TCDSB in Italia

Weeks of Nov 23-Dec5

2009-12-07T09:18:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Sean-Patrick and Dylan here reporting from Porto San Giorgio…

These past few weeks have been extraordinary. We’ve seen the Pope, travelled to Assisi and Urbino and best of all have finished our classes at school. Aside from exams and one more ISU we have no more homework left for the remainder of the trip! Our trip to see the Pope was something a little different than we had all expected. We think that most people expected something a little more private than we got. When we first got into the room we were a little taken a back by the fact that the room we were entering already had about thousand people in it already and could fit upward of about 5000. The experience however was amazing being able to get as close as we did to the Pope and have the opportunity to be in the same room as the Pope. The room we were in was called Salla Minerva and it’s where the Pope says his mass to the public almost every Wednesday. Every week people on pilgrimages come from around the world to have the opportunity that we did, even though most of us were probably expected to have a private audience with the Pope where we would be able to meet the Pope one on one. As well we got to meet the other group from the York board for the first time and we got to converse with them and find out what their life is like living in the same conditions were in, but in a different part of the country. Fortunately for us we found out that we in PSG have it very lucky compared to them. They have to go to school from 8AM-3:30PM and then have study right after school until 5PM everyday with only one break for lunch, so we are very fortunate here for the living conditions we have. Assisi was also a pretty amazing experience. I guess Tuohy had a reason when he said it was his favourite city from last year’s trip! The views were incredible and seeing the actual tomb of St. Francis was quite interesting. The shopping wasn’t really the best but it isn’t necessary in a beautiful city like that. Urbino was also involved this week but it was a bit different because the Italian students from our school joined us. We didn’t get to talk to them much (we were on a different tour of the city because we had to have an English speaking guide) but it was nice spending time with some friends. Much like Assisi the views were phenomenal from the high hills. We can only hope we get the chance to see some more amazing scenery like we saw on those days.

Well with exams coming up this week we best be going now.

Dylan and Sean outttt!!!

Don't forget to take a lok at our photos from the past two weeks at www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Week of Nov 16-22

2009-11-24T03:21:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone,

It's Heather and Julia, writing to you after yet another eventful week of new experiences. We got many opportunities to break out of our routine and consistent agenda by attending classes with Italians.

On Wednesday, after school, we got the chance to speak with fifth year Italian students who recently started studying the English language. In Professoressa Dolce’s class, we were given prompt questions about our likes and dislikes of school subjects, to which most of us replied, “being in Italian class.” While laughing and finding common interests of music and movies, the Italian style proved to be much different than ours. A few of us even explained Canada’s geography with a chalkboard drawing, whereas the Italians drew a significantly better portrait of their home country. Some students were more capable of conversing in English, while others struggled with it, but everyone made a good effort. Though the incentive to get additional volunteer hours was the main motive, we all had a blast and hope to return.

Over the course of the week, we experienced a couple of other Italian cultural events. Thursday consisted of meeting with Professoressa Alici’s class, where we learned about items around the house. This was class both amusing and educational using common Italian words we use every day. Saturday’s sculpture class with Professore Donadario was with the Italians we know the best. It was interesting to compare the Italians’ remarkable artwork to our not-so-good sculptures.

Later that Saturday afternoon, most of us took the hour and a half train to Pescara, a city that made most of us nostalgic for Toronto’s busy and fast paced nature. While scavenging for good deals on expensive clothing, we came to the conclusion that most stores required a little more money than we expected.

As many of you may have already heard, we will be having an audience with the Pope, this coming Wednesday. Although, we are not all too thrilled about the strict dress code, we look forward to this once in a lifetime experience.

With less than a month left in PSG, we’re all both excited and saddened due to the fact that we will get to see our friends and families yet will have to leave our family behind here, at our home away from home.

This week’s interesting topic is: “what has been your funniest moment(s) on the trip?”

Alex: When Ricker punches Dylan in the stomach and Dylan replies, “Uhhhhhhh...YES!!”

Clarissa: i. When Mr.C visited
ii. The time on the 8th floor
iii. When we encountered Mr. Purple Sweater

Chelsea: i. When Heather thought the Titanic was in the movie The Day after Tomorrow.
ii. When we got steamy chestnuts at the Trevi fountain.
iii. Dinner with Claire’s entertainment.

Silvana: Lesson 37, taking webcam pictures of Michelle

Michelle: i. Angel with Claire
ii. At dinner when drinking tea, singing and making heart shapes out of orange peels.

Claire: i. General dinner nonsense
ii. When studying for Italian class

Taylor: While Sean was visiting our room, Mel and I put on some music and we began dancing when we tripped over my suitcases bursting into laughter, while Sean just looked up and shook his head.

Melissa: All our little movie nights where we squished as many people as possible onto the beds and Kasia barging in most of the time and us screaming at her while she jumps on us.

Julia: i. When Mr.C and Roshandra visited.
ii. Watching the Herbert the Pervert and Ollie Family Guy episodes.

Heather: Watching the reaction video to Scarlett takes a Tumble on Youtube.

Marisa: i. The time when I said “Mirko Bio” during the game “Things”
ii. When Buffy is whittles the stakes with Angel and Xander on Buffy the Vampire
Slayer.

Sam D: Aerobics class!! When the uncoordinated attempt to dance.

Natalia Z: When we played the game “Things”

Sam L: The times when we watched Supernatural.

Kasia: i. Natalia H’s laundry wipe-out.
ii. When Julia and I were playing slap sumo in the hallways.
iii. Doing the gangster walks.
iv. Michelle’s laugh at dinner.

