From Robinson Crusoe to Tarragona and soon Lisbon: How Flavia learned to follow the language
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by Alberto Valverde M.
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Student Snapshot: Flavia Di Francesco at a Glance Home Country: Italy |
When Flavia Di Francesco introduces herself, she does so with honesty: "I'm Flavia, I'm 22, I just came back from an Erasmus, and I'm trying to overcome post-Erasmus depression."
Anyone who has studied abroad knows that feeling. The suitcase is unpacked, but part of you is still somewhere else and feeling like another version of yourself.
For Flavia, that somewhere else was Tarragona, Spain, where she spent her Erasmus semester.
A lifelong curiosity for languages
Flavia's journey with languages started as a sleepless child and an old copy of Robinson Crusoe in English. "When I picked it up, I couldn't understand a thing. So, I said: OK, my next goal this year is to understand at least one page of this book."
From that day on she turned on the television and started watching everything she could find in English, her favourites being Magnum P.I. and the classic: Friends. "That's how I learnt English," she says.
At the same time, a childhood friend from Siberia introduced her to Russian, a language she immediately fell in love with.
“She remembers watching her friend write ‘I love you’ in Cyrillic.”
“I had to search how to write it… and it just stuck with me; it was the first way I learnt to say ‘I love you’ in another language.”
Academic path
That early curiosity eventually led her to Scienze linguistiche per le relazioni internazionali at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. However, the road to connecting her passion to academics was not easy.
For years, she had imagined herself becoming a coroner. But when she didn’t pass the medicine entry exam, she had to make a quick decision about what to do instead.
Law seemed like the closest alternative. So, she enrolled at Università Cattolica and committed to it for two years. An experience that, in hindsight, taught a lot about what she didn’t want.
“I was a bit disoriented… I just knew that I didn’t want to keep on doing law.”
But she knew one thing: she was good with languages.
So instead of forcing herself to stay on a path that didn’t feel right, she did something that takes a lot of courage: she started over, moving into her current programme.
Why Tarragona?
When the time came for choosing her Erasmus destination Flavia had a clear vision.
“I wanted to experience a small city where you can call your friends, go downstairs, and in five minutes meet all of them.” Tarragona checked all the boxes; with only one thing she didn't consider: Catalan.
But for Flavia, that only made the experience richer. Between Spanish classes and hearing everyday Catalan conversations, she even picked up some expressions that now follow her home.
One in particular keeps slipping out.
“Instead of saying ‘ciao’ sometimes I want to say ‘deu,’ the Catalan way of saying goodbye. it just rolls off my tongue, it’s so cute.”
Tarragona from scratch
Her first contact in Tarragona were her Catalan roommates, who were very kind but busy with classes, leaving her alone during the first days.
“I didn’t know what to do. I was bored and I’m a very hyperactive person.” So, she pushed herself to go out and meet other Erasmus students.
Over time, things began to shift. Conversations turned into friendships, unfamiliar faces into familiar ones. What started as an effort became routine, and eventually, something more meaningful. By the end of the semester, her life in Tarragona had become a balance between international friendships and connections with locals, having fully immersed herself in the community.
In Tarragona, Flavia’s favourite place was a park with a small lake. “I went there to read and watch the dogs bathe in the lake. Sometimes water droplets got on my face, but I didn’t mind. It was my happy place.”
Next exchange: Portugal is calling
Flavia is set to take off soon towards Lisbon for another semester abroad.
This time she chose Lisbon to learn Portuguese and because she had already fallen in love with the city.
She now hopes to follow her instincts more like surfing, reading, and worrying less about missing out.
Full circle experience: international badge
Back at Università Cattolica, Flavia is also turning her international experience into something bigger.
She has already begun contributing to the University’s international community by sharing her story with other students and participating in activities that support global engagement on campus.
She is now working toward earning the Cattolica International Badge, recognising students who contribute to the University’s international community.
Flavia’s advice to you
If you ask Flavia whether students should go on exchange, her response comes immediately. She answers with a redundant yes, even if things don’t go perfectly.
“For better or for worse, it changes you.”
Her advice is simple: give yourself time to adapt. Change can feel uncomfortable, but that discomfort always leads to growth.