Western Civilization 2009 - Abbey Road Programs

Photographs

2009-07-23T15:30:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos, finally.....Sorry for the wait, but the internet connections here have not been cooperating with us. Enjoy, and check back soon!

Project Runway, (Euro)Trash Edition

Project Runway, (Euro)Trash Edition

Project Runway, (Euro)Trash Edition

Cooking in Florence

Cooking in Florence

Cooking in Florence

Santa Croce, Class

Rome From Above

Rome from Above

Enrico Pottere

St. Peter's Square

Before Mt. Vesuvius, Pompeii

Spicy Hi Jinx on Pizza Night

At the Pantheon

Trevi Fountain

Trevi Fountain

Trevi Fountain

Jumping at the Capitoline Hill

Laundry

Capitoline Hill

Florence

2009-07-21T04:25:00.000-07:00

Note: the Internet is once again being a bit spotty. I'll put some pictures up as soon as I can.

We have reached Florence! We got here yesterday after a three hour bus ride from Rome. Our last few days in Rome were great, and quite busy.

On Saturday, we visited the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Square. The students particularly enjoyed seeing the Pieta and many took the opportunity to send a postcard from the Vatican post office (something that many savvy Romans do because the Vatican's postal service is much faster than their Italian counterpart).

On Sunday, the students had a (mostly) free day, giving them the chance for exploration of the city and some shopping time. We all headed up as a group to the Castle of the Knights of Malta for a picnic lunch and to enjoy the magnificent view of St. Peter's Basilica through a keyhole.

On Sunday night, we visited the Spanish steps, where we ate delicious pizza and had a great time people watching.

Now that we're in Florence, we move our gaze from the Romans to the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Florence is the perfect place to study these topics, and we've already begun to take advantage of the city, visiting Santa Croce, the world's largest Franciscan church, which is filled with fantastic examples of the Renaissance period.

Our living situation has changed drastically as well, and we are now staying in the Contessina Residence. The place is amazing, and we're all staying in spacious apartments with kitchens and common spaces and sleeping areas. We've got a wonderful central patio (the site of a delicious catered group dinner last night) and we are very centrally located in Florence. It's great.

This week will be another busy one (the all are, really). We've got tons planned here in Florence, and tomorrow we head out to Siena and San Gimignano, both beautiful towns in the Tuscan countryside. We'll keep you posted.

Some other activities we've got planned for the upcoming week include:

Cooking Class
Visit to see Michaelangelo's David
Visit to the Uffizi Gallery
Vespers at San Miniato al Monte
Checking out the view from Piazzale di Michaelangelo
And much more!

See you soon!

Some Photos

2009-07-16T13:54:00.001-07:00

Note: We will have more photos for y'all soon -- Euro internet is currently not allowing us to get all of them up. Check back with us soon!

Joey's Birthday on the Roof - Joey Reads His Card and Enjoys His Gifts

Joey's Birthday on the Roof - John Kicks It With Sigal and Katelyn

Joey's Birthday on the Roof - Learning to Prepare Traditional Greek Food

Joey's Birthday on the Roof - Learning to Prepare Traditional Greek Food

Joey's Birthday on the Roof - The Adults Fight the Rain and Light the Grill

Roma, the Eternal City

2009-07-14T10:57:00.001-07:00

Dear Parents and Friends,

We have arrived in Rome, safe and sound! We are all quite tired after a 5 am start today and a full day (after flying here, getting to the hotel, and eating lunch, we still found enough energy and time to make it to the Roman Forum). We are all looking forward to exploring this marvelous city and eating our faces off.

Our last few days in Athens were wonderful. We had a great time at the beach in Glyfada, and we all enjoyed some delicious home-made meals on our rooftop terrace at Hotel Plaka. We also had the opportunity to celebrate the birthday of one of us (Joey) with a great meal and some delicous cakes and ice cream treats.

And so, the trip moves along day by day, and we move along in our month-long history lesson, leaving behind the Greeks (though keeping in mind their impact on the world) and moving into the world of the Romans.

We've got lots of great pictures and we'll throw some up later (perhaps in a few minutes if the internet cooperates).

We hope that all are well.

We've Arrived and We're Alive!

2009-07-10T14:19:00.001-07:00

Well...It is late at night on our second full day here in Athens. We've been quite busy since the moment we left JFK a few days ago, but we're feeling strong and enjoying our stay here.

We got into town on Thursday evening after a long day of flight delays and airport insanity. After getting to the hotel, showering, and changing, we headed out for our first Greek meal and some live music (bouzouki). After stuffing ourselves quite silly, we returned to the hotel for a good night's sleep.

On Friday, we started the morning with breakfast at the hotel and followed the meal up with a general orientation. Afterwards, we went out for our first Gyro meal at a well-known local establishment. After resting and digesting, we went over to the ancient Agora (marketplace). Walking around the Agora, we picked up ancient pottery shards, discussed the Crito at the site of Socrates' execution, and ate pears that we poached from a tree growing near the apocryphal jail site of the Agora.

Friday night we took the metro to Panarmou to visit a Cretan restaurant, where we once again ate a delicious meal (this time family style Cretan food).

Today was once again a busy day. We walked up to the Acropolis (a steep climb, though it is within sight of our hotel), where we strolled around the grounds around the Parthenon and discussed the history of Classical Greece. This afternoon, after all the students enjoyed lunch together, we made our way over to the brand, spanking new Acropolis museum (it has been open about two weeks). The museum is beautiful, and does a great job of highlighting the incredible sculpture, architecture, and pottery of the site.

And this bring us to tonight. We have eaten dinner and explored the neighborhood of Psiri and we are now all at the hotel, settling down for the evening. Tomorrow we take a private bus to Delphi (home of the Oracle), and we'll have a chance to stop at the beach on the way home.

In all, we've been having a great time, and we're all excited for the rest of our time here in Athens (though we are, of course, also quite excited for Italy and France).

That's all for now. Have a great day, and we'll post more soon.

Students enjoy fresh Gryos after learning the greek word toast "Yiamas!"

Montana takes a moment to capture a beautiful church near Monesteraki

Our first group shot taken at the Agora!

John explains the etymology of stoicism by pointing out the Stoa of Attalos the 2nd

Tess smiles before a lecture on The Crito by Plato

Josh, Wyeth, Alex, Ian, James, Joey and Sam at the Agora Museum

John, James and Ian share laughs during a traditional Cretan family-style dinner
Making our way through the crowd! Boy was it hot!
Montana and Alethea pause before making their way to the Parthenon

Joey, Elizabeth, Whitney, Robyn and Alex
Chris and John ponder the wonders of the Erechtheion
Chris, John and Emily enjoy a rare staff only shot!
John and Casey discuss the dimensions of the Parthenon
A view of the Temple of Hephaestus
Ian and Sarah get into a water fight with two local girls... Ian was definitely out numbered!
Elizabeth and Robyn enjoy their first taste of a Greek Frappe!
Our Western Civ students were some of the first in the world to enjoy the new Acropolis Museum (opened on June 21st, 2009). Here they are admiring the ruins underneath the museum dating from the 2nd century B.C to the 6th and 7th centuries A.D
Greek sandwich making in preparation for our trip to Delphi!
Stevie and Whitney give thanks for their work of Greek Culinary Art!
An evening view from the roof of our hotel, Hotel Plaka.