Natalia H: i. Elevator ride with Annamaria.
ii. making the Katy Perry remix to “Waking up in Vegas”.
iii. Studying for Classical Civilization class.

Ricker: Dinner talk before watching The Secretary.

Peter: When we had movie nights.

Dylan: Any moment with the word “poetry”.

Sean: Listening to Mr. Tuohy’s lectures (e.g. #5 “Love, Sex and Gender in Ancient Greece”...it’s educational).

As always, please check out our new photos at: www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Week of Nov 9-15

2009-11-16T10:43:00.000-08:00

Hey Y’all Michelle & Claire here.

This week was exciting but also very relaxed. We’re almost half way through the month and, with exams approaching closer and closer, the stress is building up. We have a lot of work at the moment but the teachers are trying their hardest to make it better for us by scheduling fun things to do during or after school.

Tuesday after school we went to Fermo on a double-decker bus with the rest of the Italians at our school. Once there we went on a tour of the cisterns (how ancient Romans stored water) and also enjoyed a tour of the Fermo museum. The museum included priceless artworks as well as a library filled with historical books, one of the most valuable of these writings being the letter Christopher Columbus wrote to the queen of Spain after discovering North America. After visiting the museum, we walked up to the very top of Fermo to visit the Fermo Cathedral. The cathedral was beautiful and contained preserved mosaics and artwork. We then jumped back on the bus and drove back to P.S.G.

On Wednesday we shared some chestnuts with the rest of our school because the Italians were celebrating Festa di San Martino. Chestnuts, snacks, and drinkage were only 2 euros. Thanks to Mr.Tuohy and his generous wallet, we all had a taste of these scrumptious treats.
Thursday we had regular classes until third period when we were able to go to the market. Some of us found some nice buys with our new found bargaining skills.

We were all excited for Friday to come along because everyone was invited to a big dinner with Luciano, our gym instructor. It was very nice seeing Luciano and meeting his family. He took us to an amazing pizzeria where they served several types of pizzas, even the dessert was in pizza form. The teachers conversed with Luciano and his family until about 1:00 am while the rest of us talked with Luciano’s son and his friends outside. The next morning the teachers were generous and gave us a 10:00 a.m. wake-up call as well as a shortened schedule.
Saturday we all enjoyed the shorter day because it was a nice break from our typical long school days. The school day ended with us watching “The Day After Tomorrow” in Italian (thank god for English subtitles). Church was....well, church, and Saturday night some of us went out, while others enjoyed a cosy night in catching up on their favourite TV shows. In all we had an eventful yet stress-free week.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: What’s your Favourite purchase so far?

Sam L – My Black Boots from Fermo (I wear them everywhere)
Melissa – My suede boots from Fermo
Kasia – Trumpet from Macerata
Nat H – Horse painting from Florence
Julia – Winter coat from PSG
Heather – Suede Jacket from Florence
Chelsea – Purple dress from Fermo
Silvana – Coat from Oviesse from PSG
Dylan – Leather wallet From Florence
Clarissa –Black boots from Rome
Marissa –Necklace from Venice
Alex – Leather jacket from Florence
Sam D – Gondola charm from Venice
Taylor – Hat from Fermo
Nat Z – Venetian Masks from Venice
Sean – Leather jacket from Florence
Ricker – Cross necklace from Rome
Peter – Winter coat from PSG
Michelle – Grey dress from PSG
Claire – Leather Purse from PSG

ACROSTIC POEM OF PORTO SAN GORGIO
Punto (our main grocery store)
Ocean (our front yard)
Rain (this month’s weather)
Tiramisu (the best dessert ever)
Oasi (the only mall within walking distance)

Sand (makes up the beautiful beach)
Anti-social (the kids at our school)
New experiences (we have every day)

Gelato (no explanation needed)
Over-priced shopping (too many designer shops)
Running on the tread mill at the gym (too much gelato)
Great friends (the 20 of us)
Italian cooking (pastapastapastapastapasta)
Outstanding views (they surround us)

If you get a chance check out this week's photo postings at: www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Week of November 1-8

2009-11-09T12:50:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone,

This is Silvana N. and Alex G. and we’re writing about the fun times we’re having in Italy. It’s the start of a new month and time here in Italy is flying away! If we had to describe this week in just one word it would be: Midterms! Though we’re still having a blast, this week was hectic, with all the essays, projects and quizzes that were due. It was a busy week therefore an hour of study hall was instituted. We all gathered on the first floor each night and concentrated on completing our assignments. Initially we all rolled our eyes to the thought of having an extra hour of school. We all have to say that it was worth it in the end as we benefited from working productively.

On Wednesday November 4th, we all got dolled up and attended a play inspired by the classic tale of Alice in Wonderland. We were lucky enough to get free tickets, for great box seats (balcony seats), from Cesare, the cultural director of Porto San Giorgio. Though it was not what we had originally expected, it was definitely a memorable experience for us.
On Sunday, November 8th, we went on an excursion to a 1000 year old Monastery. Though it does not sound like the most exciting trip for a group of teenagers, we ended up having a blast! It incorporated what we are currently learning in class about the Romanesque and Gothic art period. We visited the church Abbadia Di Chiaravalle Di Fiastra. It was very plain and simple, but at the same time very beautiful even though it was not as ornate as most churches we have already seen. Luckily for us, we went on a great day. It happens to be there was a festival occurring. There were many stands, manned by local farmers and store owners, selling anything from fresh food to arts and crafts. We all munched on freshly roasted chestnuts and watched authentic Italian folk dancing, called Tarantella. Both Ricker and Silvana were volunteered to join in on the action and had tons of fun dancing with the locals. Silvana – it was a lot of fun and I most definitely can`t explain how much laughter Ricker and I and also the rest of our classmates had from all the excitement. It was kind of like you had to be there to see us dancing and what we had to do. Overall our day at the monastery was quite enjoyable.

