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Day 10 - Arrivederci Italy!5/5/2018 In hindsight, going to a bar the night before our flight wasn't the smartest idea but luckily we all woke up and made it to breakfast the next day. Clearly we were all upset about leaving but it really hadn't hit me yet. I made sure to triple check our room so I didn't forget anything and be that guy who left something in the hotel. Little did we know that once we got on the bus to the airport, Maria and Heather realized they left their passports in the hotel and so we had to turn around. Nice going guys. I wasn't going to complain though, it just meant one more look at the Colosseum as we were leaving.
Rallying at the airport and getting through security, we had about an hour and a half to explore the Rome airport and all we could of Italy before departure. That just meant one last time to eat Italian gelato which was exactly what I did. Some of us tried scouring the airport for some more souvenirs, only discovering all of them to be 4 times the price than they were back in Rome. Nice try Roman airport capitalism but we were not going to bite. Eventually it was time to board our 8 hour flight back to JFK. I took this time to do some reflection on the trip in general. A lot of people back home get so carried away in the day to day tendencies of everyday American life that amazing cultures like the ones we were exposed to become lost in their thoughts. It was scary to think that a good amount of people would prioritize minor material possessions like cars and clothes over priceless experiences like the one I just had. I could think of so many of my friends that have lived such sheltered lives, subjected only to suburban culture, that would have a truly unique perspective at life when exposed to experiences like this. To realize the American way of life isn't the only way of life. I promised myself to get everyone else back in Cincinnati as inspired as possible about my tales in Italy to hopefully spark some passion for travel in them. The flight was pretty brutal considering the person occupying the seat next to me had their light on for the entire duration of the flight, eliminating any option of in flight sleep. Luckily, immigration into JFK was fast and efficient. TSA however was annoying and long, with a line that seemingly never ended. It didn't help matters that we were on a pretty tight schedule. Luckily, everyone made it to the flight without any mishaps and no people left behind. We crowded the back of the plane and anxiously awaited our return home. A quick two hours later and we touched down in Cincinnati. The whole trip seemed like such a dream. Did we really go to Rome? See the Colosseum? Toss a coin into the Trevi Fountain? Eat gelato on a Naples beach? Walk the ruins of Pompeii? Climb the St Peters Cupola? It all seemed so surreal. Yet here we were, back in Cincinnati after one of the most memorable weeks of my life. I claimed my luggage with no hassle awaiting my roommate who was on her way to pick me up. I made it a point to show her all my pictures, including Dr Swansons stellar candid photography. I passed out as soon I got home, dreaming of cold gelato and warm Italian pizza.
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Day 9 - Final day blues5/4/2018 Our alarm was blaring at 6am, reminding us of our early commitment to climb the St Peters cupula. It also reminded us that it was our last day of exploring here in Rome. Now was not the time for sentiment though, it was time for breakfast. The twelve of us who decided to climb rallied in the hotel lobby and took the subway to the Vatican. If I stressed how bad we looked yesterday, we were 5 times worse this morning. These early mornings kept haunting us. Gathering at the giant courtyard, I saw what was arguably the longest line I had ever seen. And we had to get to the back of it. Luckily we were moving at a decent pace and the line itself only took about 45 minutes. I didn't know why we were groaning because we had 551 steps to climb to reach the top so this clearly won't be the worst part of this excursion. The climb clearly set us apart from all the other tourists because it made sense that American group had to obnoxiously run up the steps to see who could get to the top first all while screaming the UC fight song. This lasted a good 100 steps until we realized how feeble it was to keep up such goals. Chests heaving and legs sore, we finally reached the top of the cupola for the best view of Rome in all the city. You could see the entire city and all of its featured monuments in this tiny gated cage on the cupola and it was an incredible sight to behold. I was glad we did this last as I was able to spot so may key monuments and buildings I previously would not have known of. After basking in the view and taking our mandatory group picture with the UC flag (in case the people around us still didn't know how American we were), we started the descent. The other half of our group that opted out of the early climb (weaklings) and our professors informed us of their whereabouts and left it up to us to get to them. Well since I had no service I left it up to the rest of our group. I was happy being the blind follower in this situation. Our last day was dedicated to some of the churches we missed on the other days. Despite the immenseness and the beauty of the St Peters basilica, all of these churches had something beautiful about them and learning more and more about the history of them makes this trip so much more complete. After each passing church, I grow a deeper appreciation for the arts and how it influenced Rome to become the historic city. After one last group picture, we were dismissed one last time and headed off to have our last lunch in Rome. I NEEDED to take a nap when we headed back to the hotel and so I did, collapsing immediately for a power nap. Some of us decided we were going to spend the last night going back to the Ice Bar we tried out the first day. After my half power nap, I decided to explore the surrounding areas by myself and grab some dinner. It was more of a moment for me to reflect on this week, everything I'd learned and how it was going to influence me in everything I did in the coming years. After eating my last Italian pizza, I made it back to the hotel to get ready with everyone to head out to the bar. It was another memorable night in the books and I couldn't think of a better way to wrap up this week than with the people who made this experience so much fun. Our only regret was not getting Dr Swanson and Dr Rassati with us but there's always time back in Cincinnati for that.
