Day 3: Orientation and Tour

May 25th, 2012 (Originally posted May 30)

On way to university, met at cafe on the corner

University. learned about quiet hours, business hours, busses and trains

Break

After our break, the photography professor, Peter, took us on a walking tour of Verona, which he has visited many times before. We first walked to Piazza Erbe like we had the day before, but then we took a left, onto a shopping street paved with marble! There are many high-end clothing shops, a lot like Newbury Street (or at least, I think so). Also, people walk their dogs everywhere! This includes the marble streets and into the clothing stores. Naturally, when you take pets out in public, they will have to do their business, and in Verona they do it on the streets. Yuck. If you are lucky enough to visit Verona in the future, you have been warned. Also, I have to wonder what the unfortunate people with dog allergies do. They must either lock themselves indoors or take really heavy medication, because they are unavoidable here.

Street performers are really popular here. One man dressed as a Roman soldier came up to my group and did some role playing with Julia. I got pictures of one man who was frozen in time, with his tie and jacket thrown out behind him like he was in a rush! I would have thought he was a statue, but he sloooowly turned his head to smile at us (it was really creepy).

Keep in mind that this man is standing absolutely still! His tie and jacket are positioned to stay like that, and his hat is on the ground for money. I can't imagine how bad his back leg must hurt.

These two are also street performers; an Egyptian mummy and the Statue of Liberty (didn't quite get the color right, though)!

At the opposite end of the street was Piazza Bra, the largest and busiest piazza in Verona, which is built around the Roman Arena! When it was built in 30 AD (!!!), the arena was outside the city, but now, it's close to the center. It is one of the best-preserved ancient structures of all time, and has many operas and concerts there every year (Justin Bieber is singing on Saturday, June 2nd as part of Italy's independence day festivities)! If you want to read a little more on it, I'd suggest Wikipedia.

 As a side note, I can hear church bells ringing as I write this entre. Cool!

Across the piazza we found my favorite gelato place, which I think is better than Federica's favorite. Their gelato is creamier. Yum!

To be continued!!!
Castle, up the hill, took pictures of the city from above

Day 2: Buon Giorno, Verona!

This is a continuation of Day 2 (May 24, 2012), when we got to the city:

After meeting Fedrica, we were assigned our apartments and given a little time to unpack (which I spent on skype) before assembling at our meeting place across the Fiume Adige, the river that runs through Verona. We meet underneath a tree behind San Fermo, one of the many Veronese cathedrals. Our first stop was the "bancomat"-very easily translated. Sounds like laundromat, but it's an ATM machine. To get to the bancomat, we first walked up a beautifully Italian cobblestone street. All the houses in the city are painted different colors like pink and yellow, and most have small balconies on each floor with potted plants, causing my group of photo and art students to stop every few feet and snap pictures like maniacal tourists (myself included).

When we saw this little outdoor cafe my entire group wanted to stop and eat there, but Federica confided with us that the food is not very good. What a shame :( She said she heard that they use frozen fish, and her expression of disgust was enough to make me frown on frozen fish too. We actually passed by the cafe later in the evening, but I added it here to get across the general atmosphere of the city. These kinds of places are everywhere!

One of the very first sights that we saw as we walked up the cobblestone street was this giant hole in the ground. I could see that it wasn't a fountain (there are many in the city) and was confused until Peter, the photography teacher, explained that it is the foundation from the ancient Roman city-two meters below the street! I learned that most of the Roman city, including it's paved streets, is intact about 2-6 meters below the present-day structures, and many houses are built on top of Roman archetecture. So cool!

Just a stone's throw away, we passed another ancient attraction: The Roman arch "Porta Leoni" that marked the entrance to the city! There are many, many archways in Verona, but this one was built during the Roman Republic, between 509-27 BC! That's before Jesus was born! Ahhh! It is also unique because the archetect carved his name on it, which was unheard of at that time. The base of Porta Leoni is underground, so there is a railing to ensure that viewers (and photography students) don't fall down the hole.

And right after that, we stumbed upon Juliet's balcony! If you've ever seen the movie "Letters to Juliet," you'll know where I'm talking about, only it's not as pretty in real life. I didn't know what it was at first because it looked absolutely disgusting from the street. Thousands, maybe even millions, of pieces of gum are stuck to the walls (some are shaped like hearts, I think), and hold love notes written to Juliet. Those without paper and pen just write with sharpies on whatever surface they can find. Obviously it's not a historical sight, since Shakespeare's famous story is a work of fiction, but in 1936 the house had a balcony built over the courtyard and declared itself to be "Juliet's House." What a money-making move! The courtyard and balcony have been a major tourist attraction ever since.  I didn't get a picture yet, since the crowds outside were so thick, but I plan to go back [I did on May 28th, day 6]. My roommate, Julia, goes running in the morning with several other kids, and they stumbled upon the courtyard just as it was opening at 8:30am, before the tourists came. I plan to get up early and visit later this week. Then I'll have lots of pictures for you!

