Travel Week with Parents!!

Hi everyone,

There’s definitely a lot to cover in this blog so prepare for a very long read…

Before we even got to the parent trip we had a packed week from saying goodbye to Mr. Petrolito so he could go to Rochester, New York for his son’s wedding, to welcoming Annamaria and Mr. Di Giovanni who would be joining us for the parent trip. We attended a book release for a book based on the fifth canto of Dante Alighieri’s book “The Divine Comedy”. The canto is based on the story of Francesca and Paolo and is about how they get sent to the second circle of Hell for the crime they committed, lust. We were invited to this book signing because Mr. Di Giovanni wrote the introduction to this book. We believe we speak for all when we say our group was extremely well-behaved based on the fact that not only did we sit for 2 hours listening to this presentation, none of us spoke to each other not to mention that the whole thing was in Italian!!! Then as a surprise we were taken to the hotel we were supposed to stay at in Atri for lunch… we think everyone agrees that we got lucky with our hotel in Porto San Giorgio. Then we visited the local church, a 12th century duomo, and were treated to some Gelato by Mr. Di Giovanni for our good behavior during the presentation.

On the last day of school prior to the parent trip we had our regularly scheduled class with the Italian students. This time we had the pleasure of trying something new which was sculpting. Mr. Donadario, the professor of the class, was very welcoming even though he knew little English. The students also joined in by helping us with our sculpting. We had everything from flowers, coffee mugs, bunny rabbits, snowmen, and cubes; we also had random geometrical shapes going. Okay so we’re not exactly the next Da Vincis but we still did pretty well. We ended by scheduling another class for this week coming. Our ‘masterpieces’ will be dry and ready to be picked up for the upcoming class. We then returned home that night to finish packing for the adventure we were about to go on.

We woke up Friday morning with excitement knowing we were about to experience Italy in a whole new way, and those with parents flying in also had the excitement of seeing them that day. We all packed onto the bus Friday morning for the 3 hour bus ride to Tivoli. We arrived in Tivoli around 11am with some students having tear-filled eyes of excitement. The moment we stepped off the bus we were immediately confronted by a slew of parents. Those without parents there also had a few tear-filled moments knowing that they could not enjoy this trip with their families as the other students would be able to. Soon enough the kids broke off catching up with their loved ones until lunch where we enjoyed a lovely meal altogether. It was then announced that we would be going to a beautiful garden known as the Villa D’Este, which most of the girls recognized from The Lizzie McGuire Movie. The garden was breath-taking; we were all in awe from the fountains and pools. Gosh, we wouldn’t want to know the cost of that water bill! We ended the day with a little bit of shopping time and the returning to the hotel. We then had a relaxing dinner and all broke off to do our own things for the night, awaiting the early wake-up call the next morning.

We attempted to do Rome in one day so it was a day full of sightseeing and walking. The first two pieces of architecture we saw in Rome were the Arch of Constantine and the Coliseum… which was HUGE! Also in Rome we saw the Pantheon with its large dome ceiling. Natalia H definitely had an eventful day she lay down on the floor of the Pantheon to look up, plus got bitten by a horse outside the Pantheon. Guess she got a little too close. The Trevi Fountain was what we were looking forward to the most, again this is thanks to the Lizzie McGuire movie. The legend about the Trevi Fountain is you’re supposed to throw in three coins: one to return to Rome, a second to find love and a third to get married. So we lined up with our backs facing the Trevi, put our coins in our right hand, threw them over our shoulder and made a wish. The last thing we saw in Rome was St. Peter’s Basilica; it was one of the first things we saw in Italy in September but for the parents’ sake we visited it again. This time we did not go into the Vatican museum; instead we went in to the catacombs where many popes were buried including the beloved Pope John Paul II where many people were mourning. Then we got on a bus and drove to our next hotel.