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Day 8 - Into the Holy City5/3/2018 This day started at the ungodly time of 7:30 because we had to get to the Vatican line early. The lack of sleep was painfully apparent in everyone's eyes at breakfast but we were all dressed for the occasion as it isn't everyday that we get to get into the Vatican and St Peters Church. Getting through an incredibly long security line, we finally made it into the holy city we made our way to the Vatican museums. One would expect me to be fed up with museums but my newfound passion for the arts and the history of this time captured my attention. Each hallway was as incredible as the last one each with their own themes. There were hallways with paintings, sculptures, tapestries and even with a map of each region of Italy made centuries ago. In the thick crowd, I found myself walking with my mouth open in awe (and admittedly some fatigue induced yawning). As the hallways came to a close, we were nearing the highlight of the musuem and one of the most iconic rooms in the Vatican., the Sistine Chapel. Arguably one of Michelangelo's greatest works, the Sistine Chapel houses his famous ceiling art and the Last Judgement. Sitting proudly at the altar of the chapel, the Last Judgement depicted scenes of Christ judging all of humanity, determining whether they would go to heaven or hell. The ceiling depicted scenes from the Book of Genesis centralized around the Creation of Adam. Fun fact I learned about the ceiling art, since the scaffolding was above the windows when Michelangelo painted them, he essentially painted one of the most famous pieces of Renaissance Art IN THE DARK. That is unbelievable. Not to mention the 3-D design around the edges that gave the illusion to someone on the floor of the chapel that there were sculptures on the ceilings, when it was just the trickery of painting. The chapels was packed with tourists with aching necks from staring at the ceiling too long and security screaming at the occasional tourist who would snap a picture even though it was prohibited. After trying hard to take a mental photograph of what was around of me, we shuffled our way out of the Chapel and into St Peters Basilica. Remember when I said each church was better than the next in some way? This took the cake. The St Peters Basillica looked like something out of the gates of heaven itself. The entire place looked godly, adorned with sculptures made of bronze and marble and the most beautiful paintings I had seen since. The high ceilings, bronze arches, gleaming columns; I could go on and on. It must have been extremely overwhelming to some because I distinctly remember a child throwing up on the marble floor out of nowhere. Needless to say, we spent a good amount of time in here absorbing everything that was happening around us. Its too bad we never got to see Pope Francis but you win some you lose some. We must have missed the rain outside because it was pouring outside. We were also very hungry and we assumed at this point that lunch was pretty imminent. We were wrong. Walking away from St Peters we were directed toward the Castel Saint Angelo. The castle's intended purpose was to be a mausoleum for Hadrian but was later used by the popes as a fortress. Walking the walls of the castle made me feel like I was in an episode of Game of Thrones. We rallied to the tower of the castle for the view of Rome and for Winnie to give her presentation. Little did we know that not only would she interrupted by a family that, for whatever reason, wanted to take family pictures exactly where she was standing and by a wedding proposal that happened out of nowhere. She really couldn’t catch a break. In a way, neither could we as the fatigue was really apparent in all our eyes now. It was nearing 3PM and we were tired and we still had not stopped for food. Luckily, we wrapped up pretty quickly from there, thanked our wonderful tour guide for all the she had done for us and were on our way roaming the streets of Rome in search of any food whatsoever. After finishing our pizza in record time, we headed back to the hotel so I could pass out for the next four hours at least. Some of us wanted to see the critically acclaimed forum at dark since we heard they had light projections displaying what the forum looked like in ancient times. Naturally, with our luck, we arrived to discover the lights off due to the rain. Determined on not letting this excursion go to waste, the five of us decided to roam the streets. After a stop at what was going to be our last gelato store in Rome, we hopped on to the Metro to ride back. We needed all the sleep we could get as some of us made the decision to climb the cupula at St Peter, the highest point in Rome. This meant we needed to be at the Basillica at a crisp 7am. Fun. I went to sleep muttering "When In Rome" over and over again.
