Arrivederci!

Ah, goodbye, Italy! It has been fun and an unbelievable experience. I am so thankful for all the people who helped organize and facilitate our travels, as coordinating 20 or so people is not an easy task. I have learned so much over the last 10 days: lots of geology, but also culture and language. So now a little reflection:

Random things I have learned in Italy:

1. If you try to speak Italian, native speakers will get excited and are totally willing to help you through it!
2. Andiamo a mangiare: Let's go to eat! Always a useful phrase.
3. Ecco/Eccolo: Here/Here it is. This phrase became commonly used within our group, sometime in earnest, mostly in jest.
4. Everyone drives stick, and now I know the smell of a clutch.
5. Regarding pizza
• Having pizza in slices is not common practice.
• Pizza is not originally Italian (yes, my brother told me this before I went).
• Calzone = pizza bag
6. I want to go back

Pringles are a total hit overseas!

All roads do lead to Roma

At last, the weather turned back for the best as we left Coldigioco. Today, we were heading to Rome! Now, this has been a huge build up moment for many of us. As we were driving through the countryside of Italy throughout our trip, there would always be a highway sign leading to Rome. Yes, all roads do lead to Rome. And now we were going there!

We dropped our luggage at the hotel near the airport and took the train into Rome. A group of us headed straight for the Vatican in hopes of getting to the Sistine Chapel before it closed for the day. Today, in fact, was Holy Thursday, leading up to Good Friday tomorrow and Easter on Sunday, so the Vatican shortened its hours in observation of the celebration. 

We did get into St. Peter's Square with no problems, and all I could think about was Dan Brown's Angels and Demons (Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor were fantastic!). It was mostly the visual of having seen the movie and now standing where much of the action was filmed. Back to real life--I was struck by the realization that I was in the Vatican. Pope Francis is somewhere here, and he's pretty chill. It feels weird to use slang when talking about the Pope, but I think it fits his style. 

St. Peter's Square, with St. Peter's Basilica in the background.

The line for the Sistene Chapel was too long to get in before closing, so we decided to go into St. Peter's Basilica. I was not prepared for what I saw. As we walked in, immediately our eyes went to the floors. Look at those rocks! Back marbles? No way. Then we looked up. The entire place was ornate and really impressive. Words do not do it justice. We casually strolled by Michelangelo's Pietà, which would put us at 2 out of 3 for Michelangelo's major works (The David, The Pietà, Sistene Chapel). Finally, as we were walking around inside, they had clergy process in with the cross, I'm guessing for mass, and then choirs sang and organs sounded. The acoustics amplified the sound so it surrounded each person. Everyone stopped. It was surreal.

Of course, geologists look at the floors.

Michelangelo's Pietà.

After the Vatican, we conquered Rome in about 4 hours. We walked along the Tiber River, had dinner, and then saw the Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon. My friend, JoRee, and I sprinted across Rome to meet up with a group at the Colosseum before we all left on the last train of the night. As we were running, we would pass ruins, stop, take a picture, and then continue. It was quite comical.

Sunset over the Tiber River.

The Colosseum

We made it back to the hotel safe and sound, with wild memories of the last 9 days. Most of us fly home tomorrow. Now, I will say that it was a little tense in Rome as we had heard of the attacks in Brussels earlier this week. So Rome, during Holy Week/Easter, lots of people, Christians during the most important week of the year, surely might be a target. I hope and pray that everything and everyone would stay safe.

Increased security all through Rome because of the Brussels attack earlier this week.

Hail the Snail

Highlights of today: I ate a snail. Actually two.

Other than that, today was pretty dreary as far as weather was concerned. We traveled to a quarry to see some evidence of the Messinian Salinity Crisis, which basically was when the entire Mediterranean Sea dried up 5 million years ago. We bushwhacked through the BIGGEST thorns I have ever seen and made it to a quarry where we could see the vast deposits of salts that were left behind.

A wet day amid the thorns and gypsum turbidites.

After the quarry, we headed toward the Adriatic coast to have lunch at a wonderful little restaurant. There, we were offered fresh seafood. We had anything from seaweed (or sea-rock-grass) to the best mussels I have ever eaten, snails, shellfish, regular fish. I have learned by now that you don't need to know the name of the food before you eat it; if they offer it, you eat it. It is good form to do so.

But yes, I ate two snails. They were like curly-shelled snails, too. As a non-adventurous eater, this was a big step for me. They definitely aren't my preferred texture in foods, but I am glad for the experience.

My first view of the Adriatic Sea.

Più rocce, per favore

The weather was starting to turn for the worst today, but we still braved the elements to go check out more rocks. We traveled through many of the sequences of rocks that formed on the backside of the mountain belt. We talked about how the tilt, wobble and orbit of the earth affect climate and how that cyclicity shows up in the rock record. The repetitive patterns we see in the rocks can be used to reconstruct paleoclimate and give us a sense of how much time has passed.

Ash deposits reminiscent of the volcanism long ago.

