So, I'm in London!
This morning when I got on the tube, there was a newpaper open to a random page on the seat next to me. So, I looked at it...and it was talking about the World Premiere of Les Miserables in Leicester Square at 5:45, a red carpet event! So...I decided to go!
Best decision EVER!!! I saw all kinds of celebrities!!! I got Anne Hathaway's, Hugh Jackman's (twice!), Russel Crowe's, Eddie Redmayne's, and Amanda Seyfried's autographs!!! I also saw Helena Bonham Carter! I saw a bunch more, but can't name most of them! It was amazing!!!
I got Amanda's autograph because I yelled for her! She was switching theaters, as the movie premiered at two theaters, and I called for her, "Amanda! Can you sign?!" And she looked at me! She made eye contact with me! But she was looking at me like, I'm sorry, I can't. So, then I said, "Please?! Please?! Please?!" And then she nodded!!! She came over and gave me her autograph!!
It was an amazing night! It was also a long night! But I am so jazzed now! It was fantastic! I loved it!!! I had so much fun!
My Travel Map!
Now in London!
Dec 5, 2012
Nov 22, 2012
Giving Thanks
So, it’s Thanksgiving back home. This
means that today is a day to reflect on your life and what you’re grateful for.
On the train yesterday, I was working on my reflection paper, so I was
reflecting on my life, especially how I’ve changed and grown up since getting
to Europe. In doing this reflection, I’ve realized a lot about how grateful I
really am.
I’m most grateful for my mom. And for
our relationship. We’ve always had a close relationship. I’ve always taken it
for granted though, because it was just how it was. During, and after, my first
week in Italy, when homesickness and a fear of the unfamiliar. But, while in
Italy on my own, I realized just how special our relationship is, and how
important it is for me to use it and maintain it. Mom really helped me with my
homesickness and loneliness in Italy, and I am unbelievably grateful to have
her for my mom, and to have this relationship with her.
I’m also grateful for the rest of my
family. Once again, until Italy, I never really realized how important they are
to me. Missing my birthday with the family, I realized how much traditions like
that mean to me. And now, missing Thanksgiving, I want to be home with the
family, and their AMAZING food, more than ever! My family is amazing. They’re
so supportive and caring, and they’ve always made me feel like I can do
anything. So, I’m grateful for them and their support.
Next, I’m grateful for my boyfriend,
Dusty. He’s very supportive of me, and he pushes me to do my best, though not always
in the best way for me. He’s also super loving and caring. And, it means a lot
to me to have him there for me, and have him waiting for me at home, anxious to
hug me and see me again, and he makes me so happy, so I can’t wait to see him
again!
I’m also grateful for all of my
friends, as they’re always there for me when I need them.
Finally, I’m grateful for this
opportunity. Here in Europe, I’ve learned a lot about myself. I’ve learned a
lot about volcanoes, which is a chance for me to further my career and
education. I’ve gotten to see and do a lot that most others don’t have the
opportunity to see and do. And I’m grateful for it. I’m thoroughly enjoying my
time here and all that I’m learning.
So, now that I’ve told you what I’m
grateful for, and why…it’s time for you to stop and reflect on your own life.
It’s so humbling and amazing to stop and reflect on what you’re grateful for. I
want everyone who reads this to think about it, and admit it to someone or
write it down, because it’s also clarifying. And I feel like I’ve grown up and
matured a little more in writing this post.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Nov 21, 2012
Prepare to Party...
So, I took a train to Rome, then to La
Spezia, then to Levanto. In just reaching the area of Levanto, I was in awe of
the beauty of the coastline! I was so excited to be arriving! In part, because
it meant I was going to be with my friends, who speak English and understand me
when I talk! (Unlike most Italians…) But I was also excited for the new
scenery, to celebrate my birthday, and because this meeting marks the start of
our month of free travel!
On arriving at the Levanto station, I
wasn’t sure how to get back, and really didn’t feel like trying to figure it
out with how heavy my bag was, so I took a cab to the hostel, It was very nice
to not have to walk. Then, I called my teacher and Dennis came and helped me
figure out room type stuff, as the reception was closed. While I was changing
into shorts, most of the girls that were already in Levanto showed up, so I got
to actually go to my room, drop my stuff off and claim my bed! Jess and Kay
wanted to go to the post office to send packages home, and I still had a
postcard to send, so I joined! It was a lot of fun wandering through the town
for the first time with Jess, Kay, and Liz, especially after being on my own
for so long! After that, we came back to the hostel for some internet time.
That first night (November 6th),
we ended up eating as a full group, minus a couple members that hadn’t arrived
yet, some of whom joined late. Then, a bunch of us went out drinking, kind of
as a celebration of my birthday, at least in my eyes, but pretty much just to
go out. I had two small glasses of lemoncello, and I was drunk…apparently that
stuff has a really high alcohol content…whatdaya know? But, I had Mallory who
was my designated walker, so I didn’t fall or trip on the walk back to the hostel.
I went to bed pretty happy, so it was a good night.
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| Cyan, DJ, and I out drinking! |
The next day was the first day of
one-on-one meetings with Dennis. I signed up for this day, so spent most of the
day milling around, relaxing, other than my meeting, which went swimmingly, if
I do say so myself! Around 1, Jess, Kay, Dennis, and I went to lunch at a
little pizzeria nearby, which was super cheap with amazing quality! I was quite
pleased! That day though, I started feeling more and more distant from the rest
of the group as a whole. So, I started thinking that I must not have bonded
with them as well as I had thought in Paris, or on the first night in Levanto.
I talked to Mallory about it as we walked to the beach and strolled along it,
and she comforted me, like a good friend, saying it was probably my imagination
and people do like me and all of that. We had lots of fun walking the beach and
looking at the rocks there, and collecting sea glass, before we returned to the
hostel, where I borrowed someone’s iPad as my computer refused to connect to
the internet after the first night, and registered for classes!