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Day 7 - Sculptures and Soccer5/3/2018 We started the day off just how I would have wanted it, on the subway. Yes, I really love public transportation. It may have something to do with the fact that I'm 20 years old and still can't drive. This commute was different to yesterday's in the fact that we noticed people wearing a lot more red and gold. This was because today was the day AS Roma was to face Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League Semifinal in Rome. A couple of us had tentative plans to go to the stadium to try to get some tickets to this once in a lifetime opportunity. Until then, it was time to dive into Rome's history, starting off with the Spanish Steps located in the aptly named Piazza de Spagna. I began to grow quite fond of the numerous Piazzas Rome had to offer. The communal town square locations brought the city together and gave the people a nice open atmosphere to congregate in, similar to the Forum in Rome. Climbing the Spanish steps and making our way around the gardens, expertly avoiding a film set as well, we eventually descended back into the Piazza del Popolo, with this Piazza featuring a giant obelisk courtesy of Egypt. It shocked me to discover that there were more obelisks currently in Rome than there were in Egypt. It was also interesting to know that the Piazza del Popolo literally translated into the People's Square, further stressing to me how important squares like this are to big cities. Breaking for lunch gave us a little more time to explore the area and do some window shopping because there was no way I was about to drop $400 on a Gucci belt as that was the only type of stores around us. Regardless, it was nice to see modern day globalization meld so harmoniously with the history of Rome. Walking back to the hotel for a short rest, it was back on a bus for us as we headed to the Villa Borghese. The gardens around the villa in itself were remarkable, stretching to acres with walking lanes cutting through them. After a quick presentation on the Villa, we headed inside ot view the priceless artwork it housed. I thought the work I saw in the musuem in Naples was incredible but I did not expect what was in store for me in the Borghese gallery. This place displayed numerous intricate sculptures and paintings depicting tales and stories. From artists such as Bernini, Raphael and, arguably my favorite, Caravaggio, the work on show was of a caliber I had never expected. Bernini showed me how his legacy didn't stop with his fountains as I saw numerous sculptures he carved especially the one of David depicting him in the throwing motion to throw his rock at Goliath. The baroque style of art had really impressed me. The emotion and attention to detail in the baroque work moved me and told a story. This was also on display with the numerous works of Caravaggio. The dark backgrounds, singular light source, realistic models and emotion in the Caravaggio paintings commanded my attention. There were numerous other priceless works of arts on display, enough for me to go on about for days. Concluding our visit to the Borghese Palace, we were off to the Baths of Caracalla. Getting here was bittersweet because I wanted to explore the famous bathhouses but some of us were to peel off to try and grab tickets to the Roma game at the stadium. After hearing the presentation on the bathhouses, a few of us grabbed a bus to Roma stadium. The atmosphere was absolutely incredible. Fans streamed in in never ending horde cheering and screaming. Fireworks were lit and complicated Roma chants were being bellowed. There was so much happening around us it took a while to take it all in. We tried hard to find to find someone to scalp tickets for the six of us, but with the hype of the game, prices were upward of 200 euros which was too rich for our blood. We decided to take a bus (see how much we love public transport?) to a pub that was infamous for soccer traditions. Little did we know this was an Irish pub with a strong Liverpool fan base. Considering the situation, we concluded it was alright switch allegiances for the unique experience of an English bar. And it delivered. It was almost like the hype of the stadium was concentrated into this bar. After some cheering, screaming and admittedly a few pints later, Liverpool came out victorious and so, in hindsight, it was a smart idea to come to the pub. After the game, we took the metro back to the hotel for some much needed rest after a long day in preparation for the Vatican the next day.
