Buonasera! I can’t believe it, but Italy finds new ways to amaze me each day. Today, we started with a company visit to the Starbucks Reserve Roastery.

I learned that this roastery is among five in the world, including locations of Shanghai, Tokyo, Seattle, and New York. Interestingly enough, this Starbucks location is the only one in Italy. Their prestigious coffee culture triumphs the invasion of most chains, especially foreign ones. However, this Starbucks has been found to be incredibly successful after its opening in September 2018. The daily coffee lines were so long that there are security guards at each entrance!

During our stay, they brought us in for a private coffee tasting, and gave us a tour of their facilities. We tasted their Guatemalan blend, which had a smooth, light taste with chocolatey notes. This reserve location also carries coffees from several other global locations. The coffee served at the roastery is made in-house, and the facility utilizes a large tubing system to transport coffee from production to consumption. These tubes reminded me of Willy Wonka’s chocolate transport system from his fictional factory. From an engineering point of view, I would have loved to learn more about how this transport system functions effectively, but I was also happy to learn about Starbucks’ business success and history.

After the Starbucks visit, we took a break for lunch. Our group visited Piz, a local eatery, and shopped the streets of downtown Milan. We even caught Tommoso Partesana, a local street performer who sang and played guitar and harmonica. Then, we boarded the metro to visit the Armani Musuem. This silo-style museum featured hundreds of Armani’s pieces, and the tour honestly changed my entire perspective of the art of fashion. I now see how critical the fashion industry is to society and how its impacts shape how we present ourselves to the world and how we are perceived by others. The industry shapes our daily confidence, the message we send to the world, and how much we choose to hide from others. This effect holds great power in daily life, and fashion designers such as Armani knew that though their pieces may be out of reach to many consumers, they express outlets for communication through clothing.

Additionally, Armani’s creations were fascinating to study – he often used casual fabrics in elegant gowns, and incorporated traditional men’s fashion styles for women’s clothes, like jackets, paisley patterns, and sleeve designs.

That’s all for now, Italy. I am excited to see what the rest of this trip brings!