IL Monastero

As the first full week of school came to a close, Richard Davis (Latin & Greek teacher) and I decided to grab some pizza at Il Monastero, arguably the best pizzeria inside The Wall (well, according to Dave Lutchner, SYA Activities Coordinator and Viterbese pizza aficionado for well over a decade).

Il Monastero is just a few blocks from my apartment and the quickest way to get there is to traverse through a street that is slightly wider than my wing span.  It is one of the most endearing things about Europe!  Il Monastero is also one of the few pizzerias that has an outdoor patio, another attraction to this place.  It was a beautiful evening in Viterbo, so we planned to take full advantage of the patio!  The place has a reputation, so we planned to get there right around the time they re-opened for the day, "about" 7:30 p.m..  By the time 8:30 rolled around, the patio was packed and people were lined up waiting for a table outside, forgoing the spacious inside with many more tables.

Dave warned us that we probably only needed to order one pizza, as two plates are needed in order to fit the pizza on it.  Because of both of our broken Italian, the waitress thought we wanted two pizzas, so instead of trying to correct her, we ordered another one (lol)!  Boy were we in for it, as neither of us wanted to leave without cleaning our plates.  In our defense, we justified the extra order for thinking that maybe Dave's idea of "two plates" was two small plates, not the two large dinner-sized plates they ended up being (see left).  Nevertheless, Richard and I were up to the challenge.  I ordered half brocholette (broccolini and a tish of sausage) and half parmasiana (mushroom, parmesian cheese, and tomato sauce).  Dave ordered half spinaci and half prosciutto and green olives (pits included).  While I have not eaten at every pizzeria in Viterbo (not sure that will be possible in the year I'll be here), the pizza at Il Monastero is currently the front-runner, hands-down!





Il Monastero gets its name because it sits next to a church with a monastery attached to it, called La Chiesa Santa Maria di Nuova.  The church (see right) was built nearly 1000 years ago and consecrated on December 13, 1080.






On the side of the church is an outdoor pulpit, built in 1267.  Interesting factoid: St. Thomas Acquinas delivered a homily on this pulpit soon after it was built to the people in the piazza adjacent to the church (and Il Monastero ), urging them to strive for goodness and prayer (see inscription above).

First Friday Excursion - Attivita In Citta

Every Friday, the students taking AP Calculus and/or AP Latin attend classes in the morning (8:10-10:00).  Then everybody gathers in the Salone to get instructions about the day's excursion.  It may be a fieldtrip somewhere around Viterbo or it may involved traveling out of town.  Yesterday's excursion was entitled "Attivita In Citta" or Activities in the City.

Today's excursion involved three places in or near the old city of Viterbo.  Students were divided up into three groups (A, B, C), rotating through each of the three places, learning interesting and cool things that they are responsible for as part of their studies in art history and archaeology.  I tagged along with group C and we started by going to the Prato Giardino, a small park just on the outside of The Wall, near Porta Fiorentina.  One of the interesting thing about this park is, while the park is small, it houses over 40 different kinds of trees.  Students had to use their maps to locate and identify several of these trees for which they'll present in their archaeology classes next week.  Another interesting fact is that the park is made up of several paths, as illustrated in the picture above.  Each path is named after a song sung by one of Italy's famous folk rock singers from the 60's.  His name escapes me now.

At the left, Profesora Ale Tuzi and Profesor Danielle Gatti lead the Prato Giardino excursion.  At the right, students are looking around for certain trees designated to them to discover.  Featured is one of my advisees, Akbar, sporting the stylish white blazer.



