A Priest Walks Into a Bar

I am going to attempt to put my own twist on the classic 'A Priest Walks Into a Bar' joke. Here's how it goes:

'A Polish Priest, a retired Polish French Teacher, and an American English Teacher 

walk into a middle school to judge an English-Song Singing Competition.'

The punch line? This is a true story. That's the punch line.

This week, I was asked to judge the annual English-Song Singing Competition at a local middle school. Sitting between a retired French teacher, who also happens to be one of my adult students, and a Polish Priest dressed in civilian garb, I witnessed young Polish students present well-practiced songs in English. I was told to judge their pronunciation and overall performance. Cue Simon Cowell reference here.

The performances ran the gamut from 'If You're Happy and You Know It' sung by the cutest 5 year-old you have ever seen, to Adele's 'Skyfall.' One of my own beloved middle school student's belted out Adele's 'Rolling in the Deep' so amazingly that I got goosebumps. I was most baffled by the performance of 'You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman' soulfully crooned by a mere 13 year-old girl. Needless to say, my jaw hit the floor more than once.

In the deliberation room, the Priest seemed to be running the show and he clearly knew who he thought should win. Despite my attempts to tell him who I thought was the best, he wouldn't waver. I gave in to his opinions fairly quickly, because really, who is going to argue with a priest who doesn't speak their language? Not this girl. Thereafter, the only time I opened my mouth was to put a delicious chocolate pastry into it.

Overall, I had a great time playing the token English speaker. The kids were great, and I admired their courage at even attempting to sing a song in a different language, let alone singing in a room full of their peers and one very opinionated Priest.

Nerd Goggles - City III

Florence, or Firenze, Italy was a huge departure from the ancient history of Rome and Pompeii. Stepping off the train, I was immediately transported to the Renaissance period.


I enjoyed the most castley-castle I saw in Italy, the Bargello Palace. For most of it's lifetime, the Bargello was used as a prison by the Medici family. It is at the entrance of this castle where we can find Michelangelo's Statue of David. Unfortunately, it is an exact replica and the original is in a museum somewhere I will probably never go.

The old town square of Florence houses the Basilica of Santa Croce, which is an interesting building for a few reasons. It is the resting place of Michelangelo and Galileo, and is the biggest Franciscan church in the world. Also, if you look closely, you will notice a blue Jewish Star at the top of the facade. A Jewish architect designed the facade, and they allowed him to keep the Jewish Star in the design. The architect wanted to be buried inside the church, but because he was Jewish they buried him under the porch not within the walls.

My favourite tourist activity was visiting one of the oldest Gelato Shops in Italy. It probably tasted sweeter knowing that gelato was invented in Florence.

There were picturesque fruit shops on every corner and I finally got the courage to take a picture of one. Unfortunately, I was caught by a woman leaving the shop.

Saving the best for last is my favourite cathedral in all of Italy. The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, is an architectural feat, as well as absolutely breathtaking.

Nerd Goggles - City II

Rome, or Roma in Italian, was the first stop on my Italian tour. I saw my first sunrise in months as our over-night train, AKA worst night of sleep in my life, rolled into Rome. It was an enchanting way to begin my stay in the city. I loved the history and the architecture here, but ancient history is really hard for me to wrap my head around. I had the fortune to see many great sights and learn many great things about what was once the greatest empire in the ancient world.

The Colosseum was my favorite. The fact that people watched other people fight to the death for entertainment (real life Hunger Games anyone?) boggles my mind.

I was also overwhelmed by the beauty of St. Peter's Basillica. That place is HUGE, as well as ornate.

                         

My other favorite tourist activity in Rome was throwing a coin into the Trevii Fountain. Unfortunately, about 500 other people decided that they wanted to do the same thing.

Despite the Tourist Trap that Rome has become, I am incredibly grateful for all I saw and learned there. Look how happy I was:

"What you are now, we once were;

what we are now, you shall be."

~A Memento mori which is a Latin phrase 

that translates as 

"remember your mortality"~