As I was registering, as we were
supposed to be meeting at 5 and my registration was at 5, Dennis came and
hollered for me, telling me to hurry along. So, as soon as I finished, I ran
upstairs to join the group. After I sat down, Dennis called order, and said
that they had a surprise for me…they got me a birthday cake, made me a second
volcano birthday cake, and found me a rock on the beach that everyone signed!
That’s why I was feeling so distant, they were all working on this surprise
party! I was completely in shock! And I was thrilled! The bought cake was
amazing, but we didn’t cut into the volcano cake that day. After finishing the
first cake and the Christmas beers that Sean bought the group, we headed out to
a winetasting before dinner. We had so much fun at our group dinner and the
winetasting, or at least I did! That
night was one of my best since I’ve been in Europe, it was amazing!
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| The Christmas Beer |
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| Me and my two birthday cakes! |
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| Sarah, Jess, and I eating the milfoil cake! (Cake of 1000 layers!) |
The next day, Mallory, Liz and I went
on the open and near part of the Cinque Terre hike. It was absolutely stunning.
We hiked for most of the day, eating lunch on the hike. We also found these
weird little “peach-berries” as we dubbed them, and we really wanted to try
them, but they were red, so we decided to play it safe…until we saw someone
else pick some and eat them, at which we rushed to a tree to try them too! They
were pretty good. Mallory loved them, where Liz and I each had only one, she
had like ten. So, naturally, we decided that if they were poisonous, and that
lady had an immunity to them, or had no idea, Mal would be the first to die,
giving Liz and I time to get to a hospital, if we even had enough to be
affected. They weren’t poisonous, so it was all good.
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| Liz, Mallory, and I on an overlook at Cinque Terre! Gorgeous!!! |
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| The "peach-berry" |
Friday, November 8th, was
departure day. Everyone packed up and departed, which was pretty sad, at least
for me. It was also exciting, of course, but I loved spending time with the
group again, and was sad to see us split up. I had a couple chores to do before
I took off though: I had to ship a package full of rocks back home and take
care of my birthday rock. So, I went to the post office first. I sent it home
via boat, and it was only 61 Euro, despite the fact that it was 10 kilograms!
So glad to have that weight off my back!
Then, I needed to take care of my
birthday rock. So, what do I mean by that? Well, in collecting the rock that
the group signed for me for my birthday, they knew I couldn’t carry it through
Europe, so they talked and said that I should sign it too, and then leave it on
the beach in Levanto, thereby leaving our group’s mark in Levanto! So, I went
to the beach, and found a place to put it, before saying my last goodbye to
Levanto and catching a train to Venice!
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| "Ralph da Rock", my birthday rock! |
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| My birthday rock in its new home! |
Skype 101
Sunday, I was invited to dinner at
Boris’ home. So, early afternoon/late morning on Sunday, he and Ida came over,
and spent a little bit with me at i Rustici playing with Mimi, as Ida loves
cats! And Mimi’s a baby, therefore unbelievably adorable! Then, we went to
their home, where Catherine made a delicious dinner with real potatoes in it!
Of course, that wasn’t the meal. It was a French meat dish with potatoes under
the meat, but I loved having plain potatoes again! After dinner, Boris and I
discussed the presentation we were planning.
I had talked to Ian, my advisor at
UWRF, about Boris giving a presentation to the geoclub…and when he talked to
other UWRF geology professors, it evolved into Boris taking over a geology 101
class over skype! So, now Boris and I needed to create a presentation and
question sheet for the class, which was Thursday, November 1st. I
offered to make it for Boris, if he gave me his old powerpoints and videos.
Then I could pick out the parts that I thought were best for a 101 class, and
merge them together, and take it off his hands. I spent all that week working
on the powerpoint and my abstract. I felt so much pressure, and was sure there
was no way I could accomplish all that I wanted to!
But, Boris and I got together at INGV
on Thursday a couple hours before the class, and we finished the powerpoint up,
fixing little issues that I’d been having, and emailed it to Ian, who actually
got it and downloaded with plenty of time to spare! Then, he taught a class in
room 200 in the Agricultural Science Building in River Falls, WI from Catania,
Italy! It was SO COOL! I was on a total high after that! I was justhappy! I got
to see all my professors and a bunch of the geoclub people I’ve been missing,
and I got to be on the big screen and all the little screens of room 200! It
was awesome!
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| My powerpoint! |
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| Boris and I on the screens in room 200 |
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| Boris and I on the screens in room 200 |
The next day, Friday, Boris was going
on an excursion with some of his friends, acting as guide, so I got to tag
along! This excursion is one that Boris and his friends created, that begins in
Mascali, the only town completely destroyed by Mt. Etna. So, I learned a lot,
and saw a lot of new things…including the road to nowhere! This is a small
stretch of an old major road that was cut off on both ends by the same lava
flow. So, it’s just this random stretch of road in a forested area, that stops
and ends there. It was fun to see! The Mascali Tour ended with a winetasting at
Gambino Vini, and this time, I actually got to meet Boris’ friend, as well as
go into the area where they make the wine and hear about that.
Saturday was my birthday celebration
with Boris, Catherine, and Ida. We did homemade pizza margherita and exchanged
pictures, started watching the first Harry Potter movie, in French, and Boris
gave me a book! That actually made three! It was an excellent day! I thoroughly
enjoyed my time with them, but then it was late and time for me to head home,
leaving the next day for packing.
Monday, my birthday, Catherine and Ida
brought me to the train station to leave for Levanto. I really appreciate all
that Boris and Catherine did for me. I enjoyed getting to know them, and Ida.
