Buon Giorno, Tutti!
This MIGHT be my last blog entry before our departure. Be watching the blog, though - I plan to take pictures at our lunch this Friday at Campania Pizzeria, just to show some of our bright, happy faces from Dallas!
For our final pre-departure blog, I thought I'd share with you 10 things to make sure you've done before departing. Totally giving cred to Mlle. May, the Director of SPI-France - great idea, Morgan!!!
10. Communication: If you want to contact me directly, be sure you're using my personal gmail address.
9. Preparation: Check out the June newsletter (which I'm e-mailing to each of you, but it's also posted on the Google group).
8. Expenses: Keep an eye on the current exchange rate: http://xe.com/ucc
7. Packing: Make sure you're well packed. See prior blog entries for this.
6. Culture: Find one museum/artist/art piece you REALLY want to see, either in Siena, Florence, or Rome, and write it down. Also, in the same place, write down one experience you absolutely want to have as an Italian.
5. Spending: Make sure you know how to use your debit/ATM card (it's Bancomat in Italy) - codes and all - and, if you choose, obtain some Euro cash from a local American Express or other exchange group. Remember: 150E per week should have you set, if you live in moderation. The most we'll spend is during our two excursion weekends, where you will buy your own meals.
4. Exercising: An athlete in Siena has many options available to them. Are you a runner/walker? Head to the Fortezza to get in some laps! Swimmer? There are two local pool clubs to which you can join. I'm sure there are aerobic classes somewhere, but with the sloping hills of the town, you'll get your cardio in, just walking around town and back to your homestay.
3. Packing: Something to ALWAYS remember when packing? ZIPLOCS (or similar bags) in several sizes - you'll be amazed about how you'll use them!
2. Carryon: Make sure all medication is labeled appropriately, and that you have all your travel documents organized and grouped together. I believe I have a copy of everyone's passport, but if there are copies of any other documents you'd like me to keep stored away, I have an envelope for every person attending the trip!
1. Gratitude: EVERY DAY (heck, every moment you see them) - hug your parents, and thank them for the sacrifices they had to make to send you on this trip. Believe me, they're wishing they could be in your place! And promise them you'll get the most out of this experience.
Parents, I'm sending out hugs daily to each of you, too, for giving your child this experience. And I promise that I'll make SPI Italy a wonderful trip for us all!!!
Grazie mille,
Laura :)
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Journaling
Buon Giorno, Tutti!
One great way to remember this trip is by keeping a journal. With technology as it is today, there are many ways to do this:
1. Written in a book - the classic way, one which I prefer (helps me settle in to go to sleep at night), writing out your memories is such a personal and effective way to preserve your emotions at that moment. In my written journal, I don't just write out sappy stuff - in here, with the day still fresh on my mind, I also write out a list of places we visited, things we did, a record of expenses, and things I've heard of which I might want to check out later.
2. Postcards - what a great way to send someone else (or even yourself) your memories! I sent Jay a postcard a day during this experience a few years ago - what great memories for both of us when I returned home! Postcards are sometimes the best gifts for family and loved ones - shows them you were thinking of them during your stay, and that you wanted to share a little part of your trip with them.
3. E-mails - before blogging was available, I would write home mass e-mails to family and friends about the experience. Everyone appreciated receiving them, and it saved me LOADS of time!
4. Blogging - with so many blog servers out there, consider keeping a blog, which you can share with your family and friends (Margaret, I am "following" your blog on my blog site!). Like sending out mass e-mails, this saves you a lot of time, is considerably cheaper than mailing, and you can really personalize the site to your own tastes. Who knows? When you get home, you may want to continue this GOOD habit of writing!
No matter what form of media you choose, please do plan to journal on this trip. Things pass so quickly and busily that you'll blink, and realize that the experience has passed. Journaling is such a sacred thing - we will actually have two of our afternoons in Siena dedicated to this experience! I even like to find a spot to which I regularly return to do my journaling (like the Fortezza in Siena) - takes me away for a moment each day to reflect on what I've experienced that day, and what it means in the overall scheme of the trip!
abbracci,
Laura :)
One great way to remember this trip is by keeping a journal. With technology as it is today, there are many ways to do this:
1. Written in a book - the classic way, one which I prefer (helps me settle in to go to sleep at night), writing out your memories is such a personal and effective way to preserve your emotions at that moment. In my written journal, I don't just write out sappy stuff - in here, with the day still fresh on my mind, I also write out a list of places we visited, things we did, a record of expenses, and things I've heard of which I might want to check out later.