On our way back home from the monastery, we stopped in the main piazza of Macerata. It`s a very big city with a nice market place and stores. We really enjoyed the free time we had to look around the market as we only had a very limited time in the city.

We surveyed or classmates and asked them what their favourite quote was from this trip so far:

Julia- “E lei, Signora? Posso avere una coca-cola, per piacere? Ah, ah, ah, ah, oh una coca-cola light, per la signora. Perche Giovanni? Hai ha ducia hai riducia”

Clarissa- “Mirko Boi”, “D&H scale”, The quirks of the emperors”

Chelsea- “That’s what she said”, “Dante’s so easy I can do him right now”

Heather- “That’s a whole lot of meat rollin’ around on that floor”

Kasia- “I’m not with you”

Natalia H.- “D and G. Di Giavani, hellooooo”, “What if your father was a bear keeper?” “9.5always room for improvement”, “What are you doing?”

Sean-Patrick- “Vroooom Vroooom from the back”

Peter- Peter does not have a quote

Ricker- “My mom made me come, so I came”

Dylan- “Duh HelloOoOoOoOoOo”

Claire- “Which one doesn’t fit?”

Michelle- “We are the winx!”, “The Thief Lord would!”

Sam L.- “The caveman”, “Don’t kiss any pigs; that includes piglets”

Melissa- “Should I go to the gym with Luciano and his spandex or get a haircut where someone might end up having to leave the dinner table?”

Taylor- “Sweetheart”

Natalia Z.-“Melissa we’ve got a problem! How am I gonna get this camel into my suitcase”

Sam D.- “It depends on what kind of butt you want to see”, “life’s a beach”

Marisa-“I feel stronger...I can hear the worms in the earth”, “Billy Rae”, “Poetry”

Silvana- “I still can’t believe we’re in Italy”

Alex-“I need a plug”, “Merlin’s pants”

Our adventures here in Italy keep expanding into more and more memories that we will never forget and treasure forever. We are lucky kids, thanks parents :)

Thanks for reading this week’s blog and stay tuned for next week’s!

Ciao!!!

The internet is super slow tonight so we are having trouble uploading photos but check soon (we hope!) at: www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Week of October 26-November 1

2009-11-02T13:35:00.000-08:00

Hey, everyone, Happy Halloween!

This is Clarissa and Chelsea blogging from October 27-November 1.

This week was full of exchanges with the Italian students. Our first class was a sketching class on Wednesday with Professoressa Mignini. In this class we learned how to sketch with shadows and light. There were tables with various items and we had to pick one that we could sketch…to the best of our ability of courseJ.

The second exchange was a sculpture class with Professore Donadario on Thursday. We were each given tasks to recreate a previously made sculpture using clay. These included faces, abstract structures, and even a pikachu. During this time we were also able to get our creations from the previous class and sand them down as well as paint them with beautiful colours. This class really helped us get in touch with our artsy sides and everyone had a great time. After we were finished with this two hour class, we headed to the market. A lot of people found some great things at great prices, and were very happy with their final purchases.

Our final exchange for the week was on Friday with Professoressa Alici. In this class we were asked to bring a prepared booklet of worksheets to help improve our Italian language skills. We then dispersed ourselves amongst the Italian students, and talked about our favourite bands, TV shows, movies, etc. We moved among different groups, and definitely started to feel more comfortable with the language, even if we did make a couple mistakes.

On Saturday, during Italian class, we watched the classic Walt Disney movie, Alice in Wonderland, in Italian. The reason for this is that we will be viewing the Alice in Wonderland play on November 4th together as a class. All of us are super excited for this play and will now understand most of the character’s names and intentions.

As for Halloween night, almost every student dressed up as a different high school stereotype. The list of costumes is below. After dinner, we went out into the piazza and had a fun night hanging out and taking some great pictures. It definitely proved to be a great Halloween.

Getting to sleep in on Sunday was also a great treat! At 3:00 pm some of us walked over to a sports centre for a celebration of the start of the local team’s basketball season, where we got some freebies and such. We took a group picture and even had some refreshments.

This year’s Halloween Costumes (which were all pretty awesome):

Alex-The Hardcore Rebel
Julia-The FOB kid
Clarissa-The Scene Kid
Chelsea-The Emo Kid
Heather-Herself
Silvana-The Gina Kid
Kasia-The Smartie Pants (literally!)
Natalia H.- DaGangster
Sean-Patrick-Himself
Peter- Our very own….Lucas Scott!!!
Ricker-The Kid Who Stuck His Finger In An Electrical Socket
Dylan-Himself
Claire-Rocker Chick
Michelle-Nerd
Sam L.-Alice Cullen
Melissa-Queen Bee
Taylor-Cheerleader/Prep
Natalia Z.-Herself
Sam D.-Sport Jock
Marisa-Artsy Kid

Be sure to check out this week's photos at: www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Travel Week with Parents!!

