under a tuscan sun

Today was the last day in Florence as we leave for the airport tomorrow morning at 3:00 am : ( This morning we had a lecture with Judge Casciano who deals with adolescents.

He spoke to us about how the court system in Florence dealt with juveniles. The high points were:
1) There were 27 detainees in the detention center, only 7 were Italian - the rest immigrants
2) There is only 1 detention center in all of Tuscany, while there are 4 in Sicily (immigration issue)
3) Before a policeman can arrest a juvenile, they must obtain permission of the court
4) There is no penal process for under 14 year olds
5) Very few Florentine youth are in trouble, parents intercede and that is the end of the matter - much different than in the US
After this lecture, we were on our own for the next 4 1/2 hours!!!!!!! This gave me a chance to roam around Florence on my own and to finish any last minute shopping. First on my list was a visit to Santa Croce - somewhat dissappointing as there was alot of scaffolding. However, it was a treat to again see where Galileo’s and Michelangelo’s tombs were located.
The rest of the afternoon was spent leisurely walking the streets and pausing for a cappaciuno (sp). If I’m going to come back, I’ve got to learn how to spell that word!
All in all, it has been a wonderful experience, much more than I imagined. The learning of Italian counseling, social and professional networking with Italian and American colleagues has been something I could not have attained any other way. On this last day, it seems we just arrived - so much has been covered and experienced. Tomorrow afternoon I will arrive in B’ham with much anticipation and a sadness of leaving Tuscany. Dr. Tyson

Another day in paradise, except today we returned to Florence. We spent the first part of the day at the Uffizi Gallery. Walking among Botticelli’s paintings (Venus, Spring), Leonardo’s sketches, and countless other works of art . . . could have stayed there two days.
After wandering through the leather market, we had lunch in a small cafe, enjoying “paninis.” After this we met up with our group to take a tour of a “mental health clinic.” How interesting! They are very involved using art and cinema therapy with their clients on an out-patient basis. However, the building was not what we are used to in the states. How they survive without air conditioning, I don’t know. Only one room we visited had it!
After our visit at the Uffizi, some of us browsed through the open air markets which are famous in Florence for leather, scarfs, and shirts. Alot of the group bought gifts to take home (as did I). After lunch, we visited a “mental health center.” Not quite the same as in the states, for example, little air conditioning!!!!! We met with two art therapists as they discussed their work. We went on a tour of their art rooms and looked at some of the client’s work. The center is not too modern, however, I’m motivated by their professionalism and care for their clients. Regardless of the country mental health professionals try to do their best by their clients. Dr. Paul Pedersen once told me that counseling was really the only hope for humankind because it is the profession that truly empowers people and brings people together. He may be right.

Yesterday we “recouped” after our day/evening in Siena. We had three presenations and a tour of the local wine and olive oil farm located next to Casa Cares. Our first presenter was Dr. Cocigini, a pyschiatrist from Florence. He works for the government (as part of universal health care) in a hospital. As in the counseling profession, Italy is somewhat behind and has a very limited number of beds. However the most important comment for me was his philosophy of the prescription of medication. It appears the psychiatrists here try very hard to prescribe only when absolutely necessary - we had a long discussion about this. His orientation was primarily cognitive/behavioral, but he emphasized he tries to use different techniques with different clients. They utilize alot of art and music therapy as well as Cinema!!!!! Today we are going to visit his hospital to meet with the staff.

We also took a tour of the local olive oil farm. What a treat!!!!!! Dr. Krieg showed us how the olives were harvested and processed, first the old way then with modern techniques. Tuscan olive oil is supposed to be some of the finest in the world. Many of us are bringing some home - can’t resist! We also toured the cellars where wine was kept - too bad I couldn’t fit one of these oak casks in my wine closet : )

Yesterday, we spent the day in Siena - a day of strolling through narrow streets, looking at barreled roof tops, shopping in small quaint shops, and of course eating. We had a wonderful tour with our guide, Roberta. We visited St. Catherine’s . . . . . A must visit as it is a church with relics. If you aren’t familiar with this unique Catholic “tradition,” a relic is usually a piece of the saints clothes or more frequently a piece of the saint themselves. In this case, St. Catherine’s head and thumb are on proud display! We learned that Siena is comprised of 17 neighborhoods: all named after an animal. For example if you live in one section, your symbol might be a “rhino” or another might be an owl. These neighborhoods compete twice a year at the annual horse race at the Campo. The winner of the race, meaning which horse crosses the finish line (forget if the jockey is still on the horse!) allows that neighborhood to “celebrate” for the entire year. This race is world famous and folks crowd into Siena twice a year for the pre race build up as well as the race itself. Google Siena for cool pics of this event.
We stayed in Siena for the entire afternoon and into the evening. It was our first opportunity to be in a city late. Dinner was fabulous! The lights shining on the old buildings and the wall of the city was a real treat.
At one time Siena rivaled Florence in influence and wealth, however the bubonic plague stopped this and allowed Florence to win the war between the two city-states. A fun fact about this war, was that Florence would often lay seige to Siena. When this happened, Florence would camp outside the walls for months at a time. In order to “hurry this siege” the Florintine army would catapult dead animals over the walls of Siena, thereby promoting disease and “The Plague.” Siena succumbed and as a result never regained her ’status” as a power city state. She did however, retain her status as one of the leading commerse and business centers of Italy, if not Europe. Today Siena houses one of the leading universities for business.

