Josephine's Blog

I am on my way home. I had a lot of fun in Italy and would love to come back sometime. It was a good experience and I learned lots about the people. The people were all fairly friendly. I learned how to speak Italian better and I learned about the culture. It changed me by making me more well traveled and aware of what’s going on in other parts of the world. I would love to come back because I enjoyed it so much.

Io ho visitato l’Italia. Io studio italiano a scuola. Io ho mangiato del pane casarau in Sardegna. Io ho visitato la Pelosa, dei Nuraghi, e la Maddalena in Sardegna. Io ho visitato la Basilica di San Pietro, il Colosseo, ed il Pantheon a Roma. Mi piace l’Italia.

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Today I went to Parco Nazionale Arcipelago Di La Maddalena. It is a national park in the North of Sardinia. Since today the sky was very clear, I sailed to the most Northern island of La Maddalena, Isola Razzoli and could see the French Island Corsica off in the distance. Here is a picture of Isola Razzoli:

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Today I visited the Museum of Sardinian Life and Tradition at Nuoro. Here I saw traditional costumes, musical instruments, and photographs of life on the island. Then I ate pane casarau, which is a wafer-thin flatbread that looks like parchment. Here is a picture of it:

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Today, I spent all day at the beach. I absolutely love going to beaches, but it’s too cold here in Alaska. I went to the beach La Pelosa, which is near Stintino. The water was super blue and there was white sand. Here is a picture of La Pelosa:

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Today I arrived in Sardinia. It was approximately an hour long flight. They speak a very different dialect here. I visited a Nuraghe. Nuraghi are beehive-like stone dwellings from the bronze age, and can only be found on Sardinia. The use of these structures is unknown, but many people believe that they were either used as religious temples or military strongholds. The most well known Nuraghe is Nuraxi su Barumini. Barumini is located at approximately 60 kilometers North of the Sardinian capital, Cagliari. Here is a picture of it:

The Sardinian capital Cagliari was built on seven hills. The oldest part of the city, Castello, lies on top of one of these hills called Bastione San Remy. There is a beautiful view of the Gulf of Cagliari, or Angels Gulf. When you have reached the top of Bastione San Remy, the Cathedral of Cagliari is at walking distance. Here is a picture of the church:

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Today was a day filled with eating. I ate some pizza, which was the best I have ever had. I also had some pasta. There is so much good food here. Many families in Italy find meal time very important so they make sure to eat together. The traditional Italian family respects elderly parents, and the mother is the dominant figure in the Italian home. She typically runs every aspect of domestic life, but is well respected.

Later on, I went to a market called Via Sannio, which as lots of vintage clothing. I am about to hop on a plane to Sardinia, which is an Island off the coast of Italy. It is very close to an Island in France called Corsica. Sardinia is the purple circle on the map:

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Today I went to the Pantheon. It was built by Hadrian around AD 119-128. It was originally a temple and remains a church today, holding the tombs of the united Italy’s first king and the artist Raphael. The exterior still has its original bronze doors, and inside the dimensions follow the rules set down by top Roman architect Vitruvius. The diameter of the hemispherical dome is exactly equal to the height of the whole building. Here is a picture of the Pantheon:

Afterwards, I had some gelato at at Il Gelato di San Crispino. Gelato is like an italian version of ice cream.

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Today I went to a mass led by the Pope at the Vatican.  It is the head of Catholicism. The sound was great and the music sounded amazing. There were lots and lots of people. Afterwards, I wandered through St Peter’s Basilica, and saw Michelangelo’s frescoes in the Sistine Chapel and visited the ‘Belvedere Apollo’ and ‘Laocoön’ at the Museo Pio-Clementino among the Vatican Museums. Here is a picture of the St. Peter church:

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Today I went to the Colloseum. There were gory battles between gladiators, slaves, prisoners, and wild animals here. The arena is from AD 72. It has a seating capacity of over 50,000 people. This is a picture of it:

Then I went to the gardens of the Villa Borghese, the city’s most central public park. It was super pretty, nothing like parks I have at home.

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