Viewing Toscana from the Back of a Horse

Last week has been one of the slower ones. The many sleepless nights of studying paid off as we handed in our final art history exam with mixed emotions; sadness to say goodbye to the wonderful Bankers and relief for having one less class. We are reaching the half way marker of our stay in Italia. It is hard to believe that I have been in this wonderful place for six weeks now! Each day of my stay in Italy has led to new insights about me and the world around me. Prior to coming to Italy, I lived in my small Meredith College bubble, only associating with people who were just like me, but now my bubble has been popped and I am seeing what this world has to offer. When reflecting on everything, I have learned so much in Italy. I have become a much more mature and independent adult with an expanded view of the world. I am now not afraid to try things on my own. All the professors here push us out of our comfort zones and force us to depend on ourselves, rather than our parents or other adults. I am the adult now! One of the most frightening thoughts upon arriving in Italy was the thought of traveling around Europe without an adult. This opinion changed after I learned how to plan my excursion to Florence. I am currently working on my travel plans to visit Switzerland more confidently than ever!

Public speaking is not my forte, and the thought of giving a presentation to a bunch of middle school students sounded oddly terrifying to me. My memories of middle school were ones of humiliation and awkwardness. I reverted back to my middle school self a few seconds before going in front of the class and I constantly remind me that I was “the big kid” coming to talk about my college experience. I found humor in my generalizations about middle school students as I was greeted by the warm, welcoming, curious faces of Mrs. Chiara’s English class. I soon realized that I really was the “cool kid” in their eyes. For our Italy Today Service Learning Project, I gave an English presentation of my life in America and of my favorite activities. I observed the differences between schools in America and schools in Italy. The first thing I noticed when I walked in the classroom was that every two students shared a computer instead of each having his or her own. This made me realize how limited the resources are in the Italian school system. The Italian schools have their curriculum and schedule set up somewhat differently than that in America. Students go to school on Saturdays, but have shorter class hours than American schools. Students also are expected to know many different languages in the Italian school system, unlike the American school system where language is mainly an elective. Once the presentation concluded, the questions were non-stop asking me about my friends, if I drove a car, if I played sports, etc. I explained that we do not walk to places in America as Italians do in Italy, and that most middle class kids in America have their own cars. I flipped through the pictures on my facebook album of my family and friends and of course my pets. The English skills of the middle school children were surprisingly advanced. Animals proved to be the universal mediators. No matter what culture is mentioned in the world, the love of animals is worldwide. The remainder of the class was a discussion about everyone’s pets and what their names were. Right before leaving, the boys of the class had one more question for me. In a mischievous manner, they asked me if I had a boyfriend. This question made my day!

The weekend was greeted warmly by the Ragazze Americane! The celebration of a much deserved break was expected! The local discoteca opened Friday night, which also happened to be Patsy’s birthday! We were all excited to experience this much talked about phenomenon and we were not going to miss out on the fun. We were excited to get dressed up in our best outfits, which was a much needed change from our outfits from the previous day, suggesting that we didn’t have time to shower or change because we were stuck staring at a computer screen the entire night. As Granny Clampit would say, “we all clean up right nice!” We headed over to the disco around 12:30 a.m. because the party doesn’t get started until about 1 in the morning. There was loud techno music pumping from inside and I could see the strobe lights from the door. We walked down the stairs into a scene from a music video. The dancing was combinations of crazy MC Hammer moves, combined with wanna-be Usher impersonator. I was delighted at the absence of the nasty bumping and grinding that takes place in American clubs. This discoteca was much more enjoyable than I thought it would be, but I became deaf once the music started getting louder. The other girls and I had the most fun dancing to Lady Gaga and other exotic techno music that sounded like the beat of an African tribal drum. The strobe lights were disorienting and I felt as though I was in a dream, I would not recommend that an epileptic ever enter into the Scorpione.