2009-10-27T04:43:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone,

There’s definitely a lot to cover in this blog so prepare for a very long read…

Before we even got to the parent trip we had a packed week from saying goodbye to Mr. Petrolito so he could go to Rochester, New York for his son’s wedding, to welcoming Annamaria and Mr. Di Giovanni who would be joining us for the parent trip. We attended a book release for a book based on the fifth canto of Dante Alighieri’s book “The Divine Comedy”. The canto is based on the story of Francesca and Paolo and is about how they get sent to the second circle of Hell for the crime they committed, lust. We were invited to this book signing because Mr. Di Giovanni wrote the introduction to this book. We believe we speak for all when we say our group was extremely well-behaved based on the fact that not only did we sit for 2 hours listening to this presentation, none of us spoke to each other not to mention that the whole thing was in Italian!!! Then as a surprise we were taken to the hotel we were supposed to stay at in Atri for lunch… we think everyone agrees that we got lucky with our hotel in Porto San Giorgio. Then we visited the local church, a 12th century duomo, and were treated to some Gelato by Mr. Di Giovanni for our good behavior during the presentation.

On the last day of school prior to the parent trip we had our regularly scheduled class with the Italian students. This time we had the pleasure of trying something new which was sculpting. Mr. Donadario, the professor of the class, was very welcoming even though he knew little English. The students also joined in by helping us with our sculpting. We had everything from flowers, coffee mugs, bunny rabbits, snowmen, and cubes; we also had random geometrical shapes going. Okay so we’re not exactly the next Da Vincis but we still did pretty well. We ended by scheduling another class for this week coming. Our ‘masterpieces’ will be dry and ready to be picked up for the upcoming class. We then returned home that night to finish packing for the adventure we were about to go on.

We woke up Friday morning with excitement knowing we were about to experience Italy in a whole new way, and those with parents flying in also had the excitement of seeing them that day. We all packed onto the bus Friday morning for the 3 hour bus ride to Tivoli. We arrived in Tivoli around 11am with some students having tear-filled eyes of excitement. The moment we stepped off the bus we were immediately confronted by a slew of parents. Those without parents there also had a few tear-filled moments knowing that they could not enjoy this trip with their families as the other students would be able to. Soon enough the kids broke off catching up with their loved ones until lunch where we enjoyed a lovely meal altogether. It was then announced that we would be going to a beautiful garden known as the Villa D’Este, which most of the girls recognized from The Lizzie McGuire Movie. The garden was breath-taking; we were all in awe from the fountains and pools. Gosh, we wouldn’t want to know the cost of that water bill! We ended the day with a little bit of shopping time and the returning to the hotel. We then had a relaxing dinner and all broke off to do our own things for the night, awaiting the early wake-up call the next morning.

We attempted to do Rome in one day so it was a day full of sightseeing and walking. The first two pieces of architecture we saw in Rome were the Arch of Constantine and the Coliseum… which was HUGE! Also in Rome we saw the Pantheon with its large dome ceiling. Natalia H definitely had an eventful day she lay down on the floor of the Pantheon to look up, plus got bitten by a horse outside the Pantheon. Guess she got a little too close. The Trevi Fountain was what we were looking forward to the most, again this is thanks to the Lizzie McGuire movie. The legend about the Trevi Fountain is you’re supposed to throw in three coins: one to return to Rome, a second to find love and a third to get married. So we lined up with our backs facing the Trevi, put our coins in our right hand, threw them over our shoulder and made a wish. The last thing we saw in Rome was St. Peter’s Basilica; it was one of the first things we saw in Italy in September but for the parents’ sake we visited it again. This time we did not go into the Vatican museum; instead we went in to the catacombs where many popes were buried including the beloved Pope John Paul II where many people were mourning. Then we got on a bus and drove to our next hotel.

Over the next two days we did less sightseeing and more shopping. How could you not when you’re in Florence and Venice? In Florence we saw many things pertaining to Michelangelo such as the Academia Di Belle Arti where we saw the David (he definitely was big) and we also saw Santa Croce Basilica where Michelangelo and many other artists were buried. After all the sightseeing we split up to go shopping, Florence being famous for its leather, silk and gold gave us a lot to do, see and buy. After all the shopping was done we met back in Piazza del Popolo next to the fountain of Neptune. Venice is the city on the water so many of us went for gondola rides. It was definitely an amazing experience; we went under the Rialto Bridge and passed many historical and beautiful buildings. Plus we got some shopping time in Venice too; they are famous for their masks and glass almost everyone got either one of the two items or both. Those were definitely two productive days. We returned to Porto San Giorgio that night.
Finally back ‘home’ in PSG for the first day October 20, we got to sleep in and have leisurely morning, we got to enjoy the parents and roam around town. After lunch we were told we were going on an afternoon excursion to Loreto. We all piled on the bus once again and took a short bus ride to the nearby town. The bus took us all the way up to the top of the mountain to where the Santa Casa Cathedral of Loreto is located. We saw the local monks all dressed in baby blue then we entered the church. The church was bold and beautiful and you where instantly overwhelmed with all the artistic and architectural features. We then had some free time that most used to look out at the amazing view, snap some pictures, visit the tiny religious stores, get some gelato, and then all meet back and the main fountain in front of the church for a few more photos before heading back to the bus. The following day, October 21, we woke up not too early and once again hopped on the bus for a short bus ride to Fermo where we would get to spend the morning shopping and/or going to the beautiful church at the top of the mountain. Some of the students and parents decided to go straight to the Basilica and go inside while others decided to follow Mr.D to a tiny shoe outlet with amazing shoes and amazing prices! Most people either bought a pair of boots or heels for a relatively low price for the quality you received. After they had made their purchases some people decided to book it to the church whereas others decided to head back to the main piazza and grab a slice of pizza. We were then picked up by the bus and driven to the City Hall of Fermo where we had the pleasure of meeting the President of the province. We sat and listened to a short speech by several council members and then where invited to toast the president with champagne that he poured for us, that was pretty cool we must say. After that we then again climbed on to our bus and took another short ride back to PSG where we would have lunch and then be dismissed to do whatever we pleased for the rest of the day.

