User:Challisrussia/Greece-Italy Trip


 * The photos will be uploaded later as the user is very busy with other work at the moment. Refer to the link below for the pictures.

As a student of Earl Haig Secondary School, I am actively participating in the school's affairs. One of the most significant part of my high school life was the Greece-Italy Trip (or Gritaly for short, a portmanteau), an annual school trip in the first two weeks of March. This trip, from March 3 to 16, 2012, was my very first trip to Europe.

I made a travel journal of it, and I would also compress it for me to briefly describe it on my user page. But one of the first thing I wrote is my Personal Statement of Intent for the application process.

The trip timeline is provided below as well as the list of meetings, and photos will be coming very soon.

Personal Statement of Intent
"I’ve been imagining to go to Europe since I was very young. Ever since I think of Europe, I get obsessed with it, thinking of the very rich culture they have, the very famous people that lived there, such as artists, composers, architects, and many more. I think of their wonderful architecture and cities in Europe, such as the Rome Colosseum, Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Vatican, Delphi, Athens – there is just so many in Europe, particularly in Greece and Italy alone, that I couldn’t think of in the immediate moment. In culture, there are many mythologies, such as the Greek Mythology that I like to study. There are much scientific knowledge developed in Europe – Galileo Galilei developed one of the first telescopes and made remarkable discoveries with it. Because I’m a musician and I play piano, I like to listen to and play music by composers of Europe – I enjoyed listening to the operas by Gioachino Rossini, Giuseppe Verdi, keyboard music by Domenico Scarlatti and violin concertos by Antonio Vivaldi.

There is a limit on how much one can learn in the classroom. In a classroom, especially in a history class, it is very unlikely for a student to see and touch primary sources. We can learn while traveling in the world, learn about history in various places, and experience the culture in a popular tourist destination. During the trip I would like to meet new friends, but the most important thing during the trip is to enjoy it. - June 2, 2011

November 9, 2011
Room 329, 3:35 pm for all meetings unless noted


 * Few spaces for additional participants; deadline November 11
 * Slideshow of last year's trip
 * Roommate allocations
 * Bring $30 incidental fee for next meeting

November 30, 2011

 * Roommates finalized, teacher groups formed
 * Paperwork/$30 incidental fee
 * Discovery assignment

December 15, 2011

 * Discussion with former participants
 * Sketching workshop

January 19, 2012

 * Teacher-group presentations, Discovery assignment presentations (3-4 min)
 * Organize Potluck dinner

February 8, 2012

 * Sketchbooks distributed
 * Greek and Italian for beginners
 * Permission forms distributed

February 14, 2012

 * Travel rules, behavior, safety
 * Tips on taking good photographs

February 21, 2012

 * Meeting in rm 329 as usual, discuss trip rules and expectations
 * Potluck dinner at 6:30 pm - parents must attend 

Departure date: March 3, 2012

Day 1 - March 3, 2012
The Greece-Italy trip students of Earl Haig Secondary School departed Toronto for Athens for the first leg of the trip, with a change of flights in Rome. The 8-hour flight from Toronto Pearson to Rome Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport was on an Alitalia Boeing 767-300ER, flight AZ651. The Boeing 767 passed beside a Boeing 787 Dreamliner parked on the ramp at Toronto. The flight departed Toronto on 17:10 eastern standard time.

Day 2 - March 4
In the early morning (07:15 approx.) the flight arrived in Rome, and the Earl Haig students promptly changed flights to Athens on flight AZ720 on an Alitalia Airbus A321-112 to Athens Eleftherios Venizelos Airport. Upon arrival, the students boarded the tour bus which took them to the center of Athens, seeing such landmarks such as the Acropolis of Athens, the Panathinaiko Stadium, the stadium where the 1896 Summer Olympics took place. Upon checking into the Divani Palace Acropolis hotel, the group was given a detailed, guided tour of the beautiful Acropolis Museum. After the museum, the group was guided through the streets of Plaka before heading for dinner at the hotel.

