May 22 - Katrina Baber & Emma Accardi

Today was our last day in Florence and our first day in Castiglione della Stiviere. To celebrate the beginning of our time in a new city, we were given a tour by local high school students. Mickey and I got to speak a lot more with high schooler Sophia, who spoke English with a British accent because she learned a lot of her colloquial vocabulary from watching British television. Because I love history and how cultures and nations develop over time, it was great to be able to ask her questions about her curriculum, what they learn in school about the formation of Italy, and the current economic and political happenings. I learned that Italy as we know it is actually a lot younger than I ever realized, and that the wars of independence actually bleed into the era of WWI. We were able to discuss how different economic decisions affect students in America compared to Italy, and what graduate school is like. One thing that stuck out to me was how she very strongly believed in higher education, but also seemed to believe that the majority of Italian students pursuing that will end up in jobs unrelated to their studies, such as waitressing. While I don't know what the situation is with the job market here, the mentality she had about it is something I recognized as something I always thought was American--the idea that youth will have a much harder go of it trying to get jobs than their predecessors. However, it made me realize that this was a much more universal issue than I recognized; it was really interesting to see that attitude outside of the states.

One side note from today that is a little funny is that when the bus stopped for lunch at a rest stop, I got on the wrong one by accident. A similar bus had pulled up in front of ours and I got on that one by mistake. It was full of Italian and French people who were welcoming and very amused. I didn't stay despite their offers to hang out with them, but they were fun and enjoyed my broken Italian.

-Katrina Baber

Since today was our last day in Florence, that meant that we had a swanky bus for us to spend the duration of the trip to Castiglione delle Stiviere inside. I was asleep most of the time, which is obviously very interesting and important. Midway through the drive, we stopped at a rest stop along the way, which was very spacious and contained several places to eat, as well as a market. We wondered why our rest stops back in the States weren't nearly as good as this one.

When we arrived, we put our stuff in the hotel and walked 20 minutes downhill to town. It was during this walk that many of us realized that while it was downhill now, coming back to the hotel would be uphill. We met some local students here who proceeded to lead us on walking tours of the town. It was very warm, but boy is this place beautiful. Back in Florence, I do not remember seeing a single patch of grass or a wild tree. Here, more of nature is allowed to be. Generally, one of my favorite parts of travelling is to discover new flora of the area. I've found here in Castiglione delle Stiviere, that the flora is similar to home. It's almost disorienting, because I'll feel a rush of familiarity at a woodsy scenery, then look a little closer and realize that I actually recognize none of the plants, except the invasive species (I'm learning that English Ivy really is everywhere). One of my favorite parts about this region is the poppies. I don't think I've ever seen wild poppies before, but here they grow in clumps on the sides of hills and streets and burst a bright red against the constant green and brown of the rest of the scenery. The closest thing I can think of back home would be roses, but those aren't usually wild and don't give off the same butterfly-wing fluttering springtime spirit as the wild poppies seem to radiate.

The walk back was uphill, and the sun was shining. It wasn't exactly the most leisurely walk I've ever gone for, however, I have a feeling I'll sleep very well tonight. Considering I took a 30 minute nap and woke up and suddenly the laptop was in front of me, I'm excited to sleep for the rest of the night. :-)))

- Emma Accardi