For Lorenzo Giorgio Di Silvio, traveling to Europe is second nature. As you might have guessed, he has roots in Italy; he and his family, who live in the Boston area, visit relatives in Italy quite frequently. So when Lorenzo chose to study abroad, he wanted more than just an experience overseas. He wanted to know what it felt like to really live there. He decided to spend his entire junior year in Europe. He lived in Madrid, Spain, last fall, and this spring, he’s in London, England.

For a policy wonk like Lorenzo, one of the highlights of his trip to Madrid was going to “puertas abiertas,” or open house, at the Spanish parliament building. As he says, “You can imagine the giddiness that overwhelmed me on entering the Congress building through the massive door that only opens when Su Majestad el Rey is invited to open parliament, or when I took a picture of me sitting in the actual seat of the leader of the Socialist party, or on leaving, receiving a folio with my very own copy of the Constitution of 1978.”

Lorenzo relished the opportunity to be immersed in a Spanish-speaking country. He not only was able to increase his vocabulary and speaking ability, he was able to focus on accent and dialect. He feels that he became so proficient in the language that he fit in better in Madrid than in London. There were many places to go and people to meet in the Mediterranean city, and he appreciated the acceptance toward gays and lesbians that he found in the country.

In fact, when Lorenzo moved on from Madrid to London, he was struck by the increased cultural openness of that city too. “People in Europe have very different attitudes when it comes to homosexuality and religion—for the two are undoubtedly intertwined. Tony Blair is a very religious man, yet at the same time, were he to invoke the name of God
. . . he would be destroyed politically. Of course, at the same time, Britain has an official state religion, the head of which is the Queen, and Anglican bishops sit in the House of Lords. All very strange.” Despite his confusion, he adds, “Europe is far more progressive than the U.S. Another thing I love about London in particular is the multiculturalism. All over the place there are multiracial couples, people of different races and creeds—something I really don’t see in the U.S. Not a day goes by where I don’t hear another language besides English being spoken—Italian, Polish, Arabic, Portuguese, Hindi. It’s amazing!”

Last summer when he was back home, Lorenzo worked for GLAD, the law firm that represented the civil union case in Vermont and the gay marriage case in Massachusetts that set precedents in the United States. Now while he’s in London, he’s furthering that experience by working for Stonewall, a lesbian, gay, and bisexual lobby group, which gives him practical career experience. “I’m very happy about this decision,” he says. “Not only am I working on stuff that I have slight expertise in, but I’m doing things that I’m passionate about and that interest me tremendously.”

Currently, Lorenzo is working on two big projects: public education about gay bullying in schools and a civil partnership bill for same-sex couples that’s originating in the House of Lords. “I’ve been comparing data from the Scandinavian countries, the first in the world to offer same-sex couples benefits and recognition akin to marriage. I’ll get to write briefs, lobby MPs and Peers, and research voting records.”

Lorenzo’s excitement about his experiences, education, and meaningful work overseas is palpable, and he says that he’s proud of his experience abroad. However, he also admits that opening his mind to new ideas and people and places has brought him more questions than answers. He anticipated that after his trip he’d “be able to make more sense of the world,” but instead he’s found that “the world is a more confusing place after living abroad.” He then asks, “Is there ever a time for answers, or as life progresses, are there only more and more questions?”

—by M. Ynonne Taylor
Photos by Tommy LaVergne
and Jeff Fitlow