NC State alumni traveling with the WolfTreks cruise to New England and Canada docked in Halifax, Nova Scotia, last week. Several travelers toured the city’s Public Gardens, Canada’s only remaining Victorian garden.
Winding streams and unusual trees offered a respite from the city. Others ventured to the Citadel, a centuries-old fort in Halifax overlooking the harbor.
On Friday, the travelers went to Cape Breton Island, where some toured old coal mines that were once the region’s economic backbone.
On Saturday, it was on to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Charlottetown, in Canada’s smallest province, is akin to Philadelphia in terms of its historical significance; it was the site of the meetings that resulted in the birthplace of the confederation of provinces that is Canada.
Locals sometimes speak with a slight Scottish accent, and the influence of early Scottish settlers can be seen in a treat served with tea: Oatcakes.
On Sunday, the Wolfpack travelers who went ashore saw the rugged coastline of Newfoundland, which claims the largest number of moose of any province in Canada.
No moose sightings were reported, but there was a beautiful sunset off the Regatta when it pulled out of the harbor in Corner Brook Sunday evening. The vista included snow-capped mountains along with rocky peaks carved by glaciers. No word on whether anyone tried the local delicacy, fried cod tongues.
On Monday, the ship will be heading down the St. Lawrence River to French-speaking Quebec City.
NC State alumni on a WolfTreks cruise enoyed a private wine-and- cheese reception as the ship sailed off the coast of Maine.
See the NC State flag? We are planning to have the it flown from one of the ship’s masts before the cruise ends in Montreal. We’ll try to post a picture of the flag flying.
Rainy weather kept some indoors when the ship docked in Bar Harbor, Maine, but some intrepid travelers took a tour of Acadia National Park and were able to visit a spot called Thunder Hole, where the waves crash so hard against the granite cliffs that it creates a thunderous roar.
Next stop, Canada.
Visit our website to learn more about upcoming WolfTreks tours.
About two dozen WolfTreks travelers sailed out of New York Harbor at sunset on Friday with a spectacular view of the Statue of Liberty on one side and the new Freedom Tower – the replacement for the twin towers destroyed on 9/11 — in Lower Manhattan on the other.
The Regatta’s first stop on the WolfTrek’s New England/Canada Fall Folliage Cruise was Newport, R.I., where the travelers toured the mansions of the Gilded Age that made Newport famous as a haven for the wealthy.
Later it was on to Rockland, Maine, where the travelers enjoyed strolling through the coastal village. Lobster rolls – buttered, toasted hot dog buns filled with lobster meat mixed with mayonnaise – are a local delicacy, and a number of NC State almuni tried one for the first time.
NC State alumni traveling through Italy together visited Umbria’s ceramics capital, Deruta, this week.
The group learned about the traditional art of Italian ceramic decoration during a demonstration at the Maioliche Binaglia shop. Two sisters own the business and do all the artwork by hand.
They use an antique dusting technique to stencil patterns onto terracotta pottery. The process starts by tracing the design onto a thin sheet of paper with pin size holes. Charcoal is dusted into the holes to transfer the design onto pottery so it can be painted.
“I was impressed by the intricate and delicate work that was all by freehand,” WolfTreks traveler Paula Taylor said. “It gives you a different perspective for the work that goes into creating each piece.”
The group then traveled to the town of Perugia. The MiniMetro made getting up and down Perugia’s hilly terrain much easier on the group. “The MiniMetro was like being in Disney World on the tram. I loved it and it got us up the hill,” WolfTreks traveler Becky Mangum said.
After a walking tour of the town’s notable sites, some alumni made a stop at Perugina, a store widely known for its fine chocolate. The confectionery company is most famous for its “Baci”, chocolate balls filled with hazelnut, which many of the travelers purchased as take home gifts. “The Baci were sinfully good,” Taylor said.
