World War II Trip

Hello there. Been a crazy week thus far. Ten page paper draft due tomorrow, so I got that done Sunday, and Art In Rome test Thursday, which I need to begin studying for because I basically have a novel to memorize! So should be a busy rest of the week, too. But last weekend I went on the World War II study trip, which was basically day trips on a bus Saturday and Sunday to see World War II sites around the Rome area. We went to a German military cemetery first on Saturday, which was really interesting to see. There was a group of older German tourists there, and there were a lot of them crying, which was in interesting reminder that the Germans who died in the war were brothers, sons, and fathers, too. We went in with the mindset that we were seeing a Nazi cemetery, but went out with a more human perspective on things I think. So that was an interesting start to the morning, then we went to a museum with tons of artifacts and authentic stuff. It was the personal collection of a guy who owned the land, and it was basically 10 or so warehouses filled with stuff. There were planes, cars, guns, uniforms, everyday household items, and tons of other stuff. So that was pretty cool to see. Then after that we went to the American military cemetery. It was really beautifully set up and reminded a lot of us of the Washington Monument. So that was a very informative and interesting day, and I learned a lot about the war from an Italian perspective that I don't think I ever would have if I hadn't gone. The two guides were two Rome Center alumni, Jim and Phil, and they were two of the most knowledgable and nice fellows around. We went out that night to Trastevere for St. Patrick's Day and Jim DeLuca's birthday, so that was a lot of fun, and we got back relatively early to get a good night's sleep for the next day of the trip. The next day was completely based around the events of March 24, 1944. On that day, 335 Italians were massacred at the Ardeatine Caves site. A group of Italian communists had killed 32 German SS members the day before, and the massacre was a reprisal. Hitler first wanted the whole neighborhood leveled, then wanted 50 Italians dead for each German, and then was eventually talked down to 10 Italians for each German that died. Needless to say, it was a heavy morning starting out in the caves where the executions had occurred and where the graves still were. It made me sick, but it was interesting. The hard part to believe is that under the Geneva convention, 320 of the murders were completely legal, and only the 15 extra could be brought to court after the war. It's hard to see how anyone could ever think that was a good idea. So basically, we went to the caves, went to a museum about the liberation of Italy that had some more information, and then we went to the site where the attack on the Germans had happened. Then we all went for lunch and made our way home, and then I wrote my ten page paper. Busy weekend, busy week ahead, lots of busy. But this weekend, I am going to Paris with Jim and Mike to see Dispatch, and I will get to see Emmy Carragher and Chandler Duff, and I am quite excited. Should be a good time. I will write back after that. On another interesting note, I am in the process of signing up for the Bank of America Chicago marathon in October through St. Jude's. I will need to raise $1200, but I want to do it in honor of Chris Zandstra, a kid from my high school class who died of cancer for anyone who didn't know me in high school. Of course I would hope to get well over $1200, but we will see. I have yet to hear back from the people at St. Jude's!  Also, I bought a ticket to Bonnaroo in Tennessee from June 7-10, so that should be fun. And how about them Blues? And Cardinals' Spring Training? I'm missing St. Louis! But I don't want to leave Rome. Pickle. Well, not the worst pickle to be in right? I'll catch you folks later. Have a good week.