During my time abroad, I have been taking a cross-cultural psychology course. Through this class, I’ve been able to explore the similarities and differences between Italian and American culture. As I explore the city of Florence as a tourist and as a student, I am able to apply what I’ve learned inside the classroom to the observations I make outside of it. One of the most prominent areas of the infrastructure in Florence was healthcare.

Across from the Duomo, which represents the most important building in the city, was the headquarters for the volunteer ambulance service of Florence. Italy already provides free healthcare which is extremely different from anything in the United States. These hospitals and The ambulance service provides additional care, free clinics, food drives, and shelter at no charge. All ambulance services in Pittsburgh are paid by the patient. There is a greater emphasis on making money in the United States compared to Italy. However, the ambulance service in Florence somewhat reminds me of the Freedom House ambulance service. Broadly, they both aimed to provide care to those who were in less fortunate positions socially or economically. 

A particularly interesting observation I made was the importance of neighborhoods. Recently, the calcio storico began, a Florentine medieval tradition. Each of the four teams represent one of the major neighborhoods of the city. There is a clear solidarity within each neighborhood. There are distinct characteristics of each neighborhood when walking through the city as well. This is similar to Pittsburgh, with the different neighborhoods that comprise it. In order to know where something is located, you need to know what neighborhood it’s in. The same is true for Florence.