The Friday Five

Tomorrow, The Eldest leaves for her Spring Break trip. The tour is part of her college's Capitols Around the World. Each year, a group from the school travels to a world capitol. This year the destination is Rome. I'm both excited and nervous about her trip, her first steps outside her own back yard. Some thoughts I have about her trip

1. The deal for The Eldest to go was she had to pay for the trip from her job earnings. She had to take care of the cost of the tour and her spending money. She managed to come up with half of the cost of the tour. She was awarded a grant which paid for the remainder of the trip. I'm so proud she went after the grant and won the award.

2. There's an awful lot of free time on the trip. Time to explore the city. I'm worried. She's my first baby. I'm worried about her being in a foreign city where she doesn't speak the language.

3. More worries. It's a mom thing. I've been following the Roman weather. It's been in the 50s and rainy. Hope she'll be warm and dry. And she'll have enough money to pay for her meals and trinkets.

4. I've never been to Italy, homeland of my grandparents. I'm excited to think of the sights she'll see. The Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, a trip to Florence to see Michelangelo's David, shopping on the Ponte Vecchio, a side trip to Tuscany for lunch and a wine tasting in Torgiano, the ruins, the Trevi Fountain. I can't wait to see her pictures and hear about her trip. I hope she comes home with a lot of happy memories.

5. I'm jealous. Hopefully, she'll be able to see the inscription of Trajan's Column up close. These carved Roman capitals are the letters calligraphers/lettering artists aspire.

Have you worried about loosening the apron strings?