Day 3 - March 5
The students departed in the early morning for Delphi, approximately 185 km from Athens. The drive to Delphi also took through Lake Marathon, the town of Thiva, Arachova, before arriving in front of the ancient ruins of Delphi. The group was given a guided tour of the Delphi Archaeological Museum before heading to the ancient ruins of Delphi. After the tour the group had a lunch in a beautiful restaurant in modern Delphi before heading back to Athens in a severe thunderstorm.

Day 4 - March 6
In the morning the group was given a photo opportunity at Panathinaiko Stadium before heading to the National Archaeological Museum of Athens for a guided tour there. After that the group headed for the actual Acropolis and visited the Parthenon on the top. The group later was also given a guided tour of the Agora, an ancient Greek market, before heading for free time for exploration before meeting at the hotel for dinner. Dinner was served at the Sissifos Taverna restaurant at 31 Mnisikleous St., Plaka, Athens, with fine recipes such as spaghetti, chicken, as well as ice cream.

Day 5 - March 7
The group went on a cruise on the Kassandra Delfinous yacht to the islands of Poros, Hydra, and Aegina. The yacht departed from Piraeus, Athens and first headed for Poros. Poros is a small island, and the group had free time to explore around the island. Hydra was next, and has an especially serene setting as no motor vehicles are permitted on the island, and the island is known for donkey rides, as well as dogs and cats roaming around. Hydra also has very clear water at its harbour and the seabed was visible even in direct sunlight. The group had a lunch during the trip from Hydra to Aegina, and this leg of the trip was quite eventful as a musician was playing the electric piano, playing many pieces of music and experimenting sound effects. Aegina is quite a big island, and some of people from our school went on a guided tour to the other side of the island, visiting such landmarks such as the Temple of Aphaea, with a similar design as the Parthenon at the Acropolis. The group also visited the Saint Nectarios of Aegina cathedral, and a factory that makes pistacchios. After that the group boarded the yacht for the trip back to Athens in the late evening before transferring to the hotel for yet another delicious breakfast.

Day 6 - March 8
Unfortunately a student of our school on the trip last night was diagnosed with chickenpox, and as a result she needed immediate medical attention and cannot fly with the group (she was later sent back to Toronto). The group flew to Rome during the afternoon on flight AZ719 on an Alitalia Airbus A320-214 Enhanced. The group boarded the tour bus to visit first the Catacombs San Callisto. After the Catacombs the group did some sightseeing of central Rome in the bus before returning to the hotel for dinner (Hotel Mediterraneo, Via Cavour). After dinner the group had a walking tour of Spagna (Spanish Steps), as well as some of the properties of the Holy See, and walking down Via Cavour towards the Colosseum before returning to the hotel late at night.

Day 7 - March 9
This morning the group travelled to the Vatican City, the smallest nation in the world. The group entered the nation through the north entrance of the Vatican Museum. They were introduced to the spiral stairs near the entrance, a model of the entire Vatican City, several paintings of Michelangelo, as well as the gallery of Maps. They also visited the Sistine Chapel, where the students admired The Last Judgement by Michelangelo and the beautiful ceiling, the St. Peter's Basilica, and some of the students also climbed the 551 steps to the cupola of the basilica. After the Vatican the students went to the Borghese Gallery where they saw the sculpture of Apollo and Daphne by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, as well as The Deposition by Raphael. After that the students had some free time before returning to the hotel. Dinner was served at La Bianca Gallina restaurant where the students mainly ate pizza, such as the margherita or the salami. The pizza there was very unique, most notably that everyone each had their own full pizza for the dinner. Nevertheless, it was very delicious.

