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Our last full day in Italy was the perfect way to end the trip. It was chill, yet we still got to see a good amount, which was nice because we were all super tired by this point but I wanted to see as much as possible with the time we had left. We ate breakfast, said our goodbyes to Sorrento, then hopped on the bus in the morning. A few hours into the drive, we had taken a stop to visit the Palace of Caserta. I didn't know anything about this place going into it but that made it even better! I had learned a lot at this stop while taking in some gorgeous sights and taking tons of pictures. After our tour, we walked around the corner to a place for lunch. Sorry, I just realized how brief I am being about this day. I think I was pretty tired though so it's difficult to remember all the details. Anyways, we got back on the bus shortly after we ate and continued our travels back to Rome. When we arrived in Rome, it kinda felt like we never left, even though we weren't there for two weeks. We didn't have too much time, but with the time we had, Alexa and I went out for a walk around the city one last time. We of course had to walk past Trevi Fountain and throw in some change (I'll keep you updated on if the wish comes true). We also did some last minute gift shopping for our friends and family, as well as some shopping for ourselves :). We may have gotten a little bit lost trying to look for a specific square... but it was all good because Alexa and I ended up finding our way back and still had a great time. We even got some AMAZING gelato out of that night, possibly even the best gelato I had on the trip. To end the night, we had met up with Shania, Ella, and Olivia for dinner. The waitress was 100% internally laughing at how American we are and my cacio e pepe wasn't the best but it's totally fine. It was still a great night. When we got back to the hotel, Alexa, Cam, and I pretty much just packed and stressed a little about the weight of our suitcases. We ended up all being okay with our checked bags, but let's just say it was a close call.
All of Saturday was dedicated to travel. it was a rough day for me because I wasn't feeling the greatest, but I'm thankful that I got sick at the end of the trip when I was about to be home. The plane ride to Atlanta was painfully long this time, but our 5 hour layover went by super quick (thanks to Chick-fil-a) and I fell asleep on the plane ride from Atlanta to Buff before we even took off. Arriving home didn't even feel like real-life, but the jet lag definitely felt pretty real. I am already missing Italy and tempted to book a flight right back!
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The Almalfi Coast was truly the most gorgeous place I have ever been to in my life. Since I was little, I had always had a specific image of what I believed Italy to look like. This place is exactly what I dreamed Italy to be. I honestly could go on and on about how beautiful it was but my words could never perfectly describe how incredible the view is.
The bus ride to the coast was super cool and gave us all the angles that made the view that much more different. I'm lucky enough to say that I do not get motion sick why it comes to twists, turns, and curvy roads on the edge off a cliff...that said, for those who DO get motion sickness it was a pretty rough ride. I would suggest preparing anything that may be helpful in preventing motion sickness, because the ride is too beautiful to miss. We took a quick pit stop at a gated-ledge with the perfect view of the coast. Tons of pictures were taken (trust me it was the perfect picture opportunity). I'm super thankful to have had some pretty great hype girls as we passed the phones around and took each others pictures. I kinda loathe having my picture taken so they made it super fun and easy :). After everyone had a significant amount of their camera roll filled, we hopped back on the bus and drove to a spot with a bunch of cute little shops. Before it was time for lunch, we had some time to walk around and explore. At first, most of us stuck together. Hopping from shop to shop, looking at all of the fun things they had for sale. Everything was pretty expensive, so I tried super hard to keep my wallet shut because once I opened it, there was no going back. After a few shops, Cameron and I had gone to move on and told the others we would meet up with them in the next shop. Well, long story short, we didn't end up seeing them again until it was just about lunchtime. We still had about an hour and a half left, so we just decided to keep walking downhill and see where the wind would take us. We passed a lot of shops, a few open but many closed (peep the picture below of one of the shops we passed named after the Italian translation of my name). We walked in a few, but didn't spend much time in them. I guess you could say the adventurer sides of us were overpowering the shopper sides of us. We just kept walking down and down. We almost even stopped because it kept looking like we were about to hit a dead end. Thank goodness we didn't stop. All thanks to Cam's gut which told us to keep going. Minutes later, we stepped