Michele Frolla is a former CAE Italian language student, currently based in London where she runs her own language and travel blog, The Intrepid Guide.
Michele became interested in Italian at a very young age. She was named after her Nonno (grandfather) and was fascinated by his home country and language. Michele’s Nonno was an immigrant who never learned English, which made it difficult for them to talk on a deeper level. When he passed away, Michele was determined to learn Italian and to learn more about her grandfather.
Michele’s first trip overseas was to Rome. She said, “That trip left a lasting impression on me and really changed the course of my life.” It motivated her to get serious about learning languages and over the following three years, she studied Italian and then eventually moved to Italy.
Michele studied Italian at CAE because she worked in Melbourne CBD at the time and wanted to study in the evening. She said, “CAE had and still has an excellent reputation. They were running classes after work and the school was located close to the train station, so it was a really easy choice to study at CAE.”
Like any new student, Michele was a little nervous at the start of her course but excited at the same time, because she was finally going to have some structure to learning a foreign language. She first studied with Goretta who was from Venice, and then with Federica. Both teachers were wonderful, supportive, and very professional.
Michele says studying at CAE changed her life in many ways, giving her the confidence to move overseas to Rome where she continued progressing her Italian. She created her language and travel blog as a way to spend more time pursuing her two passions in life.
Most people love traveling but no one talks about the importance of learning a new language when traveling. Michele said, “This is surprising since it’s such a big part of travel. We go abroad to see beautiful places, try new cuisines, but there’s nothing like communicating with the locals and learning from them.” Michele said learning just a few words and phrases can do wonders when traveling as it is a great way to show respect and surprise for the locals.
For students wanting to learn a language at CAE, Michele recommends just doing it. “It’s a wonderful experience and acquiring the skill of speaking a foreign language will lead you down a road with endless possibilities,” she said.