Off to Verona, Italy

Not because we want to, because we have to!

Now we are playing "Capture the Luggage." Sort of like Capture the flag but in this game we run around Italy like crazy people until we find four bags and bring them back to home base where we can claim victory.

The Airline company (cough... Delta...cough) won't deliver our luggage until tomorrow.

We were planning on making a day-trip to somewhere in Italy anyways, so Verona it is!

I am actually really excited because so far we have been on a US Military base and it sort of feels like being in the United States, except for the time change. The weather here is very nice, 85 degrees! Remember because Italy is at a similar latitude as the United States they have a similar climate. (Thanks Paris T. for asking :)

I can not wait to update this post with pictures from our trip today. Don't forget to comment on my other post "Worst Case Scenario!"

Have a great day!

Some Pictures!



Worst Case Scenario!

Since last time I talked to you a LOT has happened!

I am glad to say that I made it safe to Italy... but our luggage did not!

This is pretty much what we saw when waiting for our bags!

Although it is somewhat disappointing I figure... HAVE FUN and make a game out of it!

Let's play ... it's called "Worst Case Scenario"

We checked 4 bags in at Detroit Metro Airport and I assume they made it on the flight over the Atlantic to the Netherlands. To play this game you have to tell me... What is the Worst Possible Case Scenario for the fate of our four bags of luggage!

I'll start and you can leave your ideas in the comment box...

Worst Case Scenario...

...the luggage fell out of the bottom of the plane and was carried by a gust of wind to the tip of Spain where a genious scientist has just discovered the cure for amnesia! Unfortunatley before he had a chance to share his findings of the cure all four bags landed on his head leaving him with a severe case of amnesia causing him to forget everything! Now he is walking aroung Europe causing trouble and telling everyone his name is Mr. Rick Meyer. Because of this I am not allowed to travel between countries ruining my entire vacation!

Now it is your turn! BE CREATIVE, and the most interesting scenario will get a reward when we return to school in the fall. Parents and teachers may participate, may the best story win!

It’s past my bedtime…

….and I can’t sleep. But that’s okay; this plane shows movies on a big screen kind of like a movie theatre, as we took off they showed “Just Go With It.”

About a half hour into the flight the Pilot came on the radio and told us that our flight pattern would take us from Detroit to Amsterdam and that we would pass over Quebec and England before landing in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

You should look at a map and draw a line that would copy my flight path to Europe!

I figure right now I am somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean and will be like that for a while. So far they fed us dinner and I was able to read the first four chapters of the “Hunger Games” book. If any of you are reading a good book you should leave me a comment with what you are reading. Don’t forget to read this summer and if you have not found a good book, read the Hunger Games with me! I would love to talk about it with you when we go back to school!

Everyone around me is sleeping and I am envious! Actually I don’t really like sleep, then I miss out on fun things that could be happening (at least that is what I am going to tell myself right now). For example we are going through a lot of turbulence right now. The plane is dipping down and shaking, I keep feeling my stomach drop like on a roller coaster.

Well the next time I write you I hope to have slept at least an hour and have great pictures from the start of my journey!

Goodnight all, I hope!

We Have Lift Off!

Goodbye ALL!

Off to Europe! When you are sleeping at 6 a.m. it will be noon in Italy and my vacation will officially begin.

We just boarded the plane and it is huge! I think it is incredible that something that big and heavy can FLY! Thank Orville and Wilbur Wright for inspiring that one.

I hope for two things on this flight: that I finish the book "The Hunger Games" or that I can fall asleep! (I doubt either will happen, the picture is from the GVSU trip I hope that is me on a few hours!).

Anyways we are taking off!

Goodbye AMERICA!

Ciao ;)

2 WEEKS in a BAG!!

2 DAYS until takeoff...

I finally did it. I am all packed and ready to go! I don't mean to brag or anything but I am pretty sure I beat the World Record... packed in less than 20 minutes! I am not going to lie. Although I am impressed by my own packing skills I am a little concerned I forgot something...

Oh Well!! Let's just stick with the fact that I packed for a two week vacation to EUROPE in under 20 minutes!

Can you believe that it all fit! Here are some highlights of what I have packed...

8 Pairs of Shorts
6 Pairs of Socks
4 Tank Tops
4 Polos
4 Books
3 Belts
2 Pairs of TOMS
1 Baseball glove

You might be wondering... Why are you bringing a Baseball glove!? Well, I'll have you know that right now your favorite teacher... yes that is ME!... is a League Champion with his summer softball league! I am going to Italy with my cousin who I play on the team with and we don't want to go two weeks without hitting a softball. Besides I am on a HOT STREAK right now (... any baseball fans out there...) I am 10 for 12 in my last three games! 

This is a picture of our tournament championship team from last year!

Anyways, I am relieved to finally be packed. Hope you are all enjoying your first week of summer! If you have any BIG vacation plans leave me a message! I'll write back to you when I have the chance.

HAPPY SUMMER SOLSTICE and one of the two longest days of the year!

Why do they call it a PASSPORT!?