Leaving Perugia, the group traveled to Tuscany, where they stayed at Villa Lecchi. The restored 18th century villa, originally built in the 1500s, overlooks the Chianti hills and the Elsa Valley. “I’ve enjoyed the villa,” WolfTreks traveler Mary Todd ’67, ’68 MS said. “I love the view and being out in the country.”
In addition to the picturesque scenery, alums have savored traditional Tuscan meals prepared by the villa’s chef, known as “Momma.”
“I thought the food was excellent. To me, it was like down-home cooking but in Italy,” WolfTreks traveler Jim Norman ’53 said.
The hotel even has its own resident Bambi, a young deer who greeted alums after breakfast one morning. Bambi’s mother was killed by a car, so the family that runs the villa is raising her. She gets goat’s milk everyday and enjoys nibbling on the flowers around the property.
Check back for photos from the group’s adventures on our Flickr site. Visit our website to learn more about upcoming WolfTreks tours.
Jim Norman ’53 celebrated his 80th birthday in Rome with fellow NC State alumni who are traveling through Italy on a WolfTreks tour.
The group enjoyed Italian cuisine at the Taverna Flavia, where a guitar player sang Italian and American songs. Jim, a retired chemical engineer, is on the tour with his wife of 53 years, Barbara. Italy is the couple’s second time traveling with WolfTreks. They also visited Russia with other NC State alumni some time ago.
Jim said his favorite part of the Italy tour so far has been the Amalfi Coast. “It’s beautiful and nothing like I have seen before,” he said.
Night at the Italian Opera
Wolftrek travelers Mary Todd ’67, ’68 MS, Pat Palmer ’72 PhD, and Betty Stagg attended a concert of Italian opera arias at the All Saints Anglican Church in Rome.
They then enjoyed a night stroll back to the Empire Palace Hotel, near the Piazza di Spagna. Before turning in for the evening, they stopped for wine at Ristorante La Pentolaccia, a sidewalk restaurant and bar. They stayed so late that they were asked to leave because it was closing time.
Palmer said she will always remember the night that “she closed down a bar in Rome.”
Cooking Italian style
After spending a couple of days in Rome, where they took guided tours of the Colosseum, St. Peter’s Square and the Sistine Chapel, the group traveled through Umbria, known as the “green heart of Italy.”
Their first stop was Orvieto, perched on high on a plateau, where they attended a pasta-making demonstration at Ristorante Zeppelin, a Culinary Art Institute.
“I thought it was interesting how the chef cut the pasta into so many different sizes and shapes,” Betty Stagg said.
The cooking lesson was followed by a five-course meal that included antipasta, bruschetta of creamed ricotta with truffles, fettucine with tomato sauce, asparagus lasagna, guinea hen with cannellini and a ricotta cheese mousse with chocolate sauce.
Tour of Umbria’s medieval hill villages
While in Umbria, the group also toured Todi, Assisi and Perugia before traveling to the Tuscany region.
Check back for photos from their adventures in Rome and Umbria on our Flickr site. Visit our website to learn more about upcoming WolfTreks tours.
A group of NC State alumni are traveling through Italy together as part of the Alumni Association’s WolfTreks Travel Program. The travelers are in Rome after spending four days along the Amalfi Coast. Check out photos from their adventures in the seaside towns of Amalfi, Ravello and Sorrento.
The trip’s highlights so far include visiting a 13th-century papermill in Amalfi, enjoying fresh limoncello in Sorrento, walking through Ravello’s 19th-century gardens and touring the ruined ancient city of Pompeii. After another day in Rome, the group will travel to Todi, a medieval Umbrian village.
Students attending the NC State - UNC-Chapel Hill men’s basketball game Wednesday have a chance to win a trip to Europe.
The Alumni Association is sponsoring a pre-game shooting contest. Here’s how it works: two students will each get 30 seconds to shoot 3-pointers. Each basket made is worth $100 off the NC State grad trip to Europe.
The student making the most baskets will get a chance to shoot once from half court. If they make the shot, the student goes on the trip for free. The 14-day adventure, scheduled for May 19 to June 1, includes visits to London, Amsterdam, Munich, Rome and Paris.
