It's been almost a month since I got back from Rome and still haven't had a chance to update on the trip. It was a whirlwind three days, but absolutely worth it. The only thing I would change is taking a little more time to each lunch. We made it through the days on gelato, which was delicious, but dinner was always so amazing I wish I'd had a few more pasta dishes.
I spent a few minutes jotting down thoughts one afternoon, so I'll copy those into here, but they don't cover everything so I will try to expand.
May 1: Friday night and we are absolutely exhausted. We'd planned to go out tonihgt, but sleep seems like a much better option. It's been an absolute whirlwind day since we landed in Rome at 8am. Thanks to Katelin's magic sleeping pills we'd all slept soundly the entire way and were ready to hit the ground running. And that's exactly what we did. We took a train and a bus to St. Peter's Square where we met up with a college friend who is living and working in Rome. The Sistine Chapel had been our first planned stop, but due to St. Joseph's Feast Day it was closed. With a quick change of plans we regrouped and headed towards the Colusseum and Roman Forum. On the way we climbed one of the Seven Hills to catch a breath taking view of the city. It reminded me a lot of a scene in "The Scarlet & The Black." (hmm...wonder why?) The view was absolutely beautiful. I hadn't realized how green Rome was. Standing in the park at the top of the hill I realized why people fall in love with the city. Students were studying under orange trees, while kids played soccer against an ancient brick wall. A few blocks away, in the River Oaks of Rome, we stood in line to look through the "keyhole." When you peer into the tiny dark hole in the door, you are greeted unexpectedly with a view of St. Peters, perfectly framed by rows of neatly trimmed bushes. I felt like a little kid looking through a kaleidascope at a make believe picture. Continuing our journey, we stopped for pizza at a small pizzaria in the Jewish section of town. Delicious and very much what was needed at the time. As we walked down the street leaving the restaurant, I stopped to refill my water bottle at one of the many public fountains that are sprinkeled througout the city. Two more brief stops before we hit the main attraction- the mouth of truth or "la bocca de veritatas," and the prison where Sts. Peter and Paul were kept. About this point Katelin and Sierra left so that Callye and I could explore the Colusseum and Forum on our own. It's probably a good thing because we were both completely blown away by the Colusseum. It was so cool to be walking through something that old. And the size! I stood on the top level looking down, and could almost hear the roar of the crowd and see the lions pacing below. I could see the fraility of a single human life, alone in the arena, and realized the huge sacrifice, and the strength required to make it, that was the lot of so many early Christians. I've read the history, but until that moment had not realized what a huge structure it was or the number of people who must have crowded in for the games. Even after we left and were walking around the rest of the city, every time we caught a glimpse we stopped to take a picture.
Other things we saw that day and related thoughts:
- Forum: cool, big, old. Not nearly as awesome as the Colusseum.
- Carvagio paintings: real art. Modern paintings do not even come close. How awesome that you can walk into random churches and see these great works of art. They really were meant to lift the mind and heart to God.
- Fountain Trivia: did not realize how big it was! Again, good art = awesome.
- Pantheon: it's a circle? Being Catholic is cool.
Saturday morning started with a visit to Musee Bourghese. We did the audio tour, great investment. There were a few Bernini sculptures, which were among my favorite items in Rome- Apollo and Daphi, and the Rape of Prosperpina. The level of detail, the emotions conveyed, and the manner in which marble was manipulated to look like flesh was beyond description. I can still see parts of the scupltures in my mind, and I don't think they will ever cease to amaze me. That is true craftsmenship.
The details and order of the rest of the trip is already starting to get fuzzy, but other highlights:
- Sistine Chapel: after waiting in line for two hours, we ran through the rest of the Vatican Museum to get to the Sistine Chapel. Wow! I don't even know how to describe seeing those paintings in real life. A room filled with beautiful art. It's almost too much. How do you take it all in? We talk now of an data overload, but walking into that room for the first time must have been much the same. Where do you start? Where do your eyes look first? How do you extract the lessons to be learned from each painting?
- St. Peters: the outside did nothing to prepare me for the size and grandeur inside. It is designed to make you feel insignificant and remind you of your nothingness in the sight of God. I know there is more to religion than the emotional side, but it is still important. While we were standing inside, completely overwhelmed, the organist began practicing for Sumday mass. Wow! For me, music is the piece that ties it all together. More than any other form of art, beautiful music can speak to my soul. Standing there it all makes sense. The composers who wrote beautiful church pieces were writing for cathedrals. They were writing to fill to the brim these enormous and elaborate masterpieces. The Pieta is in a side chapel towards the front, and again so much emotion is captured. How can you not feel sadness with the sorrowing Mother?
We went to the top of St. Peters as well and looked down over the city. Incredible that such a structure could be built with none of the modern tools or technology. Saw some more fountains. I love water, so was very enchanted with them. The four corners fountain by Bernini was one of my favorites.
The other really cool thing was getting to see two of my cousins who were studying at the University of Dallas Rome campus. We went to church together Sunday morning and then walked around for a few hours. It was great to see them and catch up, and they were able to give me some more details on some of the things I'd seen already which was cool. For example, the wooden altar covering in St. Peter's is eight stories high!
I could keep going and going, but instead I'm going to end by saying it was a very worth it three day trip. Rome is the first place I have been to that I would go back in a heartbeat. I've loved every other place I've been and would love to return, but I want to visit other places first. I would not mind going back to Rome again, even if it meant sacrificint another trip.
