The Elon University volleyball team is spending spring break in Italy as part of Elon's commitment to diversity and global engagement for its students. Follow along as the student-athletes share and document their global adventure!
DAY ONE
by Lindsey Harris and Kayla Palmer
We are currently at the airport, about to board our flight to Milan! Everyone is so excited to start our Italian experience. We are very grateful for this opportunity to go abroad with our teammates, experience the Italian culture we have been learning about in class and play against Italian teams. After we land in Milan, we will head to Verona. We are all very excited for this stop because we have talked about the history of Verona in class. Verona is known as “Little Rome” and is where Romeo and Juliet was set! There is also an arena in Verona, similar to the Colosseum, but smaller. This will be a great first experience and a fun start to our Italian adventure. Overall, we are so excited for this opportunity and are already having so much fun spending time with each other!
DAY TWO
by Kyla Johnson and April Rice
Today marked our first full day in Italy. We spent the day in Venice, which was unforgettable. We kicked things off with an incredible guided walking tour, where we learned about the city’s rich history and vibrant culture. Our walk began in St. Mark’s Square and wound north through the city. We walked through Campo Santa Maria Formosa, to the historic Venice hospital, and then east toward the Rialto Bridge. Afterward, we had plenty of free time to explore on our own, fully immersing ourselves in the Venetian way of life. We enjoyed amazing food, indulged in plenty of gelato, and soaked in the atmosphere around us. One of the highlights of the day was a gondola ride, which gave us a beautiful and unique perspective of the city from the water. Later, we had time to browse charming gift shops, and of course, have more gelato. Overall, our first full day in Venice was a huge success, and we’re excited for everything the rest of the week has in store.
DAY THREE
by Cameron Lanier and Simrin Carlsen
Today we headed to Lucca, a city in Tuscany, about a 3-hour drive from our hotel in Padua, and definitely worth it! When we arrived, we had about an hour and a half to explore on our own. A group of us found a cute spot for lunch and soaked in the charm of the city before wandering around a bit more and meeting up for our next activity. We then hopped on bikes for a guided tour around Lucca, riding along the famous 16th-century Renaissance walls that surround the city. The views from the wall were amazing. Then we ventured into the city center to check out some of the most popular sights, including the oak trees growing at the top of the 45-meter-high Guinigi tower. We also rode to the Duomo di San Martino, one of the larger cathedrals in the “City of 100 Churches.”
After biking, we headed to Fattoria Il Poggio for one of the highlights of the day—a pasta-making class! We learned the basics of Italian cooking and got to make our own pasta from scratch. Dinner was incredible: fresh pasta with meat sauce, bruschetta, bread with mushrooms, and a selection of wines from the Tuscan vineyard. The farm also grows olives and produces olive oil, which was used in most of the dishes. To top it all off, we made a couple of furry friends with the farm’s two Bernese Mountain dogs (Alice and Bruno) and had such a fun, relaxing evening together.
DAY FOUR
by Casey Brower and Catherine Rucker
Today we took a ferry to Cinque Terre (the 5 lands). The boat ride was amazing with a great view of beautiful architecture and terraced farms built into the sides of the mountains. The boat left from La Spezia and went up the coast. We stopped in the village of Vernazza first, then headed to Monterosso al Mare, the largest of the five villages, for lunch. The buildings were beautiful. We spent the day exploring and getting gelato and snacks. We also ate pasta on the beach!
After visiting two of the five villages, we stopped in the town of Porto Venere, between the Cinque Terre and La Spezia. Some of the team walked to the Castello Dorio, which was at the end of the main road through town. The castle dates back to the 12th century and sits high on the rocky coastline. The view was amazing.
After the boat ride, we had a pre-game meal in Pisa and made a quick stop by the leaning tower. Afterward, we played a local Italian club, which was super fun! It was really interesting to see how the international players play volleyball compared to us and we had a blast playing some volleyball overseas!