Over the next two days we did less sightseeing and more shopping. How could you not when you’re in Florence and Venice? In Florence we saw many things pertaining to Michelangelo such as the Academia Di Belle Arti where we saw the David (he definitely was big) and we also saw Santa Croce Basilica where Michelangelo and many other artists were buried. After all the sightseeing we split up to go shopping, Florence being famous for its leather, silk and gold gave us a lot to do, see and buy. After all the shopping was done we met back in Piazza del Popolo next to the fountain of Neptune. Venice is the city on the water so many of us went for gondola rides. It was definitely an amazing experience; we went under the Rialto Bridge and passed many historical and beautiful buildings. Plus we got some shopping time in Venice too; they are famous for their masks and glass almost everyone got either one of the two items or both. Those were definitely two productive days. We returned to Porto San Giorgio that night.
Finally back ‘home’ in PSG for the first day October 20, we got to sleep in and have leisurely morning, we got to enjoy the parents and roam around town. After lunch we were told we were going on an afternoon excursion to Loreto. We all piled on the bus once again and took a short bus ride to the nearby town. The bus took us all the way up to the top of the mountain to where the Santa Casa Cathedral of Loreto is located. We saw the local monks all dressed in baby blue then we entered the church. The church was bold and beautiful and you where instantly overwhelmed with all the artistic and architectural features. We then had some free time that most used to look out at the amazing view, snap some pictures, visit the tiny religious stores, get some gelato, and then all meet back and the main fountain in front of the church for a few more photos before heading back to the bus. The following day, October 21, we woke up not too early and once again hopped on the bus for a short bus ride to Fermo where we would get to spend the morning shopping and/or going to the beautiful church at the top of the mountain. Some of the students and parents decided to go straight to the Basilica and go inside while others decided to follow Mr.D to a tiny shoe outlet with amazing shoes and amazing prices! Most people either bought a pair of boots or heels for a relatively low price for the quality you received. After they had made their purchases some people decided to book it to the church whereas others decided to head back to the main piazza and grab a slice of pizza. We were then picked up by the bus and driven to the City Hall of Fermo where we had the pleasure of meeting the President of the province. We sat and listened to a short speech by several council members and then where invited to toast the president with champagne that he poured for us, that was pretty cool we must say. After that we then again climbed on to our bus and took another short ride back to PSG where we would have lunch and then be dismissed to do whatever we pleased for the rest of the day.

Ravenna was our last excursion. We got to visit the Basilica of San Vitale where the mosaics of Emperor Justinian and Empress Theodora are. It was exciting to see them after all that time examining the mosaics in class and trying to figure out what sort of messages and symbols are within the piece; it was amazing to finally get to be able to see them in person. We also got to see Sant’Apollinare Nouvo and Dante’s tomb which apparently was moved four times. After all those long excursions it was nice to finally get home even though it was about a five hour bus ride. That night was a very special night because Mr. P and his wife returned to the hotel that night; it definitely wasn’t the same without him and his speeches at dinner. It was also the last night with the parents so we all went out for gelato, I don’t think that place has ever had so much business. The next day was definitely a hard one because it was the last day with the parents. During the last lunch together we celebrated Mr. P’s and Dylan’s birthday plus gave a few speeches thanking all those who have helped us so much. After lunch most went out for more gelato, or for a last walk of the town until it was time to say goodbye. Saying bye was definitely emotional even for those without parents on the trip because of how attached we got to each of the parents. The funniest thing that happened was the bus almost left Annamaria behind. Too bad they didn’t; we really miss her. Hopefully she’ll be back in December.

Now that the parent trip is over we’re trying to ease back in to school, went to church and had an extremely quiet dinner. Getting back to our regular schedule isn’t easy, but we’re working on it. Well that’s it for this blog, hope you enjoyed it.

Ciao

We miss you all,

Melissa and Taylor

Reminder: as always, please check out our many photos from the parent trip at www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia


Parents Poem

The parents came, though not for long
It was a trip full of jokes and song
Mr. Di Giovanni with his unending knowledge of facts
And for mixing up Spanish and Italian Dylan’s mom sure has a knack

Michelle’s family has style and grace, always with a smile on their face
And if you need a shopping guide mama Burns has the best taste
Sean’s mom has her rubber jokes
And the taste of mushrooms makes his aunt choke

Claire’s family is happy with ‘corny jokes’
And Katarzyna’s mom being quiet and calm is most definitely a hoax
Alex’s mom bashes twilight and her father plays cards till dawn
And somehow Annamaria always seems to know where to find a Benetton

The Handziuks are stalkarazzi with the kinder and wine
Ms. Parwicki always with the best buys and cutest design
Julia’s family would be the perfect candidates for the amazing race
And even with the littlest Longo, Sam’s family set an extremely fast pace

This trip we retained a lot of knowledge
Took a break from living like we’re in college
We got to know the parents and had a blast
Too bad it couldn’t last

… This was all approved by your children oh and Alex we love your watermelon shoes J


What was your favorite memory from the trip?

