Shortness of time…

**EDIT** I had misplaced lost a card; that’s why I keep double back-ups! If you have seen this post before, there are now twice as many images.

It is easy to see a foreign place as a little slice of Disney World. Don’t deny it, it’s okay, everybody does it.

Travelers are on Safari, everything passes by outside the glass window and the only time you mix and mingle with the population is for feeding time. The tourist spots are certainly not a good example of “normal” life.

And then there’s Campagna.

Almost no tourists venture so far off the beaten path…

Yes, it looks like almost every other town in Italy. This one has an unusual story, from back during World War II.

When all the world was in turmoil, this little town resisted the Axis powers…

…by pretty much saying, “Yeah, we’ll round up all the Jews and put them in a concentration camp…”

…but then they treated them well, helped them escape, took care of them, protected them during bombings, etc. After all, they were their neighbors.

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Many of the buildings are rebuilt, but some trees still bear the scars of war – deformed and gnarly – after having been bombed out but continued to grow.

We were here with Elizabeth Bettina, the author of It Happened In Italy, that lines out the Campagna resistance of the 1940’s. She has special interest here, considering her family was highly involved.

And they still remain here today.

While walking through Campagna, we met Antonio Palladino…

…and another little experience began.

A couple of us separated from the students and followed him home, stopping by a few places along the way.

He invited us in for coffee.

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Robbie, the director of my University’s Italy program, spoke to him at length about his past…

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And he invited us to come back and visit him anytime we were in the area.

I hope I can. He is 92 years old.

But then we had to move along… back to the place where your train stop is named “Pompeii” and you don’t flinch…

My travel companions consist of three dozen University students. This is what I do.

Only a couple of the 40 students were able to experience Antonio Palladino’s home, but that is what travel is about: connecting with people regardless of the language barriers.

It just takes time.

But I’m here with all of them. I travel, I experience, I learn, I hear them say, “This sucks…” or “Wow, that was awesome!” and I take this information back to adjust accordingly for the next group.

I kinda become the friend that can change things.

But, the most important part… I get to go. I get to see it for myself.

I ran through Rome to jump on a train one minute before it departed, I was in Mr. Palladino’s house for espresso in Campagna, and I was in that elevator in Sorrento…

And, because I was there, I am changed…

Stay tuned…
-Noah D.