Ostia Antica

Sunday was Ostia Antica day and boy was it a day! A long, hot, interesting day in Rome's old port town. A scholar from UT (Austin) has been excavating at a synagogue found in the city, and he gave a group of us a very nice tour of the town. Above, one of the many beautiful mosaics that's survived two thousand years.


Here, you can imagine a road lined with shops. Above the shops, apartments. Apparently the upper apartments were the cheapest...and the hottest.


Doniamarie amidst the ruins.


The Capitoline temple was huge and built for the patron gods of Rome: Juno, Jupiter, and Minerva (I think). A very impressive sight!


A public latrine. Beneath the toilets was a steady stream of flowing water. Those Romans were very inventive.


My first poppy sighting, growing in an old Roman wall!!


This mosaic is from one of Ostia's baths (sorry, I can't remember which one!). Just amazing!


And here is what our UT guy (Michael White) has been working on - the synagogue. The only way to tell it's a synagoge is the menorah (look closely!). How incredible is that?!


One of our lasts stops was what I was waiting for: the mithraeum. Though Ostia has fifteen of these temples dedicated to Mithras, this was the only one we got to see (most are not open to the public). This mithraeum was beneath a bath complex and has this incredible statue of Mithras slaying a bull.


Yet another amazing mosaic. I love the swimmers!

I've never walked so much in my life as I did at Ostia but it was worth it. Just incredible! And only 1/3 of the town has been excavated!

The Vatican

I'm sorry I didn't get around the writing Friday, but it was a crazy day. My mom got into Rome on Thursday night and it was not an easy trip and not easy finding her. It was actually quite traumatic for both of us! BUT. The next morning we headed to the Vatican and spent all day there. Above is the Baldacchino in St. Peter's beneath the magnificent dome.


We got there around 9am and the sun was streaming into the windows at the front of the church. Just spectacular!!


Somehow we beat the hordes of tour groups and it was so nice having a somewhat quiet experience in the great basilica.


Here we are in St. Peter's Square.


We spent all afternoon at the Vatican Museums. The place is so very overwhelming. Above, an Egyptian cat in the courtyard.


The building and their decorations are just as fascinating as the art housed within them! These decorations were similar to the ones we saw in the Raphael Loggia. (And yes, we scoped out the secret door we went through to get to the Raphael Loggia!)


The dome of St. Peter's from somewhere within the maze of the Museum.


And finally, those awesome winding stairs at the exit of the Museum.

In the morning we also got to go on our Scavi tour beneath the Vatican. It was the most amazing thing! There were pagan mausoleums down there dating from the second century A.D. that looked like houses where entire families were laid to rest. One was even a Christian family! And then, beneath the altar of St. Peter's, we saw the lone remaining column of what is believed to be Peter's tomb.

If you go to the Vatican, you must jump through all the hoops it takes to go on a Scavi tour. It's a priceless experience.

And we saw John Paul II's tomb, a very modest monument for such a great man. It was quite a day!

Random Rome

Yesterday was a bit unexciting compared to some of our earlier days and I just don't have the energy to post more church pics. So, instead, you're getting some randomness from Rome. Above is a beautiful building on the Palatine. I have no idea what it is, but it was pretty!


The Arch of Janus in the Forum Boarium. On the walk back up to the Capitoline we saw a policeman directing traffic. When a man tried to turn right when the rest of his traffic was stopped the policeman threw a fit, blowing his whistle and telling him to back-up. It was hilarious! To see Romans being chastised for their horrific driving! Ha! We think traffic was stopped for some bishops - at least I saw some bishops in the ensuing motorcade.


At the Capitoline Museums, the famous she-wolf of Rome, suckling Romulus and Remus. She-wolf in Latin, of course, was another name for whore.


When we exited the Pantheon, we saw two horses being fed. They were so beautiful!


The water in Rome is really great and it's so nice to be able to fill up the water bottle at any public fountain. Here, we did so at the Borghese Gallery. Just afterwards, a lab puppy jumped in the fountain and took a bath! My boss caught that on film and I'll have to get the pics for AL. So very cute!!

Santa Maria Maggiore

Wednesday morning was spent at the conference where I heard some cool papers and met a good friend of my boss' - the man who got us into the Raphael Loggia. He was super sweet and offered to show mom and I around Perugia next week. How nice! Anyways, after that, I set off alone to investigate some churches - some biggies and some smaller ones. I had already been to Santa Maria Maggiore, but this time around was different. I explored everything and took my time, savoring it all.