foot onto a beautiful beach, right where the coast meets the sea, where we had been looking down upon during our picture destination prior to this bus stop. Cam and I literally stood there in shock at what we had just found, and I can easily say I will never not trust my own or another's gut feeling again. The water was perfect. The sand was perfect. The buildings were perfect. Everything about this spot was just perfect. We found some stairs and a spot to sit that gave us an awesome view. We just sat there and talked all the way up until it was time to go eat. I genuinely could have sat there for hours. I will never forget this day :) The last few days we had spent in Torremaggiore was bitter-sweet. Honestly, I feel as though a part of me thought we were never leaving. Don't get me wrong, the trip flew by. However, while we had gone about our days in Torremaggiore it had felt like we had been there forever. The thought of leaving just didn't click in my brain. Anyway, it would be an understatement to say leaving the kids was emotional. I had one student type into my google translate asking me when the next time we would see each other would be. If I let myself, I probably could've cried a river. The opportunity to work with the students and teachers of Emilio Ricci in Torremaggiore has been absolutely life changing and I wouldn't have traded it for the world.
The drive from Torremaggiore to Pompeii was stunning. Before this trip, I knew that I don't do well trying to sleep in cars/buses. I think I kind of mentioned this in a previous post, but I think I have finally figured out why. I have some serious FOMO. Fear of missing out on the beautiful views that we could be driving through. I've always been frustrated with the fact that I couldn't sleep on long car rides. Now, I'm going to look at it as a superpower, because I can only imagine the serious regret I would feel if I missed out of some of the picture-perfect things I saw outside the window. From the moment we stepped foot in Pompeii, I was instantly in awe. No seriously, we barely even stepped two feet into the ruins and I already had tears in my eyes (yeah yeah I know I'm an emotional human, moving on). Hey, it wasn't just me though. Mother Nature was pretty emotional that day too...in other words, we got poured on. This reminds me of an important reminder to myself and all other travelers: DO NOT FORGET TO PACK AN UMBRELLA!! Thankfully, Dr. Renzoni came to my rescue and let me share her umbrella with her during the torrential downpour. Honestly though, call me crazy but walking through the Pompeii ruins in the rain couldn't have been more perfect weather conditions. First of all, there was barely anyone else around so it was extremely nice being able to walk without being crowded by other groups. Second of all, the lighting was fantastic for pictures. Isn't there a saying about cloudy days being good lighting for pictures?? The rain didn't even last long but it definitely made this part of the trip extremely memorable. Torremaggiore Week 1 Part 3/3 Thursday: I'm definitely wishing I wrote this blog a little sooner because all of my days are starting do blend together with all of the amazing things we are doing. I am currently writing this on Sunday, three days later, and all I can think about when I think about the school on Thursday was how much they wanted to dance. I started off the day having the opportunity to work with Ella, Cameron, and Dr. Renzoni in a kindergarten classroom. We had worked with three different classes, teaching them some fun songs that engaged them in some fun ways! It has been made very evident that they LOVE music here. Singing to, dancing to, listening to... everything is music music music (which makes my heart happy. Olivia and I had our set plan to do some activities related to our book and a few fun games we thought they would enjoy until both the students AND the teacher asked us to play some English music for them! Olivia had decided to put Bloody Mary by Lady Gaga on for them, which they all new because it is associated with the show Wednesday based on The Addams Family. Let me tell you, they are all obsessed with this show. Good thing I watched it before coming here, otherwise I think thy would have been disappointed in me. One of the students even drew me a picture of Wednesday Addams. Anyways, back to the class flashmob. Within the first few seconds we had put on the lyric video, the kids were asking that we put on a video with the song that included Wednesday's dance from the show so that they could follow along. They immediately imitated her moves and I got in trouble for not joining them. In the words of their teacher: "YOU DANCE". We decided to put on Just Dance and show them how it's really done back home. Well, technically they might know what Just Dance is already but it doesn't matter, it was nostalgic for us and they had a good time. After school we went right to a winery. This was a super fun experience, the family who owns the business was very sweet and definitely contributed to the greatness of my first winery visit. They fed us some delicious food and presented some different wines. They also had the cutest doggo named Magis (yes, yes