Now You Can Drive
To Europe In Less
Than 10 Minutes
Welcome To
The Vintage House Trattoria
at Messina Hof.
You rc sitting in a small, family-owned eatery on a
small family-owned Estate. A soft breeze
gendy caresses the sea of grapevines...
swaying in natural harmony.
Authentic European food so
good you’ll want to go home
and paint your ceiling.
The pastel sunlight streams in through tall,
stained-glass windows. The green clear lake
mirrors the perfect sky. The large white cranes
seem to shimmer in the reflected light.
Fresh. Gourmet Handmade.
Homemade. Casual.
You sip a superb glass of wine, made close by.
Your spirits soar. Your palate rejoices.
You’ve found palate nirvana and you can
drive here in less than ten minutes.
Open for lunch 11 a.m. to 2:30 pan.,
\\4xlnestlays - Sundays, no
reservations required and open
for dinner, 4-10 pan., Friday and
Saturday evenings by reservation.
This is how it should be. This is how it is.
The Vintage House Trattoria at Messina Hof.
(409) 778-9463
Aggielife
Wednesday • February 12,
Study Abroad Program
O
Aggies live, learn foreign cultures
By Aaron Meier
The Battalion
S ome students go to class in
the morning, study in the af
ternoon, then in the evenings
walk around in the Piazza Navona
in Rome and have their portraits
drawn by street vendors.
The Study Abroad Program at
Texas A&M allows students to gain
credit for classes while experienc
ing life in such countries as France,
Mexico, Japan and Italy.
Allison Frantz, a junior electri
cal engineering major, spent last
summer, in the small Italian village
of Castiglion Fiorentino. She said
her parents helped motivate her to
enroll in the program.
“My parents never got the
chance to travel when they were
young, and they wanted me to do
it,” Frantz said.
Oscar Roblesgil, a senior in
dustrial engineering major,
spent two semesters in Mexico
City. He said his decision to
study abroad was motivated by
his heritage.
“I was born in Mexico but
moved to Houston when I was very
young,” Roblesgil said. “I have al
ways wanted to experience the
country more, and this offered the
perfect chance.”
Shonnie Scheer, a senior edu
cation major, spent Spring 1996
in Castiglion Fiorentino. She said
the classes she took taught her
more than a similar class at A&M
would have.
As a class requirement, stu
dents visited Italian public
schools to compare the educa
tion to the American school sys-
Drive Your Valentine to Europe for the most
romantic Valentine s Day celebration in the
Brazos Valley...the Vintage House Trattoria at Messina Hof.
Make your reservations early.
Eating
Continued from Page 3
“It’s really scary because you
don’t feel like you can do anything
about it, but they need someone to
be there for them, to be consis
tent,” Ragan said.
Your Class Agents him. be
EEECTEO MARCH 26 & £7
IN THE
1997 SPRING STUDENT BOOT ELECTIONS
POTENTIAE CANDIDATES:
A team of 3, enthusiastic, motivated
leaders to serve the Class of ‘97 until 2002.
Will act as liasons between ths Class of ‘97, The
Association of Former Students, and Texas A&M
University.
RE^IIKEME^TTSi:
At least 2 of the 3 candidates, for each team, must attend a
mandatory information meeting on Wednesday, February 19,
1997 at 6:00 p.m. at the Clayton Williams, Jr. Alumni
Center.
One member from each team must contact
Lisa West ‘91 at 845-7514 before 5:00 p.m. on February 18th.
tern. Scheer said the differences
were remarkable.
“I graded some of the papers
of the students who were going
to attend the university,” Scheer
said. "The students were writing
some of the most eloquent Eng
lish I had seen. They also were
reading material in high school
that I did not read until college.”
Frantz said some engineering
students took a class that uti
lized the historic architecture of
the country.
“Some students picked a me
dieval castle in the village, Mon-
tecchio, to analyze,” Frantz said.
“They took measurements and de
termined why parts of the castle
had remained standing and why
other parts had collapsed.”
Frantz said the most education
al part of her stay was time spent
outside of the classroom. The stu
dents spend the evenings in Cas
tiglion Fiorentino with each other
and the locals.
“The natives were all really
nice,” Frantz said. “They didn’t
speak any English and we didn’t
speak any Italian. We would sit
around and teach each other
words. We kind of had a cultural ex
change working.”
Scheer said learning about the
cultural differences was interesting.
"In Italy, they are very family-
oriented,” Scheer said. “It is not un
usual for children to live with their
parents until they are married.
Sometimes even after they are
married, the couple moves in with
the family.”
Frantz said the dating rituals
she learned while abroad are
vastly different from the Ameri
can methods.
“Men will just walk up to you
and ask you if you would like a
drink,” Frantz said.
Scheer said she saw a different
side of the Italian courting process.
“Sometimes a couple will date
for six or seven years before they
are married,” Scheer said. “They
keep their girlfriends for a very
long time. They don’t understand
the concept of a casual date.”
Though the students primarily
were there to study, they were also
attracted to foreign sights.
Roblesgil said Mexico City
was an experience in itself.
“Being in the largest city in the
world, you realize all the things
there are to do,” he said. “From vis
iting the historic downtown district
to going to night clubs, there is al
ways something to do.”
Both Frantz and Scheer traveled
during their stay across the Atlantic.
Frantz visited Florence, Rome,
Venice and Pisa. She said her fa
vorite city was Venice.
“Venice was gorgeous and ro
mantic,” Frantz said. “Some boats
that floated by were holding wed
dings and there was music every
where. It was beautiful.”
Scheer visited the ancient city
of Pompeii, buried centuries ago
by a volcano.
“It was weird seeing the actual
people frozen in time by the vol
canic material, preserved like stat
ues,” Scheer said.
Frantz said her stay in Italy was
a wonderful experience that she
will always remember.
"I see people that were with
me in Italy on campus,” Frantz
said. “All we can talk about is how
much we want to go back.”
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Anthony Minghella
“The English Patient"
Ragan said people with eat
ing disorders may become soli
tary or inclusive and begin to
pull away from their friends,
but their friends need to be un
derstanding.
“If you think they’re being a
bad friend, remember that they
are consumed,” Ragan said.
“[The eating disorder] is dis-
ither
tracting them from all the
aspects of their life.”
Friends should remember that
many victims of eating disorders
may want to talk but are inhibit
ed by fear.
"Be a friend,” Ragan said.
“They don’t need you to put them
down, but don’t be afraid to talk
about the disorder.”
Joel Coen
"Fargo”
Milos Forman
“The People vs. Larry Flynf
Mike Lek
“Secrets &
Scott Hicks
“Shine”
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Beverage Industry Markets to African
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Latinos
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✓Women & Alcohol
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Education Program
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Texas A&M UniversiT
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