Fellows began their last full day in Italy by gearing up for their briefing at the US Embassy to the Holy Sea. After a short bus ride from the hotel to the embassy, the cohorts were then processed into the Embassy. This process included leaving phones, watches and any technology checked until exiting.
Once inside, the fellows then learned the history of the embassy. Originally established in 1984 by President Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II for formal diplomatic relations to the Holy See, the location is now home to the three US missions in Rome - the US Embassy to the Holy See, the US Embassy to Italy, and the US Mission to the United Nations Agencies in Rome. Located in the center of Rome, the building formerly belonged to the National Insurance Institute of Italy.
Fellows then were welcomed by Charles Rush, the Regional Agricultural Attache for the US Embassy to Rome. Following the warm welcome, they then heard from a variety of speakers whose briefings touched on the agricultural situation in Greece, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Italy. One of the highlights of the visit was listening to and interacting with the President of the Confagricoltura General Confederation of Agriculture in Italy, Massimiliano Giansanti. Wrapping up their visit, fellows thanked all of the presenters for their thorough information, and processed out of the embassy.
The cohorts then had free time prior to the next visit. The group managed to squeeze in a very quick tour of the Roman Colosseum. Known as the largest ancient amphitheater in the world, fellows learned that it could hold an estimated 50,000 to 80,000 spectators at a time. The sheer size of the colosseum was astounding to many fellows. Made of limestone, volcanic rock and concrete, the giant amphitheater hosted many events ranging from gladiator contests to public spectacles like animal hunts, public executions and mock sea battles.
Once the fellows finished their tour of the Colosseum, they had only a short amount of time to find lunch, and walk over to their next tour. Many groups of fellows found quick sandwich shops, while others found fast pizzarias.
After lunch, the next stop was to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FOA) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Their goal is to achieve food security for all and make sure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. FOA has 195 members, consisting of 195 countries and the European Union. The tour guide led the group through the building showing the rooms where the delegates meet. The tour ended with a stop on the rooftop of the 8th floor to see the city from a higher level.
After the FAO tour, fellows had a brief visit with Mr. GUO Su. Mr. Su is the Head of FAO section and First Secretary. Mr. Su was from the People's Republic of China. The group spent 30 minutes talking about difficulties that both countries face in the rural areas. A few of those issues included rural health care, rural broadband, and labor.
Upon finishing their day of tours and meetings, fellows reconvened for their final farewell dinner in Italy. The cohorts had a dinner consisting of local pastas, meatballs and a local cake-like dessert. They then had to pack and prepare for an extra early flight for the final leg of their journey where they would be Nebraska-bound.
*Today’s blog contributors are MiK Fox and Joe Ruskamp, in addition to your blog team of Kari Christenson, Jakob Burke and MiK Fox.
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