And I really will miss them, as I do now. But, off to new adventures!
The $1000 Meeting
So, after mom left, I was immediately
looking at my professor coming for his site visit. He had emailed us earlier to
remind us about the importance of our meetings, and informing us that these
were, in fact, $1000 meetings! So no pressure! Haha, right. I was nervous and
did my best to plan things out for him, so that he could learn and see as much
as possible. Boris and I talked before his arrival and got at least one day
figured out.
Tuesday morning (October 23rd),
Boris and I went to the airport to meet him and pick him up, and immediately,
Boris and Dennis were bonding over coffee. The whole time he was here, Dennis
was soaking up knowledge! After coffee, the three of us went back to the office
and Boris and I showed Dennis around. Then, Boris had meetings to go to, so
Dennis and I talked about plans for the rest of his site visit, and about my
project and how things were going with it. Finally, we went back to i Rustici,
my home in Trecastagni and checked Dennis in.
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| Dennis and I in the control room |
That night, Dennis and I went into
town to pick up some amazing roasted chicken for dinner. We talked while
we ate outside my room, on my little patio. He encouraged me to submit an
abstract to the Posters on Capitol Hill presentation. He also told me I had a
great project with tons of information, and there was a lot I could do with my
project in the future, which was great to hear!
The next day, we got to ride along
with Salvo and an associate into the field, to take some gas measurements,
learning lots about gas emissions on Mount Etna and how they affect the people.
It was very interesting…and then it started REALLY raining. It was down
pouring, and the streets were like rivers! It was insane! So, we only stopped
once, instead of twice, and went to lunch early. We had our lunch at a favorite
restaurant of the volcanologists, but there was an anniversary party there,
which Dennis and I thoroughly enjoyed! They kept making random couples in the
group kiss, and kiss properly! It was hilarious and so entertaining to watch!
And most impressively, I tried mushrooms! I didn’t like them, but I tried them!
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| Salvo and I while Salvo was fighting with one of the gas instruments |
That night, Boris took Dennis and me
to dinner with his family in one of their favorite restaurants. I had amazing
pizza margherita, deciding I could eat something safe like pizza after trying
mushrooms at lunch. I also taught Ida, Boris’ 7-year-old daughter, to play
tic-tac-toe! And, to finish off the evening, we had some lemoncello, or lemon
liquor, which is my favorite alcoholic beverage! It tastes like the sweet coating
of a lemonhead! AMAZING!!!
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| Catherine enjoying watching Ida and I play tic-tac-toe! |
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| Ida won! |
The two days, Thursday and Friday,
were relaxation days for me, as Dennis left and Boris was busy. And they were
so nice. Although, I spent a lot of time working on my abstract and thinking
through the poster I’ll hopefully get to present to members of Congress in the
spring. The Posters on Capitol Hill presentation is a poster session for
undergraduate research to show members of congress the importance of funding
undergraduate research, so hopefully I get to teach them all about Mt. Etna! I
decided a poster on all of my research would have too much information, and so
be too difficult for me to create, especially for my first professional poster
for a poster seminar!
Oh! And, as far as I can tell, my $1000 meeting went great! Yay!
Nov 10, 2012
Birthday Tugs!
So, the fifth was my twentieth
birthday. Usually, I get very excited for my birthday, and make a big deal of
it, and, of course, celebrate it with my friends and family. This made this
birthday hard for me. Not only do I not get my normal birthday cake, nor do I
get to celebrate with my friends and family back home, nor do I get to see my
twin cousin (we were born the same day of the same year, and I’ve always called
her my “twin cousin”), but it was a travel day, so I couldn’t even celebrate on
the day with my new Italian friends or European traveling friends. It was a
very disappointing birthday for me. And a very lonely one. It was pretty much
just a long day of traveling, just like any other.
Until I met an Italian boy in his 20s
that spoke English while waiting for a ferry. We never learned each other’s
names, but we were both going to Rome last night, him to return home, and me as
one leg on my journey to meet the Semester Abroad: Europe group in Levanto. He
and I talked and joked and had a good time together while waiting for the
ferry, on the ferry, and while waiting for the train to Rome. We found food and
drinks at the Villa San Giovanni train station and we found our platform
together, where we sat and talked for another hour or two.
On the ferry, I told him it was my
birthday, and he showed me an Italian birthday tradition. While we have
birthday spankings, they have birthday tugs. They grab each ear lobe and tug
them, every other ear, and count to your new age. So, he gave me my 20 birthday
tugs! It’s nowhere near as good as a birthday cake with my mom and aunties and
cousins (most importantly my twin cousin), but considering I’m an ocean away
from them, it was the best I could have hoped for. So thanks to this kind young
man, for making my birthday much brighter and less lonely, and for giving me my
birthday tugs!
Mom in Napoli
My first day Naples and I start off with a tour of the
city. I was go to Pompeii but the tour
company switched on me. So a tour of the
city it is and an earlier start too. I
was to be at the Theater at 8:15 and according to Erin it was, maybe, a half
hour walk. So I find my way out of the 4
Seasons and now the big, big door is open.
I head towards the theater and now the goal is to find a diet cola prior
to the tour. The bar/pastry shops are
open and I find a Coke Zero. My day is
now VERY good! I find the theater and
the area is just beautiful and rich in so much history. The tour company and I find each other and
into the van I go.
It is difficult being in a country that you do not
understand the language. The van picked
me up and I knew I was in the correct van but the driver spoke to the other
couple in Italian and not in English at all.
I had no idea if we were picking up other people, or if this was the tour,
or what was happening. Eventually we did
meet up with another van with Americans on it from a cruise ship with a guide
that speaks English so all was well. The
tour was short but very nice and informative.
I got the lay of the city and figure out what I wanted to see and
do.