A limestone quarry near Gubbio.

We had a wonderful lunch at this restaurant outside Gubbio. This is the restaurant that Sandro takes all his geology groups to, as it is historic in the discovery of the K-T boundary. Just outside the restaurant is the outcrop that was the first spot where the boundary was discovered. So, naturally, we all took photos next to it.

The remaining members of the Stretch 2014 posing near the K-T boundary.

Our fearless leaders enjoying the pleasures of professorship, including an obligatory photo with the K-T.

In the evening, we got to spend some time in the historic town of Gubbio. Gubbio has a large Roman amphitheater that is still in use today, as well as a whole medieval village built on the side of the mountain (actually on a fault plane, which is poor choice due to earthquake hazard). Unfortunately, much of the town was closed, as it was after hours. I really wanted to see the Iguvine Tablets, which are a sort of Rosetta Stone for the ancient Umbrian language (3rd century BC) and 1st century Latin. The tablets shed light on the grammar of this ancient dead language, and also on the religious practices of the ancient peoples of Italy, including the archaic religion of the Romans. Cool stuff!

The streets of Gubbio in the evening.

K-T and Caves

Today was our first day out in the field with Sandro. He walked us through the geology of the area and the rocks we would be seeing. We stopped at a special outcrop, one that contains the K-T boundary (now renamed K-Pg for Cretaceous–Paleogene). This was a huge mass extinction event that led to the end of the dinosaurs, as well as a lot of other species. This event is recorded in a small clay layer amidst the limestones--a layer which has a high Iridium content. Iridium is an element that, in excess of background levels, points to extraterrestrial impact: big meteor, big crash, fire, brimstone, tsunamis, dino death, and the rise of the mammals, so us!

The K-Pg boundary is the dark bedding plane below Sandro's hand.

In the evening, Sandro took us inside the Grotte di Frasassi (Frasassi Caves), some of the most famous show caves in Italy. It is in these caves that Sandro studies uplift rates based on the features, such as stalagmites and stalactites. The biggest cavern was nearly 800ft high, though it is hard to fully grasp the immensity because of the lack of light. All in all, it was quite an experience.

You can see the ridge that contains the Frasassi caves. The river has cut through the ridge due to uplift.

The stalagmites and stalactites of the Frasassi caves.

Osservatorio Geologico di Coldigioco

Heading out from Florence, we drove up into the mountains again to a little medieval-town-turned-geological-observatory near the town of Apiro. It is here at Coldigioco Geological Observatory where we will spend the next few days, taking day trips out into the countryside. The view is, well, pretty amazing. What others would say is a beautiful mountainous countryside, we geologists see as the leeward of a series of thrust belts that create the Apennines. Both are legitimate descriptions of the area.

The Umbria-Marche countryside from the Observatory.

Coldigioco is an independent center for research and education in geology and is run by Sandro Montanari and his wife, Paula. The small village, once home to as many as 50 people, still retains bits of structures built 300-400 years ago. Today, Coldigioco is used by various groups of students and researchers to study Italy's geology. Curious? Read more about the Observatory.

Sandro Montanari, the Director of OGC, grew up in Ancona, Italy, obtained his M.S. in geology from the University of Urbino, and Ph.D. at the UC - Berkeley. His work was influential to our understanding of the Cretaceous-Tertiary (KT) mass extinction (think giant meteor, end of the dinosaurs, etc). He also researches caves and what they can tell us about the ongoing tectonic uplift in the area. To put it short, he's got a lot of information about the area and is very excited to share it with us. We are fortunate to have him as our guide for all the trips in the area.

 

Village architecture nestled between olive trees.

Old wagon-turned garden along the main road.

A quaint chapel still holds memory of use.

Firenze (Florence)

Today, we had a half day off from geology to explore Florence. Since today is Palm Sunday, a group of us went to the Duomo di Firenze for mass. Last night we stayed in a hostel very close to the Piazza del Duomo, so it only took us about 5 minutes to get to mass at 7:30 am. Yes, it was in Italian, but, oh, what an experience. One of the priests there chatted with us before we left, and as it turns out, he has been to New Hampshire! He was super sweet and really made us feel welcome.

After mass, we went to the Museo dell'Accademia, which is where Michelangelo's David is on display. In my mind, I had imagined that the sculpture would be life-size, so when we walked in, I was completely in awe at its size. The full sculpture is probably around 20 feet tall and extremely detailed. You could see the veins in his arms and neck, and pick out each toenail.

The artwork of the Duomo di Firenze.

Michelangelo's The David.

While walking down the streets of Florence, I couldn't stop thinking about how old this city is. People hundreds of years ago walked down these same streets that I walk down today. The old city has not changed much as far as layout and the vibe of medieval architecture still prevails. What struck me the most about this city was that it is still functional. In the United States, we tend to want to preserve or restrict access the areas we deem valuable and/or perishable. Meanwhile in Florence, the structures are ornate yet so structurally sound that they have lasted hundreds of years, and people have access to them all of the time. Florence itself is an open museum, celebrating the talents of its citizens throughout its history.

