Springfield, Mass. – February 19, 2026 – Kapom Vettayawaikoon (Phuket, Thailand), an finance and accounting major and junior on the Springfield College women's tennis team, spent the fall semester studying abroad in Italy. Hear all about her European experience below!

Where did you study abroad?
Florence, Italy

What did a typical day look like for you? 
On days I have classes I go explore the city a little bit, just wander around, grab a cappuccino and some pastry, stop by the farmers market on the way back to the apartment, cook some lunch, go to class, meet up with some friends after class for aperitivo and dinner. 

What is one adventure or project you would like to share? 
This isn't necessarily anything big, but during my time there, I was able to become a regular at a few places. There was a restaurant right under my apartment that me and my roommates would go to every week. We got super close with all the waiters that they would always splash us and give us extra food. We also babysit one of the waiter's kids because he wanted his daughter to practice her English. We got super close with the family and it felt like we became part of their family. 

How did this experience influence your future?
Studying abroad in Italy gave me a glimpse of what the culture and the way of life is like in Europe. I was able to see a lifestyle that is slower and to truly live in the moment. From this experience, I can see future me going back there again and I'm now looking at possibilities of doing a masters somewhere in Europe. 

What advice would you give to other students who are interested in studying abroad? 
1. Go alone, it forces you to be out of your comfort zone and meet new people. Solo travel. You might run into issues and not everything will go as planned but learning to figure it out and go through with it will help you learn so much about yourself and grow as a person. 2. People are a lot nicer than you expect. So many people will go out of their way to help you even if you have just met them. There were times that people I met the day before would do things for me that I didn't expect and it feels like the world is healing lol. 3. Travel everywhere and take advantage of every opportunity you have. Say yes to everything. Money will come back but you never know when you'll be given that chance again. 4. Life is never that serious, make stupid decisions and at least you can laugh about it after.

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