June 17, 2019

Today is the big day! With the first day of camp upon us, I am beyond excited to meet the kids. I am in Boomer group, so I had the morning shift for the first day. Around 8, the kids slowly showed up and were welcomed into the Rooney Family Center. We started to play games, like volleyball, while the rest of the kids showed up. I got hit in the head twice with the volleyball. The kids were shy at first, but they slowly opened up as the day went on. After check-in, we led a group of kids into the mesa to make edible arrangements. One of the kids began teaching me the name of the fruits in Italian. I was surprised that they trusted the kids to have knives to cut the fruit. The kids were so mature for their age. They seemed very composed for 10 to 15 year-old kids. After activities was break time in the Great Room. The kids were extremely talented. I met this girl named Ella who was a genius at the piano. We played the piano together until it was time for Boomer group to go have lecture with Dr. Duclaux. This first day made me very excited for the rest of the week.

After the camp, Kirk gave us a tour of two churches that had historical significance in Arezzo. We learned that Arezzo was the third largest city in the Roman Empire and the first Christian city outside of Rome. We also learned about Gothic and Romanesque art styles. It was truly fascinating to learn about art in this organic setting. As we continued through Arezzo, we made it to the Piazza Grande and learned about Giorgio Vasari, the first modern art historian. I was blown away by Kirk’s lecture. His passion shines through all the facts about the art. I can’t wait to learn more from him.