A fountain in downtown Florence.

Along the street, actors dressed as sculptures. Their resemblances were uncanny.

My obligatory "gelato and the Duomo" photo.

The Marbles of Carrara

The view of the town from our hostel near La Spezia.

We left La Spezia this morning heading for Florence. On the way, we traveled up through the Alpi Apuane, a set of mountains that contain Italy's famous Carrara marble. This marble is pure in composition and color, and is the most valuable marble in the world. Michelangelo used this marble to sculpt David, which is now on display in Florence. It has also been used as building material in the Pantheon in Rome, as well as many other buildings around the world.

The Carrara marbles formed as limestones were plunged deep under other rocks during tectonic collision. With increasing heat and pressure, the limestones turned into marbles at depth. Later on, the rocks were exhumed through extensional faulting and became accessible for mining.

A marble quarry near Carrara.

A close-up look at the folding of the marble as a result of deep metamorphosis.

The clear irony of a peaceful alpine landscape and scars upon the land.

Whiteboard in hand, Ed describes the processes that took place to produce this pure marble.

Switchbacks and Ocean Rocks

We had a gorgeous day in the field today. As the sun shone down, we traveled up into the mountains to check out a sequence of rocks called ophiolites. Basically, these rocks represent what oceanic crust is made up of. In Italy, these rocks were scraped from the ocean bottom and thrust up to the tops of the mountains where we, geologists, can see this rarity. Think of them like this: as two tectonic plates collided, lots of sediment and bits of the oceanic crust were squeegeed at margin where the oceanic plate slipped under the continental crust and built up to 1000s of meters above the sea today.

Students looking at pillow basalts at an outcrop.

The mountains were too much for our rental van.

We spent most of the day driving up switchbacks into the rugged coastal mountains. There we saw some features of ophiolites, called pillow basalts, which look like giant, well, mushroom-shaped pillows. In the evening, we made our way by train to the Cinque Terre. These are a collection of 5 medieval villages that make up Italy's first national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For years it was only accessible by footpath, but now is connected by train and a small road. Due to a flat tire we got in the mountains earlier in the day, we only made it to Monterosso al Mare to see some more rocks.

Tomorrow we leave La Spezia for Florence, by way of Carrara to see the pure marbles of the Alpi Apuane!

The coast of the Mediterranean as seen from
Monterosso al Mare, including some a cool sculpture!

I tried to order shrimp scampi, but just got giant grilled prawns.
I have a hard time eating food that looks at me.

First Impressions

From Newark to Toronto to Rome...phew! I finally made it. On the flight to Rome, I woke up to the Alps out my window, followed by my first sight of the Mediterranean Sea. I didn't really grasp the full reality of where I was until we began our descent, and I got to see from above the settlements that have existed for thousands of years. Italy is really far from North America. I am now closer to Africa and the Middle East than I am to home. It is such a weird thought to geographically place myself on the other side of the globe. This made me think of how far people traveled to come to America, to fight in WWI, WWII, or to travel for other reasons, with or without modern technology to guide them.

I met up with the rest of our group and we set out from Rome to La Spezia by van. As we drove, I thought of all my preconceived notions about Italy, which honestly have been romanticized by movies like Gladiator and cartoon drawings in textbooks: bright sun, tall skinny shrub trees neatly lining dirt paths, lots of olives. These, in fact, turned out to be true. It struck me that I hadn't connected my thoughts about Italy with the reality that people live here, and have for thousands of years. The land felt old to me, as it has been used over and over by civilizations for the betterment of their people.

Flying over the Maritime Alps.

My first view of the Italian countryside.

After hours in the van, we finally made it to La Spezia to the hostel where we will be spending the next two days. The hostel is located up the mountain from La Spezia, and driving up the switchbacks made me finally feel like I was in Italy: windy, narrow roads with mossy stone wall reinforcements, little Fiats and vespas zooming past us. From the hostel, we overlook the port and the Alpi Apuane, guarding the quarries of the famous white Italian marble. I hope to get a picture of the landscape tomorrow. We will visit these quarries during our travels here.

Tomorrow, our group will explore the geology of the Cinque Terre and have dinner along the coast. Stay tuned!

Il Mio Viaggio (My Journey)

Greetings! I am back blogging for another one of my adventures in geology. This March, I am heading to the mountains of Italy with some classmates and professors. For 10 days, we will be traveling through the Apennines, the backbone of the Italian peninsula, looking at various sequences of rock that help us understand the history of the region.

This is my first time on the European continent, so I am quite excited to experience the many facets of European culture. I've been working on my Italian, which may come in handy!

Our destination: the Apennine Mountains

If you would like to learn more about what I will be doing, the geologic history of Italy, or about some cool science that people are doing there, check out this documentary on the region. I've watched it about 4 times by now, and enjoy it every time!