Italy’s rich culture revealed

By Olivia Taifalos, Year 12, Cairns State High School

SWEET TREATS: Cairns State High School students Olivia Taifalos, Timaima Dawidi and Brydie Caddick-King sample Italian delicacies. IN OUR final week of Year 11 in 2017, 18 students were accompanied by Sandro Cossa and Antonietta Lavalle and the school mascot Brutus the Bulldog on a four-week study tour to Italy.

During the stay, students spent time immersed in family life, visited some of the most amazing cities, rich with culture and history, and of course, ate enormous amounts of pizza and pasta.

After two days of travel the first destination was the beautiful and historic Cividale del Friuli, a small village in northern Italy.

Although the travellers arrived weary, the excitement level was high in anticipation of the weeks to come.

Some highlights of the trip included spending time with the homestay families, travelling to Austria where some students experienced snow for the first time and the chance to attend a traditional Krampus festival in Tarvisio, visiting amazing sites such as the Colosseum and Vatican City in Rome and catching water taxis along the Grand Canal in Venice.

Not only did students improve Italian language proficiency, but we also gained a deeper appreciation and knowledge of Italian culture.

There are countless highlights of an amazing time as a group, whether it was playing card game tournaments on the many train rides or having delicious coffees and hot chocolates at cafe San Marco after school.

Overall, the trip was a wonderful opportunity to make fantastic memories, great friendships and to really experience Italian culture firsthand and to learn while also having an amazing time.