To enter the contest, stop by the Alumni Association table, located at the student entrance. Students will be given a ticket, with two ticket holders randomly selected to take part in the hoops competition.
A $500 Contiki travel gift certificate will also be awarded to one student before the game.
Artist Joyce Lambert recently gave the Alumni Association a painting of Holladay Hall. It will hang in the Dorothy and Roy Park Alumni Center room named for Lambert’s brother, Lynn W. Eury ‘59. Eury sponsors multiple NC State endowments and served as co-chair of the fundraising campaign to build the alumni center. Hole No. 5 at the Lonnie Poole Golf Course is also named for him.
The political unrest in Egypt has led to a rare occurrence at the NC State Alumni Association - the cancellation of an alumni trip.
Thirty young alumni were scheduled to leave today for a one-week trip to see Cairo, cruise the Nile and check out the Sphinx and the pyramids.
Kathy Hart, associate executive director of the association and coordinator of the Wolf Treks travel program, says some of the would-be travelers started raising questions last week about the safety of the trip.
Hart says Contiki Vacations, the company arranging the trip and providing the guides, initially assured her that conditions were safe in Egypt. But Hart continued to monitor the situation in Egypt as the week progressed. “By Friday,” she says, “many things had changed.”
“Some travelers wanted to cancel immediately; others wanted to wait to see if the situation settled down over the weekend,” Hart says.
On Friday, the NC State travelers were offered the option to cancel with a full refund, choose another destination or wait to see if things improved over the weekend. By Saturday, the unrest was growing and widespread, and Contiki decided they could no longer guarantee a safe trip. Hart says the trip was canceled. It was the first time she has had to cancel a trip due to political unrest since she began coordinating the travel program about five years ago
“There’s no question that if there was any danger we would cancel,” Hart says. “When it escalated, we clearly made the call.”
But Wolf Treks Young Alumni Travel has several other trips coming up later this year. Destinations include Ireland, Sept. 2-10, 2011, and Italy, Nov. 11-19, 2011. To read more, visit the website at www.contiki.com/ncstatewolftreks. In fact, Contiki will be offering a webinar for the Ireland trip Wednesday, Feb. 9, at 9 p.m. EST. To register for the webinar, visit https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/750602064.
NC State’s seniors or, as we see it, the next group of university alumni, gathered last night at Vaughn Towers for the first-ever Senior Salute. Here are some photos from the event.
It was a chance for the students to meet with representatives who could answer their questions about caps and gowns, class rings and graduation announcements. They were able to enjoy some free food and prizes.
They also learned about the upcoming graduation trip to Europe. Read more about the adventure and how to sign up here.
NC State alumni traveling with the WolfTreks cruise to New England and Canada docked in Halifax, Nova Scotia, last week. Several travelers toured the city’s Public Gardens, Canada’s only remaining Victorian garden.
Locals sometimes speak with a slight Scottish accent, and the influence of early Scottish settlers can be seen in a treat served with tea: Oatcakes. 
No moose sightings were reported, but there was a beautiful sunset off the Regatta when it pulled out of the harbor in Corner Brook Sunday evening. The vista included snow-capped mountains along with rocky peaks carved by glaciers. No word on whether anyone tried the local delicacy, fried cod tongues.
See the NC State flag? We are planning to have the it flown from one of the ship’s masts before the cruise ends in Montreal. We’ll try to post a picture of the flag flying.
Later it was on to Rockland, Maine, where the travelers enjoyed strolling through the coastal village. Lobster rolls – buttered, toasted hot dog buns filled with lobster meat mixed with mayonnaise – are a local delicacy, and a number of NC State almuni tried one for the first time.
Roman birthday celebration
Night at the Italian Opera
Cooking Italian style
Students attending the NC State - UNC-Chapel Hill men’s basketball game Wednesday have a chance to win a trip to Europe.
The political unrest in Egypt has led to a rare occurrence at the NC State Alumni Association - the cancellation of an alumni trip.
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