Most of the rest of the day is just spent exploring and
watching people. I enjoyed stopping at
the cafes with the outside seating and having a glass of wine with my meals and
just soaking it all in. After lunch, I
was trying to find a monastery and I got myself totally turned around. If you saw these streets you'd understand:
not one of them straight and the majority of them not being longer than just a
couple of blocks. So I stopped for
directions and they were "no, no walk, train! Up...you go up." Finally realized that
this place I was looking for was on the hilltop while not more than a mile, it
was all uphill, steep uphill. But to
find the station was to go this way for a block then left and around this
piazza, then stay right, etc. I thought
no way I would find this but I was enjoying walking so I just walked in that
general direction and I actually came upon it.
So up I went and immediately upon exiting the station, a
man, upon seeing me, told me the fort was this way and pointed. I laughed and asked if I looked that
confused. Hearing my accent, he asked
which part of the United States I was from.
He said he would show me the way as we chatted. His family is actually in the cameo business
and he showed me his family's shop and there was his brother making them out of
coral shells. Very interesting and fun to see.
One of the things that amazed me the most was that all the
people came out at night. Not just the
young, but entire families. People
running errands, people shopping, people socializing with each other. The other thing that I am still trying to
really understand is what is a typical work day? And what's up with these
really long lunch hours (typically 1:00 - 4:00) where a lot of shops and
establishments close during these times.
My second day in Naples was actually spent on tour. They brought us first to Pompeii. It was a two hour tour so on the shorter side
but it gave me an impression what Pompeii was all about. The city was actually very large and very
advanced but they really didn't know that Vesuvius was a volcano. They believed it to be just a mountain so
they had no idea what the preliminary signs meant or what they should do. I asked our guide if the area has an evacuation
plan now. She indicated yes, the various
cities do but no one really knows what the plan is. People all assume that there will be signs
and time to escape. I hope they are
correct as this is a very populated area.
The people of Pompeii built their city with streets going
north/south and east/west and with slopes so they could wash away the dirt and
sewage by removing the plugs in the fountains and allowing the water to flow
through the streets and wash away the filth.
And they figured out how to control the water pressure in the water
system to allow it to flow properly throughout the city. They had "fast" food places where
they could purchase ready to eat food.
They had a "red light" district and symbols to help the
sailors in from the port to find it. The
Forum area was for pedestrian traffic only so they actually put up vertical
stone pillars to prevent the carts to enter the area. Just a few of the things mentioned on the
tour.
Our next stop was actually Mount Vesuvius. A very different volcano than Etna. After a hike to the top, about a mile, you
can see the crater: basically a big hole in the mountain. It looks very dormant: not very much visual
activity. I believe there are one or two
fumaroles but that is about it. But the
longer she remains dormant, the more explosive she will be. Vesuvius was much larger than it is now. Now there are actually two craters but
earlier there was just one gigantic cone that encompassed both craters and it
was much taller. When she last erupted,
I believe in 1944, she lost a lot of her cone and created the second cone. (This part may or may not be correct, says
Erin…but I can’t actively remember, so I can’t actually make a correction for
mom here, and would hate to correct her and be wrong.)
Tonight I had to move out of the 4 Seasons and to the Ramada
Inn. While the Ramada was very nice, it
was by the train station. The night life
or the friendly/family pedestrian traffic didn't exist. I went out to look for food but quickly
turned around as the streets were dirty, dark and fairly deserted. My recommendation anyone traveling to Naples
is to stay on Via Toledo and enjoy the flavor of the street.
Nov 6, 2012
Etna with Mom!
Wednesday, October 17th
Evidently Erin would like me to continue to blog. For the next two days, we both will
contribute to the blog, each both contributing our expertise. So here it goes.... Exploring Etna was
incredible, awesome, amazing and just plain fun!!! There is my expertise!
Ok - I will add a little more to it. On Wednesday, it was just Erin and I. We left around 8:30 in the morning; Etna
ended up not being too far away. It was a nice sunny day and had some clouds
around Etna but over all good. Boris, in
giving us directions said go up, then keep going up. That basically describes it. We just kept
climbing and climbing. As a side note
that there were many people were parked along the roadside and they were
collecting chestnuts and mushrooms, both very popular here on the island. On this day, we took one of the switchbacks
and we popped out of the clouds and it was totally sunny and clear! The clouds, fluffy and white, below us. It was an incredible view from the car. I'm
used to seeing from a plane but not in the car!
There is this little tourist village at the base:
restaurants and shops plus the cable car.
We purchase our tickets not only for the cable car but for the
all-terrain vehicles up on top. This is
the 4th cable car built on this location: all the others being destroyed by
lava. Each cable car lasted only 10 years or so before being destroyed. This cable car is in its 8th year. Ummmm...
Makes you wonder. So as we go up, you see where the old lava flows were. Volcanic ash covers everything but then there
are areas like rivers where you see the old lava flows. The lava is the thick and chunky kind. It moved very slowly. So the cable cars bring us very high on the
mountain and ends. There is a shop and
restaurant there.
So,
what mom means when she says the lava is the thick and chunky kind is that it
was aa lava. This kind of lava is gas rich and very viscous, or sticky, so it
does, as she says, move very slowly. This type of lava is very typical of Etna,
at least as of the past 100 years. You see, Etna has been changing in its
activity style for the past 100 years or so. While it was once very similar to
Kilauea on Hawaii, it is now much more explosive, and each of its eruptions
does something new, to surprise the volcanologists working on it.
From there, we take the all-terrain vehicle up the
switch-backs still getting closer to the top.
But we are prevented by law to go to the top as it is not safe. It can change from day to day. They gather us and show us this partial
building that was covered with lava except for this partial side. You can
witness steam escaping out one of the windows.
