New Worlds--by Trevor

A few months ago, I was a student abroad. Spending the summer in Guatemala on a Spanish immersion program was a natural continuation of the study abroad experiences of my master's program, undergrad, and high school. In the Fall, everything changed. With unbelievable speed, the tables turned: for the first time I was the teacher, not the student. At first, I felt unsure if I could continue to learn and grow, now that I was the one responsible for content and expertise.

 
My fears have proven totally unfounded. I am a teacher, but I am also still a student, and always learning. Although I had been to Italy 3 times before (including a 2.5 month stay in Rome), this trip was full of new experiences. I saw things I had never seen before, like a massive Roman cistern at Bacoli, the windswept caldera of Vesuvius, and Testaccio, the artificial mountain made of discarded ancient pottery. I am grateful to my predecessor Janet Rothfels for bequeathing me the idea to visit these sites and for her invaluable Italian personal contacts. I also returned to familiar places, but instead of learning about Roman building materials (like porphyry) and mythic landscapes, I was learning about how to articulate my interest in antiquity to others, how to set the right pace for a group while still moving at a speed that works for me, and how to connect with my students in new ways outside the classroom. I also revisited old lessons that needed refreshing: cooler heads prevail during moments of uncertainty, international travel can be an amazing crucible for new friendship, and that good Italian gelato possesses powerful restorative properties.

Thanks above all to my companions Kelli and Allisen: Dream Team. Thank you to my students, you guys carried yourselves with gusto and élan. Thank you to the parents, who put so much trust in us.  Thank you to Robin Wheeler for making the trains run on time.  I had a blast the last couple of weeks-see you in the classroom, around campus, and in future project weeks.

ci vediamo,

Trevor 

Update: We have boarded in London

We have boarded the plane in London and await take-off!

See you in Seattle...

On Our Way Home!

We left the Villa this morning at 5:00am in a bus headed to the airport in Rome a couple of hours away. Here's to smooth travels!

Naples>Rome>London>Home

The Island of Capri--by Julia

Story by Julia, photos and captions by Kelli

On our last day in Italy, we took a high speed ferry to visit the Island of Capri. I was so excited since I have been looking forward to going to the island for a long time. Known as a popular location for celebrities, it was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. 

Riding the bus on the Mamma Mia road up the hills was an unique experience. I was impressed how skillfully the bus drivers drove along the curving road. One of the highlights for me was the chair lift to the highest point on the island. The slow ride up to and down from the smaller town of Anacapri allowed us to see the breathtaking views of the island.

Abby gets on the chair lift to ride to the top where we had our picnic lunch

View from the top

Samantha gets on the chair lift to go back down to Anacapri

View from chair lift 

Kelli enjoys floating above the island's terraced gardens 

I was amazed by the vibrancy and the liveliness of Capri. When we went shopping, I noticed that many people spoke english since the island is a high tourist attraction. I was a bit disappointed by the lack of variety of shops. However we ended up buying many lemon soaps that the island was known for. 

The island is famous for its countless lemon trees and huge lemons like the ones pictured above at this drink stand.  

It was great to spend our last day of Italy at the island of Capri. It was relaxing and unforgettable. I will definitely be returning to this place. 

When we returned back to Villa Vergiliana, we had another amazing dinner. However it was especially significant because it was our last and after dinner, we thanked Mina and her family for everything. Although I am excited to finally return home, I will not forget the food and the comfort of Villa Vergiliana. Ciao Italia!

The Villa made us a special chocolate star cake for our last meal with them. 

Volcanoes!--by Kelli

Today was a very exciting day as we continued our exploration of the Naples region. Earlier in the week we experienced the marvels of Pompeii, a city frozen in time after being buried from the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in the year 79 A.D.  

One cannot contemplate Pompeii without also recognizing the main character in the story, the volcano of Mt. Vesuvius. Today we spent some time to get to know this formidable volcano ourselves. 

Overlake reaches the highest point on Mt. Vesuvius 

At 9:00am we had an appointment to meet with Roberto, our "volcanological guide". 

Although we warned everyone that the hike might expose us more the elements than we had been so far, many were shocked with the cold and the severe winds that ripped through the rocky and barren landscape. However, our students are adventurous and didn't let the cold winds get them down. 

Roberto led us to an orientation spot to show just where we would be going. He said 99% of tourists take a short trail to a lower lookout point and then turn right back. With Roberto as our guide, we would be taking a different route around the crater that would not only give us access to the highest point in the crater, but also allow us to decend somewhat into the crater to get a better sense of the geothermal activity inside. 

The hike was steep and challenging, but the views into the crater to our right and the city of Naples and the Mediterranean to our left were stunning. The bigger challenge for me was bracing myself against the constant cold, strong wind as we made our way along the trail. 

At our resting point several students were able to pick up handfuls of warm earth, pyroclastic debris really, to heat their hands. 

