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For 8 days this summer, 16 students and parents joined Mr. Whitener
on a tour of Rome, Naples and Pompeii (Aug 26, 2005):
Everyone met at LAX for the long flight to Rome. Once we arrive at
Leonardo da Vinci airport we went to our hotel, centrally located near
the mail rail station and a 10 minute walk to the Coliseum. This would
be our home base for the trip.
During our time in Rome we took tours of the Roman Forum, Coliseum,
Vatican Museums, St. Peter's Basilica, and the Castel Sant'Angelo.
Everyone was amazed at being able walk amidst such grand historical
sites. One day we took a break and went shopping at the famous Spanish
Steps. We also took a private bus and visited outside the city walls to
climb down into the subterranean Catacombs and see where our Christian
ancestors lived and were buried.
One of the highlight of the trip was being able to attend a Papal
Audience with Pope Benedict XVI. We also took time to view a Roman high
mass to understand more about the Roman Catholic religion. On the light
side, one afternoon we took a break from the typical June heat to see
the movie Batman Begins (in English with Italian subtitles).
On June 20th, we took a day trip to the ruins at Pompeii and see the
artifacts at Naples' Archeological Museum. We had our own private bus
for the drive along the coast. After a long day at Pompeii and Naples,
we took a break on the drive home and visited a beach just north of
Naples. It was refreshing to wade in the warm waters of the
Mediterranean Sea.
Of course, no trip to Italy would be complete without serious
attention to the food. We usually had dinner after our long day of
sightseeing -- about 9 at night enjoying authentic pizzas, pastas, meat
dishes and fish. Being a group of 17, we were able to order right off
the menu so everyone got just what they wanted (Kelyn even ordered
calf's brains one night for dinner).
Most of the time we ate Italian but one night we went out for
Chinese! After the main meal there was always room for dessert. Most
everyone fell in love with the tiramisu. Some nights after dinner we
would go out for dessert to enjoy the best gelato (ice cream) in the
world. It was great to enjoy a world-class gelato as we threw three
coins in the Trevi Fountain or admired the amazing Pantheon.
In 2004, Mr. Whitener took students and parents to London, where they
visited the sites, took a day trip to Bath and Stonehenge and even saw
Queen Elizabeth II during her official birthday celebration.
For summer 2006, Mr. Whitener plans to organize a trip to Paris,
including a day trip to the Palace at Versailles and Chartres Cathedral.
This article was
written by Mr. Whitener, teacher of Social Studies at CCHS. |