2. Postcards - what a great way to send someone else (or even yourself) your memories! I sent Jay a postcard a day during this experience a few years ago - what great memories for both of us when I returned home! Postcards are sometimes the best gifts for family and loved ones - shows them you were thinking of them during your stay, and that you wanted to share a little part of your trip with them.
3. E-mails - before blogging was available, I would write home mass e-mails to family and friends about the experience. Everyone appreciated receiving them, and it saved me LOADS of time!
4. Blogging - with so many blog servers out there, consider keeping a blog, which you can share with your family and friends (Margaret, I am "following" your blog on my blog site!). Like sending out mass e-mails, this saves you a lot of time, is considerably cheaper than mailing, and you can really personalize the site to your own tastes. Who knows? When you get home, you may want to continue this GOOD habit of writing!
No matter what form of media you choose, please do plan to journal on this trip. Things pass so quickly and busily that you'll blink, and realize that the experience has passed. Journaling is such a sacred thing - we will actually have two of our afternoons in Siena dedicated to this experience! I even like to find a spot to which I regularly return to do my journaling (like the Fortezza in Siena) - takes me away for a moment each day to reflect on what I've experienced that day, and what it means in the overall scheme of the trip!
abbracci,
Laura :)
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
TWO MORE WEEKS!!!
Buon Giorno, Tutti!
Oh, all these e-mails to me - you're getting me so excited about the trip!!! Can I share my answers to some of your recent e-mails with the group?
1. Departure - PLEASE REMEMBER TO WEAR YOUR GREEN SHIRTS - While most students are taking the same flight over as Ms. Caron, a few of you have slightly different itineraries. If you are taking a different flight to ORD or flying out of another airport, a great idea is to e-mail Ms. Caron/SPI your cell phone number (if you're going to have your American cell with you while you travel). I find that it's a great idea to take your American cell with you, to handle all the transfers while in the U.S., then turn it off when you board the international flight. (this way, you'll have it with a little working battery when we return, to let you call your folks at the connection gate)
If you're meeting us in ORD, plan to meet Ms. Caron (or a group of SPI fellow travelers) when you arrive into that airport. If not, please call Ms. Caron when you arrive at the location of your international departure, to let her know you're at your departure gate. We'll do the same thing when we all return to the U.S. - call me on my cell phone as soon as you get to your connecting gate (we'll talk about the fun of customs when returning to the U.S. later).
2. Katerina, we won't get as far north as you were hoping, but, believe me, there is HISTORY everywhere, even what you're looking for! The one thing that always strikes me, wherever we are, whether strolling during the evening passegiata, or in one of our tourist stays, is the reminder that, for centuries, people have been doing the exact same stroll as I do then. When we tour through the Forum, think of how many people have placed their feet exactly where you are. When we visit the Vatican, consider how many pilgrims visit - and have visited - this place, a once-in-a-lifetime experience for so many (and so many more who don't even get the chance). You can almost feel people of past ages passing by, smiling, as you experience the same path as they had. What a great connection with history and humanity!!!
3. Margarita, how inspiring it is to see everything on your blog - just shows me what this trip means to so many of you this year (and it certainly means as much, and more, to me!). You had mentioned that you'd like to see a daily agenda. Out of personal inspiration, I'm designing brief devotionals - just 10 - 15 minutes at the end of each of our touring day for anyone who is interested. We will read the passages, however, from the Italian bible and the Vulgate (no meager English translation for us), and discuss topics related to whatever place we visit that day. I'm going to see if I can post the devotional (and events) calendar on the blog, but general schedules for each day is also posted on the SPI Italy Google calendar (linked, I hope, to this page). :)
4. Shannon, I appreciate your wanting to work in advance to make the most of our brief time on our last weekend!!! No need to buy any tickets in advance - the Musei Vaticani lines should be moving at just the right speed when y'all get there, so that you can just enter directly and head to the ticket booth! If you've never been to Rome, I must insist that you go to the Musei Vaticani, and if you've already been there, another group will go to Villa Borghese (we'll meet in the Piazza di San Pietro a few hours after we divide up for a tour of the Basilica itself). Again, as I mentioned before, please inform me if you plan to go to the Villa Borghese - we need to book a reservation before we depart!
One last time to meet before we depart? See you at Campania Pizza for lunch at noon on Friday, June 19! Please feel free to e-mail me on my personal e-mail if you have more questions, and I'll make one last posting just before our departure date!
HUGS to all of you!