he is named after the wine). We then had the opportunity to go to Nonno Vittorio, where they produce wine and oil. I of course had to buy some olive oil to bring home to the family :) Friday: Friday was a bit of a chaotic day in the classroom. This day was definitely one for the books and I would have trouble forgetting it even if I tried really hard. Unfortunately my partner was feeling under the weather this day, so I had the privilege to work with Ella! For the first part of class, I observed their math teacher again. I still cannot believe how complicated the content they are learning is. They were learning about fractions and all that fun stuff, which was very interesting to observe. When it came our time to teach, we began by having them create paper plate cowboy hats. They had a lot of fun making them and decorating them, although translating the instruction was a little complicated. Since they were a tad bit rowdy Friday, we did not get to do as much as I was hoping. I had a ton planned, but that is okay, we love being flexible! I tried playing the word game "We Are Going On A Picnic" with them which did not go as well as I had hoped... I had began writing the translation for the name of the game on the board and they thought we were actually going on a picnic, I felt SO bad because they had gotten so excited. Anyways, this game was an attempt to help them practice English in a fun way, I think they were just too enthusiastic to remain calm throughout the game. We ended class with Simon Says or Simon Dice in Italian, which they love to play. They are too good at it though, so it takes a while for someone to win. I am super excited to go back into the school tomorrow because I miss them after not seeing them for the weekend! Friday night, we went to the high school and got the chance to meet some of the students and staff there. Everyone was super kind there as well, and the high schoolers were so eager to meet us and show us their school! Saturday:
Saturday morning we did not have to go to Emilio Ricci, which was very strange. I definitely was getting accustomed to our routine and I missed the kids! We went straight to the middle school after breakfast and visited a few different classrooms. The middle schoolers had plenty of questions to ask about Buffalo and our education system in the United States. So many of them wanted to keep in contact and to have our autographs which was adorable! The differences in U.S. and Italian school systems definitely contributed to the extent of my culture shock on this trip. At night, we got to learn a ton about the history of Torremaggiore, which I will definitely be sharing when I return to Buffalo. Torremaggiore Week 1 Part 2/3: Tuesday: Our first day in the classrooms. I was extremely overwhelmed by all off the emotions I was feeling. Now, all I have to say is that it would be an understatement to say every moment that I was overwhelmed was worth it. To be completely honest, I don't think anything I could have done up until this point could have prepared me for all of the experiences I am having. Don't take that the wrong way though, I did as much as I could to prepare myself in the ways I thought would help me. However, there is absolutely nothing like the real thing, and I can already tell it is helping me grow immensely. The kids are absolutely incredible. They are SO much more intelligent than I was at their age. They are so interested in every little detail about us and have shown us so much love since the moment we got here. We started off with an easy day with the students because we wanted to get to know them, so my partner Olivia and I shared our book with the kids and afterwards allowed them some time to share a little bit about themselves. They were constantly asking for my phone to use google translate so that we could have conversations with each other and get to know each other! I wish I counted how many different kids my phone had been passed to. OH and of course I have to share how incredibly talented they are in art. A few girls had drawn a picture of Olivia and I and it is crazy how much attention they paid to detail. After school, we had a giant lunch with a bunch of associations from Torremaggiore and it was incredible. We had so much food and killed it on the dance floor. Little did we know this would only be the start to our dancing that evening. We ended up going to the castle to take traditional Italian classes. It was SO FUN and I'm not even going to lie, I thought I would find it difficult to have a good time. I'm looking forward to whipping out my new Italian dance moves any chance I get. Wednesday:
Wednesday's class was interesting to say the least. The class started off with a math "specialist" (according to google translate) teaching the students about radius and diameter and all that fun stuff. If you don't know, I am absolutely not a math education major. However, Olivia and I had the honor of having Alexa join us in our classroom adventures on Wednesday and even got to see her teach some of their curriculum! It was really cool getting the chance to see her in her element and observing her strong teaching skills. Another thing we did was introduce the "Ciao Ciao" song to the kids... not quite sure they loved me for making them belt out with me but hey they still killed it. Wednesday night, we had taken a tour of some beautiful churches in Torremaggiore as well as some parts of the castle we had not previously seen the night of dance lessons. Taking this tour just convinced me even more that Torremaggiore is one of the cutest, most beautiful towns to exist. Let me start this post by saying I had a plan to blog as much as possible during this trip. However, I have not been doing a very good job. This week has been insanely busy so far, leaving us with little down time and constantly exhausted, but I mean it with my whole heart when I say it is so worth it. From the moment we arrived in Torremaggiore I immediately knew I was going to love making this place home for the next week and a half. After spending 5 days here, I know they're going to have trouble getting me on the plane to go back to New York. I truly wish I had blogged more during the week because I would loved to have written about every moment from my experiences up to this point in the trip. I'm going to try my best to include as much detail as possible, but there were so many incredible things that have happened it is unlikely that I will remember them all as I write this. Torremaggiore Week 1 Part 1/3: Sunday: Sunday was a first full day well-spent in Torremaggiore. We started the morning off with going to church! This was a super cool experience, even though I had zero clue what they were saying the whole time. The building was beautiful and it was overall a really nice service. The music was different from the majority of church services I have attended, but it was very fun and upbeat! The singers all had powerhouse voices and the way the sound carried through the church was awesome. After church, we had met a super sweet resident of Torremaggiore who had helped us find a spot to eat for lunch! We were helplessly walking through the streets looking for a place to eat but almost everywhere was closed because of siesta. Carolina, who lives here and speaks very good English, said hello as we were scouting out places for food and was kind enough to make reservations for us at an amazing restaurant. She showed us the way and walked in with us to translate. Honestly, I am not even sure that we would have been able to get lunch without her that day, and we were extremely grateful. We ended up getting a four course meal with wine included all for 30 euro per person?? A meal like this in Buffalo would have absolutely cost over $100. There were starters, a soup course, pasta, a dessert. Spoiler alert, everything tasted AMAZING. Thank you thank you thank you Carolina. Monday: Words cannot even describe the way Monday's memories have my heart. This is all thank to the student and staff at Emilio Ricci school. We had started this day off by meeting the mayor! Everyone was very kind and it was uplifting to see how delighted the people of Torremaggiore are to meet us and be a twin city with Buffalo. We were then welcomed into the school we would be working with for our time in Torremaggiore. I had walked through the doors thinking we would just be going on a tour and popping in and out of classrooms. Little did I know we would be receiving one of the best surprises EVER. We were being lead towards the schools gymnasium, which looks almost like a giant tent separate from the school. As we approached the door, I saw tons and tons of student standing by the entrance. We walked in, and the gymnasium was filled with students and staff, cheering and smiling and just so so happy to see us. They were waving American and Italian flags, playing music, greeting us with "ciao"s and hugs. I was in happy tears, and I don't think I have ever gotten emotional in this way in my life. I genuinely mean it when I say I will never forget this moment and I can't remember the last time I was happier. This was just the beginning, and I could have been more excited to work with these kids. Anyways, after getting the best greeting of my life, a few of us had gone to look for a coffee shop. The streets were flooding from the rain, so that was definitely a memorable walk. After getting partially soaked, we found an adorable little place that had coffee, pastries, waffles, and pancakes. I needed a coffee and I needed one BAD. So, I ordered a latte, as one does. Yeah, guess who forgot "latte" in Italy has a different meaning than it does in the United States. The same girl who did in fact accidentally order a glass of straight milk thinking she was getting coffee. Don't you worry though, I ordered espresso to add to the milk so all is well. To be continued... :)