Group C, with whom I traveled.  From left to right:  (front) Paula, Rebeka, Nick, Roman, Jasper, Izzy, Emily, Gabriella, Corynne, Lydia, Sarah, Akbar, Rhyan, (back) Rachel, Nico, Kyle, Victoria,  and Garrison

Our second stop was the Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Viterbo (National Etruscan Museum).  It's a museum that houses many Etruscan artifacts from 8th century to 1st century B.C., a time in history where central northwestern Italy was inhabited by the Etruscans, who had their own language and custums, prior to the formation and ultimate culture shift of the Roman Empire.  The picture on the right (above) shows  Profesor Santo Sammartino giving an introduction to the Etruscan culture in the courtyard of the Museum.  The museum is housed in what was a haven for the papacy during the 13th century.  Apparently the Emperor and the Pope were often at odds during this time, to the point where the Pope felt it necessary to seek a secure place of residence out of fear of being killed.  The picture at the left shows the courtyard of the papal shelter, called Rocca Albornoz, near the Piazza Rocca and the Porta Fiorentina.


At the left is a typical Etruscan sarcophagus with artwork on the side.  If you click on the picture you'll be able to see better the Etruscan inscription that runs along the side of the lid of the tomb.  At the right, kids are walking up the steps to the floor devoted to statues unearthed depicting different muses the Etruscans honored.

As we were walking up the stairs floor of the muses, I was struck by the beauty of the windows.  Here's one of them.  At the top of the stairs there was a door that led out to a terrace which overlook the old town of Viterbo.  As you can see (at the right) it was an other spectacular day in Viterbo!

Our last stop took us to La Chiesa di Santa Maria della Verità (The Church of St. Mary of the Truth).  It's a 15th century church that houses (see left) La Capella Mazzatosta (The Mazzatosta Chapel).  The pastor of the church gave us special permission to not only be in the church, because it's usually closed at this time of the day, but also we received special permission to enter this chapel.

There is a rich history to this church, especially as it pertains to Mary.  I could not possibly summarize it in just a few words.  If you click on the picture at the right, you can read up on the Verità that occurred, causing this church to be named after it.

Above, is a fresco painting within La Capella Mazzatosta, painted by Lorenzo da Viterbo.  It depicts, with much license by the artist, the marriage of Mary and Joseph.  Many of the guests shown in the painting are people from time the fresco was painted (mid 1400s), including Lorenzo da Viterbo himself.  He's shown on the far right in the brown cloak right behind the old woman in blue.  As Profesora Yvonne Mazurek was leading the group in this discussion, she mentions that many Italians tend to "tell stories" of how they believed history unfolded, like the marriage of Mary and Joseph.  Lorenzo da Viterbo charges that the men on the left, who all think they are better (and younger) suitors for Mary are absolutely appalled and bewildered that Joseph is the chosen one, while the women and the men on the left are not only at peace with what has occurred but are convinced, through their faith, that this union is God's will.

Left:  a sun beam on the pews of La Chiesa di Santa Maria della Verità.

Right:  A simple alter featuring Jesus on the Cross and a stained-glass window of Mary in the back.

Left:  Entrance of La Chiesa di Santa Maria della Verità from the inside.

Middle:  Jesus inside La Chiesa
Right:  Mary inside La Chiesa

First Days of School

After 4 days getting on Italy time, starting the assimilation process with their Viterbese families, and completing placement tests in Italian, Latin, and mathematics,  the students were ready to start school on Monday, September 9.

Monday and Tuesday of this past week were devoted to getting the kids up and running with 2 days of intensive Italian classes, lasting about 3 hours each day.  In addition, I got to meet with my AP Calculus students in the morning, since I have such few days with them over the coming year to get them ready for the exam in May.  The first regular school day began this past Wednesday, September 11.

Each class is 47 minutes long with a 3-minute traveling period between classes.  There are 8 periods in the day, with the students required to take 6 classes.  That gives everybody 2 free periods to do homework quietly in the main salone, hang out in one of the two terraces connected to the school, do work in the computer room, or another smaller "hang-out" where all of their "cubbies" are.  I teach 5 classes (1 algebra II, 2 precal/trig, 1 honors precal/trig, and 1 AP calculus), which gives me 3 planning periods during the day...and I will need every one of them to keep ahead of the work it will take to manage 4 1/2 preps (in December my AP Calc class will split into AP Calc AB and AP Calc BC).  Yikes!

