On April 12th, 15 students and three teachers, Ms. Isasi, Ms. Boylan, and Mr. Gonzalez, all landed safely on the soil of Rome, Italy. One of the first stops was the Basilica Santa Maria Mayor, where the late Pope Francis was buried on April 26th.  Later, the group got to visit the Vatican and ended their first day in Italy with the sweet taste of gelato, before returning to their hotel.

The next day, the group found themselves waking up bright and early to join one another for breakfast. A spread of Italian cuisine, from meat pies to pastries, laid before them. Soon enough, though, they were out the door, going to see the Colosseum and Roman Forum on a guided tour. Afterwards, the head chaperone, Ms. Isasi, led the group throughout Rome to see the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and the Pantheon.

The next day, the students, some of whom were joined by their exchange students, got on a train for a day trip to  Verona. They were taken on a guided tour, with the highlight of it being Giuletta’s balcony.

A new day greeted our foreign exchange students and they got to finally experience a bit of what it was like to attend school in Italy. The majority of the students got to engage in a discussion with Italian students. Then, they headed off to see Leonardo  Da Vinci’s Last Supper. Afterwards, the students made a daunting trek up to the top of the Duomo that overlooks Milan. Yet another day had passed as students got to meet up with their host families by the city centre, to which they were greeted by rain.

The foreign exchange group spent their last two days together in Florence, after taking an overnight train. The next day was full of historical sights like Michelangelo’s David, the Florence Duomo, the Leather market, and much more.

One the hardest adjustments to being in Italy was the language barrier, and how some Italian people make jokes at the expense of American people. The phrase “Ho fatti fatti,” was seen on a billboard  in Rome, and not a single Italian exchange student would tell the students from Curtis what it meant. 

Finally, students spent the Easter holidays with their respective host families. Each student got a different experience of Italy with their family. Some traveled to other parts of Italy; one student even went to  Venice. Overall, while there had been hiccups along the way, like the constant rain, the trip was a huge success.