One of the perks of being a teacher in the USA is that you work crazy 50-60 hour weeks during the school year in exchange for your whole summer off. Around December, I started to explore the idea of doing some volunteer work abroad during that time. I knew that I wanted to take a big trip, and that I wanted to spend a considerable amount of time somewhere not just in drop in and drop out. I started looking and found a great company in Italy called Lingue Senze Frontiere. While you are technically a volunteer, you receive a stipend (that's covering a good chunk of my airfare to and from Europe). Here's their promotional video:
So I show up for training in the lovely Italian beach town of San Remo and then I'm sent elsewhere to teach for the next two weeks. And here's where it gets pretty interesting... I don't know where I'm being sent! I'll be living with a host family, but I could be in an apartment in Rome or Milan, or in a farmhouse in some tiny Italian village with a bunch of goats. I have no clue, and I don't know which one is more appealing. I love city life, but how many times in your life do you get the chance to be completely immersed in Italian culture in a place where very few tourists venture? Regardless of location, it's sure to be exciting.
So here's my itinerary for now:
June 5th: Fly to NYC
June 6th: Redeye flight to Zurich, Switzerland
June 7th: Land in Zurich, immediately take train to Lucerne, Switzerland
June 9th: Take train to Milan, Italy
June 10th: Take train to San Remo, Italy
June 17th: Take train to ????????
June 30th: Work ends, travel around Italy
July 4th: End up in Rome, fly to Paris, France
July 9th: Fly to Lisbon, Portugal
July 12th: Fly to Barcelona, Spain
July 18th: Back to the USA! Fly to Boston
July 21st-ish: Fly back to Austin
Did I mention that I, lover of hair dryers and clothes and shoes and touristy tchotchkes, will be doing all of this out of a carry-on approved backpack? That'll be the next post. :)
You'll be in Lisbon on my birthday! Jealous.
ReplyDelete~Josh