The celebration continued Saturday! We were received by the mayor of Sansepolcro in the Town Hall on Saturday morning, when he recognized Meredith College as a part of the community of Sansepolcro. We continued the morning cleaning every crevasse in the palazzo for the night’s open house celebrating Meredith’s one year anniversary in the Palazzo Alberti. Many guest showed up to visit the palazzo and to see what Meredith was doing here in Italy. The guests were provided with a tour of the Palazzo, including the banquet room which is rarely opened. The room contains a famous fresco by Cherubino Alberti. To our great pleasure, our new friend Fabrizio, the wonderful café owner, showed up to greet everyone and to bring us flowers as a congratulations gift.  Fabrizio has been such a blessing to all of us here in the palazzo; he constantly helps us with our Italian and not to mention his wonderful coffee that helps us survive all those long nights of studying. Out of all the cafes in town, his seems to be the most authentic and the most welcoming. There is always a crowd standing around the bar and there is rarely an empty table outside under the awning.

No matter where I go in Sansepolcro I always find such pleasant people. Today I went to a horse stable with Patsy where she volunteers. While visiting the barn I ended up helping with the horses and eventually, I got to ride. The owner of the barn, Chiara is very sweet and a very talented jockey! I met several people at the barn who forced me to practice my Italian! I love how laid back the Italian businesses are compared to businesses in the United States. I was able to help out and pet the horses without a lot of fuss or opposition; the general mood of this barn was very pleasant. One very sweet man, who boarded his horse Penelope at this barn, asked me to ride her on the trail ride for him. She was a black trotter with a chestnut undertone. Once all the horses were tacked up, we headed out onto the trail, which wasn’t what I was used to at all. The “trail” consisted of many roadsides and public roads that cars were sharing with us. There were many narrow paths that wound through the woods going straight uphill or down a steep rocky road. Much like the people, the horses here in Italy have to be in much better shape than the horses in America if they have to walk up and down terrain as extreme as I rode today. Although the trails were tough, the views were amazing; scenes that make a beautiful postcard look mediocre. There were mountains, fields that stretched on forever, vineyards lined with the classic Toscan trees, and stucco houses with beautiful roofs. Penelope was a great trail companion, and I found out that she is four months pregnant with a foal. My experience riding was great, and the kindness that I have found in Sansepolcro really speaks highly of the Italians’ generosity and of their welcoming attitude.

I’m On a Boat…In Venice!!

A realist, in Venice, would become a romantic by mere faithfulness to what he saw before him. Arthur Symons

       Wisps of salty breezes and  beauty unsurpassed describe Venice. It is almost too good to be true how can an ancient city could have been built in the middle of a body of water, maybe that is the romance in itself, the imagined becoming one of the wonders of the world. Stepping out of the train station was a view from a post card, gondolas floating along the Grand Canal under ancient bridges that Casanova would have waltzed along. Upon our arrival, the 4 o’clock sun was reflecting off of the water making it sparkle; the enchantment of the Venice really became apparent.

       This past week, my parents came to see me and to travel around Europe. This was their first time ever coming to Europe and I had the pleasure of showing them around the Palazzo and Sansepolcro (both of which they thought to be amazing). I felt like a proud parent showing everyone where I lived and the beautiful town that I have had the privilege of calling home in the past month. I took them to many of the local restaurants around Sansepolcro and showed them where the good shopping was( wherein my mom and Corey took advantage of this opportunity). Watching my brother try to order entrées that only exist at Olive Garden really made me laugh! I was able to teach my family about life in Italy and how the cultures were different. My family was able to join our art history class on an excursion to Assisi with the Bankers as our personal “tour guides.” My parents were able to see how interactive the program really is and The Bankers assured that my family wasn’t left out of the academic discussion! In Assisi we saw the Basilica of St. Francis (whose sainthood celebration was on my birthday October 4^th.) Assisi resembled the small charming town in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, complete with a Fortress on a hill that looked like a castle. The limestone walls had ivy running down the side and there were flowers of colors in every window seal. The best pictures were the alley ways with winding cobble stone paths.  We all sat on the elevated wall outside the Basilica, while the Bankers gave a short lecture on the history and significance of the much loved St. Francis. He was founder of the Franciscan Order of monks and was born in Assisi, in 1181. St. Francis was really the first hippie; he was one with nature, he lived like a peasant, and his most used aphorisms were peace and love. Francis was best known for his commitment to helping the poor and living a simple life himself. I think the world has a lesson to learn from St. Francis and his example of generosity and lack of any materialistic desire.

