Adventures in Abetone, Italy - 2023

​

Families and host stays

When the Italian exchange students came to Aspen they were paired with another student and their family. When we went to Italy we stayed with that same person and their family. It was such a great experience to live with a real family in Italy, and not in some hotel. Staying with a family gave us a great idea of the culture and what the country is like. Not only that but we created life long friendships with these family. We all still stay in touch with our Italian families, and treat them like our second family.

Food- Emma

I think everyone can agree that the food in italy is amazing and completely different then americans versions of pizza, pasta, gelato, ect.

It was such an amazing experience to eat out at restaurants and at the house, trying familiar and new foods!

Cultural difference and similarities - Hayden

The culture in italy is very different than in america, like how in the homes the family's eat together every night, and also the family dynamic is different than in america, it is more old fashion where the father goes out and works and the mom stays home.

Also people who live in the same neighborhood do not talk to each other as much, people keep to themselves more than here. Most of the kids we new did the same types of things as kids in america kids hobbies are a lot more similar than you would think.

School & Fiumalbo- Kate

​

Abetone is a small enough town that it does not have its own school. Some of the exchange students went to the neighboring town of Fiumalbo for school. Their school was very small with only about 9 to 11 kids per grade. We went touring around Fiumalbo with students from the school and learned about the different churches and traditions of their town.

Speaking Italian - Jack

Throughout our trip in Italy, speaking Italian was a challenge. Most of the Italian exchange students (and their parents) spoke English very well. Our language lessons helped us out a lot.

The Ferrari Museum-Trini

​

In the first week of our stay we got to visit The Ferrari Museum, which was filled with different styles and colors of cars, they all had descriptions of when they were created and what the different styles of cars were named. At the end of our tour they’re were simulations that you could try, or take photos in some of the Ferrari’s, overall the Ferrari Museum was one of the best visits in italy!

The Gothic Line and WWII Museum

By Will

​

We had the amazing opportunity to visit the Gothic Line and World War II museum near Abetone in the village Pianosinatico. The Germans built this to serve as a defensive line to stop the advancement of the Allies. The Gothic Line contained bunkers, machine gun nests, casemates, observation points, and artillery fighting positions. It split the Italian peninsula in half.

The museum preserves weapons, badges, maps and other artifacts that were found by Italian people. They keep finding new relics even today. There are four room that represent the German, American, Italian, and Parisian memorabilia.

​

Pisa and The Beach

Pisa was everything we could have imagined. The architecture of the tower was spectacular. The church near the tower which is called the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta is often overlooked and shadowed by the tower despite it being considered one of the most spectacular churches in all of Italy. We went to the beach located in the town of Viareggio. Even though we werent there in the summer the beach was still so fun despite the cold water temperatures.

Lucca-Kate

​

​

Lucca is a famous city known for its rich history. While we were in Lucca we went on a biking tour around the wall of lucca. The wall was built in the mid 16th century to defend the city. As we biked through the walls during our tour we learned about what the interior rooms of the wall and how it was used by soldiers to store supplies. We ended our day with dinner at one of our exchange students house.

Florence-Hannah

​

​

Florence held up to its expectations with amazing culture, architecture, and style. The buildings have designs and paintings representing different gods/goddesses and important moments in Italy's history. The Duomo is a main viewing point for many. It took approximately 140 years to build and is the biggest dome in the world. While in Florence we got the opportunity to meet the consulate general at the U.S consulate as well as tour a historic house.

Skiing

​

Skiing in Abetone when we went was very different than Aspen. On the mountains in Abetone there was very little snow, and it was a lot warmer. The skis there are a lot thinner because in that area people mainly race. From of the mountain on a clear day, you can see the ocean.

Welcome Dinner and Farewell Dinner

Grazie!