Day Three

Today we went to the Vatican City for a two hour tour. It was full of artistic and historical treasures such as Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci and a few more. The collection included statues of Laocoon, the Apolla del Belvedere, the Gallery of Tapestries, the Gallery of Maps and of course the Sistine Chapel with a focus of Michelangelo's artistry on the ceiling and walls.

We made our way to St Peter's Basilicia where we saw the Tomb of St Peter. This is considered the symbol and centre of Christianity and the burial ground for all past Popes. Unfortunately, we were one day too early to see the Pope - he would be doing a service in St Peter's Square.

We then strolled to the nearby markets, where some of the students were able to indulge in homemade wood fire pizza and bruschetta. Others decided on the more traditional cuisine of McDonalds.

We caught the underground train back to the hotel where we were greeted by our tour bus - headed for Sorrento. This trip consisted of a three hour trip to Pompeii. This place was amazing. Pompeii is a city and a commune in Metropolitan City of Naples in Italy which is famous for its ruins. Mount Vesuvius, a volcano near the bay of Naples had erupted more than 50 times. It's most famous eruption took place in the year 79A.D, when the volcano buried the ancient Roman City of Pompeii under a thick layer of volcanic ash. The students were able to walk through the village, saw the arena where the gladiators trained and fought for their freedom. They also saw where the locals were entertained with theatre/ opera in the amphitheatres.

We then hopped on the bus again and headed for the Almafi Coast - Sorrento. This is along the coast line where many buildings are situated in the hilltops. We had to be dropped off at another hotel as the bus could not drop us off close enough to the hotel due to the narrow windy streets. We had to walk and catch an elevator down. We had dinner at 9pm - many of the students were extremely tired and went to bed shortly. Tomorrow we will be exploring the sites and shops of Positano.

Ciao