Yesterday I was in Venice, Italy as a part of my study abroad trip and I was walking with my friends to find a gondola ride. While walking through a piazza I heard someone calling in our direction and so I looked to see who it was. A man with beautiful eyes approached me and asked me a question really excited in Italian. I wasn't sure at first so I looked to find my friends for support but they were gone so I turned back to the man who was approaching me. He spoke as if we had met before and when I told him I spoke a little Italian, he asked me if I spoke English in really good English. I said yes afterwhich he told me his name was Steve and explained that he was from Nigeria. Steve came to Italy looking for work and he asked me for money because he was hungry. Since we were in the piazza I told him I could buy him food but I did not have much to give him since I was holding to the little bit of cash I had left for an emergency. He begged me for money to get rice. I was skeptical but I figured if he misused the money it was on him and I really hoped he would get the rice. So I went into a nearby restaurant and bought him a bottle of water and gave him 7 euros. He asked me a few more questions about myself and was very friendly. I replied by telling him that I was an American student visiting Venice breifly but did not consider myself a tourist. I also suggested that if he had a problem finding a job maybe that it was a language barrier and that maybe he should practice his italian more. I also suggested maybe he make friends and move try finding housing with a roommate or two to split the cost of resources but ultimately I did not think Venice was the best place for him and suggested he try moving to a different city. After a few more minutes of talking I told Steve that I really had to go and that I wished him the best of luck. We parted with a warm handshake and as I walked away he told me I was blessed and said we are brothers in a very happy voice.
In hindsight I don't know if any of my advice was sound given this guy was a refugee. I do wonder how much more I could have helped him since he had a phone. Also in a city like Venice with the large amount of tourists swarming that city for a large part of the year it was difficult to see how he could not find a job. Either way I hope he finds peace of mind, because that is the goal in life right? This experience will be something I never forget.