Written by Italy & Greece Students, Peter, Izzy, and Ester
What’s New in Our Journey?
This week, the group was in Matera working with local contacts from Link and B-Link. We started our week in Matera, doing a scavenger hunt to learn about the ancient city, Sassi, and what makes Matera the European Capital of Culture. The next day, the group got to explore Altamura, the City of Bread, visiting a grain mill to view the process of grain becoming flour, a bakery to learn about the production process, and doing a scavenger hunt to explore the city. The following day was spent enjoying the Adriatic Sea and the beaches of Bari. The following two days were spent in the mountains where the group went on hikes and learned about the wedding of the trees that happens each year in Accettura.
Top Three Highlights of the Week:
The three top highlights of the week are (in no particular order):
1) The scavenger hunt around Matera and the Casa Noha video and experience.
2) The beach day in Bari and being able to get in the water and relax.
3) The walk to Accettura and being able to make tiramisu and pasta with local Nonni.
Challenges We’ve Faced (and Conquered!)
Something the group struggled with this week was being prepared for all the activities. As well as being timely for everything. Towards the end of the week, the group was able to be on time and fully prepared for the travel day and had a perfect transition to Naples!
Growth Since the Start of the Program:
For a lot of people in the group (including me), the biggest way that we’ve grown since the start of the program is adapting to whatever is thrown at us and keeping a positive outlook on it. Adapting to certain situations is a valuable skill and the program has allowed us to not only be in these situations but thrive in them.
Another way that we have grown is by adapting to the flow of Italian culture. I think that everyone has really embraced what Italy has to offer; and has pushed outside their comfort zone to be able to fully immerse themselves in this Italian environment.