I LOVE CHALLENGES (LOL)!  This might be my greatest challenge yet as a teacher.  But I'm up for it.  Bring it on!



At the helm of the SYA-Italy Experience is Mr. Pat Scanlon, the Resident Director.  He's in charge of pretty much everything!  You name it, the buck ultimately stops right at his doorstep.  This is the first time Pat is addressing the students, going over key elements of the student handbook, which not only covers academically-related items but issues concerning expectations while living with their host-families and living in Viterbo in general.

This picture was taken at our first general assembly.  Assemblies are every Tuesday at 3:20 p.m.  These assemblies cover upcoming events, especially what will happen each Friday, since non-AP students do not have any classes this day.  There will be many Fridays throughout the year where even the AP students will not have class (i.e. when we take day-trips out of town to places like Rome and Tarquinia).





SYA employs a college counselor every year for a special group of seniors in high school who wish to forgo their senior year back in the states for an abroad experience.  Here's a picture of the college counselor's bulletin board displaying some of the potential schools for which the students might be interested in attending.  I am glad to see that certain schools made the cut, especially the school (see upper left corner) with the largest poster displayed.  M GO BLUE!!  P.S. - I had nothing to do with this, I promise (lol)!!

The "Aperitivo"

Left to Right:  Pat Scanlon (SYA-Italy Director), Brad Park
(English), Ale Tuzi (host and Italian Teacher), Richard Davis
(Latin & Greek Teacher)

 Alessandra, "Ale", is one of the Italian teachers at SYA.  She was nice enough to invite us over for an "aperitivo" tonight, the night before school officially begins for the kids.  Apparently she has hosted this party in the past.  What Brad, Richard, and myself (the three American teachers) didn't realize that "aperitivo" doesn't really translate into appetizers in the sense that there'd be just a few items to munch on.  Instead it was a few spread of food she'd prepared all day, as you can see in the picture below.  It was all good.  She even made two different kinds of rum punch to celebrate the occasion.  She really outdid herself!






Other party goers (left to right): Eleonora "Ele" Trucca (Host Family Coordinator), Gabriella Sammartino (Santo's wife), and Santo Sammartino (Italian Archaeology Teacher).







On our way home from Ale's place, we passed many examples of graffiti.  While it would be better if Viterbo was free of it for obvious reasons, not all of it preaches propaganda.  Here's one, with the help of Google Translate, that says "I do not need to dream to be happy, I just look into your eyes. I love you. I love you back."  It doesn't directly translate but you get the idea.

The Hot Springs

After spending most of the morning and afternoon preparing for the upcoming first week of classes, I rewarded myself by accompanying Yvonne (my Italian mentor/"buddy") and her daughter, Iagia, to a wholesale organic poultry shop (and other homemade items) called San Bartolomeo.  It's a mom/pop store out in the countryside and this sign is the only indicator of it.  You cannot see the store from the road.  The store is about 10 km away from the wall of Viterbo.

Here's Yvonne (in red) with Jadzia, and the store owners, Rosaria and Luigi Biaggi....okay, so I made up their names but don't they look like a Rosaria and a Luigi??

They were super nice and spent a lot of time with us, giving us information about how the chickens were fed, how the eggs were prepared, the ingredients they used to make their pate products, or where the olive oil they sell came from.  Rosaria and Luigi were gracious (and thankful) hosts, as we spent a lot of money here!

As you can see, Yvonne totally stocked up.  Here she is, with Rosaria, taking a huge box of chicken (all cuts including chicken liver and stomach) to her car.  I walked away with a more modest stock of food: boneless chicken breast, two orders of chicken meatballs, an order of curried chicken, a bottle of olive oil (made in Viterbo), and a small jar each of artichoke and olive pate.  Because they were so thankful for our patronage, they gave me a free container of liver pate they had made that afternoon.  So, I'm all set for bruschetta for the next month!!  Can't wait!


