BRAVISSIMO!!!!!!!

 Italia

A dictionary definition of Italy:

 Italy |ˈitl-ē|

Italy is a country in southern Europe with a population of 58,126,200 (est. 2009). Capital, Rome; Official language, Italian. Italian name: Italia.

 A human’s definition of Italy:

 Italy is a country in Southern Europe where pasta and pizza were born.

 My definition of Italy:

 Italy, home of grand monuments and stunning islands with the unimaginable beauty and grace. Italy: a homey country with citizens of multiple cultures and beliefs. It’s a beautiful area filled with nature and great history. It’s my divine paradise.

             Our destination trip to Italy was extraordinarily hectic, yet entertaining and educational. According to plan, we visited just about all the historical sites and monuments our little hearts desired. Despite our large number of students and the slight chance of us losing someone, our visits ran along smoothly the entire trip, we were on task most of the time, and we were responsible enough to arrive on time for our reservations. It still surprises me, though, how we managed to cram our entire itinerary into our limited time of 7 days. But, I should’ve expected it; after all, we did have Mr. Yenshaw as our trip coordinator. I’m attempting to convince him to alter his name to Daniel Travel Yenshaw because he is extremely invested in the world of travel. Thanks to him, our trip flew by without any obstacles obstructing or troubling us. This Italy trip was the perfect getaway from school this past week, a stress reliever.

I enjoyed various aspects of this trip this past week; I must admit that this trip was very well thought through. Every little detail, including dinnertime and how long a stroll around the hotel would take, was planned as we progressed further into the trip. Not one point was left until last minute and our entire program for the day was taken into consideration at least 24 hours beforehand. I enjoyed the fact that we weren’t stalled for a long period of time because we forgot to include an important factor. And, even when there were obstacles, such as the fire in Terminal 3 and transition to Terminal 5, we overcame them in due time.

Another factor of the trip I enjoyed was our Florence and Rome city tours. Despite walking on my aching feet for hours on end and sweating my butt off, I appreciated learning about the Italian culture and how different it is when compared to ours. I had the benefit of visiting great geometric and architectural perfections, such as the Florence Duomo. The city tours allowed me to marvel at Italy’s natural beauty and stunning views of churches and towers. We could’ve skipped the city tours and jumped to other famous areas, but we held our ground and continued on with the two-hour tours around the city, leaving us stunned at such amazing beauty.

Another spectacular section of the trip was our visit to the Vatican City, its marvelous artwork and history overwhelming you completely. The School of Athens and Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel artwork cannot be passed up. The murals, like the Final Judgment, depict grand history and impossible beauty. And, plus, who wouldn’t want to go stare at the ceiling that fell on Michelangelo’s head while he was painting? I learned so many great facts pertaining to the Vatican. Did you know that the School of Athens holds a hidden gem, Raphael’s self-portrait?

A great advantage to the trip was our extension of two days. We were supposed to leave on the sixth, I presume, but we expanded our stay for two nights just to see Naples and Capri. Thank you, Mr. Yenshaw; may Capri bless your soul. It was, honestly, a fantastic experience, riding on a ferry towards Capri, taking a chairlift to the highest mountaintop on the entirety of the island, and snapping pictures of a gorgeous view of white houses with their orange-bricked rooftops. The experience was a once-in-a-lifetime one, and surely left me breathless. You’d be crazy not to try it. Capri’s view was spectacular; snapping pictures should be the least of your worries. I especially adored the little kiosks and charming shops along Capri’s cobblestone streets; they sold the prettiest souvenirs for the cheapest prices, and the people were extremely friendly. Capri definitely is a sight for sore eyes.

Unfortunately or fortunately-however way you’d like to perceive it as- nothing is perfect. There can be multiple flaws pertaining to one subject, and this trip is no different. First, let’s start with the food; pasta, pasta, and, you got it, even more pasta. I believe I may have found the origin of ‘100 Ways to Cook Pasta’; I’m pretty sure everyone grew sick and tired of the pasta, as delicious as it might be. Perhaps, instead of a set menu, students could order what they want or we could’ve had a set menu with various types of foods, other than pasta. Our major problem, though, were our ‘Whisper’ devices. It’s pretty ironic, really, that they are called Whispers when our tour guide’s boomed through it, making it seem as if she was yelling at us. I’m never touching those unpractical death traps again! They have one earphone, for Pete’s sake; it is as if they are attempting to deafen you. The humorous part, though, is that no matter how many times we told our tour guides to move the microphones away from their mouths and stop breathing so heavily, they’d do it again. Whether or not they noticed what they were doing, I don’t know. Other than those minor obstacles, our trip was perfectly planned, down to every last factor.

I can imagine Mr. Yenshaw tapping his temple, smirking at me, and saying that he has everything planned and under control. And, in all honesty, I know he does. He did plan this amazing trip, after all.