Melissa – Last minute shopping in Venice (literally)
Sam Longo- Mask shopping
Sam Davies- Gondola ride
Natalia H.- “That’s what she said” joke at the Trevi Fountain/ Getting bit by the horse in front of the Pantheon
Dylan- Towel warmers in the Hotel Raffaello
Ricker- Gondola ride
Sean- Steak in Florence
Peter- Pizza in Venice/ Villa D’Este
Marisa- Gondola ride or TC
Clarissa- Seeing my cousin for the first time
Julia- Pizza in Rome
Alex- Eating lunch in Florence/ Gondola ride
Chelsea- Petting the horse in front of the Pantheon/ Gondola ride
Heather- Shopping with mom/ Gondola ride
Silvana- Fermo shoe outlet (where I bought my leather boots)
Katarzyna- The first hug
Michelle- The ‘Amazing Race’ through the Gardens with my sister Alex
Claire- Seeing my parents

Oct 5-12

Happy Thanksgiving!!!! Hey everyone its Sam L and Natalia Z. So another week, another blog. Things are continuing to be amazing here. It’s been a fairly normal week schedule wise. We are becoming more immersed in our routine of waking up at 7am, going to breakfast, and leaving for school by 8:15am. We then stay at school until 1:10pm and we usually have a time table of English, Religion & Art history, Classical Civilizations, and then Italian, with different variations if we have a class with the Italian kids. So far we have had two classes with the younger sketch class group, and the grade eleven group. They continue to be entertaining and educational, encouraging us to interact more than we would in a normal Italian class. We have a class scheduled with the sketching group for almost every Wednesday, and the other group on Thursdays, and we have been given more offers for other classes so we will see how that goes.
In the afternoons after school we have lunch which continues to be delicious and fairly unrepetitive. We then we hang out, doing work or watching movies, and going to the gym to work out. Then we have dinner and do much of the same we did in the afternoon in the evening. We continue to go out for gelato and we try to go to the beach if we think it is warm enough. Our weather is holding up fairly well, and in fact today was the first time it’s really poured all day. It’s not very cold here yet, with the weather determinedly sticking above 20°C. We even went in a massive group sun tanning this week. Envious yet?
Cesare, who works for the mayor and gives us guided tours, took us to Fermo on a bus this week. It was pretty fun, minus the constant walking uphill. It’s a strange city, with tiny streets and very old buildings. Although there was a lot of complaining coming from us, because we all wanted to do some shopping, we had a pretty fun night. A few students even made friends with the owners of the little shops. There is a lot of staring coming from the Italians, and it’s quite amusing, actually, how much we amaze them. The teachers here are always telling us that the Italians want to learn English as much as we want to learn Italian.
Today we celebrated thanksgiving at lunch. The owners of the hotel generously made us a turkey, and man that thing was huge! We each got quite a bit to eat. They were concerned about the stuffing, since they don’t usually make turkey, but in our opinion, it was quite delicious and successful. Before we dug in, Dylan led us in the Hail Mary in Italian (by memory!). We also went around the table, with each student saying, in Italian, what we are thankful for. Overall, it was a nice holiday.
Annamaria joined us again last night after being away visiting the other group of kids from Canada, and some of her family and friends here in Italy. We are glad to have her back with us and look forward to spending time with her again. Some of the kids participated in making a thank you card for her and everyone signed it to show our appreciation for everything she’s done for us on this trip.
Mr. Petrolito also left us a few days ago for a family wedding that he must attend. We miss his presence here, but we are somewhat surviving. But we miss his funny jokes, grandfatherly demeanour and random history lessons.
Here’s a list of what each student is thankful for (everyone is thankful for their friends and family but this is a list of other things they are also very grateful for):
1) Kasia: sock slippers
2) Natalia H: Easy Bib and Bears
3) Peter: Newton’s discovery of gravitational acceleration
4) Sean-Patrick: for having the chance to go on this trip
5) Samantha D: the chance to experience a new culture and new country
6) Marisa: Saturday nights
7) Clarissa: New friends, Kinder, Fanta, and Saturdays
8) Julia: Amazing roommates and learning a new language
9) Alexandra: Naps and gelato
10) Ricker: The beach
11) Dylan: Weather over 20°C everyday
12) Silvana: Italy’s delicious gelato
13) Heather: The opportunity to be in Italy and experience new things everyday
14) Chelsea: For having the chance to come from one great country to another
15) Michelle: Internet to connect with people and gelato
16) Claire: The internet to connect with family, friends, and entertain myself
17) Melissa: 5 euro phone cards to contact family
18) Mr. T: Gravol and ear plugs for long Italian bus rides
19) Ms. C: For this experience and for her students
20) Natalia Z: Agendas, iTunes, and books
21) Sam L: Free will

