Rach and me at the TreviSunday was devoted solely to working on our independent project. My section was about the Ara Pacis Augustae and the propagandistic role it played during the Mussolini era; since Augustus was a powerful leader who restored greatness to Rome and expanded the Roman empire, Mussolini wanted to tie himself to Augustus to show that he, too, would do the same thing for Rome. He did this through restoring ancient monuments like the Ara Pacis, which was dedicated to Augustus, and reframing them in a way that contributed to his own political needs.
We presented on our project on Monday, and I think it went pretty well. It was interesting to research, but it is a relief to have it done! Now I have earned 5 of the 15 credits I will be getting in Rome. Whoo! We also had Mona's class, which has switched gears from focus on The Gift to focus on Sacrifice. This is a very provocative subject and I am enjoying our class discussions about it, especially as it relates to religion. The classroom gets really hot though!
At night we went on a gelato trek and ran into this wedding party on the way. It was super cool because the whole group was dancing in the cobblestone street, singing to loud music and having a great time; we even joined them for just a second. Their pure joy was definitely contagious and made my night.
On Tuesday, we went over to the Palazzo Barberini on the Quirinale Hill. They were a powerful family in Rome, one son went on to the papacy, and the Palazzo is their palace. The palazzo is now a museum and you can see some of the rooms that the family lived in. We even got to go inside a room that is close to the public-the frescoe on the ceiling is something that Lisa researched for a few years!
We presented on our project on Monday, and I think it went pretty well. It was interesting to research, but it is a relief to have it done! Now I have earned 5 of the 15 credits I will be getting in Rome. Whoo! We also had Mona's class, which has switched gears from focus on The Gift to focus on Sacrifice. This is a very provocative subject and I am enjoying our class discussions about it, especially as it relates to religion. The classroom gets really hot though!
At night we went on a gelato trek and ran into this wedding party on the way. It was super cool because the whole group was dancing in the cobblestone street, singing to loud music and having a great time; we even joined them for just a second. Their pure joy was definitely contagious and made my night.
On Tuesday, we went over to the Palazzo Barberini on the Quirinale Hill. They were a powerful family in Rome, one son went on to the papacy, and the Palazzo is their palace. The palazzo is now a museum and you can see some of the rooms that the family lived in. We even got to go inside a room that is close to the public-the frescoe on the ceiling is something that Lisa researched for a few years!
"Divine Providence" ceiling frescoe
Secret room of art storage and unknown frescoe!
The outside of the Palazzo Barberini-so grandiose!After the palazzo, Lisa took us to one of the supposedly two best coffee places in Rome, Caffe Tazza d'Oro (I went to the other one, Caffe Sant'Eustachio, with Sheida a few weeks ago). I got a macchiato and it was pretty good! I think I liked Tazza d'Oro better, although I got different drinks at the two places so that probably isn't a fair comparison.
Later that night, we went and sat by the Pantheon and in the Campo for a while. One of the boys from our program had checked out a guitar from the Rome Center so we listened while he played. We also met some really nice girls from Austria in the Campo that we talked to for a while. It was a fun and relaxing evening. OH and we saw the family from the TLC show "Little People Big World" being filmed by the Pantheon! So that was cool. The Obama's were in town for the G8 conference while we were in Florence, and apparently Michelle and the kids were by the Pantheon too. I'm kind of sad that I was gone while they were here; we live so close to the Pantheon, there is a good chance I could have seen them! Oh well.
Today, we had Gifts and Sacrifice class with two presentations and an interesting discussion about Cain and Able. After that, for Art History we heard a presentation about the Madonnas which are scattered all around Rome, and then went to Piazza Navona and learned about Bernini's "Fountain of the Four Rivers." There are four figures on the fountain, each representing one of the four great rivers of the world-the Nile, the Danube, the Ganges, and I forget the other one. I had actually never been to Piazza Navona during the day; it definitely had a different feel! I still think that I like the fountain better at night, though.
Later that night, we went and sat by the Pantheon and in the Campo for a while. One of the boys from our program had checked out a guitar from the Rome Center so we listened while he played. We also met some really nice girls from Austria in the Campo that we talked to for a while. It was a fun and relaxing evening. OH and we saw the family from the TLC show "Little People Big World" being filmed by the Pantheon! So that was cool. The Obama's were in town for the G8 conference while we were in Florence, and apparently Michelle and the kids were by the Pantheon too. I'm kind of sad that I was gone while they were here; we live so close to the Pantheon, there is a good chance I could have seen them! Oh well.
Today, we had Gifts and Sacrifice class with two presentations and an interesting discussion about Cain and Able. After that, for Art History we heard a presentation about the Madonnas which are scattered all around Rome, and then went to Piazza Navona and learned about Bernini's "Fountain of the Four Rivers." There are four figures on the fountain, each representing one of the four great rivers of the world-the Nile, the Danube, the Ganges, and I forget the other one. I had actually never been to Piazza Navona during the day; it definitely had a different feel! I still think that I like the fountain better at night, though.
One of the many Madonna shrines that decorate Roma
Close-up of the "Fountain of the Four Rivers"
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