Then we headed to one do the lower craters and it too had steam
escaping. The guide explained that this
was once active but now the lava tube is now sealed off so it will never erupt
from this site again.
It’s
the conduit that is sealed off. Not the tube. Silly mom. Anyway, this is true
of all of the flank cones, or cones on the sides (flanks), on Etna, of which
there are over 300! Each of them had a conduit, or something to connect them to
the magma chamber, which was active while they were erupting, but which became
extinct after the cones eruption finished. So, none of the flank cones on Etna
will ever erupt again.
Erin was very interested in all that he said. He had a new best friend for the next 20
minutes. He was very gracious to her
and truly appreciated her interest. He
also told us that we could walk to the March 4, 2012 lava flow, as long as we
stayed on the path. So we were off
exploring, looking at the various coloration of stones and what the lava flow
looked like.
I
loved going up to the March 4th flow! It was fantastic! I’ve never
seen a lava flow that young! This flow was part of the series of very violent
and short eruptions, or paroxysms, that formed the new southeast crater. This flow,
if I remember correctly, was formed from a fissure opening along the base of
the new southeast crater. I’ve seen videos…and it looks SO COOL!!! I wish I had
been there!
Then it was back down to the cable car area. We grabbed a
quick bite for lunch and then down we went to the bottom. It was sad to leave Etna, not knowing if I
would be back. We did a little souvenir
shopping and then it was back home. It
was a completely awesome day and was so happy to have shared the experience
with Erin. Be watching for our Christmas
card as no doubt, you will see an Etna picture on it!
Later that night, Erin heard from Boris that he and a
coworker were planning on going to the top of Etna the next day and we could
ride along. Where and how far up would
depend on how safe it was and we would have to wear hard hats. The next day we were to meet them at 10:00 at
the tourist village.
Thursday, October 18th
You could have put a bet on the fact that Erin and would be
on time! It was a sure thing! We hopped in their car and off we went to
Mama Etna, as Boris calls her. Each
volcano has a personality and Etna has one plus she creates many baby
craters. From high above the world, you
can see the many, many craters over the flanks of Etna, indicating where the
fissure cracks are.
Well
mom, that’s not what the flank craters mean. Just because there’s a crater, it doesn’t
mean there’s a fissure, as a fissure is a crack in the surface of the Earth,
that penetrates much deeper. A fissure eruption doesn’t usually form a cone, it
just lets lava seep out. These cones are places that the magma from the magma
chamber of Etna (or one of them, not really sure how that works) find a
conduit, or a path, to the surface. After finding this conduit, the lava then
usually begins to erupt violently until it forms these cones. The lava usually
bursts through, and cools rapidly in the air, becoming rocks (usually) before
it hits the ground. These rocks are called volcanic bombs!
So once in the car, we climb and climb, passing the cable
station and going beyond...to the all-terrain area and then beyond. It was rugged and beautiful and
fascinating! We made it to the other
side and Boris pulled off. This is where
we would begin our hike. And let me tell you it was all uphill! It was long and hard for me but eventually we
made it to the crater and there was vapor/steam all around. There were many fumaroles at the top as
well. It was an incredible site! But
then we heard Mama Etna speak. She hadn't been heard for a time so Boris
decided that they must go further up to the new southeast crater but we could
not come, as they did not know what they would find. So Erin and I took pictures and made
ourselves comfortable but soon Mama was talking quite a bit. To us it appeared that the output of vapor
increased, but we do not know Mama Etna.
Boris soon arrived back and he was going to walk more towards the other
side of this crater to try to determine who was speaking but the gases got bad
and we stopped. There may be new
activity here and it is most exciting! Time will tell!
Most
of what we heard that day was just gas emission sounds. But I will swear to it
that we heard one weak Strombolian eruption, as Boris later informed me that
there were some weak eruptions that night in the Bocca Nuova.
We
were incredibly lucky to get to go where we did, as we could see 2 of the
summit craters from their bases. Well, from one of their bases, and the top of
the other. The summit cone whose base we were at was the northeast crater,
which is the oldest of the technically four summit craters and the tallest! The
crater that we were at the top of was the Voragine, or the big mouth! This one
is technically the second oldest of the four currently there, and has been
quiet since 1999,when it blew and gave off a HUGE paroxysm, that was kilometers
taller than the northeast crater! Though, apparently the Voragine may be waking
up, as it seemed that some of the noises we heard were coming from the
Voragine, and other mountain guides thought they’d heard some activity of some
kind within it.
From
our location while Boris and Antonio (Volcanologist-on-Duty and Volcanologist
Aide) continued their exploration, we could also see just a teeny bit of the
third crater, and the backside of the fourth. The third crater is the Buocca
Nuova. It is now nearly entirely connected to the Voragine, as the 1999 eruption
of the Voragine blew out the Diaframma (Diaphragm in English), which was the
rock wall that separated the two craters. Part of the Diaframma remains intact,
and is now a really cool spiny rock wall that ends mid-way through the width of
the Voragine. The fourth crater is the southeast crater. This is the youngest
of the four. It is where most of the activity has been for the past 10 years or
more. It is also growing and changing still, though no longer as what is called
the southeast crater.
 |
| The Diaframma |
 |
| The Southeast Crater |
The
new southeast crater is my favorite! It is the fastest growing cone ever
recorded! It grew within the past year or so, in a series of 25 paroxysms that
all together lasted only 48 hours! It began forming on the base of the
southeast crater and began, as each of the summit craters did, as a small
collapse pit. Now, to make it even cooler than it already is, it has a small
collapse pit on its rim, which may be the beginning of a new cone, or maybe
just part of the cone, preparing to form!
 |
| The Southeast Crater on the Left and the New Southeast Crater on the Right! |
It now as I must
catch my plane and there is no more to do, we depart. We move fast down through the ash. My old arthritic knees do their best to keep
up. And soon we are having a beer at the
bottom and some pizza to go with it and saying good bye to new friends.