A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth. Most often, nationality and citizenship are congruent (bonus points in Math class for Mrs. Schultz or Ms. Rosinski if you can tell me what congruent means :) ). Basically, your passport proves to everyone else who you are like a birth certificate can prove when you were born.

A passport does not grant you access into other countries, it is merely used for identification. However the passport is used to grant you access back into the country that issued you the document.

BUT WHY DO THEY CALL IT A PASSPORT!?

(I'm so glad you asked... :) I'm kind of a nerd but one of my favorite classes in college was Linguistics and we studied the origin of words!)

The word PASSPORT has it's origins in France all the way back to the 1500s. When broken apart the word passport becomes the french verb passer (meaning: to pass)+ port (a place where ships load and unload). In that case the word literally means to pass through a port. Back in France in the 1500s there were no planes and the only way to travel overseas was by a boat. In this case everyone had to pass through a port if they were entering another country or returning home. The passport allowed officials in the home country to validate the individuals identification and allow them back into their country.

Inside each passport is the following page which states: "The Secretary of State of the United States of America hereby requests all whom it may concern to permit the citizen/national of the United States named herein to pass without delay or hinderance and in case of need to give all lawful aid and protection." The helps to tell other countries that the United States government believes that the person holding the passport should be able to pass freely. (The US will not issue a passport to those who have committed a crime or if they feel they will be a threat outside of their home country).



We still use passports the same way however most of us will not travel by boat. I will not be entering a port when I make it to Europe but this passport will be used as it has been by others for hundreds of years. I will carry it with me to each country I go and as I visit they will add a stamp to the booklet that says where I have been. I will update you as I move throughout Europe and show you the stamps that I have collected for each place that I have been.

Below is a picture of my passport.

Do The MATH!!

Here is a little riddle for you!


If a plane leaves Detroit, MI at 6:40 pm on Thursday and flys 8 hours... How can it land in Milan, Italy (over 16 hours later) at 11:25 am on Friday!?


(answer below)

Answer:   TIME ZONES!!! (click the link for the wikipedia page!)

The Problem


If it is midday where you are it must be dark on the opposite side of the earth, it obviously can't be midday, but what time is it? The earth is divided into time zones. The time is the same everywhere within one time zone, but different to all the other time zones.

How Time Zones Work

Because everyone wants to measure their day with the sun being at its highest point at midday, scientists came up with the idea to divide the earth into different time zones. There are 24 hours in a day, so there are 24 time zones. The time is the same everywhere within one time zone, but different to all the other time zones. When you move from one time zone to the next one, you change your watch by one hour. If you are traveling in an easterly direction you move your watch one hour forwards, if you are moving in a westerly direction you move it one hour backwards.


http://funsocialstudies.learninghaven.com/articles/timezones.htm


When the sun is directly overhead where you are in Michigan it has been six hours since the sun was directly above me. That is because Italy (Central European Time Zone) is 6 hours ahead of Michigan  (which is in the Eastern Time Zone).






Here is the flight schedule. We will be leaving Detroit and landing in Milan, Italy with a layover in Amsterdam. (A layover is a break between single parts of a trip).


Thu 23 JUN DELTA 242      LV DETROIT              640P   
                                               AR AMSTERDAM     805A

Fri 24 JUN KLM ROYAL                    LV AMSTERDAM     945A         
          DUTCH AIRLINES 3623*        AR MILAN-LINATE  1125A        

Throughout my trip I will be adding posts to this website. Remember that I will comment back to you but because of the time change it may not be right away. If you write to me at 6 pm I will probably be sleeping as it will be midnight in Italy!
        

Don't Be A Stranger...

PLEASE LEAVE ME COMMENTS!!!

As you read about my trip feel free to write me back... it's really easy!

Not many years ago people used postcards to write messages to friends and families while they were on vacation or in another part of the world. You actually had to write and do work on vacation!!

Now, we can communicate through this internet webpage, like a virtual postcard :)

Here is how you leave a comment:

1.  After you have read my message look at the bottom of what I wrote. There is a spot that says how many comments have been left... it is a link.

2.  Click on the link and it will take you to a text box.

3.  All you have to do is write me a message and then select comment as: NAME/URL in the drag down box. Write your name in the box titled "Name:           " and then click Post Comment.

4.  It will ask you to validate your comment by reading and typing random letters in a box.

5.  When that is done your comment should upload to the page.

I hope to hear from all of you, please feel free to share this with your parents!

Eleven Days until TakeOFF

Soon I will be heading off to Europe!

In eleven days, I will be on a plane headed for Vicenza, Italy (click the links to learn more :). The plane ride is over 12 hours! (Luckily, there will be movies to watch and I hope to read the Hunger Games series). We will be leaving Detroit on Thursday, June 23, 2011 and will return Thursday, July 7, 2011. I'm really excited to visit another country besides the United States and Canada. I have always wanted to see with my own eyes what I have been hearing about all my life.




A map of Italy with Vicenza highlighted.


I wanted to start this webpage so that you can experience with me what we have been learning about at school. I hope to show you great pictures and be able to tell you interesting and funny stories that I learn as I am there. You should check back everyday to read more about where I am and what I have seen.

Arrivederci! 
ah-ree-vuh-dehr-chee
              (Goodbye in Italian)