Hello to everybody back home! Only a couple more days until we will be reunited! Our last few days are still packed with excitement.

Today, we woke up bright and early to see the Carrara Marble Quarries. After an almost two-hour bus ride, we picked up our tour guide and headed into the massive marble mountains. On our way, we passed lots of Carrara marble companies. Our guide informed us that the Romans founded this marble-dependent society here in the 2nd century BCE. Thus, the culture continues to revolve around marble so many years later.

 

 

 

 

Carrara’s marble industry involves 1200 quarry men, 700 truck drivers, 3 valleys for excavation, and a grand total of 188 quarries!

The chain of mountains is exclusively composed of white marble. Composed of 99.99% of calcium carbonate, this marble is used for more than floor tiles and countertops. According to our guide, many glycerin-based cosmetic products are made white using this fancy marble dust. The powder is also used in osteoporosis medication and some cleaning supplies.

After taking a short stroll through the mountains (and even witnessing a cluster of marble fragments tumble down the side of a peak), we hopped in vans and drove into the heart of these mountains. When I say into these mountains, I mean literally inside of these mountains. Our second tour was located 400 meters below the top and 600 meters from the side of a mountain. Inside, we learned about the extraction process of Carrara marble. We learned that the marble crystals form only parallel and orthogonal to one another allowing for the excavation of large cohesive blocks of marble. We saw a few of the huge blades that are used to cut slices into the walls of marble. I, personally, found the diamond wire tool most impressive. Attached to a fly-away machine, this wire is wrapped around the marble in the groove or cut made by the large blades. Once secured, the machine rotates the wire at speeds greater than 150 km/hour to completely detach the chunk of marble.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As we explored these marble mountain caves, a few of us grabbed a couple sample fragments. The prices for this sparkling, white marble ranges from €200-7500, but our guide explained that €3,000/ton is typical.

After finishing up in Carrara, we headed to Pisa to check out some tower. Just kidding! This is had been something I’ve been looking forward to all month! The famous Leaning Tower of Pisa did not disappoint. Tilting at a small, yet still very significant 5 degrees, this banana-shaped tower is still standing. It even continued to stand as we took this picture of most of our class at the top! Phew! I was a little worried! We impressed our tour guide with our knowledge of the tower’s construction and the engineering techniques required to stabilize the structure.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa has remained at a consistent 5 degrees since 2001! Back before 2001, there were some serious concerns with the rate that the tower’s tilt was increasing. Many engineers worked together to reduce the tilt from 5.5 degrees to 5 degrees and to keep it at 5 degrees. Our guide joked that the tourism industry prayed that the tower wouldn’t be set straight because they’d be out of jobs if that was the case! We were reminded of some of the information we learned at The University of Naples about the complexity of Pisa’s soil and the reliance on counterweights to stabilize the structure. Some of us climbed the Leaning Tower of Pisa at sunset. It was gorgeous!

In addition to seeing this special tower, we also saw a baptistery, a church, and a cemetery during our time in Pisa. Overall, it was a fabulous day!

I know many of us are starting to feel the lure of our own beds and the comfort of home, but I know that at least I am starting to get very sentimental about all of the relationships and the memories that have developed in these last 21 days.

Check back tomorrow to see how we continue to savor our last days in Italia!