I drop Erin off at her place and it was straight to the
airport. I actually made it all by
myself! Navigated and drove and I didn't
get lost once! The airport area was a little scary but soon I recognized the
rental car area. I returned the car
without problems and found the airport and where I was to check in. But the catch is, you can only check in two
hours in advance so I was a little early so I had to stand around until the
person arrived. Once checked in, I could go back to the gate area.
My flight was slightly late but soon I was in Naples and
finally get the 4 Seasons, the same B & B that Erin stayed at. I am sure glad that Erin explained on week
nights the big door would not be opened so I had to use the intercom and come
through the small door. So imagine
this.... Behind this big, big set of
doors is a court yard area with small businesses, apartments and this B&B. In the big, big door (semi-truck big) there
is a tiny door maybe 5 feet tall that once buzzed in or if you have a key you
can enter. But on the weekend, there is
a security guard and the big, big door stays open. So this is Thursday, so I
get buzzed through the door and there is this guy, he gives me 3 keys. They
still use the old fashion big keys! A key for the small door in the big, big
door, a B&B door key and my room door key.
This key also works on the bathroom door. The bathroom door remains locked. Not really sure why it is kept locked but
that is what I think the guy said. Then
he left. It wasn't until the following
afternoon when I got home from exploring that there was a new guy there and he
mentioned Erin and collected money. It was
surprising how at home I felt and comfortable I was there. I am now at the Ramada Inn and it appears to
be in a not so good part of town, nothing around, and employees who are just
doing their job and not much more. I
miss the 4 Seasons!
Oct 27, 2012
Sicily: Earthquakes, Science, Politics, and Law
This post is from the email blog of my professor, Dennis Cooper, about his 2 day site visit here in Trecastagni
Francesco Palmitessa awoke in his bed to the shaking of the earth and the collapsing of his house around him. His wife and daughter lay in bed beside him. When the terrible onslaught of falling walls and ceilings subsided, he discovered to that he was the only one left alive.
Three hundred and nine people died that morning in L'Aquila, Italy, in the 6.3 magnitude earthquake that struck in 2009, mainly from being crushed by collapsing buildings. A physician, Dr. Palmitessa and his family had evacuated his house the night before, because they feared that an earthquake was imminent. Civil defense authorities, however, tried to reassure townspeople that, despite the warnings issued by scientists and the tremors beneath their feet, the risk of an actual earthquake at that time and place was low. People were told to go into their homes, have a glass of wine, and sleep in their beds.
After the disaster, survivors like Dr. Palmitessa and, indeed, much of the public angrily demanded that those who failed to give adequate warning to victims be held responsible. Subsequently, charges were leveled, a trial was held, and on Monday, Oct. 22, the verdict was announced: seven Italian geologists and disaster experts were convicted of manslaughter and each sentenced to six years in prison.
On Tuesday morning, Oct. 23, I arrived in Catania, Sicily, and was met at the airport by my student, Erin Peterson, and her mentor, Dr. Boris Behncke. I did not know it yet, but I soon learned I had landed at the epicenter of the international headlines shaking the geological and scientific world in the wake of Monday's verdict. For Dr. Behncke is a geologist at the Catania branch of the INGV, the National Institute for Geology and Volcanoes in Italy. One of his colleagues was among the seven convicted scientists.
Dr. Behncke's job is to study and monitor the activity of Sicily's Mount Etna, one of the most active volcanoes in the world and one that has erupted many times in the past, claiming many victims from the well-populated slopes, valleys, and plains below, including the city of Catania and Trecastagni, where Boris and his wife Catherine live with their 7-year old daughter, Ida.
|
| Dr. Boris Behncke, his wife Catherine, and his daughter, Ida |
|
| Ida and Erin playing tic-tac-toe, to the amusement of Catherine |
 |
| Dr. Boris Behncke |
Dr. Behncke greeted me cordially and bought me a coffee at the airport. He was obviously agitated and he came right to the point: I had arrived in the middle of a crisis at his institute, which he described to me in detail, including the story of Dr. Palmitessa (not his real name). He did not excuse the convicted scientists of downplaying the probability of the disaster, but he added that they had done so under pressure from political authorities and administrators who did not want to alarm the public of something that might not happen, or might not happen when and where it did. He agreed with my suggestion that the convicted scientists had been scapegoats.
We discussed the whole problem of prediction of natural disaster prediction, which is based on probabilities and risk, rather than certainties. The next time Mount Vesuvius of Pompeii fame erupts (and it will), geologists will know something is happening, but they won't know exactly when or where. What happens in the meantime - evacuate everyone from the Bay of Naples? When? To where? For how long? What if Vesuvius threatens to erupt for months? Hundreds of thousands of people will be temporarily housed elsewhere in Italy, in tents or camps, waiting, waiting?
And even if that all works out perfectly, and Vesuvius erupts on schedule and destroys Naples, what do people come back to? Rubble from houses that were not built to withstand coinciding earthquakes? Houses that were built in the possible path of erupted lava, rocks, gas, etc.?
The moral of the story is that prevention is much better than prediction. There is currently no good way to respond effectively to predictions of earthquakes and volcanoes. What we can do is prevent the consequences of these disasters from being so terrible. For example. we can build houses that are "quake-resistant". If Dr. Palmitessa's house had been built so, his wife and daughter might still be alive today.
Incidentally, there is a column in the International Herald Tribune/New York Times today (Oct. 26) by Juliette Kayyem in which the significance of the convictions of the seven scientists is discussed. Interesting stuff, but I don't agree with much of what she writes.
