Hi!
So I've been back in the US for three or so days now and I have to say I am glad to be home. I got home around 11:30pm on June 28, making it so I was up for nearly 24 hours straight on that day.
Our last few days in Italy were semi-uneventful. We saw one last museum and revisited a few favorite spots like the Pantheon and the best coffee and gelato places.
Flying out of Rome was an interesting experience. All flights to the US are out of Terminal 5. The only way to get to Terminal 5 is by shuttle. My flight was delayed a little over an hour and my gate was changed 3 times before boarding. Its actually pretty lucky Terminal 5 is so small, simply because it made finding the new gates easy. Despite the delay and the gate changes, my flights went smoothly; I got home, as did all of my luggage.
My time in Rome was absolutely amazing. I saw so many phenomenal sites and was part of an amazing project that will hopefully be continuing over the next few years.
I do have to say though, that before returning to Italy, I'm learning some basic Italian.
But until then, "ciao" will do.
Ciao!
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Monday, June 25, 2012
Out with a Win
Our last weekend in Rome is over and today is one of our 3 work days we have left before we leave on Thursday to come home.
On Saturday we went to Hadrian's Villa. The site was very pretty, very big, and full of tourists. The architecture was astounding. They also had an Antonius exhibit open. Antonius was Hadrian's lover, and after Antonius' died (he drowned in the Nile under mysterious circumstances), Hadrian deified Antonius. There are tons and tons of statues of Antonius and we got to see a few of the really well known statues in the exhibit.
On Sunday we decided to take it easy and just wander around the city again. We went in the Pantheon and then shopped in a few stores. I FINALLY managed to find a few presents for people, which was a definite plus to the trip on Sunday.
Also on Sunday was the Quarterfinal of the Euro Cup between Italy and England. The game was very close! It even went into Penalty Kicks...the first game of the tournament to have to go into PKs so far. Italy managed to win the game and they will be playing Germany in the Semi-Finals on the 28th.
And with Italy's win, the weekend came to an end, and now its time to get ready for the last few days of work.
Ciao.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Recap
Good Morning!
It's Sunday morning here in Italy. We have four more days left on the trip, including today. This past week was super busy because the trip is coming to a close. So. To fill you in on what we did:
Last weekend we went to the Capitoline museum, which had an amazing collection. It's where so many famous statues are kept... like this one of the wolf feeding Remus and Romulus.
Despite all the amazing statues, my favorite part of the museum was a special exhibit they had while we were there. It was called Lux in Arcana: the Vatican Secret Archives Reveals Itself. The exhibit was really cool. It had a ton of old documents, such as letters, decrees from the pope, and some books as well. One of the documents that I thought was really cool, was a letter from Abraham Lincoln to the Pope. And even more amazing to see was the Pope's decree to excommunicate Martin Luther! The Lux in Arcana exhibit was beyond amazing.
After seeing the Capitoline over the weekend, we went back to work, where we started to make the 3D model of Cosa. We had an expert on AutoCad working with us, and we managed to get the terrain and the Arx modeled. Over the last few days of work we will be just touching up the current model.
On Wednesday night, my friend and I realized (through facebook posts of course) that we were both in Rome! Unfortunately it was her last night, so I only got to see her once, but it was so much fun. We went to the river front festival along the Tiber and walked around the Trestavere. The festival was really cool. There were tons and tons of tents set up. A lot of them had food, others were selling jewelry or clothing, and a few were selling movies and books. There were so many people that it was hard to see everything, but we still tried.
When we finished with the river festival, we walked around the Trestavere and I bought gelato (I couldn't resist!). The Trestavere was also packed. It seemed to be a lot of locals, most around the same age as us. It was definitely a fun night.
Now its time for breakfast and the day to start!
Ciao!
Friday, June 15, 2012
COSA!
Hi!
So today has been absolutely AMAZING. We went to Cosa today to see the excavation site (and what exactly we will be making a model of). The site is gorgeous. I mean pictures can barely capture how gorgeous the site is. I don't even enjoy taking pictures and I could not stop taking them.
For the past two weeks we have been working with pottery from the Cosa excavations, as well as organizing the information we have about Cosa. Finally getting to see everything in person today was extremely exciting. We left our apartment at 7am, drove for nearly 2 hours, grabbed some coffee, and then began wandering. The first thing we saw when we arrived at the site was the wall. It was pretty intimidating, as it was supposed to be. During ancient times being on the coast was nice, but also pretty dangerous.
