Sorento, Napoli, and Capri

The south of Italy is absolutely beautiful. But after a 4 hour bus ride through the severly twisty mountains of the Apenines, the esthetic beauty of the region was not of what I was thinking. Nevertheless, following a good night's sleep, I awoke to see the sun rising over the beautiful Mount Vesuvius from the balcony of our fifth story window. It was my first introduction to the beautiful towns of Sorento and Napoli stretched acrossed the bay of Naples and the beautiful island of Capri in the middle.

Sorento is an absolutely charming town with low crime and friendly townspeople. On Monday, we went to see a cabaret show in Italian with a discotheque afterwards. It was really good. On Tuesday, however, the town looked a bit different. We walked into a town full of chaos and mischief. People were covered in silly string, shaving creme, and red dragons paraded through the city square. Carnivale (Mardi Gras) had begun! Unfortunately, I was attacked by silly string, JT was covered in shaving creme, and, worst of all, poor Ryan had been covered in shaving creme and egged!

Capri has been perhaps one of my favourite parts of this trip. We took a ferry from Napoli to the island. Once on the island, we were taken up to a village resting half-way up the mountain. Then, we were given some free time to explore the island. JT, Ryan, and I spent our time climbing to the very top of the mountain (a 45 minute trek) to the ruins of the Emperor Tiberius. It was marvelous to walk through the ruins, which were completely deserted, being our own guides. The view of the cliffs from the top was out of this world.

Catching Up

Hi, everyone. I know that some of you have been waiting anxiously for the next installment from the Prep Italy blog. Well, just to let you know, it hasn't been for lack of effort.

First, finding time to use the laptop is a big struggle. We have been pulling close to 19 or sometimes 20-hour days. Wake up is typically at 6:00 am or 6:30 am. Then, we have an absolutely packed schedule until we return to the hotel at about 10:30 pm or 11:00 pm.

Then, there is the question of finding internet connections. Internet can be a bit expensive here, but more problematic, we can't always get internet access in our hotels. For example, in Sorento, we were without connection. Tonight, in Florence, we have just one hour to make our wonderful posts before our time runs out.

So, excuse me if the posts are short, but I'll try to throw in some photos.

Just a few extra photos from Rome:

Flying Through Rome

Greetings from Italia -- and six hours in the future! It is currently 11:08 PM here in Italy, and I am writing this with the knowledge that in the morning I'll grumble at this decision to write a blog (thanks for the enforcement, Richard).

The flight out last night was very smooth, both figuratively and literally. Some Prep students doubtless found themselves alone beside two strangers, but I have not heard anyone of us complain too loudly about such placement (and, perhaps more importantly, no one else complain about us!).

Our flight out of Frankfurt was delayed about a half an hour due to a late-boarding tour group, but the view over the Alps afforded from the windows of the plane more than made up for it.

Upon our arrival in Rome we were greeted by our tour guide, Lindsay -- a young man from London. The bus then drove us into the heart of Rome to our hotel, the Starhotel Michelangelo, where we were astounded to see the dome of St. Peter's Basilica rising over the Vatican walls just a couple hundred meters down the street. The hotel itself is elegant and comfortable.

After getting changed, we headed out with Lindsay to St. Peter's Square for a brief introduction to the Vatican. On our way we passed the Pope himself, just leaving (...who told him we were coming?!). Lindsay guided us to the center of the Square with our eyes cast downward, then allowed us a look from the center of the square. Knowing we would be astounded at the sudden sight, he wisely forbid us to take pictures for a full minute, in the hopes that we would soak up the beautiful image of the Sqare through our own memories, and not just those of a camera. The Square was spectacular, and only became more so as the night took over and the lights came on around the Basilica.

The rest of the Vatican being saved for tomorrow, we returned to our hotel for a short bit, and then went out for dinner at a nearby restaurant. Here, for the first time sitting down with the students of the school from New Jersey, we were acquainted with our new trip-mates over a course of pasta and one of roast beef and potatoes. After recieving a final "okay" from Lindsay, we returned to the hotel for the night.

Personally I am quite enjoying the trip; having never been overseas I am awed at the differences between Eurpoean and American culture (SmartCars, anyone?). I'm looking forward to the tour of the Forum tomorrow; so, alas, I must stop writing for now to rest up for that.

Wishing everybody well and having a great time,
--J.T. Fales

The Wonders of Rome

Highlight of the Day: Seeing the Pope

Today, we arrived in Rome after a series of journeys from Prep to Newark Airport (nearly 4 hours on I-95), Newark Airport to Frankfurt Airport (6 hours, 53 minutes), and finally from Frankfurt to Rome (1 hour, 37 minutes). I find it ironic that it took longer to drive from Prep to the airport than it did to get from Frankfurt, Germany to Rome, Italy.

We are situated in a beautiful hotel with the dome of St. Peter's Cathedral in perfect view. We are on one of the streets leading up to the Vatican. We really are in the heart of the city of Rome.

The highlight of the day for me was yet to come. We were standing under the collonades of St. Peter's square, designed by Bernini. We noticed that there was significant police presence and a large crowd of bystanders accumulating. Going over there, I expected perhaps to see a cardinal or something of the sort. To my amazement, a Vatican limousine drives by, the windows role down, and inside is the Pope himself!

St. Peter's Square was truly beautiful at night. I have been to Italy before, but I have never experienced St. Peter's after sunset. The lit-up fountains, basilica, and columns truly gave the square a magical feel. I agree with our tour guide Lindsay in the belief that this is one of the most beautiful squares in the world.