This picture is taken in front of Casa Cares and involves all the students and professors. I’m toward the back on the left. Claire and BrieAnna are toward the front left, Lynn is to the right of Dr. Remley in towards the center, and Rhiannon is in front of me and behind Claire. Oh yea, the young woman who’s holding the cat . . . well last word the cat is coming back to the states.

Click here to view pics from Assisi.

Today is Sunday at Casa Cares. However, this morning was not a day of rest as we had a lecture on Italian schools from Ms. Judith Siegel, an “American” who has graduated from the Italian university system and has remained in Italy, teaching “high school.” Ms. Siegel gave a very detailed explanation of the educational system, explaining the movement of elementary to middle to high school and finally the university. In Italy, there is compulsory attendance, but for example students are selected based on test scores if they are going to continue their education. The most alarming issue to me was the area of educating special needs students in public schools - almost non existent. There is no pl 94.142, no “No Child Left Behind” legislation to contend with. Only in a few cases are there special needs children who are “serviced” but that is the “exception” (no pun intended). When I asked her how is the American education system viewed by Italians, she remarked, “less than adequate, and inferior.” I must admit, that caused me to wince a bit. There is no school counseling as in the states. She explained how psychologists might be “contracted” to help limitedly with parent, teachers, and students - this reminded me of an EAP model. An example she gave was last year approx. 20 males and 20 females from her school sought these types of services. Much, much different than in the US. While on one hand, there is much opportunity for school counseling, the Italian view of counseling is almost non existentent and very much in the hands of the psychologists. This is the new movement in Italy, to recognize and legitimize the counseling profession. As Dr. Remley likes to remind us, the Italians are about 40 years behind the US in recognizing counseling.

Today we went to the Chianti region of Tuscany, to the town of Greve and San Gimignano. It was a wonderful day, maybe one of my favorites. The pictures I hope to upload are pictures of hill after hill of vineyards. The colors are easy and hard to describe: tans, burnt oranges, greens, and yellows. See, it doesn’t describe the beauty of the land we saw today. We spent the morning in Greve, which was market day. It seemed that everyone in the town was in the square, buying clothing, vegatables, sea food, and a variety of meat. Everyone was out buying, loading up thier carts and bags. The smells; again hard to describe…. the mixture of these foods, giving off their individual aromas while also mixing together - hard to describe.
We visited a huge wine tasting establishment, which for a certain amount of euros, would get you a debit card which allowed you to sample perhaps 50 wines (makes our Zeta Chapter wine tasting small potatoes). The wine in the Chianti region was half what the cost of wine is in American (according to the cost in a Wine Spectator I brought along on the trip). Needless to say some of the wine had to go home to Alabama. From Greve, we went to San Gimignano for the afternoon. San Gimignano is a walled city, with several towers still standing. It is a beautiful town, which I imagine is more beautiful at night. We ate olives, bread, of course Gellato, and a little wine. People watching was fabulous - The scenery was fabulous - Again, the colors seemed to leap off their hosts. A wonderful and tiring day. Oh yes, on the way to Greve, it was pointed out that we passed Sting’s villa -quite large! Dr. Kreig said Sting routinely comes into Greve to the market, but not today : (

Today our lecture was on how social workers are trying to help prostitutes who are either legal or illegal immagrants to Italy. Many of these women, girls, boys, and men, come from European countries and Africa. Italy has a huge immigration problem, as we do in the US. Linde and Leslie are two social workers who are dedicated to helping these women. Prostitution is not illegal in Italy, however if one is caught and is in the country illegally, then they are deported. They offer counseling and referral services. It is dangerous as one an imagine. However, the social workers both commented how the prostitutes have begun protecting them from their ‘pimps.’ This lecture lasted about 3 hours and was fascinating, from a cultural, legal, moral, and religious angle.