Roberto taught us about the history and science of the volcano, and the plant life and mineral deposits found there.  He also showed us an experiment burning a paper that immediately turned the air around into visible vapor. 

We continued our hike to another point on the crater before our decent. The way down, although a bit easier in some ways, was also a different kind of challenge due to the steadiness required to walk on such strange volcanic material. 

I am proud that our group was up to the challenge and climbing Mt. Vesuvius will be an experience not soon forgotten by anyone!

One volcano for the day just wasn't enough, so after lunch at the Villa we went to Solfatara, another local volcano that has visible vapors of sulfur rising from its crater. The students didn't know what to expect but were soon very aware of (or perhaps overcome by) the unique scent of the place. 

Abby presents to the group about Solfatera while others struggle a bit with the smell. 

Although not very visible here, the mud in this crater is bubbling!

After Solfatara we were able to visit a slightly more refreshing place, the Piscina Mirabilis.  This is an Ancient Roman sistern on private property.  We were able to gain access by calling a number given to us by the Baroness from yesterday. The arches were beautiful, especially considering that they were not intended for human eyes, rather to remain hidden below ground, filled with water for storage. 

Any sunny day in the Mediterranean wouldn't be complete, however, without a little gelato to hold us over until dinner at the Villa. 

A Culinary Experience Like No Other--by Heidi

Story by Heidi, photos and captions by Kelli

If nothing else, this trip has thoroughly wowed each and every one of my taste buds, and I'm afraid anything I eat back home will pale in comparison to the amazing food of Italy. Today's surprise visit to Cecilia Bellelli Baratta's agriturismo only strengthened this notion. (By the way, Cecilia is a baroness). 

An agriturismo, like the word implies, is like an agricultural tour, and before we were actually shown around the farm and saw a bunch of water buffalo (including adorable baby water buffalo and pregnant water buffalos), we had a 4-course meal cooked from locally sourced ingredients. Our meal began with an antipasta of prosciutto, fresh buffalo ricotta cheese, fresh mozzarella balls, grilled local artichokes, and for lack of better terms, these "hot pocket" type things (nicknamed by Kelli). 

Being lactose-intolerant, I didn't have the cheese, but I heard it was the best some people had. The prosciutto was very savory and thin. And the hot pockets were not really hot pockets. They were these warm and fluffy breads stuffed with vegetables that were really good. The second course was a pasta type dish, and the tomato sauce was sweet and acidic. The pasta was served with parmesan cheese and chili peppers that really had a kick to them. 

The third course was water-buffalo meat and sausages, which was such a nice break from all the carbs we've had on the trip. If anyone is curious as to how the water-buffalo tasted, it was like the softest and most delicious steak ever. 

We were also served an eggplant dish (imagine lasagna with no noodles and instead eggplants) that just melted in my mouth. 

Last but not least, we had pastries filled with really light whipped cream. I loved how subtle the sweetness of the dessert was. There were small chips of mint chocolate in it as well which were heavenly. 

We were also served some black coffee (espresso) to top it all off. 

All the different foods were like explosions of happiness in my mouth. The meal was a culinary experience like none other I've ever had. By far today's lunch was one of the best meals of my life, and it made me so glad I came on this trip. :)

The visit to Baroness Bellelli Baratta's water buffalo farm, where they produce milk for cheese and meat:

The Baroness shows Harry her family crest

The water buffalo prefer the wet, muddy environment

Baby water buffalo only a few days old

Paestum--by Samantha

Story by Samantha, photos by Kelli

Going to Paestum today was a memorable experience for all of us in the group.

Paestum, a Greek city, was a valuable opportunity for us to observe some different types of Greek architecture that we had not yet been exposed to on the trip. All of Paestum revolves around three main temples: a central temple dedicated to Poseidon with a temple for Ceres on either side. The temple of Poseidon is one of the best-preserved Ancient Greek temples left in the country, and we all felt a sense of astonishment at standing in front of something so much older than anything else we are used to seeing. The bright and sunny day combined with the serene atmosphere of the field had a calming affect on us all--it was a noticeable but welcome change from the crowded and busy atmosphere of some of the other archaeological sites we have visited. The peaceful setting was best described by Trevor as "like being in a painting". 

We eventually reached what used to be the wall of the city, and, as we have all been so excited to do whenever possible, climbed up it and stood on top of it in order to get a better view of the site. Even the extreme winds could not put a damper on our moods, as we took shelter by sitting on what we soon found out to be a sacrificial altar. There was even a dog roaming the site, much to the delight of those of us who have been dog-spotting throughout the trip.

The Paestum was a calm but exciting adventure--it gave us a chance to learn about some new types of architecture and building structures, but also was a soothing atmosphere with beautiful views for us to enjoy without the usual chaos of archaeological sites packed with tourists.

After our time at Paestum we went to the  museum and saw rare, Ancient Greek paintings and other artifacts that related to the site.