Italian Adventure
Selene and I are standing on the top of the mountain on the Island of Capri in Italy. Selene is a teacher in the English department at Thompson Valley High School. She organized a 15 day educational trip of Italy. We had 49 travelers—16 adults, 25 teenage girls and 8 teenage boys. We had lots of exciting adventures and by the end we were all bonded as a big family! In addition to the incredible sites, food, and learning, we had some challenging moments. Like when seven of the students “got lost” at night in downtown Florence…
and returned to the hotel an hour after curfew. It did sound like they were actually lost so we came up with a “punishment” to fit the crime. The next day during our free time in the ancient village of Assisi the five girls that were late had to take a fast hike with me to the top of a mountain to see some castle remains. The two boys had to go shopping with Selene—in every store she wanted to visit (which was every store in the small town!). They were all good sports and ended up having fun while being “punished.” Then two kids lost all their money (in the same pouch)—$250 in cash and credit cards. They informed us in the morning after searching all their clothes and belongings that they had lost their money and “their lives were over.” We called the local police in Assisi and an elderly gentleman from southern Italy had turned in their cards and all their money. Amazing!
The highlights of the trip for me were: wandering through the streets and over the canals of Venice (the guide told us to get lost and we all did); admiring the incredible Renaissance art, sculpture and architecture of Florence; enjoying the beautiful rolling hills of Tuscany; visiting an authentic olive press and sampling Italian cuisine under the Tuscan sun; hiking to the castle in Assisi; the beautiful boat ride from Sorrento to and around the Island of Capri; riding a chairlift to the top of the island mountain; tearing around on a rented Vespa scooter for a days adventure in Sicily with my good friend Jim; climbing the active volcano, Mount Etna, and seeing it erupting with a streak of red lava flow coming down the side glowing in the dark; wandering through the ancient ruins of Pompeii next to another volcano, Mount Vesuvius; and of course Rome! I could get lost for days experiencing the culture in any major European city, but Rome is like none other because around every corner there are incredible ruins from the Roman empire—the Coliseum, the Forum, the Mamertine prison (where Paul and Peter were likely held in prison), the Catacombs, the Appian Way, the Pantheon, etc., etc. And then there is the art and wonder of the Vatican—St. Peter’s Basilica, the Sistine Chapel—it would take months to absorb it all.
Next June (‘09) we’re going to Greece. The trip is called Athens and the Islands. We’ll tour ancient Athens and cruise the Islands, including Patmos where the apostle John was in prison and wrote the book of Revelation, and ancient Ephesus where he pastored and took care of the elderly mother of Jesus. The trip is especially for students, but adults always go along too. It you’re interested, and willing to travel with a bunch of teenagers (we already have 30+ signed up), and understand that it is an educational tour with a couple miles of walking (minimum) every day, and recognize that the accommodations are not going to be five star (or four star, or maybe any stars!), but are up for adventure and want to come along, then check out the tour at www.eftours.com. The tour number is 462886.