       After returning from Assisi on Wednesday, the next excursion to look forward to was Venezia! My family, Patsy, and I all left early on Friday morning for Venice. Many modes of transportation later we arrived in the world’s only floating city. Our first full view of the city was from a water taxi winding through the Grand Canal. The concept of having to take a boat to get where we were going was quite amusing. Our final destination was the Grand Hotel Jolanda di Savoia. The term “princess for a weekend” was rather fitting considering the experience we were blessed to have during our stay in Venice. Our room looked like a guest room that would have belonged in Versailles. Patsy and I explored the Square around our hotel, browsing the tacky tourist stands with random assortments of masks and I love Venezia t-shirts. On Friday night we ate at the restaurant in the hotel which won the award for the best desert I have had so far in Venice: A fabulous banana split with real ice cream! We walked on the street-lamp-lit boardwalk towards Piazza San Marco. The best surprise of the trip started with a melodious sound from a string quartet that was playing music from the Titanic. They were situated under the barrel vaulted ceiling of the open-air Gran Caffè Quadri across from the Ducale Palace. I used to play the violin so I have a special fondness for strings. Drawn into the café like a moth to a flame, we sat down and became entranced by the sheer display of emotion and talent combined to create fine art for the ears. This level of performance and ability is normal found in the Trans-Siberian ocrastra and here we were listening to it for free. A small crowd gathered around the café and eventually many people were out of their seats dancing to the Italian classic “Volare!” It was one of those perfect scenes from a movie complete with a soundtrack of a “Lovely Bella Notte!” 

       The sun was coming up over the water, and the view from our window called us into the streets of Venezia.  The hotel arrange a “free” excursion to tour a glass factory, or more likely “we will give you a free tour so you can come look at stuff only celebrities can afford!” The factory no doubt was amazing! We saw an artisan create a glass sculpture of a horse with ease, faster than an Olympic runner can finish a mile! We were taken to a showroom where glass was on display some to be shipped to Tiffany’s and other wealthy clients. I looked at the price of a beautiful horse statue and it was about the same price as Meredith’s tuition! After the escape from the relentless salesman we continued on to the San Marco Square and took our picture with all the pigeons. The San Marco Square houses the oddly leaning clock tower and the Basilica San Marco, the most beautiful and ornate church I have seen so far in Italy!  Next was the Guggenheim Collection where Picasso’s works were held. Wake Forest has a palazzo right beside the Guggenheim; those students seem to have such a hard life! To be perfectly honest getting lost was my favorite part of my Venezia experience. Only then did I take time to stop and observe the people around me and how different life is in Sansepolcro compared to Venice. This was the largest variety of people I have seen yet in Italy because most of the people in Venice are tourists. I observed the clashing of some cultural ideals while waiting in line to enter a popular restaurant near the Rialto Bridge called The Trattoria alla Madonna. Americans and British are very aware of the  social “cue” to wait your turn when in a line, but some of the Italians were oblivious to the meaning of a line and just walked right into the restaurant and asked to be seated. The humorous melt-down reaction of one British lady made the longer wait worth the while!

       I will always remember the weekend I spent with my parents in Venice. My birthday was so much fun being celebrated in Italy with the people I love! My parents surprised me on Saturday night by having the whole entire restaurant sing to me in their best broken English! After turning purple from embarrassment, I enjoyed my chocolate cake! Everyone here in the palazzo made my birthday special as well! Fellow birthday girl Margarita cooked a beautiful lunch as usual and John Rose made a birthday toast! On Monday night going to the Compass Rose with everyone for my favorite cheese burger was one of the best birthdays ever! The trend of having the restaurant sing to me continued! All the presents I received were lovely and I felt so appreciative to have spent my birthday with such wonderful people!