What were you grateful for this week?Good food and public transportation. 

What was the most challenging part of this week?Having alone time and not feeling bad about it. 

Tell us about a “wow” moment you had this week. My family learned a bit about American food and I learned how to make some Italian food! 

Tell us about your week! Last Monday I had a day free so I decided to do something local that I hadn’t done yet, so I decided to see the Ercolano ruins, which are about 30 minutes away from my host family’s home. They were basically the same as Pompei but it was interesting to compare the two.

One day my host family went out and brought me with them. We went and drove up in Mount Faito and had an amazing view and hung out in the forest up on the mountain for a little bit. After we drove down and ate sandwiches at a cute restaurant. 

My host parents have been telling me to go on a hike while I’m here, so on Sunday that is what I did! It’s called Sentiero Degli Dei, or, “path of the gods” — the view was amazing! It was picturesque the whole way up it was so beautiful. I actually met another au pair who was staying in Venice and we chatted for a little bit. The public transportation was a little tricky, and I ended up having to take a cab back to Sorrento from Amalfi because the buses were all full. That was interesting. But the hike was beautiful and soooo worth it.

The Monday after that I also went to do something local and decided to hand out in Naples! I visited the National Archaeological museum and that was amazing. I tried to visit a library but it was all boarded up, so I just walked around the city down the alleys and looked at street vendors! I also finally went to Castel Del’Ovo it’s been on my Italy bucket list for a while, and I finally made it! After I got back from Naples we went over to a cousins house and made pizza in their pizza oven! It was so cool — definitely the Italian experience. Now I’ll just have to teach my American family how to make real pizza.