From the Fields to Florence

        Monday the 24^th was a day filled with classes, and not much else. That night the group had a movie night and watched Moonrise Kingdom in the croft. It was also Danny and Mike’s first day of work study.

        Tuesday was work day. This week, Nick had the girls preparing the Vernatsch vineyard up the hill by again removing the grapes spoiled by the vinegar flies and bees. The boys went with Jon, one of the farm hands, and planted chestnut trees.

 They said it was really tough work, as they were planting them on a steep slope riddled with rocks that they had to break through. After a hearty lunch, I went back with Ashley, Jon’s girlfriend, to pick more bad grapes from the vine. The rest of the group collected chestnuts. After dinner, the group retired to the croft and relaxed after a hard day.

        Wednesday morning was filled with class, and instructions on what to visit and do while in Florence. We received our extra money from Gloria and got instructions about the early train departure the next day from Tony. In class, after reading Canto XIII, which most of us declared to be our favorite so far; Mary strongly encouraged us to see Santa Croce, “If you do not go see this church, I will have to skin you!” She was only halfway serious.

        That afternoon, most of us read for Sizzo’s class and hung our fresh laundry out to dry in the croft because it was sprinkling outside. The work-studies had the pleasure of cleaning the chicken coop and harvesting more chestnuts, needless to say they enjoyed every second of it. After our night class, the group decided to go out for dinner before we cleaned the croft to prepare for our departure.
The walk to the pizzeria had an amazing view after the storm and it turned out to be a great dinner.

        Thursday was the beginning of our trip for Florence. We had an early car ride to the train station (5:15) and were able to find the right platform and train number without too much trouble. Then we rode the train from Meran to Bolzano, and switched trains in order to go all the way to Florence.

        We arrived at Florence around 12pm and then walked to our hostel, Plus Florence, which took us about 45 minutes. After we paid for the rooms, and put our luggage in the storage room, because check in was at 3pm, we walked around the city while Tony and Gloria checked into their hotel. On our walk, we arrived at Piazza della Repubblica to find a stage set up for later on that night when Iggy and the Three Stooges would be playing. We also found an interesting second hand store, Melrose Vintage Store, which sold some great things. Then we found our way back to the hostel where we moved into our rooms, took naps, showered, and got ready to go out for the night.

        We started out the night by eating in the hostel’s restaurant, and then went out to explore the streets of Florence. We stopped at any place that struck our fancy, and went down many small streets and stopped at a lot of small shops and restaurants. Our first big destination was the Iggy and the Three Stooges concert.

   The free concert was packed with people and we held hands to avoid being separated as we push through the crowd. We stayed for about an hour and got to hear some great songs. After the concert, we walked around the Duomo and marveled at the architecture of the church. After this, we went to the club Twice, which was filled with tourists and locals alike. We only stayed for a little while because of the group trip which was planned for the morning.

        Friday, we had an early wake up call at 8 for our group trip to the Accademia. Unfortunately when we got there, we learned that the public workers were on strike, so it was closed for the day. So instead, we used our money to climb to the top of Brunnelechi’s dome, which is part of the Santa Maria Cathedral.

        After the amazing view from the top (436 steps) and seeing the spectacular frescoed ceiling, which we stood and studied for about 30 minutes, we decided to eat lunch. We went to the Oil Shoppe, it was a great place with unique sandwiches and everyone really enjoyed their sandwich. After lunch, we walked around the mercantile area and saw the famous Ponte Vecchio bridge with all of the jewelry shops.

        That night, the group split up men and women and had fun walking the streets and talking to the locals in broken Italian and English. The boys stopped by a small church and enjoyed a live organ performance, while the girls stopped in different squares and observed the locals in action. Both groups went to a club and stayed for a little while before going back to the hostel to get some rest.

        Saturday was our day to explore by ourselves. Sebastian, Mike, Danny, and Megan all explored the streets of Florence while Amber and I accompanied the Cates and went to both the Accademia Gallery and the Uffizi Gallery. Both of the Galleries were free because of European Heritage Days, and the only drawback was waiting almost three hours in line at both places.

        The Accademia Gallery http://193.42.139.9/english/musei/accademia/ is home to Michelangleo’s the Prisoners, St. Matthew, and of course David. All of these works were breathtaking to see in person, especially David. There are also many religious paintings, a large collection of sculptures in plaster by Bartolini and Pampaloni, and even a collection of old musical instruments, which were very interesting. There even was a "Joke David" when you exited the Accademia, and you were allowed to take pictures there, unlike the rest of the real exhibits.

       The Uffizi Gallery www.uffizi.com was huge. There are 45 rooms, all filled with splendid artwork. The list of paintings that took my breath away is too long to add here, but it truly was a wonderful experience. In both museums there were plenty of tour guides to eavesdrop on, so it is easy to learn some pretty interesting things about the art if you listen. 

        When Amber and I finally returned back to the hostel it was 7:30pm, and we were exhausted because we had left for the Accademia at 8:30 that morning. We were lucky enough to catch the rest of the group in the room and were able to hear about their exciting day. They had found many shops and even returned to the Melrose Vintage Store in order to purchase a few deals they had seen there.