Afterwards, we went to the Terme di San Sisto.  The literal translation of terme is "thermal", which in this context refers to a hot spring.  It's one of three hot springs near Viterbo that get their water from an extinct volcano just outside of the city.  This picture is of the actual hot springs pool, built about 20-25 years ago.  While the site has been here for much longer than that, it has been built up, destroyed, and rebuilt several times.  The pool itself is made out of limestone and over time, the sulfur in the water has smoothed out the sides and bottom of the pool considerably.  You definitely want to use the steps to enter the hot springs, as the sides are quite slippery!

The sulfur smell took some getting used to but this slight distraction certainly didn't deter us from having an enjoyable experience.  Once again, the weather was fantastic and we were privy to a wonderful sunset in the background.

Terme di San Sisto also had a cold springs too (not in view) and it was super cold after having come right from the hot springs.  However, if you sit very still, an interesting phenomenon occurs.  The warmth of your body literally builds a little cocoon around you, giving the sensation of feeling warm in this very cold pool.  It was pretty cool (no pun intended!).

Santa Rosa - The Day After (September 4)

The actual holiday for Santa Rosa isn't actually celebrated until the day after La Macchina...which makes sense, actually.  The procession of La Macchina is pretty long, with the bands processing through the town starting around 7 p.m. and the end of the procession with the fireworks afterwards not ending until well after midnight.  Who could go to work the next morning after all that!?!

Many of the streets were lined with vendors, selling everything from pantyhose to artwork to kitchen appliances and everything in between.  The market lasted all day, as I heard the clanking from the disassembling of the tents and temporary barricades in the wee hours of the night.  As you can see from the picture at the right, it was very well attended and the weather was spectacular once again!  This is one of those times where I was super happy not to own a car and live right in the thick of the vintage goings-on in Viterbo.





Here's a little trinket I picked up from one of the local vendors at the market.




Just one example of how a vendor laid out his merchandise for the passersby.  Incidentally, the word for jeans in Italian is....jeans!








For a solid week, La Macchina will rest in front of La Chiesa di Santa Rosa (The Church of St. Rose).  The church, as you can imagine for one built 1850, was stunning on the inside.  I would have taken pictures of it but a mass going on at the time.  More on this church in a later blog.  It has an interesting history.







As part of my 3-hour traverse through the market, there is a great ledge that gives you this amazing view of La Cattedrale di San Lorenzo, which served as the seat of the papacy for several popes in the 13th century.

La Festa di Santa Rosa

Today is the Feast of Saint Rose of Viterbo or La Festa di Santa Rosa.  It's one of the oldest standing holidays in all of Italy; certainly it is in Viterbo, about 700+ years.  It's a local holiday, so most of shops and stores are closed so that all can honor their patron saint through prayer, enjoying the beautiful weather, traversing the streets that are lined with merchants selling anything from local produce to balloons to clothes.

La Mini-Macchina

The boys marching to the
mini-macchina

However there are three days of events that lead up to today, which I believe is a bit anti-climactic.  The first night is called "La Mini-Macchina" or a smaller version of "La Macchina" which occurs two days later.  It is a parade for the patron saint, and the smaller but still impressive statue of Santa Rosa is carried by 100 boys between the ages of 12 to 16 (just guessing here).  I sense that it is a right of passage to be chosen to do this, as it is a precursor to being chosen to lift the REAL macchina later in life.

Brad Park (English teacher) preparing
some bread for the celebration
of the Corteo at the school

The beginning of the procession
of Il Corteo Storico

The next day is Il Corteo Sortico di Santa Rosa, or the Parade of Saint Rose's heart.  Again, the parade winds its way through the old town, this time right down La Via Annio, which goes right by my apartment and the school.  Several of the teachers gathered at the school to watch the Corteo.  This parade features different time periods of Viterbo, from when Santa Rosa was alive hundreds of years ago up until more "modern times," through the early 1900s (I think..), culminating with a float covered with flowers and box at the top symbolizing the heart of Santa Rosa.  The float is being moved by several men underneath it with long wooden beams supporting it on both sides.