Once we got past the wall, we spent the day wandering around the site and taking pictures of anything and
everything. Even just the trees.
And... after spending the morning trekking all over the site, we got to go to the beach for a few hours. I was armed with LOTS of sunscreen.
And now its time for dinner.
So today has been absolutely AMAZING. We went to Cosa today to see the excavation site (and what exactly we will be making a model of). The site is gorgeous. I mean pictures can barely capture how gorgeous the site is. I don't even enjoy taking pictures and I could not stop taking them.
 |
| The View |
For the past two weeks we have been working with pottery from the Cosa excavations, as well as organizing the information we have about Cosa. Finally getting to see everything in person today was extremely exciting. We left our apartment at 7am, drove for nearly 2 hours, grabbed some coffee, and then began wandering. The first thing we saw when we arrived at the site was the wall. It was pretty intimidating, as it was supposed to be. During ancient times being on the coast was nice, but also pretty dangerous.
Once we got past the wall, we spent the day wandering around the site and taking pictures of anything and
everything. Even just the trees.
And... after spending the morning trekking all over the site, we got to go to the beach for a few hours. I was armed with LOTS of sunscreen.
And now its time for dinner.
Ciao!
 |
| Here is the view from the afternoon at the beach |
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Tuesday in Rome
Buona Sera!
So I know its Wednesday night, and my title says Tuesday, but thats just because I am really slow at posting. Yesterday (Tuesday!) we went to the Vatican after work. We got the entire afternoon off so we could go on the trip, and I have to say, the Vatican was pretty big and needed the extra time.
There was soooo much to see, and so many of the pieces were in my Roman Art book for a class I took this semester. They were much more impressive in person...like this one:
So many of the rooms themselves were breath-taking as well. There were tons of walls and ceiling just absolutely covered with artwork. I have to say my favorite things to look at are the statues. They have such a commanding presence, and they don't even have all the details they used to (like color).
My favorite statue from the Vatican was the one of Laocoon (pictured below). Maybe its just because I read his story (which I highly recommend doing) but the emotion is so vivid. The statue depicts Laocoon's and his sons' deaths. Laocoon was a Trojan priest who warned against allowing the Trojan horse into the city (he obviously failed to convince enough people). Minerva, in her anger with Laocoon because she was siding with the Greeks, sent giant serpents to kill Laocoon and his two sons. This statue depicts his and his sons death. The statue has so much emotion and just draws you in.
So I know its Wednesday night, and my title says Tuesday, but thats just because I am really slow at posting. Yesterday (Tuesday!) we went to the Vatican after work. We got the entire afternoon off so we could go on the trip, and I have to say, the Vatican was pretty big and needed the extra time.
There was soooo much to see, and so many of the pieces were in my Roman Art book for a class I took this semester. They were much more impressive in person...like this one:
So many of the rooms themselves were breath-taking as well. There were tons of walls and ceiling just absolutely covered with artwork. I have to say my favorite things to look at are the statues. They have such a commanding presence, and they don't even have all the details they used to (like color).
My favorite statue from the Vatican was the one of Laocoon (pictured below). Maybe its just because I read his story (which I highly recommend doing) but the emotion is so vivid. The statue depicts Laocoon's and his sons' deaths. Laocoon was a Trojan priest who warned against allowing the Trojan horse into the city (he obviously failed to convince enough people). Minerva, in her anger with Laocoon because she was siding with the Greeks, sent giant serpents to kill Laocoon and his two sons. This statue depicts his and his sons death. The statue has so much emotion and just draws you in.
Its getting late here, and Germany vs. Netherlands is on right now.
Ciao!
Monday, June 11, 2012
Week 2
Good Morning!
Today is the start of the second work week here in Italy.
Last week at work was pretty interesting. We worked on organizing material from the original excavation of Cosa...which means we went through boxes and boxes of ancient Roman pottery, and as a Classics major, that's pretty cool...at first. By Friday, we had seen so much of the pottery, the work was getting repetitive.
This week we will finish up organizing the material (there was A TON) and then on Friday we will make a trip to Cosa to see the actual site! I'm really excited for the trip. So far we've only seen pictures of the site, and just those look gorgeous, I can't wait to see it in person.
This weekend was the start of the Euro Cup, and I have to say Spain vs. Italy was the best game so far. I'm really excited to watch Italy's next two games.
Time for work!
Ciao
PS here's a picture from a museum we went to on Saturday... the museum was pretty small, but obviously not all of its pieces were....