Ravenna was our last excursion. We got to visit the Basilica of San Vitale where the mosaics of Emperor Justinian and Empress Theodora are. It was exciting to see them after all that time examining the mosaics in class and trying to figure out what sort of messages and symbols are within the piece; it was amazing to finally get to be able to see them in person. We also got to see Sant’Apollinare Nouvo and Dante’s tomb which apparently was moved four times. After all those long excursions it was nice to finally get home even though it was about a five hour bus ride. That night was a very special night because Mr. P and his wife returned to the hotel that night; it definitely wasn’t the same without him and his speeches at dinner. It was also the last night with the parents so we all went out for gelato, I don’t think that place has ever had so much business. The next day was definitely a hard one because it was the last day with the parents. During the last lunch together we celebrated Mr. P’s and Dylan’s birthday plus gave a few speeches thanking all those who have helped us so much. After lunch most went out for more gelato, or for a last walk of the town until it was time to say goodbye. Saying bye was definitely emotional even for those without parents on the trip because of how attached we got to each of the parents. The funniest thing that happened was the bus almost left Annamaria behind. Too bad they didn’t; we really miss her. Hopefully she’ll be back in December.

Now that the parent trip is over we’re trying to ease back in to school, went to church and had an extremely quiet dinner. Getting back to our regular schedule isn’t easy, but we’re working on it. Well that’s it for this blog, hope you enjoyed it.

Ciao

We miss you all,

Melissa and Taylor

Reminder: as always, please check out our many photos from the parent trip at www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Parents Poem

The parents came, though not for long
It was a trip full of jokes and song
Mr. Di Giovanni with his unending knowledge of facts
And for mixing up Spanish and Italian Dylan’s mom sure has a knack

Michelle’s family has style and grace, always with a smile on their face
And if you need a shopping guide mama Burns has the best taste
Sean’s mom has her rubber jokes
And the taste of mushrooms makes his aunt choke

Claire’s family is happy with ‘corny jokes’
And Katarzyna’s mom being quiet and calm is most definitely a hoax
Alex’s mom bashes twilight and her father plays cards till dawn
And somehow Annamaria always seems to know where to find a Benetton

The Handziuks are stalkarazzi with the kinder and wine
Ms. Parwicki always with the best buys and cutest design
Julia’s family would be the perfect candidates for the amazing race
And even with the littlest Longo, Sam’s family set an extremely fast pace

This trip we retained a lot of knowledge
Took a break from living like we’re in college
We got to know the parents and had a blast
Too bad it couldn’t last

… This was all approved by your children oh and Alex we love your watermelon shoes J

What was your favorite memory from the trip?

Melissa – Last minute shopping in Venice (literally)
Sam Longo- Mask shopping
Sam Davies- Gondola ride
Natalia H.- “That’s what she said” joke at the Trevi Fountain/ Getting bit by the horse in front of the Pantheon
Dylan- Towel warmers in the Hotel Raffaello
Ricker- Gondola ride
Sean- Steak in Florence
Peter- Pizza in Venice/ Villa D’Este
Marisa- Gondola ride or TC
Clarissa- Seeing my cousin for the first time
Julia- Pizza in Rome
Alex- Eating lunch in Florence/ Gondola ride
Chelsea- Petting the horse in front of the Pantheon/ Gondola ride
Heather- Shopping with mom/ Gondola ride
Silvana- Fermo shoe outlet (where I bought my leather boots)
Katarzyna- The first hug
Michelle- The ‘Amazing Race’ through the Gardens with my sister Alex
Claire- Seeing my parents

