URSINUS IN FLORENCE

Over break five of us ventured to Barcelona and Paris. In Spain, we stayed on the flashy La Rambla, full of street performers and right next to the ocean. We learned how to salsa dance and ate paella and stayed out dancing all night. We took a bus tour around the city and saw all the famous art and architecture. In Paris, we went up the Eiffel Tower, to the Picasso Museum, Jim Morrison’s grave, the Arc de Triomph and the Louvre, and walked the Champs-Elysees. Both cities are incredibly beautiful and the whole experience was exhilarating; it was amazing that we could do everything that we did. Riding the trains all night just added to the experience – I’ll never forget any of it! Sarah Napolitan
	Barcelona has lively music, all-night clubs, sandy beaches and perfect weather. It also contains some of the most creative people I’ve ever met from artists selling their paintings on the street to performers putting on live shows. Erica Brooks, Trish Ellis, & Brandi Kerry
The break started off in Interlaken, Switzerland. We were completely blown away by the beauty of the Alps. We stayed at a hotel called the “Funny Farm,” a backpacker’s heaven run by low-key Australians who would always mutter “No worries Mate.” It seemed like everyday we rented scooters and cruised around the beautiful landscape. The highlight was when we went ‘Canyon Jumping.’	John Cicchetti & Ben Leidig	The second half of the break was in Southern Italy where we visited Sorrento, Capri, Mt. Vesuvius, and the Amalfi Coast. Again we rode motorcycles – very dangerous in the heavy Italian traffic – but so much fun! We sampled Limoncello and ate way too much seafood.
To start off our fall break Pat Lafferty and I went to Stresa. From this small town on Lake Maggiore, we took a boat to Locarno, Switzerland. Standing on a suspended bridge overlooking the Alps was my favorite part of the trip. For the rest of break we took a cruise around the Mediterranean Sea. From Genoa we went to Naples and visited the ruins of Pompei. Next we stopped in Palermo, Sicily (not our favorite!). Then we went to Tunis in Northern Africa and Patma de Majorca, an island off of Spain. Finally we spent a day in Barcelona and a day in Aix-en-Provence, France. We had an amazing time! Anyone who doesn’t take the opportunity to study abroad is missing out! Lindsey Alleger
	We were lucky enough to have ten days of free time in Europa! My parents’ trip here overlapped our break and we traveled to Roma. St. Peter’s Church was breath-taking, and the Sistine Chapel incredible. In Rome, I left my parents and went to Nice, France with three friends. Even though it wasn’t summer time, the French Rivera was beautiful. Monaco and Monte Carlo was like living the life of the rich and famous. The pace of the Riviera was definitely a good break from the busy city of Firenze. If my parents hadn’t overlapped with my break, trust me, I would have been all over! But Nice was a great experience. It is amazing to take a train at night and wake up the next morning being immersed in a whole new culture and language! Maureen Brogan

WEEK SEVEN