Maria Maggiore is the best preserved ancient church in Rome, one could argue, with the interior dating to the fifth century. It's in the classic Roman basilica style which is so cool - windows above for light, side aisle, apse. Chapels off the sides were added by subsequent popes. Some of the mosaics - including ones from the Old Testament - are from the 400s! Amazing!


The beautiful apse. The mosaics were so far up they were actually quite difficult to see. One needs binoculars!


One of the newer chapels - still beautiful but not quite as neat!


In the piazza in front of the church, there stands a column that is supposed to be the only one left from the Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine - that great ancient structure that influenced the design of St. Peter's. Awesome!

The Pope Needs A/C

Yesterday was amazing. There's no other word to describe it. My boss has a connection that got us an invite to see the Raphael Loggia at the Vatican. This part of Raphael's rooms is closed to the public. If you look up above in the above pic, to the building with glass on three sides, the Loggia is located in a hall on the left side. These glass arcades were added by Bramante to a significantly older building.


After following a guard through the maze of the museums, he led us through a small, indistinct door to the Loggia. A Swiss guard stood at the end and two others watched us as we oohed and awed. Above is Adam and Eve.


Because there were windows along an entire side, it was hot. Really hot. So, we oohed, aahed, and sweated.


Raphael painted his Loggia in the early 1500s but there were much older decorations along the walls. They were charming!


I don't know who this is, but it's a woman on one of the arches.


We walked, took pics, and studied the relatively small frescoes of Raphael that began with Genesis and ended with Samuel - though he skipped Numbers and Judges. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity!! We even managed to sneak some pics of ourselves. I need to get ones of me from my boss so I have proof I was there. In the above pic, you can see my boss kneeling down. All this looking up is hard on the neck!

Around Rome and a Concert

What is Roma without the Colosseum?? Here is the necessary pic for any Roma travelogue. It's actually really close to our apartments which is nice!


After touring the Flavian Ampitheatre, we headed to the Palatine Hill, a place I'd never been to. Above is what is left of the octagonal fountain in the public areas of the Domus Augustana, the palace of the Roman emperors.


I don't know who this dude is, but we encountered him in a park on one of our walks around town. Interesting, eh?


We also discovered a Scottish Presbyterian church which had a beautiful coutryward.


Last night we headed to an Anglican church, St. Paul Within the Walls, to hear a concert we'd seen advertised of Faure's Requiem. I'd actually heard this one and it's very beautiful. The choir wasn't superb - they could really benefit from working on their consonants which would be easier if they opened their mouths - but then again, I'm picky about choirs. It was a gorgeous space and I'm glad we went. My only major complaint was the lack of A/C in a church packed with 85 sweating musicians. Ha!

Capitoline Museum

Yesterday, we spent the majority of our day at the Capitoline Museum, which is filled with tremendously cool things having to do with Roman history. I was in utter heaven, as you can imagine. Above is the ancient bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius that originally sat on the Capitoline (where a copy now stands). He's huge!


The Museum incorporated ruins of the foundation of the original Temple of Jupiter into it's building. I couldn't believe this as I thought it was completely destroyed in the fire during the 1st century B.C. Apparently the foundations didn't burn, which makes sense. Very awesome!


The museum also incorporates the ancient Tabularium, where all the records of ancient Rome were kept. This - the huge structure - blew me away!


On top of a classical column, a memorial written in Hebrew. The profs loved this!


A room filled with funerary monuments - some for Jews. I never thought I'd be so fascinated by these inscriptions and pictures but I was! So interesting!

We visited three churches yesterday, which I'd really like to tell you about but, alas, I'm running out of time. More tomorrow!

Santa Maria sopra Minerva

Santa Maria sopra Minerva is tucked into the Campus Martius (the Field of Mars in antiquity; that area in Rome within the bend of the Tiber, mostly medieval) behind the Pantheon and from its rather bland exterior, one would never guess the treasures within. This is the one and only church in Rome built in the early Middle Ages (8th century) and the only example in the city of Gothic architecture.


There was some cool art within, but also some weird art - winged skulls? I'm not sure I understand that; it was under a tomb/memorial.


There was even a touch of Greek Orthodox with this cool little mosaic. I loved this!


