Over Spring Break, some county students “stay-cationed,” some vacationed, and others adventured. Casey Weickgenannt, a senior at Marriotts Ridge High School, enjoyed the latter alternative, along with several classmates and peers from Wilde Lake High School. Under the guidance of their Italian language teachers, this dual-school assemblage toured Milan, Venice, Padua, Florence and Rome April 3-10.
Unfortunately, as reported in world news, a 6.3-magnitude earthquake rocked the city of L’Aquila, in central Italy, on April 6, killing hundreds, injuring more than a thousand, and leaving tens of thousands homeless. Howard County parents understandably worried about their sightseeing children, but Casey explains that the students did not even realize a quake occurred until their teachers informed them. The group was safely located in northern Italy at the time and traveled no closer to the epicenter than Rome, which lies 70 miles (110 km) southwest of L’Aquila. Perhaps because the students spent so much time in tourist pursuits, they did not witness a large public outpouring over the event, as we did in this country after Hurricane Katrina.
Casey noted other variances between our cultures, too. She says that most Italians smoke, including teens, but her Italian counterparts cannot legally drive until age 18. The roads contain a large number of bikes and scooters, in addition to cars, and these vehicles all share the cobblestone streets with pedestrians in both Florence and Rome.
Casey reports that Italians greatly anticipate their morning meal and seldom skip breakfast like Americans. She saw no Starbucks, but a great many gelaterias, and although she visited a McDonald’s, she found the menu slightly different and the prices more expensive. Instead, she favored an Italian chain called Autogrill, which specializes in sandwiches and pastries. Casey describes the restaurant as somewhat quirky since patrons queue in an orderly fashion to pay for their food, then elbow their way through the crowd to present their orders to the cooks.
According to Casey, Italian hotels also differ from those in America; for instance, none of the doors contain door viewers (peepholes), but all of the bathrooms contain bidets. Another intriguing difference is that hotel key cards allow patrons access not only to their rooms, but also to the rooms’ electricity. After entering the door, patrons must insert their cards into a slot in the wall in order to power the room. One benefit of this setup is that visitors always know where to find their key cards, but more importantly, they do not waste electricity when they leave.
Although Casey thought she would most enjoy Venice and Rome, she actually preferred Florence because the city was so friendly and beautiful, and her group could walk to all of its destinations. The landscape in northern Italy reminded her of California, perhaps because of the mountainous backdrop. Just like Spring Break in Florida, too, crowds thronged the cities in Italy, most obviously in Rome because of visitors celebrating Lent and Easter in the Vatican City.
All in all, Casey considered her trip “amazing” but far too short. She enjoyed the diverse areas she saw and hopes someday to return and more fully immerse herself in the culture. Casey highly recommends study tours to students of any foreign language as a way to practice one’s language skills and more fully appreciate the country’s customs.
