After a 5 year hiatus due to COVID, Ave Maria College is proud to have relaunched its International Learning Tours program with its Italy Language and Culture program during the Easter Holidays. In the early hours of the 23 March, twenty one students and four staff members flew out of Melbourne, bound for Rome, Italy for a 21 day cultural emersion experience. 

Our International Learning Tours  provide a global landscape for learning, extending opportunities for the acquisition of knowledge, skill and understanding beyond the boundaries of the classroom.

Participation in tour programs provides students with opportunities to: 

• Enrich their learning 
• Develop cultural sensitivity in interactions with people 
• Develop an appreciation of diverse values and beliefs 
• Enrich their own faith journey 
• Enrich their understanding and experience of the Franciscan charism 
• Give back to communities that are less fortunate than their own 
• Explore future career pathways. 

We are excited to also be sending students to Indonesia in July for a similar cultural program.

Check out below some student reflections from some of the cities on their journey.

ROME

In Rome, we travelled through history at the Colosseum, unleashed our inner gladiators, and marvelled at St. Peter's Basilica. Amidst ancient wonders, we devoured Rome's delightful flavours and wandered through the enchanting streets. Our finale, crafting our own pizzas, sealing our Italian escapade with cheesy goodness!

SORRENTO

Lemon was the flavour of Sorrento. We made gelato, sipped on granitas and shopped up a storm in lemon lane.

Our 10km hike along the Path of the Gods was soured by the fog and 1000 steps, but as we approached Positano the sweet views made every step worthwhile.

A boat trip around the Isle of Capri was breath taking. Exploring the archaeological sites of Herculaneum and Pompeii gave us many insights into the Neapolitan coastline.

ORVIETO

Over the Easter Holiday weekend, we spent four days in the beautiful city of Orvieto at San Ludovico Monastery.

Here we studied language or art history and learnt valuable skills to use during our travels.

A common theme of our tour has been, what goes down must go up, and once again we descended many steps to explore the underground caves and St Patrick's Well.

We also journeyed into the surrounding area with a visit to Lago Di Bolsena and a quick stop at the exclusive town Civita, home to only 11 people and where Harry Styles holidays.

On the third night we enjoyed a cooking lesson where we made pasta from scratch and got the choice of hand cutting our fettuccine or using a vintage machine. After our hard work we were able to enjoy freshly made pasta with a ragù sauce. Yum!

On our last day in Orvieto, our teachers took us to see the Duomo and we learnt about the magnificent artworks and details and had the rare opportunity to see a relic on display.

Orvieto was beautiful and we all enjoyed our stay

ASSISI

During our time in Assisi, we explored many sacred locations connected to our patron saints, Francis and Claire.

Saint Mary of the Angels is built over a tiny church where St Francis founded his order.

We admired the beautiful frescoes in the Basilicas of Santa Chiara and San Francesco.

We also visited San Damiano Sanctuary and Eremo Delle Carceri on the slopes of Mount Subasio. Both places provided Francis and Claire space for prayer and contemplation.

Finally, on our way to Florence we made a stop in La Verna, where St Francis received a gift from God.

We all enjoyed exploring Assisi and connecting with our Franciscan roots.