        After a quick nap, the group, besides Amber, decided to go out and try to find the club that a local had told us about. It is called Tabasco, and is located in the crypt of Saint Cecilia, its cavernous interior is filled with a combination of antique statues, frescoed ceilings, and a fully functioning well from medieval times. Tabasco’s antiquities collide with modern accents to create a unique vibe and everyone who went loved it.

        Sunday was a day of travel, with two trains and a bus back to Dorf Tirol. We arrived back at the croft around 3pm and napped or unpacked for the remainder of the night.

 

Submitted by: Ramsey Vogt

 

 

Harvesting and Celebrating

  


Monday, September 17 classes began again. Our German class was at 9:00 a.m. with Michi followed by Education 390 and then class with Mary learning of The Cantos by Ezra Pound. Unfortunately classes this week with Sizzo were all canceled. At twelve was an amazingly delicious lunch--weinerschnitzel with potatoes-- prepared by Graciella who filled in for Brigette this week. Later in the day, we witnessed the new born lamb, the newest edition to the family, walking around with its mother. It was a precious sight.

Tuesday, September 18 was our second work day, which was quite exciting for we all were able to harvest the grapes from the vineyards. Harvesting took us most of day but it was rewarding for we were all able to witness once again the process of making the wine.

 

Nick explaining how to harvest the grapes

Later that day harvesting

the making of the wine

 

Wednesday September 19. We had classes again. There was no class with Michi or Sizzo. We were supposed to travel to cup stones which are located up the mountain but unfortunately this trip was postponed due to the rainy weather than day.

Thursday September 20. We had our last day of classes for this week. After lunch, with not much to do and in anticipation for Amber's birthday, which was the following day, we all went up to town to get celebratory dinner ingredients at a local store. That night Ramsey made us the most delicious patty melts.

Friday September 21. We all celebrated Amber's 22nd birthday! We began our day by heading up to Dorf Tirol to grab some burgers and fries from the Wurstel Stand. Then we proceeded down the mountain heading towards Merano to spend the day in the city shopping.. We rode the chair lift down of course from Dorf Tirol to Merano which is always a fun experience. In the city we explored the market that takes place every Friday. Later that evening, we all continued to celebrate Amber's birthday by going out to a local club. It is interesting because we always are meeting new people everywhere we go.

Downtown Merano

 

Amber's Birthday gift--Chocolates!

At the Burger Stand

 

Saturday September 22. Professor Cates and his wife Gloria went to Bozen/Bolzano in preparation for our trip to Florence. They rode the train from Merano to Bozen to research the schedule and train tracks to make sure we get the right connection to Florence next week. They toured and explored the town while they were there.  We stayed at the castle studying and relaxing in our croft.

 







 

 

 

Submitted by: Megan Jolly

 



 



The Beginning of an Exciting Journey

Michi teaching his crash course in German and Italian class.

     Monday, September 10, was the first day of class. We are going to be taking five classes over the three months in Italy. Starting at 9:00 every Monday and Thursday we have a crash course in German and Italian with Michael de Rachewiltz. So far we have learned how to introduce ourselves and say where we are from. Every bit helps when you are placed in an environment where barely anyone speaks English. Next, at 10:00 we have education in the United States and Europe with Professor Cates. Here we learn about the education systems in all the different countries in Europe in comparison to the United States. At 11:00 we have class with Mary de Rachewiltz where we learn about how to read and understand poetry. We also learn about the life of Ezra Pound and his ever so interesting life. Finally we have Myth and Agro-archeology where we learn about the world and how everything relates to each other. All the classes are very interesting and the professors that teach them have so much knowledge to share with us

 

     Tuesday, September 11, was the first of our Tuesday work days. The group was split into two, the boys ended up going to a vineyard in the mountain to pick grapes to be made into wine that night and the girls along with Professor Cates and Mrs. Cates had to pick bug infested grapes out of the vines.

 

 

Sebastian harvesting the grapes picked earlier that day.

 

 

Processed grapes.

 Michael picking grapes in the vineyard.

 

 

     Wednesday, September 12, was a fun day because for class we had a wine tasting for the Myth and Archeology class with Sizzo. We learned about the culture and mythology associated with wine. We learned how to tell the difference between wines and how to explain the qualities of wine. The most interesting part of the tasting was when it came down to describing the wine using your five senses. It is an interesting form of art that teaches you how to appreciate wine and look at it more than just a beverage.

     After our wine tasting the group decided to go out and eat for the first time since we arrived the previous Wednesday. The restaurant we chose was called Pizzaria Lindenwirt where we had delicious brick oven pizza and an ice cold Coca-Cola.  





                        The Group after our wine tasting.

 Delicious Pizza

 

 

     Thursday, September 13, Professor and Mrs. Cates went to the train station in Mirano to purchase the train tickets for our upcoming group trip to Florence, Italy.  