The Bishop of Viterbo in the
procession of Il Corteo Storico

The float carrying the heart
of Santa Rosa

Last night was the really huge event, called La Macchina.  It is a parade that begins somewhere around 7 in the evening and does not end until after midnight.  There are many bands (see left and the two below) from neighboring towns that parade through the local streets of the old town, almost like a "warm-up" to the big event that is to come later in the day.  With each passing band, the crowds swell beyond the capacity that these poor little streets can handle.  La Macchina is a float about 100 feet tall, quite ornate as the design swirls up to the top where a statue of Santa Rosa stands.  It takes 100 men to carry this monstrous structure, which easily clears any building in the old town.  It was an unbelievable site!

Our view of the macchina was pretty impressive too (see right).  Normally, I would be hosting a party for the viewing of La Macchina, because the route passes right the windows of m
y apartment.  However, one of the American faculty, Whitney Hermann, and her family rented an apartment that has a huge terrace that overlooks La Piazza Verdi, which is one of the stopping points on the route of La Macchina.  In fact, the owner was a bit reluctant to rent the apartment to Whitney because he can usually get several thousand euros each year for this night alone!  So, needless to say, I was off the hook for hosting because Whitney's terrace was an absolutely amazing vantage point for optimal viewing of La Macchina!

As La Macchina was getting closer to our terrace, all of the lights in the town were turned off so that the only light you could see was either coming from La Macchina itself or all of the cameras flashing (see left).    The neighboring streets and the piazza were blanketed with very proud Viterbese citizens erupting in thunderous ovation as La Macchina came into view.  Just like us, people were viewing the spectacle from their home windows above the streets of La Piazza Verdi, inviting friends and family over for the celebration (see right).

The final band (see left) that comes through La Piazza Verdi leads the 100 men (see right) up to La Porta Romana, which is where the procession begins.  La Macchina parades through the streets, making stops at several other plazas before it gets to us.  La Piazza Verdi (where we are) is the last stop La Macchina makes before it heads up a fairly steep hill, where La Chisea di Santa Rosa (St. Rose's Church) lay.

The 100 men, who have been carrying La Macchina to various other plazas prior to La Piazza Verdi, take a break by resting the fortress on two planks prepared in the middle of the plaza before taking La Macchina up the hill to its final resting place.  The picture at the right shows the men preparing to lift La Macchina one last time before heading up the hill to La Chisea di Santa Rosa. Click on the link below to see La Macchina being lifted off the planks and leaving La Piazza Verdi up the hill.

La Macchina is 100 feet tall
and takes 100 very strong
men to lift and carry it
through the streets of
old Viterbo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtWruggdPTQ&feature=youtube_gdata

In these next two pictures you can see just how many people where at this site, the last stopping place of La Macchina before heading up the hill.  The picture at the right is what La Piazza looked like at around 10 p.m..  The picture just below it is what la piazza looked like just after la macchina went up the hill to the church of St. Rose.

 Here is a view of the crowd in La Piazza Verdi viewing in amazement the 100 men running la macchina up the hill from the wide screen set up.  Because the hill is steep, the men need to run it up the hill to build enough momentum to make it to the top.  It is a pretty incredible feet by these men.  You can see the look of sheer pride by the Viterbese people of what these men are doing in honor of the town's patron saint.  The whole scene was one I will not forget any time soon!

By 12:30 everyone moved from the Piazza Verdi to another site not far away to watch the fireworks, which signifies the end of the celebration.  For me, it is the end of 10 days of vacation from work.  The honeymoon is over and it's now time for me to get ready for school, which officially begins for me on Monday, September 9.  There is lots to be done between now and then!  So much to be done....