But this is what amazed me: this church is St. Catherine of Siena's resting place. She died here, in Rome, and her chapel within this church incorporates the room in the convent where she died. I've always been drawn to this saint so it was an honor and a privilege to finally see her place of burial, on the high altar.


Just beside the high altar is a statue by Michelangelo, his Jesus, begun in 1520. The drapery, of course, was added later.


Our last stop of the day was the Doria Pamphili Gallery, which was packed full of interesting paintings, most unlabeled. They also had some cool Roman statues (above). This collection is still owned by the Pamphili family and the voice on the audioguide was a prince's who is part of the family. I have no idea why he's a prince, but there you go.

This is not all we did yesterday but there's only so much room here and so much time. We saw two popular sights: the Pantheon and the Trevi Fountain. We passed by ancient Rome and ducked into several other churches. The day was spent walking....and walking. Rome is exhausting!

Borghese and Northern Roma

I made it safely to Roma, despite a few dire moments, and we had a fabulous first day exploring the Borghese Gallery, gardens, and five churches (looking for artwork!). Wow, did it pay off and in my humble opinion, I earned my paycheck with all that walking!! Above, S. Maria del Popolo, just north of the Piazza del Popolo. This church had some very interesting depictions of women from the Bible and, tucked in a chapel...

was Caravaggio's Crucifixion of St. Peter! Holy Cow! If I had had my guidebook on me, this woulnd't have been a surprise but I was sans guidebook (long story!). It was amazing and just opposite was Caravaggio's Conversion of Saul. Just magnificent!


The two churches in the Piazza del Popolo that frame the Corso - called the twin churches though they are not identical. And, yes, the right one was a filming location in Angels and Demons.


On our walk from the Borghese Gallery to the Piazza del Popolo, a crazy street with crazy traffic!!


One of the beautiful streets in the Borghese gardens. It was just so cool to be amidst all the trees in Roma. I'd never been to this part of the city before and it was great!


The Borghese Gallery, tucked in the gardens, is difficult to get in to, allowing only 200 people in at a time. It was filled with art that really helped my boss. Unfortunately, pictures were not allowed. A great two hours were spent here (you're only allowed two hours to go through it all!).


Our first church of the day, perched above the Spanish Steps: Trinita dei Monte. The boss found some great Judith and Holofernes/ David and Goliath paintings. It's amazing what's in this artwork if you really look at it! It's almost overwhelming!

Thus was spent our first day. I can't load enough pics in here to show you all the great stuff. I'm going to try to post pics of the unusual sights of Rome, not just the predictable ones. Stay tuned!

Reading Roundup

This has been an eventful reading week - well, as eventful as reading can be...

-I finished Eat, Pray, Love over the weekend and was greatly impressed. It's rare to find a motivational book on self-discovery that starts so despondantly, especially one that leaves the reader with a profound sense of hope. This is how Ms. Gilbert left her readers and I'm grateful to her for sharing these very personal experiences with all of us. I would recommend this one to anyone who is searching for happiness through spiritual means. And through the sights, sounds, and tastes of Italy - which can also be spiritual!

-Also finished (finally!) was Graham Greene's The Heart of the Matter. I must say this, Greene always surprises me in the end and this one did not disappoint in that regard. It was interesting but this one falls into a solid third after A Burnt-Out Case and The End of the Affair. Next on the Greene list (according to Dr. M) is Brighton Rock. It's has been ordered but will have to wait until after Italy.

-In honor of Italy, I've started Roma: The Novel of Ancient Rome by Steven Saylor. Saylor writes the Roma Sub Rosa mystery series of Ancient Rome, which I love, and this is the first book I've read of his without those familiar characters. It's a bit strange to be without them. It's also strange to encounter - for the umpteenth time - the history of Rome, this time told with a few fictional characters thrown in for narration purposes. It's troublesome to my psyche that this history is now a bit boring to me, after studying it for so long...it's like I'm watching the movie of my favorite book and I'm not quite into it.... However, I'm still reading. Saylor has a gift for historical fiction and his knowledge is truly gigantic - his work is always fascinating to read. But I miss Gordianus and his sub rosa adventures...sigh.

I have one book picked out to take to Rome and it's highly relevant for the trip. I'll share it with you later. For now, that's what is on bookshelf.

