Ok guys I am sorry that I have missed a few days of keeping you informed it has been BUSY!!!! and by the time I get in at night I am so tired that it is hard to keep my eyes open. So here is the recap:
Monday: Wow what a day that was and the sites that we got to see were incredible. We went to the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, and Piazza Navona, Which is where some incredible Bernini sculptures are, we found a beautiful French church as well on the way back, I will come back and give more details in a moment. (remember this is just a recap)
Tuesday: It was somewhat of an off day for us. We didn't have class in the morning just that evening so most of us went to St. Peter's so we could have a better appreciation of it when we go next week as a group. I am so glad we did there was so much to see and to take in that we would have lost a lot of it if we just had gone with the guide. Once we were done at St. Peter's Elijah ( who is another one of the students) and I decided that we weren't ready to go back yet and we decide that we would go on an adventure to find some churches (which normally have incredible art) That was an adventure and a half.
Yesterday We took a train to Naples and then from there we got on another train and went to Pompeii. What an experience that was. It is a weird feeling to go to a city that really is frozen in time. To walk and the same streets that these people walked on just before they died from the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. What a trip that was; after that we went back to Naples and we were going to get pizza from a place that was suggested to us by the girl here at the convent. Well....we could not find it and Naples is SCARY. It was not very clean at all and the people made you feel very uncomfortable. I eas glad to get back to the train station. We finally got back to the Convent close to 10 at night.
Ok, there you have it a very brief recap of the the last few days. Now that I have that down I will go back and if you guys a little bit more details and what exactly I have been feeling this first week here in Rome.
First, Rome and Europe in general is different. Not in a bad way at all. Just different. There are smart cars EVERYWHERE. They park on the sidewalks and they just kinda go where they want. When you want to cross the street you just GO and they stop. There are moments where you get to play live froger (For those that know what I am talking about) you get to dodge the cars. There are moments that you are in the middle of the street and a car is coming and you have to stop right there. and wait and then make a dash for it. Wow, it is completely different. I am sitting here in the "library" of the convent and the widow is open there there is so much noise but it is completely normal. The buses are PACKED at least most of the time. I think this is one of the most different things. In the States it isn't normal for people to take public transportation while here and in most other places it is completely normal. It is also a lot easier then trying to drive here. ( If I move here I would like to learn how to drive here just to say I can but I think for the most part I would use the buses and the other forms of public transportation. So there are sires going off. Either police, medical, and the car security alarm. I truly love the sound of Rome ( but I think that if I lived here I would want to live in the country somewhere in Southern Italy) Let's see what else is different.....It is weird being the foreigner (I know that I have traveled to Thailand and there I could not communicate at all) here I can communicate a bit (for the most part all Italians know some English for that I am grateful, but I am trying to learn Italian and use it) It is also a bit easier to understand them cause a lot of their words sound similar to the English word. There is history around every corner. The other day we walked right by the place that Julius Caesar was killed. I promise I am getting the to details of the last few days.
Monday: Where to even begin except on my word!!! It was breath taking. The first place that we stopped at was the Trevi Fountain (just to let you know no word can describe it and no picture just it justice. You just have to see it for yourself) It was incredible that someone designed it and carved it. The details where everywhere and you could see that a lot of effort and time was put into it. It was also every busy there. People from all over were there. Even Italians which for some reason I found funny ( I don't know why it did I mean we live in the States and we still go see sites that are in other states and even our own) I took pictures and I have seen some of the ones that others took and the pictures are great but some how NO picture can truly and honestly do it justice. After we left the Trevi fountain we mad our way the the Pantheon. Oh my word ( I know I am using a lot of the same word but these sites are so incredible that there really aren't a whole lot of words to describe them) The dome was massive and the really cool thing is that it is a perfect circle. The fall of the pantheon is built at a slope so that when it rains the water won't just sit there but rather runs to where there are little holes in the floor and it drains the water away. The Pantheon is also the resting place of Raphael. As a history major I am loving every minuet of this. I mean how many people get to say I have my picture in front of the tomb of Raphael. This trip will be something that I will get to use when I start teaching. Something that I found out was the the roof line of the Pantheon was meant to be higher but the columns that were build were too small so if you look just right you can see bricks that were added so the roof line would be just right so the columns would fit. We then went to the Piazza Navona. It is here that the famous Bernini statues are.The most famous one and the one that was used in the Movie Angles and Demons is the middle one of the four River gods that were the four major rivers that were known at the time. The interesting thing is that the god of the Nile has his head covered and the artist did this because at the time the head waters of the Nile were not known. It was after the Piazza Navona that we came across a French church that was build in the 1600. This church that is just kinda there has three Caravaggio painting of the Apostle Matthew. The three that are there are the calling of Matthew, the inspiration of Matthew and the Martyrdom of Matthew. I think that it is so interesting that these churches are just kinda here and a lot of them have art work by some the most famous artist of the times. That really was the end of that day and boy were we tired. We saw a lot that day and I was glad to get back and kinda relax for the rest of the day.
