Northern Arizona University student Daniel Smith is spending the semester in Torino, Italy, site of the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Smith, who was born and raised in Portland, Ore., is a sophomore at NAU majoring in Business Management with a minor in music. He is studying at the Università di Torino in the School of Management.

"The school is located next to the Po river on the outskirts of downtown Torino. The building right next door is the Olympic Figure Skating rink," Smith wrote in an e-mail. The site for the Olympic Village is also nearby. The Olympics begin there Friday.

It was no accident that Smith, a self-described avid skier, ended up in Torino for the Olympics.

"That was one of the main reasons to come to Torino during this time: To ski the amazing Alps and to see the Olympic ski events. I am a freestyle skier so I have tickets to men's moguls (qualifying and finals) and men's arials (qualifying)."

Smith is going to volunteer for the United States Olympic Team.

"In this volunteer job I get to welcome the U.S. Olympic Team and get them situated with Torino," he said.

That will entail giving American competitors their uniforms, getting them oriented with the city and helping them with whatever they need.

"This is a big opportunity for me and I jumped on it the minute it was offered to me," Smith said.

He described Torino as an "impressive city. It reminds me of a small scale New York City. With nothing but tall buildings and people outside everywhere you go."

He said the Olympics are having an effect on it.

"The Olympics are making a huge impression for this city and new buildings are being put up all over. Not to mention the buses are changing routes, statues remodeled, store prices rising, and more and more people are learning English."

Smith answered the following questions about studying abroad and the Olympics in an e-mail interview:

Q: Will you return to NAU in Flagstaff?

A: Of course. I love Flagstaff and NAU is my new home. It would feel awkward to not come back there.

I'm a member of the NAU Ultimate Frisbee Team and have many good friends there. It was hard for me just to leave to study abroad.

Q: How does skiing in Italy compare to skiing at the Arizona Snow Bowl?

A: Wow, like night and day. Here there are six to eight giant ski resorts that measure in size to Whistler. The snow here is amazing. I have not felt powder like this before. The funny thing is the Italian skiers; they try to be very fancy when they ski. For example, the will only stick to groomed runs (which is fine by me) and they love to do ski dancing like skiing with one foot and skiing with both feet real close together with their arms stretched way far out like a cross. I've had many laughs just watching them.

Q: What do you like about studying abroad?

A: My favorite thing is meeting people from all over the world. The fact that so many different cultures can be on the same continent attracts me. I love to travel and I plan to travel a lot while I am here.

Q: What would you tell students who are considering studying abroad?

A: Go for it! It's probably one of the best things you can do in your college career. Americans are stuck with this oppressed view on society because not many Americans experience other cultures. Making them blindfolded to what is really out there. It is also a huge growth opportunity. Even though I've been here only a month, I feel I'm a different person than when I left. Studying abroad, I believe, does that to everyone.

Q: Have you ever been to the Olympics before?

A: I have always wanted to go but I have never gone.

Q: What do you think it will be like for you to witness the Olympics and be a volunteer for the U.S. team?

A: It will be like the world in one city. Irish, Spanish, Canadian, Swedish, Russian, Chinese, Japanese. Just walking down the street will be new every time. Volunteering for the U.S. team will be my favorite part. Some of my idols are on the team, like Jeremy Bloom. I hope this will create connections to professional athletes because when I come back to the states, I am going to start competing in freestyle skiing.

Annie Braun can be reached at abraun@azdailysun.com or 556-2250.