Gilbert's Idea of Italy

In Eat, Pray, Love (EPL), Elizabeth Gilbert, while describing Sicily, finally comes to a realization regarding Italy, which has been conquered, abandoned, re-conquered, suppressed, and conquered again, and it has to do with beauty: "You were given life; it is your duty (and also your entitlement as a human being) to find something beautiful within life, no matter how slight" (115). This is what Italians do and what Americans are, perhaps, too busy to do.

And this is why Gilbert seeks out Italy as her first destination in EPL - she wants to learn how to find pleasure in life. It sounds so much easier than it really is! In our day-to-day lives, when we must hurry to work, hurry home, hurry to make dinner, and end up just plain exhausted, when do we see this elusive beauty? When do we experience it? It is not often that we can just be long enough to absorb a perfect afternoon...to sit, surrounded by flowers, and try to pinpoint each different flower amidst all the smells.

The Italians, in Gilbert's mind, can do this; they can live in the moment. For me, the perfect way to describe their state of mind is the siesta - that wonderful break in the day after lunch. They don't let work get in the way of pleasure. Americans are generally consumed with work. We say we are happy, that this work makes us happy but maybe, just maybe, we have not learned how to experience real pleasure. I don't know, but it's food for thought.

Later, when she leaves Italia, Gilbert writes, "I came to Italy pinched and thin. I did not know yet what I deserved. I still maybe don't fully know what I deserve. But I do know that I have collected myself of late--through the enjoyment of harmless pleasures--into somebody much more intact. The easiest, most fundamentally human way to say it is that I have put on weight. I exist more now that I did four months ago. I will leave Italy noticeably bigger than when I arrived here. And I will leave with the hope that the expansion of one person--the magnification of one life--is indeed an act of worth in this world. Even if that life, just this one time, happens to be nobody's but my own" (115-116).

Giovanni Laterano

Another complaint I have about ANGELS AND DEMONS, the movie....

In the beginning, when they're off to the Pantheon, a policeman says it's "the oldest Christian church in Rome."

Well, I hate to bust Dan Brown's bubble (not!) but this is a well-known fallacy. The Basilica of San Giovanno in Laterano (John Laterano) is the oldest Christian church in Rome, the first of Constantine's churches, built in the fourth century. It was followed by the Vatican (yes, it was second), San Clemente, San Paolo fuori le Mura, and then Maria Maggiore. There were a few other churches in there, but they're no longer extant. I guess you could argue that the Pantheon was the oldest building converted into a Christian church, but I think that's cheating - and so do the experts.

John Laterano has had a few make-overs, including a completely re-done Baroque exterior in the 18th century (it also got an obelisk, moved from the Circus Maximus, for its piazza - the biggest obelisk in Rome, in fact, Dan Brown). This church - and palace - is the Bishop of Rome's seat. When you step foot inside it's perimeter, you leave Rome and enter the Vatican, as the Bishop of Rome is the Vicar of Christ aka the Pope.

Of the churches mentioned above, Santa Maria Maggiore is the most well preserved (though it also got a new facade). To step inside this church is to see a fifth century basilica - just ignore the Conquistador's gold. I've heard said that there are a hundred churches in Rome dedicated to Mary alone, but this one is the biggest, the oldest, the Maggiore.

On a side note, I must wish my bestest friend, AL, a very happy birthday. For ten years - and three weeks in confined hotel rooms in Europe - she's been there for me, a constant joy and inspiration. I can't imagine an existence without her; life would be way too boring! I love you, hon!

Our Beloved Mikey

I named him Michelangelo when he was tiny, before we knew that he would be the exact opposite of the temperamental painter/sculptor.... We brought him home and took him outside, where he looked at grass for the first time, and proceeded to hop in it, like a bunny.... When he was a baby, he slept in our arms and was the cutest thing you ever saw... He was a workaholic, soon taking over Sparky's guard duties... He protected us, quite diligently, from those pesky cars... He was unsure about men and always tried to protect us... He was always by our side, always wanting to be loved and to lick our ears... He was beautiful... He loved endlessly and was pure joy...

As I watch Syb sleep close by, I wonder what humans did to deserve such faithful companions. These creatures bring such joy, such beauty to our lives for such a short time. They bless us and care for us, all under the guise of us taking care of them. They are light amidst so much darkness.

Rest in peace, Mikey. We are so blessed you spent your years with us. We love you.

(Pic: Mikey's standing up and Sparky's laying down - two beautiful boys!)