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By Ryan Lew and Ben Synder
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Jan. 16, 2004 |
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Sono qui Theyre here. All 22 of the exchange students from our sister city, Assisi, Italy, arrived on Oct. 21 in true Italian style. In tight pants.
The students, aged 16 to 18, are currently living with host families, many of whom are families of Italian students at Lowell. The purpose of their nine-day visit in San Francisco is to put on a play about St. Francis and "spread their message of world peace," according to Italian teacher Judy Branzburg.
CYBELLE TONDU Goooooal! Visitor Francesco Bonamente and junior Clara Villalobos-Andino play soccer at Lowells Feibush Field. |
The performance, which took place Thursday afterschool at Lowells Steve Silver Theater, had been planned for months but the students and their teacher delayed the arrival because they were wary of coming to the United States in the midst of the war in Iraq.
Now that the students from Assisis Liceo Scientisico school are here, however, they have no complaints.
"I love it," said 18-year-old Cristian Iosco, whose fascination with Bob Marley and Jim Morrison and dream to study in the United States had been inspired mostly by the Beat generation, which originated in San Franciscos Haight/Ashbury district.
"I want to visit there," Iosco said, in broken English. "Italians have the American dream
we (even) model our clothes after Americans."
According to student Lucia Betti, their stay in San Francisco includes visits to "important places" like Alcatraz, Muir Woods, Lombard St. and Fishermans Wharf.
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