Day 8 - March 10
This was the last day in Rome, of the trip, and the students first saw the Roman Forum, an ancient Roman marketplace. They admired beautiful structures such as the Temple of Saturn, Temple of Castor and Pollux, the Basilica of Maxentius, as well as the Arch of Septimius Severus. Also related to the Forum is the monumental Colosseum, where the students spend lot of time admiring the structure in detail. The students then had free time to roam around in Rome, such as seeing beautiful paintings by streets artists everywhere. After that the students together transferred to "Due Colonne" restaurant in Via del Seminario (122). After that the students together transferred to the hotel at night.

Day 9 - March 11
The group traveled to Assisi on this clear morning of the day. The trip took around 2 hours from Rome. Upon arrival to Assisi the group first toured the Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi and entered both levels of the cathedral. The bottom level consisted of a mausoleum which St. Francis of Assisi was entombed there. After visiting the basilica the group walked through Via San Francesco to see the Monastero di Santa Chiara before departing Assisi for a lunch on a farm in the beautiful countryside. After that the group went to a duty free shop before heading to Montecatini Terme by the evening. Dinner was served in the Grand Hotel (Albergo Grande) where the group stayed in the city.

Day 10 - March 12
In the morning the group headed for Pisa, most well known for the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The students spent time for a unique photo opportunity there before heading to Lucca in the afternoon. The group in Lucca was given a detailed guided tour before heading for free time for exploration. Some of the students also biked through the city. After that, the group returned to Montecatini and had dinner there.

Day 11 - March 13
In the early morning the group traveled to Venice, about four hours from Montecatini. The group took a water taxi to near St. Mark's Square (Piazza San Marco) for the start of a detailed guided tour. The group first toured St. Mark's Basilica, before touring the many canals of Venice including the Grand Canal. The tour concluded at a glass factory, with a demonstration of shaping the molten glass into beautiful shapes and colors. The students headed for some free time for exploration before heading back to St. Mark's Square for the water taxi. The group then traveled to Florence where they had a walking tour of the city at night. The group stayed at Hotel Ricasoli in the city.

Day 12 - March 14
The group first toured the Accademia di Belle Arti Firenze, most famous for the Statue of David by Michelangelo. After that the group did a walking tour, including the house of Dante Alighieri, the Ponte Vecchio, and the Piazza della Signoria. In the evening, some students selected to go to the Giannino San Lorenzo restaurant for a very unique hand-on cooking class. The students ate pasta and chicken for dinner before heading for a free night walking tour of Florence.

Day 13 - March 15
The group first toured the Uffizi Gallery and admired the many famous artwork situated there. The group viewed artwork such as the The Annunciation by Leonardo da Vinci, Venus of Urbino by Titian, and The Baptism of Christ by Andrea del Verrocchio. After visiting the Uffizi, the students had free time for exploration before heading to the Dantesca restaurant for a pizza dinner. The group then transferred back to hotel.

Day 14 - March 16
This was the final day of the Greece-Italy trip, and the group woke up in the very early morning (3:30am) for the early morning flight from Peretola Airport to Rome. The flight, AZ 1676, an Alitalia Airbus A319, departed on 7:10am and landed in Rome Fiumicino on 8:00 am. The group transferred to flight AZ 650 (a Boeing 767-300ER painted in Skyteam livery, EI-DBP) for the flight back to Toronto Pearson Airport, arriving on 3:55pm. The students said goodbye to each other, and thanked the teachers for organizing such a wonderful trip. Greece-Italy 2012 then became history.

Also of note is that some of the students of this trip reunited with the trip organizers on May 2, 2012 at the Paisano's restaurant at Willowdale and Sheppard, to share their memories and thoughts of the trip. The first students for the Greece-Italy trip 2013 has already applied in May 2012.

External link

 * Greece-Italy Trip main site: http://greeceitaly.earlhaig.ca/
 * Trip brochure (PDF file): http://greeceitaly.earlhaig.ca/Brochure_-_Earl_Haig_2012.pdf
 * Photo gallery: http://greeceitaly.earlhaig.ca/gallery.php
 * Greece-Italy 2012 photo gallery: http://greeceitaly.earlhaig.ca/gallery/2012/