In all actuality, the walk from the church to the bancomat was probably 5 minutes, but there was so much to see! And when we finally reached the plazza where the bancomat was located, I could hardly think of anything but the beautiful city I was in! We had walked straight up the road into Piazza (delle) Erbe, the most beautiful market I had (and have) ever seen! Piazza Erbe is a tradesman's market, with lots of booths set up under shady umbrellas, and nestled within the old City Hall, scores of outdoor cafes, and this building with the most wonderful outdoor frescos! It was so crowded, however, that I couldn't get a good picture of the piazza as a whole. But I did get the frescos that I love so much! These cover the second and third levels of the building, while the ground floor is lined with busy outdoor cafes.

After everyone in the group had a few euros in their pockets, we marched onward to get . . . drumroll please . . . GELATO! There are gelato places everywhere, but Federica showed us her favorite place to go. I got strawberry and blueberry on a cone, which was heavenly!!!! It's not too sweet (so I can eat more of it), and doesn't make me thirsty like American ice cream does. I don't know why I haven't gotten gelato every day since then!

To get gelato, we walked along side the river, and I took this picture. There are two Roman arenas in the city, and you can see the older of the two on the hill yonder (in the center of the picture). I've been told that on occasion, the Romans would open up a channel from the river and hold gladiator fights there on floating rafts.

Believe it or not, we actually ate dinner after having gelato, haha! We marched across the city and into a small bar where Federica had reserved paninis for all of us. Turns out, in Italy "panini" or "panino" are words for sandwich, not just the grilled ones we Americans love so much. The paninis at the bar turned out to be literally loaves of bread (the long ones), with one layer of ham and one layer of cheese inside. They were monstrous. And the bread was tough. I think we gave our jaws a workout every time we took a bite!

Also during dinner, someone asked what the date was so they could set their watch and I answered that it was the 24th because it was my birthday! Everyone was astonished that I hadn't said anything yet, and they all wish me a happy birthday. Federica even lifted me off the ground!

After dinner, which we finished around 7, Peter and Federica made us promise to stay up as late as we could to combat the jet lag. They said we couldn't go to sleep until at least 8 or 9. I think I made it until 10 though, and was really proud of myself. I was exhausted and I slept pretty good, even with the terrible, terrible traffic noise from under my window. Also, my roomate, Julia (Julie & Julia!), remembered that I had a birthday during the trip, and brought chocolate to share with me! So we ate chocolate hearts on my first night in Verona :)

This picture is not one of mine. This belongs to Anna Latino, and was taken right after we got gelato together! Another girl, Jessica Voas, has a photo blog, so you can view her more professional-looking photography (she's a photo major) as well! Just click here or visit http://jessicavoas.myfotojournal.com.

 

Originally published May 28, 2012

Days 1&2: Flight

Buon giorno! I FIXED IT!!! Turns out there was one particular button that had to be set to English, which I found on Saturday. Since then I've been writing feverishly to cover everything that's happened on the trip. Yay!

We arrived in Verona on Thursday (happy birthday to me!) around 3pm Italian time (9am EST) after two flights and a long bus ride. The group went through Logan together, which was nice since I was really nervous about flying again and having to do it on my own. Of course, my carry-on bag got pulled out at security because I forgot to put my brand-new bottle of face wash in my checked luggage. I had them throw it out rather than check my second bag. Now I know for next time.

Before getting on the plane I bought a roast beef & cheddar sandwich with a bottle of water. It was delish. And I have generously provided a mouth-watering professional-looking photograph of it for your stomach's viewing pleasure (You'd better enjoy it. I looked super silly taking it in the airport):



We took Aer Lingus from Boston-Dublin first, which was very enjoyable! I was so excited to feel the plane take off, and I loved watching out the window! I think I was supposed to have a window seat, but I wasn't sure, so another person in my group, Pat, sat near the window, and we switched during the night so I could lean on the wall to sleep, haha. The first thing I did after we took off was browse the TV and movie listings, and I finally watched The Artist, which I greatly enjoyed! I kept thinking that the drinks should be shaking, or pencils rolling off the tables depending on what the plane was doing at the time. Then I would remember that I was watching a movie.

I took notes mid-flight, so I'm going to write them down for you. The TV screen in front of me also had the flight details, which I thought was really cool!