Oct 5-12

2009-10-12T14:34:00.000-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!!! Hey everyone its Sam L and Natalia Z. So another week, another blog. Things are continuing to be amazing here. It’s been a fairly normal week schedule wise. We are becoming more immersed in our routine of waking up at 7am, going to breakfast, and leaving for school by 8:15am. We then stay at school until 1:10pm and we usually have a time table of English, Religion & Art history, Classical Civilizations, and then Italian, with different variations if we have a class with the Italian kids. So far we have had two classes with the younger sketch class group, and the grade eleven group. They continue to be entertaining and educational, encouraging us to interact more than we would in a normal Italian class. We have a class scheduled with the sketching group for almost every Wednesday, and the other group on Thursdays, and we have been given more offers for other classes so we will see how that goes.
In the afternoons after school we have lunch which continues to be delicious and fairly unrepetitive. We then we hang out, doing work or watching movies, and going to the gym to work out. Then we have dinner and do much of the same we did in the afternoon in the evening. We continue to go out for gelato and we try to go to the beach if we think it is warm enough. Our weather is holding up fairly well, and in fact today was the first time it’s really poured all day. It’s not very cold here yet, with the weather determinedly sticking above 20°C. We even went in a massive group sun tanning this week. Envious yet?
Cesare, who works for the mayor and gives us guided tours, took us to Fermo on a bus this week. It was pretty fun, minus the constant walking uphill. It’s a strange city, with tiny streets and very old buildings. Although there was a lot of complaining coming from us, because we all wanted to do some shopping, we had a pretty fun night. A few students even made friends with the owners of the little shops. There is a lot of staring coming from the Italians, and it’s quite amusing, actually, how much we amaze them. The teachers here are always telling us that the Italians want to learn English as much as we want to learn Italian.
Today we celebrated thanksgiving at lunch. The owners of the hotel generously made us a turkey, and man that thing was huge! We each got quite a bit to eat. They were concerned about the stuffing, since they don’t usually make turkey, but in our opinion, it was quite delicious and successful. Before we dug in, Dylan led us in the Hail Mary in Italian (by memory!). We also went around the table, with each student saying, in Italian, what we are thankful for. Overall, it was a nice holiday.
Annamaria joined us again last night after being away visiting the other group of kids from Canada, and some of her family and friends here in Italy. We are glad to have her back with us and look forward to spending time with her again. Some of the kids participated in making a thank you card for her and everyone signed it to show our appreciation for everything she’s done for us on this trip.
Mr. Petrolito also left us a few days ago for a family wedding that he must attend. We miss his presence here, but we are somewhat surviving. But we miss his funny jokes, grandfatherly demeanour and random history lessons.
Here’s a list of what each student is thankful for (everyone is thankful for their friends and family but this is a list of other things they are also very grateful for):
1) Kasia: sock slippers
2) Natalia H: Easy Bib and Bears
3) Peter: Newton’s discovery of gravitational acceleration
4) Sean-Patrick: for having the chance to go on this trip
5) Samantha D: the chance to experience a new culture and new country
6) Marisa: Saturday nights
7) Clarissa: New friends, Kinder, Fanta, and Saturdays
8) Julia: Amazing roommates and learning a new language
9) Alexandra: Naps and gelato
10) Ricker: The beach
11) Dylan: Weather over 20°C everyday
12) Silvana: Italy’s delicious gelato
13) Heather: The opportunity to be in Italy and experience new things everyday
14) Chelsea: For having the chance to come from one great country to another
15) Michelle: Internet to connect with people and gelato
16) Claire: The internet to connect with family, friends, and entertain myself
17) Melissa: 5 euro phone cards to contact family
18) Mr. T: Gravol and ear plugs for long Italian bus rides
19) Ms. C: For this experience and for her students
20) Natalia Z: Agendas, iTunes, and books
21) Sam L: Free will

We've been having some difficulty posting this week's photos to our flickr site but please check www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia as of tomorrow (Tuesday) and you'll hopefully have some awesome new photos to view!

Sept 28-Oct 4

2009-10-05T06:22:00.000-07:00

Hey, it’s Marisa(a.k.a. Mawiza/Buon Compleano), and Sam (a.k.a Sammie Davis, Jr., Jr.) and we are writing about our amazing and exciting adventures in Italy this week.
This week was so full of interesting and insightful experiences that it is almost hard to name them all. Even though the week started out slow the excitement picked up as the week progressed. We spent the week falling further into our routines, and exploring the city of Porto San Giorgio. This included our daily excursions to the gelaterias and getting our butts kicked by Luciano (fitness instructor). This week he showed us a new spinning move. It was really intense. In summary, this week we were very focused on our studies, but still had time to have fun.
This week was also a major turning point in our social lives with the Italians in the town. On Wednesday we spent our Religion/Art History class with grade nine Italian students, sketching dolls and getting to know some of the students. We also found ourselves at the beach swimming in the beautiful ocean and basking in the warm sun. Later that night, we had one of our famous movie nights. It was a movie completely in Italian... a plot of the teachers to “immerse” us in the language and culture. The movie was about a poor fisherman’s son who got a job as a postman and delivered mail to a famous poet on the top of mountain. For the most part we found this movie enjoyable and heartwarming, even with the heart wrenching ending.
On Thursday we got another wonderful opportunity to meet some more Italian people. This time it was a grade 11 class so we all felt a little more comfortable getting to know the students. We were given conversation starters, such as “Mi chiamo...”(my Name is....) and “Ti piace l’Italia?” (Do you like Italy?). We discovered throughout the class that one or two of the students knew a bit of English but for the most part we had to use our prior knowledge from Italian class to communicate and interact. We’re not saying that our English/Italian dictionaries weren’t used, however we finding ourselves having to use them less and less. On Thursday we also to an chance to see the old ruins of the city. Signor Cesare, who works for the city’s cultural department, showed us the town and led us to see some of Porto San Giorgio’s most beautiful places. First, we visited an old theater with box seating and the most beautiful ceiling (almost as good as Michelangelo... but not quite). We got to go onstage and look out of the tiered windows. After that we got he chance to see an old medieval fort. We had to walk up a very steep hill to get there but in the end it was worth the struggle because the place was absolutely amazing. It was like we had stepped back in time to when Porto San Giorgio was still on the lookout for enemy naval attack. Sng. Cesare told us so many amazing stories about each one of the places we visited throughout the expedition. That night we got back to the hotel just in time for dinner. The teachers decided to surprise us all with a birthday celebration for the September babies (and Natalia Z. because it was her real birthday that day). It was so kind of them; we even got a cake, something we have been deprived of so far.
On Friday, we continued with our normal routine. As well, we discovered new parts of the town. Half of the class their very first Book Chat assignment. People who read “The Pillowman” and “Six Degrees of Separation” got their first taste of what it’s like to have to discuss a book intelligently for two hours with a teacher and other students. The next day “The Tipping Point” and "Freakonomics" readers got the same experience. We met in a gelateria to discuss and analyze our books. Most of us kids weren’t accustomed to this but found it quite enjoyable. We then had the rest of the day to ourselves and most decided to explore the town. Some of us even found a couple of parks in the area providing us with more recreational activities to look forward to. We headed back to the hotel for dinner at 7:00pm even though the beautiful sunny day was beckoning us with its warmth and cool sea breeze.

