March 19th, “CIAO ITALIA”

Saturday March 19^th we had a very busy schedule ahead of us. We started by getting up very early to have breakfast then we took a train to PISA. When we arrived to PISA with our luggage, there was one more thing we couldn’t have left Italy without seeing; The Leaning Tower. After debating a bit about how to go see the leaning tower without having to carry our entire luggage with us, we took a bus to where the tower is located. Unfortunately because of the little bit time we couldn’t climb to the top of the tower but at least we got to see it and take pictures of it. It is amazing of how leaning the tower is and yet it hasn’t fall. Short after arriving to the airport we had to depart to London. There is really not much to say after this, except that my girls and I (Katherinne and Aura) almost missed the airplane from London to US and DR Londino (our professor) was extremely mad at us. After we arrived to the states we all said goodbye to each other and I realized how exhausted I was and how much I missed my house and my bed. The next few days I would get up extremely happy, with a new perspective about the world and I truly realized how much this experience had changed my life. I feel so blessed of having the opportunity to travel to Italy and meet such amazing/unforgettable people like the Wolfpack, I could now put a check next to a few things in my bucket list.

March 18th "what a wonderful relaxing day"

Friday March 18^th was our last full day in Italy; ISA had a whole day tour planned for us but because of how exhausted we all were the tour got cutted off to only three hours. The most important thing we visited was the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, really big cathedral located in Piazza del Duomo, in Florence. This basilica was designed by Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunellechi.The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed. The cathedral is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Florence, whose archbishop is currently Giuseppe Betori. After a little bit of history we decided to go to the top of the church, which takes 486 steps. It was not a comfortable feeling to go up so many steps with no time to rest, the steps were small and the space it is much tied, some claustrophobics would not be able to make it to the top. After reaching the top of the church a view of Florence blew me away, every single building in Florence was visible, it was truly breathtaking. After our tour we all had different things to do, some people had to finish shopping, others just had to sleep a bit and I had to call my bank to report my debit card which I lost the night before. After reporting my card I had the chance to talk to my family and sleep in the hotel. The weather was hot and for the first time in the entire week there was no rain, a very good day to enjoy the Independence Day festivities but sadly our stay in Florence was almost over and we had to get ready for departure. That night we had dinner with the whole group (ISA and professors) and talked about our favorite parts of the trip, after dinner some of the guys decided they wanted to go out for one last time but the majority of us decided to stay in, do our luggage, have a few glasses of wine and just relax. It was a good last night.

March 17th Roma and the Vatican

Thursday March 17^th was our second and last optional day trip and we decided to visit the most famous city in Italy, ROME. We took a train for about two hours and after arriving to the train station in Rome the group split up in two. My group and I decided to go to the Vatican first because we figured the line to get in to the church was probably going to be long. Taking the trains in Rome was not actually as hard as I thought, everything was easy to find and easy to read. Going to the Vatican was amazing and it meant a lot to me because I am catholic, seeing where everything started made me feel closer to my religion. fortunately the rain was so strong that there was not line to get in the church so we walked right in. the church of the Vatican is enormous, I have never seen something like it before. The awful rain did not stop us to see everything in Rome; we went to the Piazza di Spagna or Spanish steps, to The Fontana di Trevi or trevi fontain and most importantly to the Colosseum. It was a very long and exhausting day but it was definitely all worth it. After such an amazing day in Rome we all headed back to our hotel in Florence and again running in probably two/three hours of sleep we went to dinner at an awesome restaurant and afterwards to a lounge. As usual we had a wonderful night.  

March 16th Tour Around Florence

Wednesday March 16^th ISA had our second tour around Florence planned out for us. We left around 10am after breakfast. Once again it was very nice to learn about the history and culture of Florence; many of the artwork of very famous artists are in some of the museums of Florence. That day I had gelato for the first time which I truly loved. March 16^th was the day before Independence Day in Italy, the streets were full of tourists and it was nice to see how patriotic Italians are. There was a flag in every building and in every house.

March 15th, SIENA

Tuesday March 15^thwas our first optional day trip and we decided to visit Siena. Our first stop was in San Gimignano, truly an amazing place, filled with green beautiful landscapes and very tall towers. The name of this city comes from the Holy Bishop of Modena, St. Gimignano who is said to have saved the village from the barbarian hordes. The town increased in wealth and developed very much during the Middle Ages thanks to the "Via Francigena" the trading and pilgrim's route that crossed it. Such prosperity led to the blooming of works of art to adorn the churches and monasteries.We walked around this city for a little while and after we headed to our next stop Piazza Del Campo in Siena.

This place is one of Europe's greatest medieval squares; It is like stepping back to the middle ages. Piazza Del Campo has hosted almost all the important events in the history of the city, from the time of the Republic up until the Medici period, during which Siena came under the control of Florence. By our second stop we were all extremely exhausted of all the walking but we still had one more stop to do and this was a wine tasting at a family business where they make very popular wines. I loved the wine tasting because it was my first time and because we also learned very much about the wine making process. They explained why certain wines are more expensive than others, what it is that gives its color, where it is save, the temperature in which they have to stay and much more. After hearing all the details it made me appreciate more a glass of wine because I now understand how is made. Regardless of the awful rain that started short after we arrived to the wine tasting we really got to enjoy it and relax for a little bit. After such a long day we headed back to Florence. The night arrived and since the next day we did not have to wake up so early we decided to go out to a very nice lounge around the area. It really amazes me all the energy we had after walking all day and running in only few hours of sleep, everyone had a very good time, we all danced and shared good laughs.

