Roaming through Rome (again)
Thursday, June 21, 2018
I have been very busy the past few days and have seen lots. On Monday I returned to Rome after my very exciting visit to the country of Malta. As you know I have already seen quite a bit of Rome. But this stay allowed me to see a little more.
From now until the 27th, I am participating in a tour offered by a company. That means I have very helpful guides to show me around Italy and explain what I am seeing. There are eighteen people on my tour, all from the United States and Canada. My tour director is named Elisabetta. She lives in Italy and knows everything about the places we visit.
Our tour started on Monday evening with dinner and entertainment. We were served a four course Italian dinner and treated to musicians on guitar, clarinet, and flute. As you can imagine, everyone was very full after this delightful dinner!
From now until the 27th, I am participating in a tour offered by a company. That means I have very helpful guides to show me around Italy and explain what I am seeing. There are eighteen people on my tour, all from the United States and Canada. My tour director is named Elisabetta. She lives in Italy and knows everything about the places we visit.
Our tour started on Monday evening with dinner and entertainment. We were served a four course Italian dinner and treated to musicians on guitar, clarinet, and flute. As you can imagine, everyone was very full after this delightful dinner!
Tuesday we had a busy day around Rome. No visit to Rome is complete without walking through the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica. The Vatican is home to some of the greatest artwork in the history of the world.
Our walk through the Vatican Museums was a quick one. Perhaps someday I will return and really spend time in the many, many galleries there. At the end of the line, we came to the Sistine Chapel. Unfortunately, there is a very strict rule against taking pictures in the Sistine Chapel, and I saw the guards enforcing it. There are pictures available online you can find if you wish. The Sistine Chapel was one of my favorite places in Rome. The ceiling and the large wall in front were painted by Michelangelo, who was probably the most famous Italian painter. Large paintings on walls and ceilings are known as "frescoes." Michelangelo painted his frescoes in the 1500's. They are still there for us to enjoy today--over 400 years later! Every year, about 5 million people pass through and admire the beautiful work of Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel. It's easy to understand why.
After visiting the Sistine Chapel, our group walked through St. Peter's Basilica, which is the largest church in the world. They seem to be very proud of this title. On the floor down the center, they mark the length of other large churches in the world just to show how much bigger St. Peter's is. It was built during the Renaissance, from 1506 to 1626. Yes, it took over 100 years to build!
Many people think of stained glass when they think of old churches. You do not see stained glass in St. Peter's or in most churches built during the Renaissance. Stained glass is seen more often in Gothic style churches. (This style is not popular in Rome.) Builders during the Renaissance thought it was important that light be allowed inside. They also preferred bright colors and rounded archways.
After visiting the Sistine Chapel, our group walked through St. Peter's Basilica, which is the largest church in the world. They seem to be very proud of this title. On the floor down the center, they mark the length of other large churches in the world just to show how much bigger St. Peter's is. It was built during the Renaissance, from 1506 to 1626. Yes, it took over 100 years to build!
Many people think of stained glass when they think of old churches. You do not see stained glass in St. Peter's or in most churches built during the Renaissance. Stained glass is seen more often in Gothic style churches. (This style is not popular in Rome.) Builders during the Renaissance thought it was important that light be allowed inside. They also preferred bright colors and rounded archways.
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On Tuesday afternoon, our tour group also paid a visit to the Colosseum. This giant arena is similar to our football stadiums of today. It was finished by the Roman emperor Titus in the year 80 AD. That makes it almost 2,000 years old! Romans would go to the Colosseum for entertainment, the way we might go to a football or basketball game. But their entertainment was a little different than ours. The Roman emperor would have all kinds of wild animals sent in from Africa and Asia. Then, there would be fights. Our tour guide Stefano explained the different kinds of shows people would go to watch. Sometimes animals would fight other animals in the Colosseum. Sometimes two humans would fight each other. Other times, a human would go against a wild animal like a lion, a bear, or a crocodile. Those people who would fight in the shows here were known as gladiators. This was, of course, very dangerous and not something we would ever allow today. But the Romans found this to be an enjoyable day out. It probably was not that enjoyable for the animals and gladiators who had to put on these shows.
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Near the Colosseum is this statute of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. He was emperor from the years 161 to 180. Almost all the statues of Roman emperors were destroyed after the Roman Empire ended. This one survived. (This is actually a copy. The original one is inside to keep it safe.) Marcus Aurelius now sits on his horse in front of Rome's city hall.
On Wednesday, I was very privileged to visit St. Peter's Square one last time. Here I was able to see Pope Francis. The pope is the leader of the Catholic Church and and is respected by many people around the world for his leadership. Most U.S. presidents meet with the pope at least a few times while they are president. Francis is known for being humble and kind. He is also known for caring about those who are poor. I don't think he saw me waving, but he passed by in his car about 10 feet from me!
People come from all over the world to visit Rome. There was a nice family standing next to me in the square: a mother, father, and son from Mexico. I could tell because the son was wearing a huge Mexican flag. (Many people there bring their flag to show pride in their home country.) I had a short conversation with the family with the little bit of Spanish I know and the little bit of English they knew. They too were very happy to be visiting Rome. It is really amazing how many different languages were spoken there and how many different flags I saw. Just a few of the countries with visitors to Rome were: the United States, Canada, Mexico, Ecuador, Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, Spain, France, Poland, Italy, Sweden, and Uganda. I'm sure there were many others I did not know about.
Later in the day, across town, we just happened to run into the pope again! This was not planned. What luck!
People come from all over the world to visit Rome. There was a nice family standing next to me in the square: a mother, father, and son from Mexico. I could tell because the son was wearing a huge Mexican flag. (Many people there bring their flag to show pride in their home country.) I had a short conversation with the family with the little bit of Spanish I know and the little bit of English they knew. They too were very happy to be visiting Rome. It is really amazing how many different languages were spoken there and how many different flags I saw. Just a few of the countries with visitors to Rome were: the United States, Canada, Mexico, Ecuador, Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, Spain, France, Poland, Italy, Sweden, and Uganda. I'm sure there were many others I did not know about.
Later in the day, across town, we just happened to run into the pope again! This was not planned. What luck!
So there you have it! This morning I departed Rome with my tour group. We were headed for the towns of Cascia and Assisi. I am writing this post from Assisi. Check back in the next couple days to hear about my time in the mountains! I hope everyone is having an enjoyable and relaxing summer!