Study Abroad

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Today we began our adventure to San Giovanni in Fiore. The road leading to the town was very curvy. It made us wonder how they used to travel to and from there before the tunnels and roads were constructed. Our bus driver was amazing. I certainly would never want to try to drive a large bus on those roads. Our arrival in the city was interesting. Tour busses are not regular traffic through there. Some citizens were amused and other were irritated that our bus took up almost the entire road. After leaving the bus, our guides took us down many winding roads. We walked to the location of the Monongah, WV mine disaster memorial. There was a dedication ceremony that was rather moving. After the ceremony we began a walking journey through the streets of old San Giovanni. It was wonderful seeing the homes from where many WV Italian families immigrated. Dr. Byers met a cousin that she was not aware of. It was a great surprise. He showed us the home of her ancestors. After a tour up and down the many quaint streets, we were met by a bus that took us to a special dinner prepared for us by the culinary art students at the school in San Giovanni. We were entertained by many singers and also viewed a movie about the origins of San Giovanni. It was a great day in a beautiful town. The people of San Giovanni were friendly and gracious. It was a memorable day.
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We are about to arrive in beautiful San Giovanni in Fiore. It looks much like WV.

 

The locals are very friendly. They are collecting wood for next winter.

 

One little girl does not seem to impressed with the Americanos.

 

The dedication of the Monongah memorial.

 

The ceremony was quite moving.

 

A rose was placed at the memorial.

 

Michael makes friends wherever he travels.

 

A beautiful couple enjoys San Giovanni.

 

More of the locals check us out.

 

Our local Italian guides explain more of the sites.

 

The home of the Calabrian Heritage center.

 

Dr. Byers and here daughter visit the old family home with there new found cousin.

 

Michael is doing it again! Friends and more friends.

 

Fiore means flower. You can see that San Giovanni in Fiore was properly named.

 

The buffet was extraordinary!

 

There was beautiful jewelry for sale by Spadafora Jewelers.

 

We enjoyed a meal with our new Italian friends.

 

The students took a break in the shade as it was very hot in San Giovanni.

 

We were entertained after dinner.

 

Our group enjoys the music.

 

Some of us really got into the "swing" of things. It was quite festive.

 

We heard a beautiful song written about the Monongah diasaster.

 

Our students say goodbye to our new friends.