Tuesday: Tuesday we had part of the day off. We had class in the morning and the afternoon we had to ourselves. So most of us decided that we were going to go see St. Peter's (Our teacher suggested that we go and see it once before we go next week since there is so much there and it is so big that we might not be able to fully appreciate it if we just went the one time) so that is what we did. Boy am I glad I sent. i think that if there had not been so many people I would have just dead stopped a few steps in. It is truly breath taking. I can't put into words what I thought and was feeling. The details, and the art and just EVERYTHING. We got to see where Pope John Paul II is being laid to rest. The center alter is so detailed that I think some of us looked at it for 5 mins and even then could not take everything in. Once we left there Elijah and I decided that we wanted to continue looking around the city so we got off the bus early and we started walking down the same street that we would have if we had stayed on the bus. Along the way we found one or two churches that we went into. We continued to walk and some how ended up at the back side of the Pantheon where we were the day before. Man, and I glad we found this church. We found a Michelangelo there in this church. We also found my name saint patron. Saint Catherine was buried in this church that we found. We then left the church and walked some more and some how ended up in the Northern part of Rome. We found the Spanish Steps; we later found out that Keats house is around there and there is a coffee bar were all sorts of famous authors and others have been there. (needless to say I am hoping to go back and find the bar. btw: when someone talks about a bar here in Rome it is a coffee bar) We then realized that we had two hours to figure out where we were and get back in time for dinner and class. So we walked and walked and walked some more until we ended BACK at St. Peter's. YES, we had done a massive circle. I have not idea just how much we walked that day but I can tell you it was a lot. We made it back with 15 minuets to spare.
Yesterday: Yesterday we went to Pompeii and what an experience that was. The city literally was frozen in time. It is an bizarre feeling walking down the streets knowing that people just like you walked these streets two thousand years ago and had no idea what was going to happen on that fateful day. We got to see the molds of people of how they were when they died and pots and other items that they have found in the city. It was cool to get to touch the same things that were touched my so many so long ago. Overall the day was great. One of our girls unfortunately got hurt towards to end of the day. It was a long day at Pompeii. I think one of the funniest things was that we got lost in Pompeii. Yes, it is possible it get in a ancient destroyed city. Cause most of the streets are still there. We got to see the bath houses, the forum, the market place, the temple, and even the brothels (There are some who say that Pompeii was a more "modern" version of Sodom and Gomorrah) I would not have been surprised if it wasn't. It was a city of pleasures of every type. After we left Pompeii we rode the train back to t city of Naples. The city was a ghetto to the max. I was honestly afraid that someone might try and rob us. The city smells and it is extremely dirty. I was glad to get back to Rome. The countryside that we past to get there however was beautiful. So, there you have it....I will get on later and tell you want I did for today but right now I need a break. I hope you are enjoying following me.
Monday: Wow what a day that was and the sites that we got to see were incredible. We went to the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, and Piazza Navona, Which is where some incredible Bernini sculptures are, we found a beautiful French church as well on the way back, I will come back and give more details in a moment. (remember this is just a recap)
Tuesday: It was somewhat of an off day for us. We didn't have class in the morning just that evening so most of us went to St. Peter's so we could have a better appreciation of it when we go next week as a group. I am so glad we did there was so much to see and to take in that we would have lost a lot of it if we just had gone with the guide. Once we were done at St. Peter's Elijah ( who is another one of the students) and I decided that we weren't ready to go back yet and we decide that we would go on an adventure to find some churches (which normally have incredible art) That was an adventure and a half.
Yesterday We took a train to Naples and then from there we got on another train and went to Pompeii. What an experience that was. It is a weird feeling to go to a city that really is frozen in time. To walk and the same streets that these people walked on just before they died from the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. What a trip that was; after that we went back to Naples and we were going to get pizza from a place that was suggested to us by the girl here at the convent. Well....we could not find it and Naples is SCARY. It was not very clean at all and the people made you feel very uncomfortable. I eas glad to get back to the train station. We finally got back to the Convent close to 10 at night.
Ok, there you have it a very brief recap of the the last few days. Now that I have that down I will go back and if you guys a little bit more details and what exactly I have been feeling this first week here in Rome.
First, Rome and Europe in general is different. Not in a bad way at all. Just different. There are smart cars EVERYWHERE. They park on the sidewalks and they just kinda go where they want. When you want to cross the street you just GO and they stop. There are moments where you get to play live froger (For those that know what I am talking about) you get to dodge the cars. There are moments that you are in the middle of the street and a car is coming and you have to stop right there. and wait and then make a dash for it. Wow, it is completely different. I am sitting here in the "library" of the convent and the widow is open there there is so much noise but it is completely normal. The buses are PACKED at least most of the time. I think this is one of the most different things. In the States it isn't normal for people to take public transportation while here and in most other places it is completely normal. It is also a lot easier then trying to drive here. ( If I move here I would like to learn how to drive here just to say I can but I think for the most part I would use the buses and the other forms of public transportation. So there are sires going off. Either police, medical, and the car security alarm. I truly love the sound of Rome ( but I think that if I lived here I would want to live in the country somewhere in Southern Italy) Let's see what else is different.....It is weird being the foreigner (I know that I have traveled to Thailand and there I could not communicate at all) here I can communicate a bit (for the most part all Italians know some English for that I am grateful, but I am trying to learn Italian and use it) It is also a bit easier to understand them cause a lot of their words sound similar to the English word. There is history around every corner. The other day we walked right by the place that Julius Caesar was killed. I promise I am getting the to details of the last few days.