Wed, May 23rd.
Aer Lingus at 9:45pm EST (2:46am Dublin time). 3 hrs left to go. -77 degrees F outside. 569 mph ground speed. Either 11277 miles or kilometers high [I forget]. Good airplane food. Had chicken and rice [so hot that Pat burned his mouth], tiny salad, cheese and crackers, roll, brownie, coffee or tea. Met several more people. Pat is dying-no ESPN, can't watch the Celtics game. Finally watched The Artist! Most of the movie selections are rated R-weird? and disappointing. Started watching documentary on coke franchise, then remembered that I should be sleeping or trying to expand my severely limited Italian vocabulary [yes, I actually wrote that in my short-hand notes. And no, I have not been studying]. Did you know that coke is sold in more countries than are part of the United Nations? They claim they reach 90% of the world's population [also taken directly from my notes]. Trying to sleep now. Goodnight family. Goodnight Zach. Ciao! [P.S. Saved brownie and cheese & crackers for later, but I didn't trust the cheese after being in my backpack for the next few hours. I had the brownie for breakfast].

These are pics from the first plane ride from Logan to Dublin! You can see the clouds, and then the Irish farmland when we got lower! On the second flight to Milan, the view was even better, but I was two seats away from the window, and didn't want to be rude. The best part? We flew over the Alps in broad daylight, which was magnificent!

Before taking off from Logan, our plane needed some kind of repairs, so we left almost an hour late. It didn't seem to be a problem, but when we landed in Dublin we had to run through customs as fast as we could to catch the plane to Milan. And customs made me throw out my water bottle. I was really thirsty already and the Dublin-Milan plane ride charged 2 euro for water. Should I have bought the water? Probably. But I would have finished my bottle before customs if I had known! Besides the charge for everything, the second flight was on a smaller Aer Lingus plane, and so cramped that I can hardly imagine someone bigger than myself sitting comfortably! You probably want to know if I slept on either flight, right? Well I am happy to report that yes, I did fall asleep for an hour on the first flight (and was awoken with orange juice for breakfast!). The second trip was a different story; Being so cramped, I couldn't get comfortable, so I laid my head on the dinner tray which worked well until the person in front of me (my professor) reclined their seat into my head. I also had a terrible ear ache from the change in pressure-first in one ear, then the other. I could feel it for several more hours when I opened my mouth. I was glad when that flight was over.

This is the view out of my window when we arrived at the Dublin airport (in case you couldn't tell where we were)!

We got off the plane, went through the Milan airport, grabbed our luggage and then took a 2ish hour (or more, I lots track of time) bus ride from Milan to Verona. This was my favorite part because (1) we had the bus to ourselves and could spread out, (2) the seats were more comfortable than either plane, (3) I could sleep (if I wanted to) and (4) the countryside was beautiful!  Bright red poppies grow everywhere in Italy, or at least where I've traveled, and buildings really do look like the stereotypical, pastel colored, 3-4 story houses with iron-rail balconies, potted plants and red tile roofs! Also, I finally made those Italian flashcards.

This is my first view of Verona! Cool, huh. All of these pictures are taken from inside the bus. I live just a minute's walk away from the bridge we are on (notice there are no boats on the water. That will be very important in a later post).

When we got to the city we met Federica, our site director. She is very high-energy, but I guess she has to be to keep up with all of the college students she oversees. She brought us to our apartments, dropped us all off and showed everyone around their rooms. More about my room and my first day in Verona coming soon!


P.S. This is posted May 27 @ 11pm (23:00) Italian time

Um . . . This may take a while . . .

May 25, 2012

Hi everyone,
I've been trying to write a post for a while now, but I'm having some unexpected problems with blogger. Despite having my language settings set to "English - US," google automatically switches search results, links, and blogger links to Italian, making navagation almost impossible. Looks like I'll have to translate the website word-for-word. Bear with me while I try to figure this out . . . some more.

Ciao!

Intern, Alum and Traveler, Oh My!

It is true that time flies! I have been so busy the last few weeks that you may have wondered if I fell off the earth. I am happy to report that I have not (though I am recovering from a cold).

I am also happy to report that I have accepted an internship at the Museum of Russian Icons in Clinton, Massachusetts. I will be working full-time at the museum completing projects that my supervisor and Fitchburg State alumnus, Jocelyn, doesn't have time to do herself. I find the most interesting of these to be the re-design of the museum gift shop, which requres a new and more effective floor plan, arrangement, display cloths and signage. I will be there from July through October.

