5/21/10

Our morning off was very relaxing and gave us time to prepare for the catacombs! They were so different from anything we could ever see in Iowa. We had a tour guide who led us through the labyrinth while filling us in on some of the history. It was amazing how many tombs were actually in the walls and how deep the levels went! There were even sarcophagi to see and frescoes decorating the walls of family tombs. After our underground tour, we stopped at the church St. John of Latrine, which was very beautiful! The inside was not as overdone as most of the other churches here and it really helped for us to appreciate the displayed pieces. We had some free time to enjoy the sun before supper at the hotel. The cooking was done by our hosts and it was excellent! We had meat, salad, potato sticks, lasagna, spaghetti, fruit, bread, and baked cucumbers. Between our pizza last night and our buffet today, I think we should be set on food for the rest of the trip!

Here finally are some brie descriptions of the days we missed!

5/17
We travelled from Assisi to Rome, and checked into our new hotel, which is kept by nuns. After a little time to settle in, we took off in the pouring rain for the Colosseum. It is just one of those things you see in movies all the time and never think you will in person; it was incredible! We had fun exploring all the different aisles and levels of it. We decided not to begin our walking tour because of the rain and had the rest of the night to find supper ad of course visit the supermarket across the street.

5/18
We started the day at St. Peter in Chains. Michelangelo's "Moses" was the ghighlight of the artwork there and it was neat to see the chains in their intricate case as well. We next explored the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. Each one of us could have spent a full day looking around and sketching the ruin easily! We visite Piazza Navona and the "Fountain of Four Rivers", the Pantheon (breathtaking!), Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, the St. Louis Church of the Frech to see Caravaggio's work, and last paused at the Trevi Fountain to throw coins over our shoulders. Barbara and Kathleen took a smaller group of us to Santa Maria del Popolo to see a few more Caravaggios, and by that time we were spent. out of all the wonderful things saw, the best part of the day was definitely the sunshine!

5/19
We toured the Borghese Museum first. It holds quite a few Berninis, Titians, and a couple of Raphael's paintings. The muserum used to be a palace, and the frescoes on the ceilings were almost just as interesting as the pieces being displayed! We stopped quick for some lunch, and then made our way to the Vatican. Most of us students were not expecting such large crowds, but we made it into thethe museum, an dispersed to look around at our own paces. Every Gallery was amazing on the long walk to the Sistine Chapel. The rooms were covered ceiling to floor in art! One particular highlight was Raphael's "School of Athens". Finally, we made it to the Sistine Chapel. It was awesom to se such a highly reveered piece in person! We were all bummed it was the only room that did not allow photos. After pulling ourselves out of the Chapel, we left Vatican City t go around and enter on another side at St. Peter's basilica. Once inside, it was almost impossible to decide where to look first between the many chapels and domes! Paintings, mosaics, and sculptures adorned every nook and cranny of the huge interior. Bernini's baldachino captured themost attention, expertly designed with unique twisting coloumns. We tried to look at as much as we could whil still appreciating the church as a whole. After such a big day, we were all ready for some rest and supper! Maggie has been wearing a pedometer during the day, and on that day we walked a record of over 14 miles!