A Hike or Sneaky Conditioning?
By Chelsea McCullum
The time has come… it was our last day in Italy, the last time staying by the Almafi Coast, and as typical Millikin Women’s Basketball team fashion, we HAD to go out with a bang!
We got up early to pack our things and took a drive to see Mount Vesuvius, the same volcano that had destroyed the ancient city Pompeii. Once we arrived, we started our trek up the mountain. As we climbed, we had an amazing view over two Italian cities. We were practically in the clouds as we walked higher and higher! The path was steep, the ground was gravel but I can gladly say that without walking sticks, I only tripped once while climbing up!
When we reached the top of Vesuvius, we were able to look down into the volcano. You’d expect it to be bubbling with hot boiling lava, but it was merely filled with dirt and plant life. It was surprisingly peaceful (despite the foreign bugs 😬). We even saw another pack of people climbing higher onto Vesuvius (and you would NEVER catch me doing that. I’m athletic but not that athletic😌). Once we reached the very top, we hit several shops where locals have taken the volcanic ashes and rocks of Vesuvius and created beautiful necklaces, bracelets, and rings. Did I splurge a little bit? Maybe, maybe I did, I couldn’t help myself!
The trip down might I say was much easier than going up. I can’t help but compare the hike up Vesuvius to our fall basketball conditioning. Would I do this hike again? Only if it gets me out of fall conditioning 😉.
After Vesuvius, we had another long drive to our final hotel in Italy. We stopped and realized that there’s a mall connected to the hotel, so to stay up with local trends, several of us decided to go!
Afterwards, we had our final team dinner in Rome. It was delicious! We had a variety of meals, but I chose to have ravioli for the first serving, a mixed grill that consisted of steak kebabs, potatoes, pork, and chicken, and I finished it off with my personal favorite, tiramisu.
It was a great way to end our trip to Italy. Who knows? Maybe I’ll be back for some more pizza and tiramisu!
- Chelsea McCullum '23
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