Monday: Where to even begin except on my word!!! It was breath taking. The first place that we stopped at was the Trevi Fountain (just to let you know no word can describe it and no picture just it justice. You just have to see it for yourself) It was incredible that someone designed it and carved it. The details where everywhere and you could see that a lot of effort and time was put into it. It was also every busy there. People from all over were there. Even Italians which for some reason I found funny ( I don't know why it did I mean we live in the States and we still go see sites that are in other states and even our own) I took pictures and I have seen some of the ones that others took and the pictures are great but some how NO picture can truly and honestly do it justice. After we left the Trevi fountain we mad our way the the Pantheon. Oh my word ( I know I am using a lot of the same word but these sites are so incredible that there really aren't a whole lot of words to describe them) The dome was massive and the really cool thing is that it is a perfect circle. The fall of the pantheon is built at a slope so that when it rains the water won't just sit there but rather runs to where there are little holes in the floor and it drains the water away. The Pantheon is also the resting place of Raphael. As a history major I am loving every minuet of this. I mean how many people get to say I have my picture in front of the tomb of Raphael. This trip will be something that I will get to use when I start teaching. Something that I found out was the the roof line of the Pantheon was meant to be higher but the columns that were build were too small so if you look just right you can see bricks that were added so the roof line would be just right so the columns would fit. We then went to the Piazza Navona. It is here that the famous Bernini statues are.The most famous one and the one that was used in the Movie Angles and Demons is the middle one of the four River gods that were the four major rivers that were known at the time. The interesting thing is that the god of the Nile has his head covered and the artist did this because at the time the head waters of the Nile were not known. It was after the Piazza Navona that we came across a French church that was build in the 1600. This church that is just kinda there has three Caravaggio painting of the Apostle Matthew. The three that are there are the calling of Matthew, the inspiration of Matthew and the Martyrdom of Matthew. I think that it is so interesting that these churches are just kinda here and a lot of them have art work by some the most famous artist of the times. That really was the end of that day and boy were we tired. We saw a lot that day and I was glad to get back and kinda relax for the rest of the day.
Tuesday: Tuesday we had part of the day off. We had class in the morning and the afternoon we had to ourselves. So most of us decided that we were going to go see St. Peter's (Our teacher suggested that we go and see it once before we go next week since there is so much there and it is so big that we might not be able to fully appreciate it if we just went the one time) so that is what we did. Boy am I glad I sent. i think that if there had not been so many people I would have just dead stopped a few steps in. It is truly breath taking. I can't put into words what I thought and was feeling. The details, and the art and just EVERYTHING. We got to see where Pope John Paul II is being laid to rest. The center alter is so detailed that I think some of us looked at it for 5 mins and even then could not take everything in. Once we left there Elijah and I decided that we wanted to continue looking around the city so we got off the bus early and we started walking down the same street that we would have if we had stayed on the bus. Along the way we found one or two churches that we went into. We continued to walk and some how ended up at the back side of the Pantheon where we were the day before. Man, and I glad we found this church. We found a Michelangelo there in this church. We also found my name saint patron. Saint Catherine was buried in this church that we found. We then left the church and walked some more and some how ended up in the Northern part of Rome. We found the Spanish Steps; we later found out that Keats house is around there and there is a coffee bar were all sorts of famous authors and others have been there. (needless to say I am hoping to go back and find the bar. btw: when someone talks about a bar here in Rome it is a coffee bar) We then realized that we had two hours to figure out where we were and get back in time for dinner and class. So we walked and walked and walked some more until we ended BACK at St. Peter's. YES, we had done a massive circle. I have not idea just how much we walked that day but I can tell you it was a lot. We made it back with 15 minuets to spare.
Yesterday: Yesterday we went to Pompeii and what an experience that was. The city literally was frozen in time. It is an bizarre feeling walking down the streets knowing that people just like you walked these streets two thousand years ago and had no idea what was going to happen on that fateful day. We got to see the molds of people of how they were when they died and pots and other items that they have found in the city. It was cool to get to touch the same things that were touched my so many so long ago. Overall the day was great. One of our girls unfortunately got hurt towards to end of the day. It was a long day at Pompeii. I think one of the funniest things was that we got lost in Pompeii. Yes, it is possible it get in a ancient destroyed city. Cause most of the streets are still there. We got to see the bath houses, the forum, the market place, the temple, and even the brothels (There are some who say that Pompeii was a more "modern" version of Sodom and Gomorrah) I would not have been surprised if it wasn't. It was a city of pleasures of every type. After we left Pompeii we rode the train back to t city of Naples. The city was a ghetto to the max. I was honestly afraid that someone might try and rob us. The city smells and it is extremely dirty. I was glad to get back to Rome. The countryside that we past to get there however was beautiful. So, there you have it....I will get on later and tell you want I did for today but right now I need a break. I hope you are enjoying following me.
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