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Day 6 - Fun with Fountains5/2/2018 After last nights antics, waking up this morning didn't make the top ten experiences in Rome. However, the show had to go on and it was only day three, there was so much more of Rome to see. The feature of this day were Bernini's fountains. Peeking outside it looked like it was going to be a rainy day and I had no umbrella or raincoat. Great. Getting our metro passes for the first time was an exciting thought. We'd kept an active streak of not stepping into a car in Italy and I was intent on keeping it alive. Being a really big fan of public transport, a city like Rome with all possible forms of public transport under the sun was heaven to me and I was excited to try them all. We took the subway to our first fountain stop at the Piazza Barberini, the Fontana delle Api and the Fontana del Tritone. The beautiful sculpting of this fountain was only a taste of Bernini's works we were about to experience. To think the Romans fashioned these fountains via the aqueducts running through the city was a statement of Roman engineering at its best. Being commissioned by the Barberini family, each sculpture was adorned with the three bee sigil of the family of Barberini. Maneuvering the streets of Rome, we eventually made it to Bernin's arguably most famous fountain work, the Trevi Fountain. The complexity of the fountain was quite overwhelming at first sight. Adorned with sculptures of ancient legends, the fountain beamed with power. There was also the age old tradition of tossing a coin into the fountain to ensure a second visit to Rome. To then repeat the cycle once again of course. What I did learn is that over 2000 euros were collected every day and were sent to charities so it was heartwarming to hear the influence this fountain had on ancient Roman civilization and today's society. I was also amused by the high volume of police officers watching out for the occasional naked streaker who would jump into the fountain. Before breaking for lunch, we stopped at the Fountain of the Four Rivers located in front of the Church of St Agnes. This fountain really impressed me, not because of the fact that there was a giant obelisk sitting on top of it, but for the emotions on display in the personifications of the four rivers in human form surrounding the fountain. With each statue representing a major continent and its river (Africa, Europe, Asia and America), I was impressed to the attention to detail Bernini put into each face and its movement in true baroque fashion. We stepped into the Church of St Agnes after a quick lunch. There was something about this church of the ones we'd seen before that I was entranced by. Was it the beautiful chapels? The use of intricate sculptures instead of painting to decorate the church? It could have also been the fact that there were signs in front of the sculptures depicting what was happening that gave me a closer connection to the art in front of me. There was also the part that the Church had the actual skull of St Agnes inside a chapel after she was beheaded over a 1000 years ago that really puzzled me. Nevertheless, the entire experience stuck in my head more so than other churches we had seen thus far. After this, it was time to visit one of Rome's more heralded and iconic monuments, the Pantheon. The giant temple was an incredible piece of architechture once the central place of worship for all the main gods of Rome, although it currently functions as a church. Completed by Emperor Hadrian, it was one of the more well preserved buildings of all of Ancient Rome. I was especially impressed with the giant concrete dome situated on top of the temple that people would not notice as easily. The hole in the center of the dome let light in an almost holy manner from the heavens although it wasn't the greatest strategy during rainy days like the day we were having. Nevertheless, this herald of Ancient Roman architechture was truly a sigh to see. After a continued evening exploring some iconic churches, we broke off the day. I had to give special props to Dr Swanson and Dr Rassatti for walking away from the group to film Dr Swanson flawlessly sliding down a set of stairs that some of the kids in our group failed at. Major style points for that. We were in Europe and we knew how much Europeans loved soccer so some of us ventured out to find someplace to eat and watch the UEFA Champions League Semi-final match between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. Our first attempt to do this at a popular Irish pub was cut short when Gus and I were denied entry for wearing sweatpants. Being a bizarre rule we had not heard of before, we walked our frustrated and hungry bodies to a nearby restaurant to delve into some good soccer. Rome's local team (AS Roma) was to play the next day against Liverpool and the winner of this days game was to decide who would face the winner of Roma and Liverpool in the finals. It clearly seemed like many of the locals wanted to see Real Madrid come out victorious and so I buried my appreciation for Bayern temporarily. After a great dinner and a Real Madrid victory, we stumbled upon the Trevi Fountain again and it was a completely different sight at night as it was lit up. We capped off the long day with a stop at a gelato store with over 150 flavors of gelato! Needless to say, we were dead set on visiting this place more often, maybe not to try EVERY flavor but with all of us we sure could put a dent on at least a decent amount of flavors.