To those lucky people in Toronto who got to stay inside sleeping all Saturday we were hard at work all day furthering our education. Yes, we know, it’s rough that we have to get up at 7:00am, but it wasn’t all bad. Throughout the week we had been watching a really entraining movie about Julius Caesar’s life and rise to power. Recently the teachers came to the decision that we could all sleep in a bit on Sundays and so instead of church Sunday morning we have church Saturday night. So we attended church (we arrived a bit late because they’d moved the time back half an hour and everyone in town seemed to know this but us!) and after raced back to the hotel for dinner. After dinner was when the night finally came to life. Porto San Giorgio only truly comes to life on Saturday nights, hosting people from the surrounding towns. We went out and had lots of fun with the local kids surprised by how friendly and courteous they were to us.

On Sunday, most of us slept in. Some of us went out for breakfast while others stayed in and enjoyed a slow paced morning. Here at the hotel, we are constantly fed really well, but in my opinion, Sunday’s lunch topped it all. We got the most amazing old fashioned Italian lasagna followed by an apple pie desert. After lunch we were all rushed onto a bus as we set off on another one of our journeys. Destination: Ascoli Piceno. Even though Annamaria wasn’t with us we still managed to find our way around. Once we were there we looked at many magnificent building such as churches and the main city hall. Most of the buildings were worn and historic looking but they aded real charm to the city. We enjoyed the charming little shops encircling the piazza and then wandered throughout the rest of the city. On the ride home we stopped at a shopping center; some of us walked around window shopping while others picked up needed materials like shoes, balls, and clothing. After dinner we had a quiet evening in the hotel, finishing up work due for the next day.

This week in English class we have been learning about the application of poetic language. We have been writing countless poems and reading them to the class. Here is a sample of the talented and amazing Natalia H.’s finest work.

Italy is lots of fun
We get to laugh and play in the sun
We see the culture and taste gelato
We even learned to count to otto
The tours here are very enlightening
Even though some paintings and sculptures are frightening
We go to know the greats Michelangelo and Bernini
We have had great food like tortellini
This week we learned to write in verse
And with Italians we did converse
We got insight into Julius Caesar
We’re straight up g’s so we didn’t listen to Weezer
We all miss our families very much
But we are making friends and such
We hope you miss us too
Because we truly miss you through an through

I is for inspiring
T is for tours
A is for amazing
L is for language
Y is for young and restless

Isn’t she skilled? The next Dante Alighieri? :)

We also got back a bunch of tests and quizzes, including our Dettatos ( Spelling tests) and Unit tests for Italian. We wrote a Religion/Art History test about Ancient Rome and looked deeply into the historical aspects of Ancient Rome in Classical Civilizations. One day in English we did a “Blind Walk”, were you walk around the school area talking turns closing your eyes while your partner guides you. We got to write a poem about it after and they turned out really well. We also experimented with writing Odes and Elegies.

Of course over these past weeks we have been missing our families, friends and pets immensely, but Sam and I were wondering what Canadian comforts everyone missed most from back home. We did a survey and this is what we got:

Samantha L. misses locks on the bathroom doors and skating
Heather misses her bed, steak and granola crunchies
Ricker misses T.V. in english and going to see movies.
Dylan misses his Boston Red Sox blanket
Sean misses his bed
Clarissa misses gymnastics
Silvana misses family dinners and her mom’s homemade soup
Michelle misses having an organized place to live.
Claire misses dance class and T.V.
Natalia H. misses Pillsbury Cookie dough
Kasia misses perogies
Peter misses his shower
Julia misses The Food Network
Melissa misses her bed
Chelsea misses Criminal Minds
Natalia Z. misses all her books at home
Alex misses her pillow
Taylor misses apple juice
Samantha D. misses her guitar
Marisa misses internet in her room

And it’s not just the students here feeling a bit homesick, the teachers miss stuff too.

Mr. P misses his car, because he likes to get from place to place whenever he feels like it.
Mr. T. misses Tim Horton’s because he is a true Canadian.
Ms. C. Misses high speed internet because the internet is so slow here.

As always, please be sure to check out our new photos (we posted 58 new ones this week!) at: www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Ciao for now everyone!

Sept 20-27

2009-09-28T08:29:00.000-07:00

Buon Giorno,
It’s Kasia and Natalia H blogging from Italy!!
This past week has passed by very quickly. Italy gets more and more amazing everyday as we learn about the culture, history and people. This week we settled into a routine and got to know the town and people much better. The gelato here is great, and we discovered that the best gelatoria in town is Papaya, located right on the lungo mare (boardwalk). We also found where the large supermarket, Oasi, is; it resembles an Italian Loblaws Super Center. Oasi is about a 20 minute walk down to the end of the lungo mare. We also took a walk through the ‘old Porto San Georgio’ that was built in the medieval ages. It is amazing how old the town really is.
Thirteen of us joined a fitness club just down the street from the school we attend. It is complete with almost any fitness machine you can think of; from rowing machines to bikes to weights. On Saturday we had our first spinning class. Ms. Carducci, Mr. Tuohy, Mr. Petrolito, Heather, Julia, Merisa, Clarissa, Natalia H, Sam D, and Sam L. all got their behinds whipped by Luciano the fitness instructor... Beyonce’s song “Halo” will never be the same.
This week we had our first experiential Italian class with a visit to il mercato. We got to see some small-town Italian culture and try our hand at haggling in Italian with the vendors. All together it was an awesome class. In this past week we have gotten much better at speaking Italian, and have even learned how to tell time.
Any parent who may be concerned that, with all our extracurricular activities, we aren’t doing enough homework needn’t worry. We have quite enough work to realize we are ‘high school seniors’ without attending our regular schools. It’ll all be worth it though when the parents come in just over two weeks and we get to take a break from school to travel.
This weekend we had a little change in our schedule that made us all very happy: we went to church Saturday night and got to sleep in Sunday morning!! Some people took advantage of this opportunity to have breakfast outside of the hotel. The change was very welcome.