March 14th..."Wooa, I finally realized I am in Italy"

Monday March 14th we had to get up around 8:00am to have breakfast and leave for our first tour in Florence. The tour guide showed us some of the history in Florence. It was nice to learn about it because I personally thought there was not much history this city but the tour guide obviously proved me wrong. Florence is filled with history; it is like stepping back in time. After, we had our first lunch in Italy in which of course everyone had pasta. In lunch I finally realized I was in Italy, for some reason it took a little while for me to realize it. The pasta is lighter in Italy and even the house wine is delicious and cheap which of course I loved. Sabrina (one of the ISA representatives and the person who was with us most of the time) gave us a small tour about what to avoid in Florence, what are the best places to eat or drink coffee. She also spoke to us about some of the popular places to eat gelato or to enjoy a slice of pizza. We also had the opportunity to shop around the clothing market for a little while. After the tours we headed back to our hotel, got ready and left to dinner. The restaurant was truly amazing, the food was delicious and we got to really get to know each other and finally relax for while. After dinner we decided to go to a club and even though we were basically the only ones there, we had a really nice time dancing and enjoying Florence nightlife. 

March 12th, leaving USA - arriving to Italy

We left USA Saturday march 12^thour plane was supposed to take off at 6:30pm. I found the flight to be very long because I am not used to flying for more than 3 or 4 hours. Regardless of how uncomfortable I was in the plane I was very excited about the trip. When we arrived to London, Heathrow we met with everyone else from the trip. We had breakfast and walked around the airport for a few hours before boarding. Everyone seemed very tired but our adventure was just beginning, we still had a lot more to travel. The flight to Pisa was only two hours and I finally slept a little bit in the plane. After we arrived to Pisa we all took a train to Florence for about two hours. My first impression of Italy was that it looked very much like the Caribbean, very green and with a lot of trees. After two hours we finally arrived to our destination: FLORENCE. My first impression seemed to change, it is more rural in Florence or at least in the area our hotel was located. A bus picked us up from the train station and took us to our hotel. We were all extremely tired but had to attend to orientation and dinner. For dinner they served us pizza,we all got to know each other a little bit better and had a very good time. Our adventure had officially started!!!!   

Pre-trip Research

1.      Describe the Italian Television systems (technical standards (U.S. is NTSC, France is SECAM, Italy is...?)

In Italy the television system is PAL B/G (Phase Alternating Line). According to countrycode.org:

“Developed in Germany and first used in 1967. A variant of NTSC, PAL uses a 625/50-line display. Different types use different video bandwidth and audio carrier specifications. Common types are B, G, and H. Less common types include D, I, K, N, and M. These different types are generally not compatible with one another. Proponents of PAL irreverently call it "Perfection At Last," while critics of its enormous circuit complexity call it "Pay A Lot" or "Picture Always Lousy." http://countrycode.org/tv-standards

2.      Describe the types of programming. The types of T.V programs are not much different from USA, drama, reality, game show, cartoon, scary, comedy, sitcom are usually the T.V programs that are being shown in Italy

3.      Describe the means of programming support (advertising, government supported, pay services, etc.)

“The Italian national broadcasting company is RAI - Radiotelevisione Italiana, born as URI in 1924. RAI transmits on analogue television on three channels, named Rai Uno, Rai Due and Rai Tre, but also broadcasts via satellite and is involved in radio, publishing and cinema. RAI has the largest audience share (45%) of any Italian television network. Proceeds derive from a periodical standing charge and from advertising. The main competitors of RAI are Mediaset, the biggest national private broadcaster, divided in three channels, and La7, owned by Telecom Italia”.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting#Italy

4.      Regulation… who controls it?

The media in Italy is controlled by The Autorità per le garanzie nelle comunicazioni - Italian regulatory authority in the communications sector - (AGCOM).

5.       What are the major newspapers?

La Repubblica, Il Messaggero one of the most popular ones, Il Resto del Carlino and La Gazetta del Mezzzogiorno is a leading paper form southern Italy.

6.      What are the most popular magazines?

Panorama, 'L'espresso, Donna Moderna, Gente Viaggi, i'Il Mondo, Ville & Casali, and Viaggi e Sapori

Trip Excitement

It is impossible not to know about Italy being one the countries with more history in the world. It is very exciting to have the opportunity of visiting the country of the Roman Empire and the home of the Catholic Church. However, I know very little about Florence, which is not a bad thing at all. I have heard (through the media) that Florence is a good place to go for honeymoons because is a very romantic city and that it does not possess much history as other cities (like Rome for example). Media have shaped our attitudes about other countries especially countries so popular like Italy, words like pasta, musical accent, gestures, romantic, loud, fashion, wine drinkers are words usually used by many to describe Italian culture, the truth is that stereotypes are usually false or exaggerated and I cannot wait to see for myself the truth Italian culture.

I am hoping with this trip to extend my horizons, to get to know the way people live, their lifestyle and to see with my own eyes the history that for many years I have been learning about. I’ll love of course to try the food, to be able to hear the language, to understand their sense of fashion and what does it mean to them (why do they dress the way they do). I will compare both cultures (US and Italy) to have an idea of what are the differences and similarities and I will also be able to see the difference of Italians raised in the US and Italians born in Italy. I am also looking forward to enjoy my time, I think traveling is a good way for vacationing, but also a good way to learn and grow as humans. Understanding that there are other cultures out there and that our culture is not the only one or the most important one (as many of us think), is vital in order to appreciate the world we live in and also it makes us value more all the different backgrounds that exist in our country.