I sat down under a majestic tree to take refuge from the radiant mid morning sun and the fatigue that suddenly overcame me due to the rather steep uphill walk from the valley below. The sound of the cicadas inundated the air with an ethereal concert. From the top of the ancient stadium the view of the eternal ruins of Apollo’s temple, where the terracotta green hills and the washed out blue mountains gradually give way to the glistening topaz waters of the Gulf of Corinth in the far distance, is breathtaking.
It was in this surreal and still enchanting setting that many of the big decisions of the day (C. 4th century BC) were left to the mastery, magic powers and savvy of the Pythia, Apollo’s priestess.
“Yes, this was the internet hub of the day”, replied an old man who I’m certain was reading my thoughts as they slowly seeped out of my forehead along with the many drops of now uncontrollably hot sweat which now profusely irrigated my face.
“Yes!” He added, as he pointed his handcrafted olive wood cane to the middle of the valley below.
“There sat the Sybil and there old and young, rich and, poor, kings and merchants lined up with gifts and homages to ask for advice and for an insight in what the future held for them.” He continued in his heavy eastern European accent as he sat next to me. He curled both sides of his golden Einstein-style mustache with his ageless stout fingers, and methodically from left to right proceeded to wipe his forehead from under a big white straw hat.
I looked at my watch. I only had ten minutes to join the rest of the group down the valley below.
His powerful voice carried by a pronounced eastern european accent wasn’t going to worry about my time restrictions.
“Let me tell you a story that few people know around here.” He pressed on.
“There was a very rich merchant who after travelling the world over many times and having amassed riches and possessions, realized that the days on this earth at his disposal were running short. In growing his business he had somewhat neglected his family and his only son was now living the good life recklessly. The old weary merchant wanted to know from the Oracle what else to give the son so that he would be well prepared and live responsibly after his death and what the future held for him.
He deposited a rich donation of gold and silver and a chest full of rare spices at the foot of the Sibyl and as the vapours rose from the pit so did the heavy words of the Oracle.
“You have traveled the world and acquired richness, and knowledge without studies. And that’s good. Few men will gain that in their life times as you did. You have witnessed and learned from cultures and peoples all over and that’s good for Culture is the gift of the savvy. Knowledge and Culture and Wisdom these are the gifts you must leave your son.
You have the first two but to gain wisdom you must first know yourself.
Go
then! When you get to know yourself you will not need to come back to ask advice from me, said the Sibyl, because you will have the wisdom to talk to your son.”
–Antío (goodbye) —
I looked down the valley below and the group was all there waiting and waving at me to come down.
I never got to ask about the ending of the story for as I turned around the old man was already gone and in the haze I could barely discern his silhouette walking beyond the massive trees.
Taormina because it was a surprise; the itinerary never originally included visiting Sicily but in a change of schedule, I was delighted to find that I would get to see the beautiful island. One of the first things I noticed in Taormina was the cactuses. I never knew that cactuses grew in Italy, even though given the climate it isn’t surprising, and I never knew that so many could grow in one place or at such an angle as off the side of a mountain. I had a very memorable moment involving a cactus, when I noticed that people inscribed their names or initials into cactuses in the garden behind the amphitheatre in Taormina. I used a sharp rock to write M.A.M.A., the initials of my friends and I (Manny, Adriana, Maggie, and Alison). Speaking of gardens, another one of my favourite things about Taormina that I have never encountered anywhere else was breathing beautifully fresh air in a garden near a hidden pizzeria. My friends and I had lunch at a pizzeria that took a couple hundred stairs to get up to, but it was so pleasant it was worth it. While we were leaving, we knew we were late but I couldn’t help but stop to enjoy the wonderful fresh air in the garden. That experience convinced me I would have to go back. The other experiences that made Taormina so enjoyable for me were the way the people were so friendly and helpful when I didn’t know where to go and that Taormina was the place where I bought souvenirs for my friends and family so they could share in my memories. Overall, I could not decide on one favourite place we visited, but Taormina is definitely tied with other cities for my most enjoyed experience.
My favourite part of Siena was when we got to the top of the bell tower. In Sienna I climbed the bell tower with Sabrina, Adriano and Alex. When we were at the top the view was amazing. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. Just looking out over the Italian countryside with all the little villages sporadically nestled in the mountains was so picturesque. In my opinion, nothing is more beautiful than the Italian countryside and the bell tower in sienna was a great place to see it.
Florence is a beautiful city. There is so much history and so many priceless pieces of art but my favorite place in Florence is the Ponte Vecchio. Something about the feeling of being there, seeing all the shops on the sides and the beautiful scenery is truly a spectacular sight. I also really liked the part of the bridge where couples locked a padlock on the bridge so that they will be locked in love forever. While I was there I saw a couple lock a padlock together and I thought it was a very nice tradition. In Florence I also bought a purse from one of the street vendors. I actually really like buying things from street vendors because it really shows the Italian culture. Here we never haggle so I thought it was nice that we were able to experience that part of Italian culture 
Although we didn’t stay in Paestum we saw Greek ruins. The Greek buildings were very well preserved. I found this really interesting because I didn’t know that there were those kinds of Greek ruins in Italy. I knew that there were some ruins from when the Greeks were in southern Italy however I never expected huge buildings that were very well preserved. I had never seen Greek ruins before so that really interested me.
Even though we didn’t stay in Paola and we just passed though it was my favorite part of the whole trip. The stories that Mr. Femia was telling us about his experiences there were really inspiring. Being able to drink that water and see the bomb that didn’t explode and pray in the church were all some of my favorite parts of the trip. The whole time I was there I felt like it was a really holy and sacred place. It was definitely my favorite part of the trip.
I had the best gelato of the whole trip in Reggio. It was just a small gelato shop and it was really cold but I got a gelato and It was the best of the whole trip. The nocciola was so creamy and delicious. I also took a really nice walk along the promenade and saw the statue of Vittorio Emanuele. The Sea was also very beautiful there.
We spent several days in Serra. Although when I first got there I was a little skeptical I ended up really liking it. My favorite thing that happened in Sera was being able to see my Zio Pasquale. I don’t get so see him much so I was so happy to be able to see him. I also really liked it when we went to the monastery and were able to say the rosary all together. Another thing I liked was the café. There were the most delicious cannoli and excellent espressos. The thing I liked most about Sera was the time that we had to spend with all the new friends that we had made. I know I made lots of new friendships that I have continued to keep up and will continue as well.
For me, the most memorable place we visited in Italy was the city of Rome. This city attracted me the most primarily because of the many breath-taking sights we saw there. We began at the coliseum, although i had been to Italy twice before, and visited the coliseum both times I had never before been within it’s walls. I was stunned by the massive room sized bricks that were used to make this grand structure which had withstood the test of time. Touching those cold stone walls i could not even begin to imagine how people, without the aid of machinery managed to lift those bricks, not just into position, but also transport them from the surrounding mountains to the construction sight. Within the Coliseum, I marvelled and the endless arch ways, the numerous floors i never knew existed and the exposed underground area which was used in ancient times to hold slaves and animals alike. As well, it was interesting to learn that the coliseum was not given it’s name because of it’s size, but because of a massive statue of emperor Nero which was posted just out side of the coliseum, named the colossus.