Please check out this week's photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia/sets/

Through these past three weeks we have all gotten to know our roommates very well. Here are the most interesting things people learned about their roommates:
Natalia H. learned that Kasia’s personality type = special
Kasia learned that Natalia H. is her bffl
Samantha D. learned that Marisa is very very messy
Marisa learned that Samantha D. snores like a man
Clarissa learned that Julia likes to stare at walls and that Alex can use an umbrella as a weapon
Julia learned that Alex loves Buffy the Vampire slayer and Clarissa likes to speak “gangster”
Alex learned that Clarissa needs a megaphone to wake her up and Julia and Dallas Green were meant to be.
Melissa learned that Taylor id brutally honest
Taylor learned that Melissa extremely, extremely neat
Heather learned that Silvana likes to shop and that Chelsea likes Italian boys.
Silvana learned that Chelsea is wittily sarcastic and that Heather eats a lot of Kinder chocolate.
Chelsea learned Heather is afraid of vomit and Silvana likes to tan on the beach.
Natalia Z. learned that Samantha L. is paranoid that there are no locks on the washrooms
Samantha L. learned Natalia Z. hates her dentist
Dylan learned that Ricker loves Red Bull
Ricker learned that Dylan likes to sleep
Claire learned that Michelle is a messy neat freak
Michelle learned that Claire makes up dance routines on the spot
Peter learned that Sean is a football maniac.
Sean learned that Peter is intimidating (or so he thinks).

All twenty of us are looking forward to Wednesday when we are going to be formally meet some Italian students at the art school and take a sketching class.
We have had one of the best weeks of our lives!!!
And…
We miss Annamaria!!!
Ciao y’all!

2009-09-20T13:00:00.000-07:00

Buon Giorno, ci chiamiamo Ricker & Peter.

These past 2 weeks we learned many things, including: how to greet new Italian friends, learning about the past of Rome and the religious background of art. We also learned about Greek and Roman history. We have all been getting used to living without family and some close friends. We’ve been spending our time in Porto San Giorgio swimming in the ocean and meeting Italian students. The weather has been amazing, warmer than Canada’s summer. Currently it’s 30C during the day and high 20’s in the mornings and evenings. It’s only rained once, so far. We visited the Amalfi coast, Rome (inside the Vatican and Sistine Chapel). We’ve also been to Pompeii and saw many ruins. Paestum is another city we visited. It’s an ancient Greek city with many ruins. Last night we met our first Italian friends and got gelato with them. They were very friendly and helpful, showing us around the town. Peter’s favourite flavour of gelato is nocciole and Ricker’s is straciatella. The hotel has some great food, but it’s a little more repetitive than home. The typical Italian dishes are pasta, meat and fruit. Breakfast is much different than it is back in Canada; no pancakes with maple syrup. Instead, we get some continental breakfast which includes cereal and bread with cheese and ham. The breakfasts they eat in Italy are also consumed in very small amounts, but the lunch and dinner with 2 main courses makes up for the lack of food in the morning. The school we attend is top quality with some very mature and intelligent students. The principal is also a lovely fellow. He came to visit us even though he was sick. The art school produced many paintings and statues which are for viewing in the hall. We attended mass today which was very similar to a Canadian mass. The people were very friendly and welcoming. After mass, we went for a walk in the piazza where there was a market setting up. Some items being sold ranged from fresh porchetta to winter jackets (30 C is relatively cold for Italians?). It’s been a hectic week, all in all. Everyone was happy to have a day off after mass today. Some people went to the beach, while others slept and others watched movies or worked on homework. Our batteries are charged and we’re ready to go back to school.

Please take a look at a few photos we've chosen to post: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tcdsbinitalia

Ciao y’all,
Ricker & Peter

Benvenuti a Tutti!

2009-09-17T13:47:00.000-07:00

Friends, Romans, countrymen...

Or, with apologies to Shakespeare,

Dear parents and friends of the 2009 TCDSB Semester in Italy program,

Welcome to the "TCDSB in Italia" blog. This is my first and, in all likelihood, last submission to this blog. Hereafter, this project will become completely student run. How will that work? No doubt much better than if I were the sole contributor! When it comes to computers, I consider myself much like Socrates, as in "the only thing I know is that I know nothing."

Each week, students will take turns being responsible for overseeing the content herein. They will work in already assigned pairs to choose which photos to post, which stories to tell, which memories to share. It will, I hope, be a way for them to share with their loved ones all they have learned about Italy, Italian culture, each other and themselves.

I look forward to what we'll see in this forum over the next few months, and I'm sure you do as well. I hope you won't restrict yourselves to merely observing; please feel free to be active participants in our little blogosphere. Post comments as often as you wish, send messages, start discussions, maybe even try out a little of the Italian you haven't used since high school.

And of course, most importantly of all, enjoy.

Sincerely,
Mr. Tuohy

P.S. -- Postings will take place on Sundays only. The rest of the time trust that we will be busy doing homework, going on excursions, investigating a new culture... and building memories.