My student, Erin, is a majoring in Geology at UW-River Falls. She is spending two months studying volcanoes in Italy, including about one month with Dr. Behncke and his colleagues at the INGV. She is doing so in the Semester Abroad: Europe program (SAE) at UWRF. Although her subject is volcanoes, Erin is getting a much bigger and better education than she ever dreamed of. She is getting this education the only way possible - by being here (and doing a great job under the tutelage of her UWRF adviser, Dr. Ian Williams).
|
| Erin and an INGV scientist checking gas emissions from Etna |
 |
| Dennis Cooper, Erin, and an INGV scientist in Zafferana, Sicily |
This is one example of the tremendous experiences students can have when living and studying abroad.
See you soon,
Dennis
Oct 26, 2012
On the Island Vulcan...o
Uncle
David, this one’s for you…
Captain’s
log: Stardate: 66217.6. My position: approaching a mysterious island that appears to be
releasing steam. I am beaming to the island’s surface. My mission: to explore
this strange island, and discover the source of the steam.
The
day was Monday, and I arrived at the port of Stromboli, around 10, hoping to
catch the 11 o’clock boat to Vulcano. As I talked to the people within the
ticket office, it became clear to me that this voyage would be difficult, once
again. The boat had left early, due to high winds, if I understood the alien
language. This meant that I would need to wait until around 3 for a boat to
Vulcano. I proceeded to wait near the ticket office and fix the music playlists
on my computer’s iTunes. I bought my ticket when the office opened, and went to
the dock to wait. From that point on, the boat ride actually went as it was
meant to, and so was surprisingly smooth. In passing near their systems, I saw
many other strange and intriguing islands.
Europe:
My current frontier. These are the voyages of the explorer: Erin. My
three-month mission: to explore strange, new volcanoes, to seek out new
knowledge and new wisdom, to boldly go where no UWRF student has gone before.
Captain’s
log: Additional entry. Since my boat ride went smoothly, I beamed to the island
without worry. I was totally unaware that I was about to run into more rough travels.
The
location I was planning on residing for my four nights on this strange island,
was booked through the website: airbnb.com, where I was told I would be staying
in a guest home on Antonio’s property. He told me to call him when I got to the
port, so I did. Upon doing so, one of those lovely little automated messages
informed me that the customer I was trying to reach was not available. Mom
called me in response to my frantic texts, and she emailed Antonio, telling him
that I was waiting at the port and trying to reach him, but without success. I
tried communication with him via text also, with no avail. Then I waited,
trying to call again from time to time. After around an hour, I was beginning
to feel fear again, especially since the place I was staying at was simply
called “An Aeolian Villa”, so it definitely wasn’t a normal hotel…and I tried asking
people if they had heard of it, or of Antonio, and no one had. So, I began
wandering, and found a tourist office. I asked again if they knew of the person
or place, and they didn’t…I was near tears, and the guy at the desk could tell.
So he offered to let me use internet, and I took advantage of the offer. I
looked up the phone number and resort page for myself, and saw the number on
the screen…which had a + in front of it…Then it dawned on me, in this strange
and foreign place, I was supposed to dial the +…so I tried calling Antonio
again, and it worked. Of all the stupid things, I didn’t have the + in the
number, and so couldn’t call. Gah!
Captain’s
log: Continuing. After wandering the area I beamed to, it was clear to me that
these beings speak only their own language, with very few of them understanding
me when I speak to them.
Antonio
called his uncle, Tanino, and instructed him to pick me up, as he, Antonio, was
stuck on a different island. Tanino brought me to his home, and showed me the
guest house that was reserved for my residence. In his foreign language, he
instructed me that dinner was at 9, and I was to join him. During this meal,
which consisted of strangely familiar pasta and tomato sauce, we had a
conversation. How we managed to actually communicate with each other is unclear
to me, as I could only understand a very little of his foreign language, and he
could not understand mine. The only thing about that conversation that is clear
to me is that we did successfully communicate. This man told me of his friend,
who wrote a book about the minerals of Vulcano. I was very interested and
excited to learn more, so he told me we’d go meet his friend that night. We
left around 10 for the restaurant his friend owns, where I spent the entire
time goggling at the book, like a silly little school girl. The book was
entirely in Italian, other than mineral names in both Italian and English, at
the back of the book. I also tried my first Italian coffee at this restaurant.
I opted for decaffeinated, as adrenaline was already coursing through my veins,
giving me enough energy to continue. Tanino also brought me to a bar, where he
bought me a glass of liquor from the island.
This liquor was very smooth and very tasty. It was a new experience and
a long night full of adventure. But it was time for me to retire until the sun
rose again.
Captain’s
log: Stardate 66223.3. My position: in the town at the sea port of the island Vulcano.
I
spent the first two full days rejuvenating and trying to organize my plans, memories,
and pictures and performing important maintenance tasks like cleaning clothes.
On my third day on this foreign island, I finally explored more of this region.
I found a pharmacy, where I bought bug spray (which was a true necessity in
this land), the INGV office, which was inoperational, and I climbed to the
source of the steam. The source was more
than 10 fumaroles, located on, next to, and inside of a large crater. On my
first trip to this crater, I only did a little exploring and investigating,
getting as close to the larger fumaroles as was allowed, and walking around the
near side of the crater, before returning to home base. I also collected some
samples on this trip, as I was fascinated by the mineral shapes, mostly
botryoidal on a VERY small scale.
Captain's log: Stardate 66226.1. My position: atop the crater releasing all of the gas on the island of Vulcano.
I returned to the summit of this crater today, and spent much more time
there, walking the entire perimeter of the crater. I was enthralled with the fumaroles
and the rocks I saw, as I was unused to rocks with this texture. I got as close
to the fumaroles as was allowed. It was fascinating to walk around the rim of the crater, though I wish I could have gone all the way up to the fumaroles. That would have been a much more educational experience for me, I think. However, there was a risk of asphyxiation, so I wasn't allowed farther. It was still an excellent experience for me, though.