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After a good first night's rest in Rome, it was boots on the ground for a lot of exploration of Rome with our guide, Dotty. The day started off at, once again, the arguably most iconic building in Rome, the Colosseum. I've already marveled at the engineering prior to this but standing there for the second time in two days wasn't any less overwhelming. After a brief explanation of its history (I did now know the Colosseum was named after the Colossus statue of Nero), we were granted entry into the building. The same wave of fear came over me as it did in the amphitheater in Pompeii. On tis ground, tens of thousands of men and wild animals were slaughtered either by execution, hunting and even death match. I looked around at the stands and pictured 50,000+ Roman senators, nobles and commoners screaming and shouting in the heat of the games, cheering for their favorite competitors. The next few hours were spent on the hill where the former emperors of Rome watched over their people, the Paletine Hill. Via the Paletine Hill, we were able to see almost all of the ruins of ancient Rome. Starting off with a spectacular view of the Circus Maximus, we made our way through former homes of emperors such as Nero, Augustus and Marcus Aurelius. Eventually, we made our way to what was once the heart of Rome, the Forum. Hearing all the tales surrounding the forums, such as the history of the Vestal Virgins and the Temple of Vestia with its brazier that was to never extinguish, Julius Caesar's murder and ascension to become the Divine Julius and tales of infamous rulers such as Cleopatra, Augustus and Marc Antony made me stop and try to take it all in. All of this happened right here in front of us and here we were standing and walking over where the Romans of ancient times walked, talked and thrived (until their downfall that is but such is history). After a long afternoon of roaming the Forum and its rich history, it was time to break for lunch and off to visit some of Rome's famous churches for the first time this trip. My experiences with churches in general was minimal not being Catholic. However, after seeing some of these churches, the bar has been set very high. These were some of the most beautifully churches (and buildings) I had seen. The chapels, naves and altars were all unique in their own beautiful artistic ways and all of them were an incredible sight to see. We only had time to visit a handful of them, namely the San Pietro in Vincoli and Castro Pretorio, but I knew there was more to come and I was anxious for the next few days to discover what was to come. It had finally come time to explore Rome's night life and we had heard of a very popular club allegedly made of ice. With our curiosity getting the better of us, we decided to go out and explore this aptly called "Ice Club". It delivered. The entire bar was made of ice. Complete with ice sculptures of the Caesars, ice walls and even glasses made of ice, this visit was truly one for the books. This in addition to a very Irish bartender who entertained us with hilarious tales and the occasional free round of drinks made for a really unique experience. Were we going to have some regret in the morning for staying up late? Maybe but the motto for the week was "When in Rome" and we weren't going to fail it now.