Today was a very laid back, yet still a very enjoyable day. Our itinerary had us planned to be on the bus ready to leave Rome by 9:45, yeah that did not happen. We woke up, ate breakfast, finished packing, and brought all of our bags to the front of the hotel to be picked up. The driver was a tad bit late, but better late than never right? Not too long into the ride, we pulled into a little gas station so that the driver could take a half-hour break. Well long story short a half-hour ended up turning into an hour, and then the police came along. Apparently the rules of driving are taken very seriously in Rome and there is a ton of paperwork required regarding the records of driving/the vehicle. You learn something new everyday! Let's just say after the policeman hopped right on the bus, the driver got a decent amount of quality time with him with the rest of us were grabbing snacks and patiently waiting on the bus. Hey, who doesn't love being kept on their toes?? I was absolutely exhausted from everything we have done the past few days, so I had planned on napping for our 3 hour drive. Well, I didn't sleep at all and for good reason. If I had not been awake, I would have missed some of the most beautiful views I have ever seen in my life. No, this is not an exaggeration. I have always loved mountains and have wanted to live near a mountain range for a while now, and this bus ride tripled this ambition. I think I mentioned in one of my previous blogs that my phone doesn't do the views any justice and the pictures that I took during the ride definitely proves my point. I did sit on the wrong side of the bus though cause a lot of the views were on the other side, so maybe that's partially on me. However, believe me, these views have made Italy the prettiest place I have ever seen. Then came the moment I have been waiting for since I applied for IPDS Italy about 10 months ago...we arrived in Torremaggiore!!! From the moment I stepped foot off the bus I immediately felt at home. I already love everything about it. Even just taking a five minute walk to the grocery store had made me realize 1.5 weeks here is not going to be enough. Is that crazy to say after less than 24 hours here without even being in the school yet? Probably. It's true though, I already love this beautiful place and the wonderful people that have kindly accommodated the needs of our cohort by providing an adorable bed&breakfast with delicious meals. I am beyond excited to meet the kids and the teachers in the school and experience Torremaggiore in everyway possible during my time here. Stay tuned to hear me obsess over Italy some more <3 Ciao amori miei, Rachael A little over a month ago I had booked a tour to see the Colosseum. Little did I know how much more obsessed with Rome I would become after all of the incredible things I saw on this tour. First of all, the tour-guide was the coolest. We had little ear pieces to wear as we walked with the group that connected to the microphone the tour-guide had, which was super useful because there is absolutely no way I would've been able to hear a thing if we didn't have them. She also kept sneaking to where I couldn't see her and while I was taking pictures all I would hear is static in my ear because she was walking away. Totally on me though, I'm oblivious to my surroundings and kept getting distracted by all of the beautiful architecture. The tour consisted of so much more than I imagined. When I originally booked it, I had assumed it would just be a walk around the inside of the Colosseum. We got an in depth tour of the Roman Forum, which was more than I could ever have imagined. For example, we got to see one of the earliest Christian churches in Rome. Like are you kidding me?? I had literal chills it was stunning (don't worry I will include pictures below). The church wasn't the only surprise for me on this tour though, there were so many other breathtaking structures that I took 50 millions pictures of. And then there's the Colosseum. THE Colosseum. It was even better than I dreamed it would be. The outside is absolutely stunning. I learned so much about Rome's history involving the Colosseum (more than I have ever learned in high school history to be completely blunt). It is incredible to see both day and night. Then there's the inside. I don't know what I was expecting of this but it definitely exceeded expectations. Words can't even describe how insane it is, so I guess I'll just have to show my pictures :) As for the rest of the day after the tour, I got some more yummy food and walked some more streets of Rome. I had a delicious cannoli and spaghetti alla carbonara! What better way to end a day in Rome than pasta and dessert? I will absolutely be coming back in the future and cannot wait to spend a little more time there at the end of this trip! Like I said, falling more in love with Rome everyday. Ciao, Rachael I don’t even know where to start. Today marks my second full day in Rome and I am already in love. All of the stress and worries prior to the trip were definitely worth it because I am ECSTATIC to be here! The flight was not too bad and I am surprisingly not experiencing any jet lag (knock on wood). The first flight was super short and it didn’t feel anywhere close to 2 hours long. However, I did have a child kicking the back of my seat the majority of the time which I’m sure I don’t have to explain how unideal that was. We then had about a 7 hour layover in Atlanta?? I don’t remember but it was a long one and our flight was delayed because of a tornado watch/storm. Anyways our flight to Rome from Atlanta was good! A little petty because I didn’t have a window seat for this one and I barely slept but it’s fine I’m thriving LOL.