We've been having some difficulty posting this week's photos to our flickr site but please check www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia as of tomorrow (Tuesday) and you'll hopefully have some awesome new photos to view!

Sept 28-Oct 4

Hey, it’s Marisa(a.k.a. Mawiza/Buon Compleano), and Sam (a.k.a Sammie Davis, Jr., Jr.) and we are writing about our amazing and exciting adventures in Italy this week.
This week was so full of interesting and insightful experiences that it is almost hard to name them all. Even though the week started out slow the excitement picked up as the week progressed. We spent the week falling further into our routines, and exploring the city of Porto San Giorgio. This included our daily excursions to the gelaterias and getting our butts kicked by Luciano (fitness instructor). This week he showed us a new spinning move. It was really intense. In summary, this week we were very focused on our studies, but still had time to have fun.
This week was also a major turning point in our social lives with the Italians in the town. On Wednesday we spent our Religion/Art History class with grade nine Italian students, sketching dolls and getting to know some of the students. We also found ourselves at the beach swimming in the beautiful ocean and basking in the warm sun. Later that night, we had one of our famous movie nights. It was a movie completely in Italian... a plot of the teachers to “immerse” us in the language and culture. The movie was about a poor fisherman’s son who got a job as a postman and delivered mail to a famous poet on the top of mountain. For the most part we found this movie enjoyable and heartwarming, even with the heart wrenching ending.
On Thursday we got another wonderful opportunity to meet some more Italian people. This time it was a grade 11 class so we all felt a little more comfortable getting to know the students. We were given conversation starters, such as “Mi chiamo...”(my Name is....) and “Ti piace l’Italia?” (Do you like Italy?). We discovered throughout the class that one or two of the students knew a bit of English but for the most part we had to use our prior knowledge from Italian class to communicate and interact. We’re not saying that our English/Italian dictionaries weren’t used, however we finding ourselves having to use them less and less. On Thursday we also to an chance to see the old ruins of the city. Signor Cesare, who works for the city’s cultural department, showed us the town and led us to see some of Porto San Giorgio’s most beautiful places. First, we visited an old theater with box seating and the most beautiful ceiling (almost as good as Michelangelo... but not quite). We got to go onstage and look out of the tiered windows. After that we got he chance to see an old medieval fort. We had to walk up a very steep hill to get there but in the end it was worth the struggle because the place was absolutely amazing. It was like we had stepped back in time to when Porto San Giorgio was still on the lookout for enemy naval attack. Sng. Cesare told us so many amazing stories about each one of the places we visited throughout the expedition. That night we got back to the hotel just in time for dinner. The teachers decided to surprise us all with a birthday celebration for the September babies (and Natalia Z. because it was her real birthday that day). It was so kind of them; we even got a cake, something we have been deprived of so far.
On Friday, we continued with our normal routine. As well, we discovered new parts of the town. Half of the class their very first Book Chat assignment. People who read “The Pillowman” and “Six Degrees of Separation” got their first taste of what it’s like to have to discuss a book intelligently for two hours with a teacher and other students. The next day “The Tipping Point” and "Freakonomics" readers got the same experience. We met in a gelateria to discuss and analyze our books. Most of us kids weren’t accustomed to this but found it quite enjoyable. We then had the rest of the day to ourselves and most decided to explore the town. Some of us even found a couple of parks in the area providing us with more recreational activities to look forward to. We headed back to the hotel for dinner at 7:00pm even though the beautiful sunny day was beckoning us with its warmth and cool sea breeze.