Laura :)
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Three Weeks, and Counting
In three weeks from now, some of you will have already departed on your first flight! Woo Hoo!!!
I thought I'd chat with you about what to expect during your travel day. International travel is TOUGH on your body, and the more preparation you do, the better your first day of touring will be.
To start with, consider beginning to change your internal clock by an hour a day a few days before departure. Italy is 7 hours ahead of most of us, so if you start on Monday waking up early and going to bed a little earlier, it'll be easier to get to sleep on the international flight on Thursday night. If you're not that disciplined, consider doing something crazy like sleeping very little on Wednesday night, and getting up super-early. You need to be at the airport 2 1/2 hours before departure, anyways, to be sure to make it through all the check-in stuff for international flights. Yes, that's a 7 AM check-in, my 9:30 AM departure friends.
At the airport, stay on your feet as much as possible, and try to get your eating habits on Italy time. That means you want to eat something lunch-ish for breakfast. And drink lots of water/juice. When you arrive into the connecting airport and get to your Italy departure gate, wait to eat anything until you get on the flight - they'll feed you dinner within the first two hours. But keep drinking lots of water/juice. On the international flight, try not to snack throughout the night, but keep drinking lots of water/juice. Sleep as much as possible. If you find you're restless, get up and walk for about 10 minutes, then return to your seat to attempt sleeping again. And have some water every time you wake up. Getting my drift? An hour before you arrive, breakfast will be served to you - eat all of it, whether you like it or not - it'll tell your body that it's morning (and not midnight, American time).
Once you get through passport check (be sure to take the NON-EU lines), get your bags at the baggage claim, and go through Customs (nothing to claim, my friends), you'll see me there on the other side of the sliding doors, with a pink SPI sign and the same Green SPI t-shirt. And we'll be off! No stops until we break at an AutoGrill for lunch right before going to Pompeii.
Again, a list of reminders for fighting jetlag:
1. A few days before departure, start changing your internal clock - wake up earlier, go to bed earlier
2. Force yourself to sleep/be still/rest during the international flight
3. Eat a lunch-type meal at breakfast, a snack-type meal for lunch, and eat your entire served breakfast on the international flight
4. LOTS OF FLUIDS for hydration - water and juice - as often as they offer it to you, and more!
We'll see you in three weeks!!!
Hugs,
L :)
I thought I'd chat with you about what to expect during your travel day. International travel is TOUGH on your body, and the more preparation you do, the better your first day of touring will be.
To start with, consider beginning to change your internal clock by an hour a day a few days before departure. Italy is 7 hours ahead of most of us, so if you start on Monday waking up early and going to bed a little earlier, it'll be easier to get to sleep on the international flight on Thursday night. If you're not that disciplined, consider doing something crazy like sleeping very little on Wednesday night, and getting up super-early. You need to be at the airport 2 1/2 hours before departure, anyways, to be sure to make it through all the check-in stuff for international flights. Yes, that's a 7 AM check-in, my 9:30 AM departure friends.
At the airport, stay on your feet as much as possible, and try to get your eating habits on Italy time. That means you want to eat something lunch-ish for breakfast. And drink lots of water/juice. When you arrive into the connecting airport and get to your Italy departure gate, wait to eat anything until you get on the flight - they'll feed you dinner within the first two hours. But keep drinking lots of water/juice. On the international flight, try not to snack throughout the night, but keep drinking lots of water/juice. Sleep as much as possible. If you find you're restless, get up and walk for about 10 minutes, then return to your seat to attempt sleeping again. And have some water every time you wake up. Getting my drift? An hour before you arrive, breakfast will be served to you - eat all of it, whether you like it or not - it'll tell your body that it's morning (and not midnight, American time).
Once you get through passport check (be sure to take the NON-EU lines), get your bags at the baggage claim, and go through Customs (nothing to claim, my friends), you'll see me there on the other side of the sliding doors, with a pink SPI sign and the same Green SPI t-shirt. And we'll be off! No stops until we break at an AutoGrill for lunch right before going to Pompeii.
Again, a list of reminders for fighting jetlag:
1. A few days before departure, start changing your internal clock - wake up earlier, go to bed earlier
2. Force yourself to sleep/be still/rest during the international flight
3. Eat a lunch-type meal at breakfast, a snack-type meal for lunch, and eat your entire served breakfast on the international flight
4. LOTS OF FLUIDS for hydration - water and juice - as often as they offer it to you, and more!
We'll see you in three weeks!!!
Hugs,
L :)
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