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Day 4 - Napoli to Roma4/29/2018 Bright and early start to the day to visit the Archeological Museum in Naples. It was also our last day in Naples which meant Gus and I were obviously trailing behind because we waited till the last minute to pack. Luckily we got to the elevator just as Dr Swanson was coming up to herd us so it didn't technically count as us being late. After the past few days of walking in the beating sun, the museum offered a cool change of pace. It was also extremely interesting to watch all the original works of art preserved so meticulously. Starting off, we were introduced to some very interesting and well preserved mosaics. The patience and precision that it took to make these mosaics was clearly on display. Perhaps the most prominent of them all was the Alexander mosaic from the house of the Faun in Pompeii, depicting Alexander and his army taking on the Persians. Measuring about 3 meters by 5 meters and having lost a decent chunk of it to time, it was one of the more iconic pieces of art I had witnessed. Moving on to the erotic section, this area displayed the Roman infatuation with sex and the anatomy of male and female bodies. From sculptures of men with oversized penises to drawings of lust and love making in all positions and forms, I can honestly say I had never seen an exhibit quite like it and will likely remember it for a while. The erotic section was followed by the arts section, specifically the paintings of ancient lore. This was arguably one of my favorite parts having grown up on the incredible myths of Ancient Greek and Roman history. Watching the emotion and action captured by these painting far outweighed the tacky comic books or cheap drawings I had read in books. It was unfortunate that we didn't spend as much time at this section than I hoped but nevertheless, the show must go on. Reaching the last part of the museum, we were introduced to the sculptures. These sculptures were some of the most beautiful and intricate pieces of art I had ever seen. The marble gleamed as the statues stood mightily. Everything from statues of gods, goddesses, kings, queens and even scenes of action were proudly displayed here. My favorite would have had to be the Hercules statue situated in the Farnese section of the musuem. This Hercules stood with such power and purpose that it almost sent chills down my spine. The rest of the art was quite incredible and I could really sit here and talk about it all day. After a brief stop at the gift shop, we made our way to the bus and it was off to Rome. Rome was clearly a lot busier than Naples. Bustling streets, numerous street vendors, incredible sights and the faint smell of pizza dough and cigarettes in the air. Once checked into our hotel, it was time for a quick walking tour of the city. And what better way to start of this tour than Rome's most iconic building, the Colosseum. Towering over us at an astounding height, the Colosseum really is the trademark for the capabilities of ancient engineering. We knew we were to come back to the Colosseum the next day on actual guided tour so we didn't spend too much time here, to everyone's dismay. I knew stepping inside this incredible feat of engineering would be a humbling experience and I was excited for it. Luckily, in Rome, monuments seemed to be stacked next to one another and so we were able to hit multiple important sights in succession. Our path led us past the Arch of Constantine and the Palatine Hill (which we are also set to explore tomorrow) and ending at the Circus Maximus, where Rome's famous chariot races were held. Once the professors dismissed us, we took it upon ourselves to do a little exploring and decided to venture to Tiber Island. All the while, I kept pinching myself, convinced none of this could be real. The people, the art, the buildings, the culture; all of it seemed so alien to me. I knew I had a lot more to learn about Italy and I was excited for the journey ahead. After splitting off to find dinner, Gus and I decided to walk toward the hotel. Taking quite a few detours, we eventually arrived at a beautiful overlook of the Roman Forum! Taking a few more steps and, to our surprise, we had stumbled upon the heart of the Capitoline Hill! It truly astounded me how well the city of Rome had combined the old roots and the new buildings of the city so seamlessly to the point that anyone can stumble upon some beautiful pieces of history like we did. After taking in all the beauty of Capitoline Hill, we decided to dine at one of Rome's many hole-in-the-wall pizzerias for some wine and pizza. It took us a second to process how far we've come and how incredible this experience has been as is still about to be. Getting sufficiently stuffed, and admittedly a bit drunk, we found our way back to the hotel for a good night's sleep before what was to be our longest day in the city of Rome.