Today is the start of the second work week here in Italy.
Last week at work was pretty interesting. We worked on organizing material from the original excavation of Cosa...which means we went through boxes and boxes of ancient Roman pottery, and as a Classics major, that's pretty cool...at first. By Friday, we had seen so much of the pottery, the work was getting repetitive.
This week we will finish up organizing the material (there was A TON) and then on Friday we will make a trip to Cosa to see the actual site! I'm really excited for the trip. So far we've only seen pictures of the site, and just those look gorgeous, I can't wait to see it in person.
This weekend was the start of the Euro Cup, and I have to say Spain vs. Italy was the best game so far. I'm really excited to watch Italy's next two games.
Time for work!
Ciao
PS here's a picture from a museum we went to on Saturday... the museum was pretty small, but obviously not all of its pieces were....
Monday, June 4, 2012
June 3-4
Hi!
I'm sorry I did not post sooner about the trip to the forum, but yesterday and today have been absolutely packed with activities and I did not get the chance to write!
So... let me start with yesterday:
On Sunday, I got my very first glimpse of the forum. It was amazing. As a classics major, you spend so much time hearing about the forum, its importance, and the different buildings that can be found there, and to finally see it, was just wow.
One of the really awesome things about our trip to the forum was that Professor Scott (Bryn Mawr University) led our tour. Professor Scott was actually one of the archaeologists that excavated the site of the Vestal Virgins found in the Roman forum. We honestly must have spent an hour in just that part of the forum (and the forum is huge).
Here's a picture of the Vestal Virgin's area:
Despite how tired we were from spending so much time at the forum on Sunday, we started work at the American Academy in Rome bright and early this (Monday) morning. The building is gorgeous, inside and out, and don't even get me started on the library. I am in love with that building, like seriously. The library has soooo much in it, and you could wander it for hours without getting bored...and I probably would if I didn't have other work to do.
ALSO, after work today, we went to the Colosseum. A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. There is so much history there, and the structure itself is monstrously huge. I can't even begin to comprehend all that went into making it after seeing it in person.
Looking at history sites is such a mix of emotions. There's a sadness in the loss of parts such as missing arms or even heads of the statues, because you will never see them in the complete grandiosity that they were made to be seen in. But there is a joy too, in seeing those structures, even with missing parts, because after viewing them through a projected screen for so long, you forget that despite their aging, the structures and statues are so breath-taking, that you can't help but be grateful that there is even that much of it left.
It is getting late here, and work starts early tomorrow morning.
Until later,
Ciao.
P.S. Lesson for the day--if you're in an Italian grocery store, asking for help to find the baking powder, don't start mixing up your Spanish with Italian...
I'm sorry I did not post sooner about the trip to the forum, but yesterday and today have been absolutely packed with activities and I did not get the chance to write!
So... let me start with yesterday:
On Sunday, I got my very first glimpse of the forum. It was amazing. As a classics major, you spend so much time hearing about the forum, its importance, and the different buildings that can be found there, and to finally see it, was just wow.
One of the really awesome things about our trip to the forum was that Professor Scott (Bryn Mawr University) led our tour. Professor Scott was actually one of the archaeologists that excavated the site of the Vestal Virgins found in the Roman forum. We honestly must have spent an hour in just that part of the forum (and the forum is huge).
Here's a picture of the Vestal Virgin's area:
Despite how tired we were from spending so much time at the forum on Sunday, we started work at the American Academy in Rome bright and early this (Monday) morning. The building is gorgeous, inside and out, and don't even get me started on the library. I am in love with that building, like seriously. The library has soooo much in it, and you could wander it for hours without getting bored...and I probably would if I didn't have other work to do.
ALSO, after work today, we went to the Colosseum. A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. There is so much history there, and the structure itself is monstrously huge. I can't even begin to comprehend all that went into making it after seeing it in person.
Looking at history sites is such a mix of emotions. There's a sadness in the loss of parts such as missing arms or even heads of the statues, because you will never see them in the complete grandiosity that they were made to be seen in. But there is a joy too, in seeing those structures, even with missing parts, because after viewing them through a projected screen for so long, you forget that despite their aging, the structures and statues are so breath-taking, that you can't help but be grateful that there is even that much of it left.
It is getting late here, and work starts early tomorrow morning.
Until later,
Ciao.
P.S. Lesson for the day--if you're in an Italian grocery store, asking for help to find the baking powder, don't start mixing up your Spanish with Italian...
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