Overall,
this was a very exciting adventure, full of new experiences for me. But, my
mission was complete. I had found the fumaroles: the source of the islands gas
emissions. It was time for me to move to my next location to begin the next
adventure.
Oct 20, 2012
Syracuse Factoids
Today's adventure is a trip to Syracuse which is further
south on the island along the coast. We
aimed our little Smart car to the Archaeological Park and soon we arrived. In this small area are the Greek and Roman
Theaters.
 |
| Erin at the top of the Greek Amphitheater - Overlooking the Archaeological Park |
Syracuse was founded 733 BC by Corinthian settlers; Syracuse
became one of the first Greek colonies on the island. It quickly attained wealth and power and
eventually became the strongest city in the Mediterranean.
 |
| This is just the base of a huge altar...they guess at least 50 bulls were sacrificed here at a time! |
The Greek theater was huge and very impressive. The theater would have seated 15,000
spectators. Along the top edge of the
theater in caves carved out of the rock.
These were used for tombs. One of
these was fed with water from the aqueduct and is known as the Nymphaeum.
 |
| Erin in front of the Nymphaeum |
 |
| The Greek Theater |
 |
| Looking down on Erin and the Greek Theater |
 |
| Looking up at Erin and the Greek Theater - From where the "stage" was |
The Roman Amphitheater is much older and is from the 3rd
century. It is one of the largest of its
kind. Again the area had many catacombs
surrounding it that are tombs. It was really quite elaborate with many openings
some for spectators and some for the contestants. There were tunnels and passages leading up to
the actual amphitheaters. It was very
interesting.
 |
| The Roman Amphitheater |
In back of this area is actually a huge quarry, Latomia del
Paradiso. The rock was used for the construction of Syracuse. Inside the quarry
is a tall cave called Orecchio of Dioniso (Ear of Dionysius). It was just a small cave that is really tall
(and I mean really tall!) but it was fun to see and enter.
 |
| The opening of the Orecchio of Dioniso |
We enjoyed our day and had a little gelato and headed back
to Trecastagni. Tonight we will be
headed toward Taormina to listen to a presentation that Boris was giving to a
group of American tourist. It was very
interesting with lots of information on Etna, lots of pictures and all
incorporated with music. He is a very
charismatic and dramatic speaker. I
thoroughly enjoyed it. Erin is very
fortunate, and lucky, to have Boris as a mentor.
Driving in Sicily has become easier but I am still convinced
that it still takes both Erin and I to get to any given location!
Oct 18, 2012
Getting Ruined Out
On Sunday, Erin and I begin our two day journey of the
island: The Great Adventure! We head
west towards Palermo. My speedometer
reads 125.... Wow! Until you remember that it is kilometers per hour... I'm
only averaging 70-75 mph. Some on my
fellow drivers are going much (much, much) faster! As we go along the motorway, we see in the
distance this town on top of a tall mountain: looks cool. So we go for the adventure and turn off the
motorway. The views are spectacular and
it is amazing all the buildings they can fit into such a tiny space. Let me tell you that there is little room
left for roads! At the far end of the
mountain top, there is an old fort. We
park and we go exploring. It turns out
that this fort was key to holding Sicily from the impending invaders. It was certainly worth the detour!
|
| The Enna Fortress |
 |
| The town of Enna, from the fortress |
So now to Palermo... We entered the city and the traffic was
terrifying! After much circling, we
finally find a spot to park the car. We
actually take pictures to help us find the car later... just in case. We arrive later than expected plus it is
Sunday so we don’t know what is open or really how to get to the various
sites. Then Erin spots A City Sights
Sightseeing bus and 20 minutes later, we are on the bus. What a fantastic tour that was considering we
had really no idea what we were going to do and how we were going to do it! It
was an unplanned surprise but those are usually the best kinds. We loved the tour as we saw so much and
learned a lot about Palermo too. We
jumped off at the Cathedral and took some pictures and walked further down to
see a Piazza for a better view and pictures.
But we were hearing thunder and it was getting darker so we decided we
better boogie out of there and back to the car.
We didn't make it! We quickly purchased
an umbrella from a small tourist store as we left ours in the car as it was
sunny and bright when we had left the car. But fortunately, we don't melt when
we get wet so all was good. We found the
car, the people doubled-parked in the back of our car came back relatively
quickly and it was off to the next destination!
|
| The Cathedral from the bus |
 |
| Erin and I on the bus tour |
Tomorrow morning’s destination is Selinunte, Greek ruins. So
we find a place about 10 miles from there and spend the night. This hotel looks nice and is nice but like no
one is there. It is virtually empty. I felt like I was in a Hitchcock movie. It was weird but ended up being very nice.
The next day, we were up in time to get to Selinunte shortly
after opening. Was it ever impressive! It had three different locations so we opted
for the tram service to save time and to save our feet. The first location was inland and was an
example of temples. Just beautiful! Loved it!
But there is our tram driver waving at us when we emerge from the
ruins. We hop on board and we are off to
the sea! Again very awesome but now it
has started raining. But again this is
just part of the adventure! But we
weren't to stay there. We had the full
package so were off to the third location, just Erin, me and the driver. He was
an excellent driver and treated us very well, showing us many things. But then
it was back to the sea to see that location until we saw all we wanted. Both Erin and I were very impressed and happy
that we made time to see this area of Sicily.
 |
| The First Temple at Selinunte |
 |
| Erin and another part of Selinunte |
 |
| The Round-About from Hell |
 |
| The Ruins of a Temple at Agrigento |
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| The Most Complete Temple at Agrigento |
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