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Day 3 - The cities buried in ash4/28/2018 The jet lag induced sleeplessness and the ache in my legs from the previous days walk were real this morning. Nevertheless, after an incredible breakfast, we were off to the highlight of the day; the ancient cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. The cities buried in ash. Getting dropped off at the gates to the city of Pompeii, we were introduced to the first victims of Vesuvius' rage when it erupted in 79 AD. Citizens of Pompeii likely burned alive encased in a layer of ash that suffocated them and cooled down to solidify. After archeologists discovered the remains, plaster was poured into the holes of the remains to show an exact snapshot of the reactions in their last moments. The sight was quite fearful. This was one of those times I chose not to take pictures of what was going on in front of me. Whether it was the horror in the body language of the writhing corpses or the fact that their bones were exposed, showing the reality that this was once a human being that had real emotions and thoughts and was now a piece of art for tourists to take pictures of. Regardless, I observed the spectacle of pain in display in front of me with a curios mix of awe and shock. The cobblestone paved roads led us into the start of the tour; the amphitheater of Pompeii. Standing in the middle of the amphitheater was an intimidating experience, I looked around at the stadium that once boasted a crowds of 20,000 people that came to watch numerous spectacles in this location. I looked at the gates through which the gladiators that had fought and trained for years would walk out to face their foe of the evening. I looked at the sand below me and wondered how much blood was spilt on this spot? How many bones were crushed? How many bodies were dismembered? Shaking off the chill that crawled up my spine, we continued down the Via dell'Abbondanza toward the forum. The streets of Pompeii told numerous tales of life in early Roman civilization. These tales were preserved beautifully, and tragically, in the ash that cloud that had engulfed the city. From the stores to the villas that occupied the streets and from the signs to the political graffiti that adorned the walls, Pompeii truly was a city preserved in time. I was unable to give my presentation on Pompeii and its layout at the forum but it was affirming to witness the houses and temples I researched in front of me. Places like the Temple of Jupiter, the Villa of Mysteries, the Forum of Pompeii and the Villa of the Tragic Poet were some of these buildings where history was preserved in a timeless manner us the ability to deduce the ways of Ancient Roman life. Come night, after our return from the ancient cities, a few of us delved into some wine and Naples' pizza one last time. Despite the elementary grade Italian we had on us combined, we got through yet another interaction with the local townspeople at this restaurant. After some gelato we decided to roam the streets of Naples before our departure the next day, taking in as much of the city as we could. We made some unique observations. Firstly, we had dinner at around 7:30 in a completely empty restaurant which puzzled us. Little did we know, Italians ate their dinner at a much later time than the we did; usually around 9:30 to 10pm. These quiet restaurants started roaring with life later at night with packed tables all eating and drinking in laughter and celebration. On a quest to find some local wine, we also discovered that most stores closed around 10pm too, which we found strange. Soon we discovered the Italian passion for football (real football aka soccer). Inter Milan was playing Juventus and this was the only thing broadcasted in all TVs and heard on all radios across the strip, with neither team being a Naples native team. It must have been an appreciation for Inter Milan or hate for Juventus because as soon as Inter scored their first goal, the city erupted. There was cheering and screaming, people running around and hugging each other and wine bottles being popped in celebration. It took all of us by such shock, the happy kind of shock that is. It was like the city just won the Superbowl, but it wasn't even a local team and it was just one goal scored. When Juventus retaliated with their goal, the city was in rage and horns started blaring everywhere for a good 5 minutes. This is a city I wanted to live in; a city with this much love for sports. There was one giant comparison I kept making between life here in Naples (and even early Pompeii) and life back home and that was the social culture and how this society thrived on interactions as opposed to isolation. We live in a world where technology has made us more and more isolated, trapped in our own little bubbles. It isn't the architecture or the art we are missing back home, it’s the unwillingness to get out of our sheltered lives. The Italians embraced the social lives they lived in. Even early architecture depicted how early Greeks would start of the day and end the day at the public forum, indulging in conversation and communal meals. Somehow we as a society started to fail to understand the positive impact of this easygoing lifestyle and choose the secluded life. It's going to be very interesting to discover what this might look like when we head to Rome tomorrow.