For our first night, we took a little walk around the city and I cannot even describe how beautiful it is. Literally every corner we turned is picture worthy, I’m concerned for the storage in my phone. I genuinely do not think I am going to process that I am in Europe right now until I get home because somehow I don’t think it has completely hit me yet. Like you’re telling me I have just been casually walking past Trevi Fountain the past few days? Nope that’s literally not real. Up until the day I left, everyone I knew who had been to Italy already had kept telling me how incredible the food is. I can definitely say the food has not yet disappointed. Maybe I don’t have the highest of expectations to begin with considering this is my first time traveling internationally, who knows, but high expectations or not the pasta is *chef’s kiss*. Yesterday I took one of those hop-on hop-off bus tours and got the chance to see some of the gems of Rome (although everything here is absolutely STUNNING). After seeing Vatican city, I have already contacted the fam and friends at home to tell them we will be coming back together. Respect to Rome wanting to honor the Pope’s death of course, but I am super bummed that my tour of the Vatican was canceled. Just another reason to come back I guess ;) Anyways, ciao for now! Rachael Ciao! Tomorrow is the day! It feels absolutely surreal that I will be at the airport in 24 hours from now on my way to Italy with an amazing cohort. I am very excited but the stress is kicking in, the blizzard we had over Christmas has made travel prep a little difficult. This trip snuck up on me so quickly and I don't think I have mentally processed it completely to this day!
The amount of people excited for me is insane, all of my friends and family keep reminding me to send plenty of pictures and updates and it has been making me even more excited which I didn't even think was possible. I spent my weekend freeing up a ton of space on my phone because I already know I am going to be taking pictures any chance I get. Speaking of friends and family, they have all been so kind offering me different things to borrow of theirs to benefit me on the trip such as the European outlet converters and some super cool bags for traveling. I have all of them to thank for how prepared I am. I have been so overwhelmed by kindness in regards to this trip and it hasn't even begun yet. As I mentioned in my bio, traveling is my favorite thing, zero exaggeration. However, as much as I love to travel I have only had the opportunity to travel to some beautiful destinations within the United States...til now! I am feeling all of the emotions right now, but they are all topped by my excitement!! I cannot wait to meet the students and teachers in the school in Torremaggiore, as well as do as much sight-seeing as possible while getting to know everyone going on this journey with me. I'm looking forward to reading this post at the end of the trip and reflecting on how I have changed from now until then through this experience, but let's not get too ahead of ourselves, I haven't even left yet! Come along for the ride with me as I spill my guts about every little detail of this trip throughout the next few weeks :) Ciao, Rachael Question(s) for future me: How wasyour flight?? How's Rome so far?? I need all of the details!! |
AuthorCiao! I’m a junior in the Childhood Education Program. Traveling is my absolute favorite and I am so excited that my first time traveling outside of the country is this amazing opportunity to study abroad in Torremaggiore! I am all about learning and being surrounded by different cultures. I cannot wait to bring my experiences from this trip into my own future classroom to make the best possible environment for my kiddos! ArchivesCategories |