A special big thanks to Rotary districts 7750 and 2060! You guys have truly become my family! I knew the first time that I meet you that I was welcomed! Thank you !!!
When I first started this journey, 10 months seemed like such a long time. Now I'm six months in and have a little less than 4 months left. Time flies. I've seen more of Italy than I ever dreamed of, I've meet life long friends, and tasted delicious food! Thinking about saying goodbye is heartbreaking! I've been blessed with an amazing host family and an amazing district! These next four months I hope to make many, many, many more memories with you guys!!! I love you!
Ti voglio bene e grazie infinite!!!❤❤
Napoli/Pompeii
Two weekends ago I had the amazing opportunity to go on a trip to Napoli and Pompeii!
This trip was most definitely one for the books!
Let me start from the beginning...
So we left Udine at 8:30 to catch the bus, which was waiting at Palmnova. We got on the bus at 9 o'clock. At around 1 o'clock we got the news that the road we had to take was closed due to the "Big Snow." So we took a detour. The detour was all good, just a little rain and a lot of wind. It was all good till we got to the longest bridge I've ever seen in my life! It was a bridge that a lake on both sides. Now had it been a nice sunny day, there would've been no problem crossing this bridge, however that was not the cause. It was pouring the rain and windy as ever! So we waited for at least 20 minutes before the bus driver finally decided to cross it. It took us 30+ minutes to get across this bridge. There was a tractor trailer that had flipped over on the bridge into the water. It was bad. However I think the driver was okay.
Once we finally got to Bologna around 3, we saw the snow...
I'm from the south, so to me 6 inches of snow is A LOT of snow! Never in my life have I seen 3 feet of snow! I was like a 5 year old child! We had snowball fights and made snow angels.
We hit another accident on the way, but this time we stopped for 2 hours! We finally arrived in Pompeii at 2 in the morning! Got checked-in and in our rooms, and then we realized that no one was tired, so we went for a walk. We finally went to bed at around 3:30ish.
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| This is a 139 year old church in the main pizzia of Pompeii |
The next day we were up early and off for a day in Pompeii. It was spectacular! We only had about 2 and half hours inside. So we didn't get to see very much. However what we did see was beautiful!
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| This was Pompeii's arena. Where people fought against people and animals. |
Researchers believe that the town was founded in the seventh or sixth century BC by the Osci. It came under the domination of Rome in the 4th century BC, and was conquered and became a Roman colony in 80 BC after it joined an unsuccessful rebellion against the Roman Republic. By the time of it's destruction, 160 years later, its population was approximately 11,000 people, and the city had a complex water system, an amphitheatre, gymnasium and a port.
The eruption destroyed the city, killing its inhabitants and burying it under tons of ash. Evidence for the destruction originally came from a surviving letter by Pliny the Younger, who saw the eruption from a distance and described the death of his uncle Pliny the Elder, an admiral of the Roman fleet, who tried to rescue citizens. The site was lost for about 1,500 years until its initial rediscovery in 1599 and broader rediscovery almost 150 years later by Spanish engineer Rocque Joaquin de Alcubierre in 1748.
The objects that lay beneath the city have been well-preserved for centuries because of the lack of air and moisture.
During the excavation, plaster was used to fill in the voids in the ash layers that once held human bodies. This allowed one to see the exact position the person was in when he or she died.
Pompeii fun fact: The reason that they had sort of stepping stones in between the streetwise because back in the day, they didn't have plumbing systems, so all there waste went straight to the streets. So they put in stepping stones, so people didn't have to step in waste.
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| Finally made it to the top! Me featuring the famous Mt. Vesuvius |
The next day we were off at 9. Our first stop was Napoli. We only had till 12 because we had to go home that day too:(
Napoli is a very peculiar city. For some reason it reminded me kinda of alley ways in New York.
Okay so here are just a few group photos from that weekend...
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| We found a Rotary Tree!! |
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| I've taken a liken to yoga. |
I also turned 17! Best birthday ever! I had my favorite pizza for lunch, and my host mom made hamburgers and potatoes for me:) Carnival
So Carnival is a huge festival in northern Italy. It's like the Italian Marti Gras. We had a carnival day at school and tons of people dressed up for the occasion. It was an interesting day!
Then on Saturday after school I had the opportunity to see carnival in Venice! It was amazingly beautiful! Everyone had on costumes and mask.
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| Of Course we had to dress up for the party! We all decided to be mimes |
The next day for lunch we decided we would eat healthy. We had chicken salad with apples, and pasta pomodoro! It wasn't gourmet, but it was good!
Then it was time to depart.
Just a few more photos from carnival in Venice
~Future Exchangers~
By now you guys know which country your going to and some of you may even know which city. I'm so excited for you guys and can't wait to meet some of you guys! I hope you guys are prepared for the best year of your life! I hope you're prepared to change and gain a different understanding of the world.
Since I only have 4 months left here in Italy, that means your guys exchange is right around the corner. So if you guys have any questions, or something you'd like to know email ( baberuthgirl@gmail.com ) me and I'll be glad to talk to you!
Get ready your adventure is about to begin!
Ciao Ciao Ci vediamo a presto !
Bye bye see you soon!
Wonderful pics and great that you are having such a remarkable year. The snow is really amazing.
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