To those lucky people in Toronto who got to stay inside sleeping all Saturday we were hard at work all day furthering our education. Yes, we know, it’s rough that we have to get up at 7:00am, but it wasn’t all bad. Throughout the week we had been watching a really entraining movie about Julius Caesar’s life and rise to power. Recently the teachers came to the decision that we could all sleep in a bit on Sundays and so instead of church Sunday morning we have church Saturday night. So we attended church (we arrived a bit late because they’d moved the time back half an hour and everyone in town seemed to know this but us!) and after raced back to the hotel for dinner. After dinner was when the night finally came to life. Porto San Giorgio only truly comes to life on Saturday nights, hosting people from the surrounding towns. We went out and had lots of fun with the local kids surprised by how friendly and courteous they were to us.

On Sunday, most of us slept in. Some of us went out for breakfast while others stayed in and enjoyed a slow paced morning. Here at the hotel, we are constantly fed really well, but in my opinion, Sunday’s lunch topped it all. We got the most amazing old fashioned Italian lasagna followed by an apple pie desert. After lunch we were all rushed onto a bus as we set off on another one of our journeys. Destination: Ascoli Piceno. Even though Annamaria wasn’t with us we still managed to find our way around. Once we were there we looked at many magnificent building such as churches and the main city hall. Most of the buildings were worn and historic looking but they aded real charm to the city. We enjoyed the charming little shops encircling the piazza and then wandered throughout the rest of the city. On the ride home we stopped at a shopping center; some of us walked around window shopping while others picked up needed materials like shoes, balls, and clothing. After dinner we had a quiet evening in the hotel, finishing up work due for the next day.

This week in English class we have been learning about the application of poetic language. We have been writing countless poems and reading them to the class. Here is a sample of the talented and amazing Natalia H.’s finest work.

Italy is lots of fun
We get to laugh and play in the sun
We see the culture and taste gelato
We even learned to count to otto
The tours here are very enlightening
Even though some paintings and sculptures are frightening
We go to know the greats Michelangelo and Bernini
We have had great food like tortellini
This week we learned to write in verse
And with Italians we did converse
We got insight into Julius Caesar
We’re straight up g’s so we didn’t listen to Weezer
We all miss our families very much
But we are making friends and such
We hope you miss us too
Because we truly miss you through an through

I is for inspiring
T is for tours
A is for amazing
L is for language
Y is for young and restless

Isn’t she skilled? The next Dante Alighieri? :)

We also got back a bunch of tests and quizzes, including our Dettatos ( Spelling tests) and Unit tests for Italian. We wrote a Religion/Art History test about Ancient Rome and looked deeply into the historical aspects of Ancient Rome in Classical Civilizations. One day in English we did a “Blind Walk”, were you walk around the school area talking turns closing your eyes while your partner guides you. We got to write a poem about it after and they turned out really well. We also experimented with writing Odes and Elegies.

Of course over these past weeks we have been missing our families, friends and pets immensely, but Sam and I were wondering what Canadian comforts everyone missed most from back home. We did a survey and this is what we got:

Samantha L. misses locks on the bathroom doors and skating
Heather misses her bed, steak and granola crunchies
Ricker misses T.V. in english and going to see movies.
Dylan misses his Boston Red Sox blanket
Sean misses his bed
Clarissa misses gymnastics
Silvana misses family dinners and her mom’s homemade soup
Michelle misses having an organized place to live.
Claire misses dance class and T.V.
Natalia H. misses Pillsbury Cookie dough
Kasia misses perogies
Peter misses his shower
Julia misses The Food Network
Melissa misses her bed
Chelsea misses Criminal Minds
Natalia Z. misses all her books at home
Alex misses her pillow
Taylor misses apple juice
Samantha D. misses her guitar
Marisa misses internet in her room

And it’s not just the students here feeling a bit homesick, the teachers miss stuff too.

Mr. P misses his car, because he likes to get from place to place whenever he feels like it.
Mr. T. misses Tim Horton’s because he is a true Canadian.
Ms. C. Misses high speed internet because the internet is so slow here.

As always, please be sure to check out our new photos (we posted 58 new ones this week!) at: www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Ciao for now everyone!