For those of you who have never been to the museum, I highly recommend a visit! I was completely taken aback by the modern architecture and stylish interior design of the building that housed such a traditional and narrow collection of artwork. You can find their web page by clicking here or by visiting www.MuseumOfRussianIcons.org. When you visit, don't forget to check out their tea room, where you can sample a wide variety of Russian teas and cookies. And who knows, you might just see me in the gift shop!

Since accepting my internship, I have also graduated from college! Woot! I never thought that day would come. It happened on a lovely (though hot) day, without a cloud in the sky, making the ceremony almost unbearable for some unfortunate souls. I was lucky enough to sit in the shade of a tree for the first hour, and then suffered through the blistering heat in my dark green graduation robes with the rest of my class. And of course, I don't really get my diploma until I finish my internship at the Museum of Russian Icons, but it was worth the heat just to participate in the ceremony with all of my college friends. Congrats to Amy, Jamie, Jen, Bonnie, Nikki, Nicole, and my high school alumni who graduated as well! Congratulations also to Jessica, who graduated from Wellesley College; Barbara, who graduated from the University of New Hampshire; and Lindsay, who graduated from Marshall University! I'm so proud of you all!!!! WE DID IT! :D  And thank you to everyone who sent cards and well-wishes for my graduation. I really, really appreciate it!

OK, now for my current activity: I'm very excited to announce that I'm leaving for Italy in about six hours (although I'm leaving the house in just one)!!! I'm all packed and ready to go, except for my laptop which will get packed after I'm finished here. I will be traveling to Verona for a month to study Italian Renaissance and Baroque Art FIRST HAND!!! Like, I will actually SEE Michelangelos Raphaels, Leonardos and Donatellos (and no, not the teenage mutant ninja turtles)! Obviously this blog will get loooooots of use as I post my pictures and experiences overseas! I'm so excited!!!

In unrelated news, I also chopped my hair off, leaving a short, trendy bob. I'm hoping this makes me look a little more professional for my internship later.

Well, I've got to go! Got to make copies of important documents for the trip before I leave in an HOUR!!! Eeeeek! I'll be back soon, reporting from Italy!

Conferences: Complete!

Hi all,
Welcome back! Sorry for not writing for the entire last month. Who knew that one's last semester of college would be so crazy? You probably all knew that . . . but it's my first time, so give me a break.

I'm happy to report that I finally completed the last requirements for my Leadership Academy thesis project; undergraduate research conferences! Last Thursday, April 26th, I presented a poster at Fitchburg State University's third "Undergraduate Conference on Research and Creative Practice" to chronicle my experience on this year-long project. I reeeally regret not getting a picture of my poster on that conference, as it was very well received and won an award for best poster! That's right, the faculty gave out 3 best poster awards out of 40ish at the conference. I then had to attend the convocation ceremony that afternoon, where President Antonucci couldn't find my award on stage, and my classmates had to pass it back to my seat crowd-surfing-style. That little certificate in it's padded case got a lot of action!

The next day, Friday April 27th, my mom and I drove to UMass Amherst for the statewide undergrad conference. It was very big, with 5 different poster sessions and 5 oral presentation periods. By sessions, I mean hour-long blocks of time when you hang your poster on a display board and people look thoughtfully at it as they walk by. I tried to engage everyone, but I still had a lot of down time. Since my display board was in the opposite corner of the room as the door, most people never made it far enough to see me. I think I talked to a whopping 5 or 6 people. And then after 50 minutes, someone tells you it's time to take down your poster so the next group of 50+ presenters can hang theirs up. It wasn't an unpleasant experience. In fact, I'm impressed at how smooth the entire event ran, considering the immense amount of student presenters (probably many hundreds) and faculty visitors. It was well staffed, the students/people in charge were all well informed and very helpful, and all the events ran like a well-oiled clock.

Now, the only thing left to complete my Leadership Academy Honors Thesis is a presentation to my faculty advisors during finals week. It's so close! And I have to decide on an internship site by the end of next week. And I leave for Italy in 22 days! Stay tuned. There's lots more excitement to come!

Back to Reality

We have now reached the end of Engaging Moments with Ordinary Sights. Joseph is sad.



My family helped me take everything down after the library closed on Saturday. But what an amazing month! I feel very accomplished to have had my own art show, and humbled by the amount of people who showed their support. The month absolutely flew by.

There was a span of 2 weeks when the guest book was misplaced, so if you visited the gallery between March 16th and March 28th and you would like to add a comment, let me know! Send me an e-mail with your message, or I'll bring it to you so you can write in it yourself. Thank you to everyone who did leave comments. I really enjoyed reading your kind words once I got the book back!

What a wonderful month it has been. I wish I could go back and relive it all over again. Let's hope there's more exciting endeavors in the future!