We all departed Florence on Saturday morning bound for the beautiful medieval town of San Gimignano, and then on to Siena! We Climbed towers, visited Duomo's, took in the sights and of course - ate gelato! On Sunday we took a scenic train ride to the medieval walled town of Lucca. We climbed another tower, found room for more gelato and to much excitement, hired bikes and cycled along the town wall. A really wonderful weekend was had by all!
Jenny
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Here is a sneak peek of some of the photography students work from their FIRST class - pretty impressive!
Jenny We are in Italy, and, in just a few short days, we have already soaked up so much beauty! Our trip began with a leisurely walk around Milan on Sunday, and students marveled at the Duomo's intricate facade. On Monday, once we had had a chance to rest, we went inside and explored the gorgeous architecture in more depth. We also did a bit of window shopping in the stylish shops around the piazza. We wrapped up our day in Milan with a picnic lunch outside the Sforza Castle and then drove down to Florence. What a treat it was to arrive! There wasn't time for much more than a welcome dinner at Il Gatto e La Volpe (The Cat and The Fox) and unpacking, but the spirit of the city nevertheless worked its spell on us that evening. Tuesday we explored the rest of Florence, including Ponte Vecchio, Piazza della Repubblica, Piazza della Signoria, and (of course!) the Duomo of Florence. Students also competed in a photo scavenger hunt around the city, which sent them looking for everything from the serious (the Medici Coat of Arms) to the silly (a person with gelato on their face). One team even had a perfect score! Today, academic classes began. One of the highlights for me as the director was seeing some of the more advanced students in the Italian language class helping their classmates. We have such a friendly, cooperative group of students, and they are already learning so much! Another highlight was visiting the Italian cuisine class and seeing Vieri teach the students to make tiramisu. Vieri teaches two sections of the class, so he had them compete to see who could make the best tiramisu! Both classes made a superb version, but my personal favorite was the one made by the afternoon class. Tonight, however, our students will be the judges, since they are going to several local gelaterie to taste the gelato and see which local gelataio (ice cream maker) is the best! Whichever one they choose, I'm going there tomorrow to buy one for myself! -Rachel Van Wylen Update: These two ladies approve of La Strega Nocciola!
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