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Day 2 - Ciao Italia4/27/2018 This day started somewhere around 8000 miles in the air with Gus' excitement to see our first bit of European land. Crossing over all that countryside and transitioning to the gorgeous mountain ranges of the Alps truly was a sight to behold. Ever Googled "scenic views"? Well to the owners of the little houses we could see scattered around that view was just a Tuesday morning peek through a window. Gawking at the view, sleep became the last of my priorities. Few more hours of flying later and we finally hit European soil, for the first time in my life too. Hustling through immigration, we got on our bus to Naples. No rest for the wicked here. Thus began my first sights of Italy. It was hard to pinpoint why but the vineyards and farmland looked almost familiar. Definitely not from an American perspective but familiar nonetheless. You could tell tis wasn't your traditional corn and soybeans that were being grown in these fields. Small villages were littered between farmland with housing that was In no way similar to those back in America. They were almost villa shaped with many of them built on varying levels of elevation. The rest of the bus ride included a lot of inner turmoil as to whether I should be catching up on much needed sleep or basking in the country around me. After a quick stop at the hotel with about 20 minutes to gather ourselves it was off to the walking tour of Naples. I had my expectations of what monuments and unique architecture I was to expect and this city blew that all out of the water. The smooth transitions from the old city to the new city, the timeless architecture, the long narrow paths, the cobblestone roads; everything had me in awe. This city gave me a new appreciation for the art and culture of the lost worlds around us. The art was subtle yet extremely striking and this was on full display in the Capella Sanservo. The sculptures and artwork in the Capella looked ageless and pure and somehow still wrought with emotion and drama. However what captured my attention the fastest was the beauty of the Veiled Christ statue laid on the nave of the museum. It depicted Jesus after he had been crucified where he had a thinly placed veil over his body. However, Jesus was still alive when he had the veil on top of him and this sculpture captures the essence of that perfectly. You can notice how the veil was sculpted to seem to be sucked in to the nostrils and the mouth of Jesus, affirming the fact that he was still alive. The intricacy of the artwork on display took my breath away and gave me new appreciation to the incredible world of Christian artwork. The emotion on display in all the sculpture and the drama captured in each sculpture face set the scene of a story being told in the silence of the sculpture. What was most enticing was the vibrancy of what was around me. The city was alive and upbeat. It was a Friday evening after all but the city was beating with energy. Kids playing football in the local town squares, school tours of the ancient museums, lovers canoodling under the setting sun on the castle walls, friends catching up in hole-in-the-wall bars for a drink and a smoke, street performers enticing passers-by with their songs. The sounds and sights of the people and life of the city was an unforgettable first experience and I hope this is the atmosphere I am going to be exposed to for the next seven days here. The day ended with dinner beside the sea for a taste of the infamous Naples pizza. It delivered. We also how far our basic math stretched in many attempts to split the bill as the restaurant itself would not do that. Gus and I finished with some gelato as we watched the streets come to life at night. It was a moment of silent reflection as I watched the city pulse with energy and I attempted to gather my thoughts on the magnitude of things I learned in my first trip to Italy as I pondered how it was going to get better than this.
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Day 1 - Smell ya later Cincy!4/26/2018 I can technically count this as day one, it is the START of the journey even if we don’t get to Italy till the 27th. Was I prepared for a 9 day trip? Of course not, I hadn't even packed. So the morning of the 26th was a frantic dash to make sure everything from my toothbrush to my underwear was packed. On the drive there, I realized I never got a data plan for Italy. Guess I was going to wing it there. It was still surreal driving up to the airport. Was this real? Were we really going to Italy? Despite the weekly classes, it really hadn't dawned on me that we were flying to Italy. This was going to be one of the most memorable weeks of my life, I could tell.
After checking in, we gathered at our gate. This was clearly the time everyone was trying to get to know each other. We were going to be spending the next week together, might as well start here. Our first trip was from CVG to JFK, a reasonably fast trip. Some of us had never flown before, let alone to Europe so this was going to be a great warm up. I've taken the Delta from CVG to JFK so often this seemed like a Monday morning commute to me. I tried really hard to not fall asleep on the flight to JFK, saving up my sleep hours for the 8 hour trip from JFK to Rome. I tried to find some coffee and a spot to work on my presentation. JFK was overwhelmingly big and I forgot how horrible the WiFi was so I ended up just talking to the rest of the people on the trip. I knew this was going to be a rough 8 hours but luckily I was seated next to my roommate Gus. Somewhere in the middle of our third episode of Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia, I must have dozed off and I guess my mental clock deemed this as the end of our first day of our adventure. |