     Friday, September 14, The group went to the flea market in the city of Mirano. There we stopped at a restaurant to have lunch after the long day of walking and shopping. We went to a few stores like H&M and a bunch of boutiques for clothing shopping.

 

 

                                                                Sun glasses everyone purchased at the Flea Market on Friday.

 

     Saturday, September 15, was a fun day for everyone. Sebastian, Ramsey, and Megan went to a waterfall about 15 minutes away for a swim.





 

After swimming Professor Cates took the group out for dinner at another local Pizzeria in town where the group had a satisfying meal.



     After dinner the group went for a night out on the town. We went to a night club called Club X and had a great time dancing and socializing with the locals.

 

     Sunday, September 16, was a relaxing day. To cap off the busy week we had tea with Mary at 4:00. We finished our week with completing homework and other assignments in the afternoon.

Submitted by : Daniel Iovino-Ortiz

Once in a Lifetime Adventure

 Monday, September 6, 2012 at 1:30pm we all gathered in front of Belk to load up in the van and depart for the airport; Dr. Glass and Brian were our two selected drivers.
 From left to right:
Amber, Megan, Ramsey, Mike, Danny and Sebastian.  

Our first stop was Dunkin Donuts, where  Dr.  Glass bought everyone anything they wanted. Thank you Dr. Glass! :)

~Amber & Ramsey

 Our trip was not the easiest of them all, we had multiple complications. Starting with our flight getting delayed from RDU to London, passports and ticket mishaps, to possibly a plane strike in London. We originally were supposed to depart from RDU at 6:15 but unfortunately we did not depart till 9:30 allowing us to arrive in London at  10:15am (5 hours ahead of NC) we left London at 3pm then arriving in Munich 6pm (6 hours ahead of NC). Going through a great excursion of trying to get to our luggage and find our driver which took about two hours. We had to go through security to get to our luggage and then through customs and just my luck I was the one who got chose to be searched. They tore my bags apart, I can now look back and laugh about this moment.

The group leaving RDU!

I don't wanna fly!

Danny and Ramsey sleeping waiting to get on the plane for Munich.

Riding the bus to the other side of the airport in London.

Once we found our driver, now 8pm we loaded up and headed to the castle. We all were very exhausted and wanted to sleep in a real bed and not a chair. The drive was pretty scary going through the extremely small roads to the castle.

About to land in London.

Since being at the castle for a week we have taken a day trip to see Dorf Tirol and Merano which was a 10 mile hike there and back. Went to the Friday market in Merano which is were people sell clothes, shoes, bread, etc. As well as visiting the Dolomite's and the glaciers.

Our first allowance!

Our hike through Dorf Tirol.

Listening to what Michi is saying.

In the city of Merano.

Heading to Merano.

Megan, Mike and Ramsey eating gelato ( ice cream).

Yesterday, September 8, we all took a group trip to the Dolomite's. That was one amazing trip I think we all will never forget, between the two hour car trip up the mountains whipping through the turns like they were nothing, hiking on top of the Dolomite's and taking a class with Michi while sitting near the edge of the Dolomite's listening to geological stories. After we had class at the Dolomite's we all decided to go to the glaciers. That definitely is something we will always remember. We took a trolley to the top of the glaciers which was about a 5 minute ride of standing up on a scary cart. Once there we hiked to the top to see the glorious glaciers it was chilly but also hot with the sun shining down. After we experienced the glaciers we had the option to take the trolley back down or hike down the side of the mountain which would have been an hour and forty-five minute tremendous walk. Megan, Ramsey, myself, as well as Michi and Johnny (our farm helper) chose to hike down. It was a life time experience that I'm glad I chose to do. We completed the hike in 45 minutes!! Once at the bottom our legs were shaky and our feet in much pain. But it was well worth it. We stopped at the local grocery store grabbed some food because most things are closed on Sundays, and all crashed once back in the loft.

The group having class on top of the Dolomite's

Funny pose!

Ramsey and I hiking up to the Glaciers

Finally at the glaciers! Hope you enjoyed our week journey!

Our first week here has been amazing and it will only get better from here.

Submitted by: Amber Hicks

Ready, Set,....... Brunnenburg 2012 here we come!

Pictured above:  (Left to right) Professor Tony Cates, Gloria Cates, Danny Iovino-Ortiz, Sebastian Ray, Amber Hicks, Megan Jolly, Ramsey Vogt, and Michael Iannuzzi.

We had our last organizational meeting tonight.  Everyone is excited and ready to go.  We talked about last minute details (passports, health forms, transportation, travel tips, etc).  Everyone will meet at SAU on Monday, September 3, 2012 with all their luggage in hand.  We will be leaving Raleigh-Durham International Airport about 6:20 pm and arrive in London around 6:55 am.  From there we will fly to Munich, Germany and then take a bus to Brunnenburg, Italy.  We hope everyone will follow our adventures as we travel abroad this semester.  We will be keeping you posted about where we go and what we will be doing.  Stay tuned!!  Arrivederci !