from Bolzano. Because of this, I want to at least visit nearby countries such as Germany and Austria. I also hope to travel around the rest of Italy. To me, the places I hope to visit are Pompeii, Rome, Venice, and Cinque Terre. 

I’m looking forward to starting my semester in Bolzano in March, and I can’t wait to see what this adventure holds. Ciao for now!