Today's adventures began with a trip outside the city of Rome to Ostia, an ancient port city of the Roman Empire. This city was covered in silt from the harbor, which kept it well preserved for thousands of years. Today, Ostia is open to anyone who wishes to explore the remains of the site. Our tour included visits to the forum and a Roman theatre, both of which were in excellent condition. Additionally, mosaics made of tile were still as beautiful as when they were first created. After our tour, we ate lunch in the cafeteria, and then headed back to Rome.
Tonight was expecially exciting for me, as I was fortunate enough to attend a concert of famous operatic arias, sung by members of the Orchestra I Musici Veneziani. These accomplished vocalists and orchetra members from Venice performed selections from Mozart, Puccini, Verdi, Rossini, and Bizet, inside the magnificent Church of St. Paul Within the Walls. The performance itself was very interesting, and the four vocalists rotated between solos, duets, and group numbers. Though the crowd was very receptive, constantly taking pictures (with the flash) and shouting "bravo" at ever opportunity, the performance did have some minor issues. The chamber orchestra often had intonation issues, as did the soprano vocalist, and the balance between the orchestra and soloists was inconsistent, and often overpowering for the vocalist to be heard. There were many good qualities, as well, including excellent theatrics on the part of the baritone, but, overall the performance was not of the professional quality I was expecting. One thing I found particularly interesting was the ease and conviction with which the soloists delivered the text. I then remembered that many of the arias were Italian, meaning that the soloists and the audience could understand what was being expressed. No subtitles were necessary.
For lunch, as I already mentioned, we ate at Ostia. For dinner, however, we ate at an excellent cafe. I had noodles in a cheese sauce with black pepper and bacon. Thanks, and have a Good Night!
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Monday, May 16, 2011
Food at the Vatican: In Need of Salvation!!
For Lunch today, we ate at a pizzeria in the Vatican. First of all, the workers were extremely unkind to us, and somehow I ended up with a pizza topped with: Cabbage, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, olives, carrots, and sauce. This was easily the worst meal I have had so far, not to mention that it cost 10 euros, which is about 17 dollars.
Dinner tonight was in the Jewish Quarter, at a restaurant that did not serve pasta or pizza. I had a dish which was a combination of mozzarella cheese, mashed potatoes, porcini mushrooms, and truffles. For dessert I had ricotta cheese covered in honey and nuts. When Christ does come again, he'd do better to eat in the Jewish Quarter than the over-priced Vatican. Goodnight, and Thanks for Reading.
Journey to the Center of the Earth
One of the most unique experiences of our Vatican trip was the Vatican Scavi, a chance to travel underground beneath the Vatican and learn about the history of the location. Our tour began in the crypt of St. Peter’s, located directly under the altar. Here we were told that St. Peter’s is the second church built at the location where St. Peter was martyred. After this introduction session, we descended down brick stairs, traveling underneath the crypt and into an ancient necropolis. A necropolis, or city of the dead, is a burial place where family mausoleums are placed next to each other and form an above-ground city. When the emperor Constantine decided to build the original St. Peter’s, he flattened the Vatican hill, and, in the process, covered this ancient necropolis in dirt, using the old mausoleum walls as supporting structures for his new church. Exploring the underground necropolis was like stepping into one of those “mummy” horror movies of the 1940s. With the damp, stuffy air all around us, we walked down a “street” of the necropolis and saw the 2000 year old family mausoleums, which are well preserved. Looking inside, we could see wall frescoes depicting Egyptian, Pagan, and early Christian gods. The sarcophaguses were still intact, and our tour guide read us the inscriptions on the coffins. As we left the necropolis, we traveled upward, where we saw the back wall from Constantine’s original St. Peter’s and the original underground chapel constructed at the tomb of St. Peter. This chapel, glittering in gold and elaborate artwork is well below the current papal altar of the new St. Peter’s. Taking a short walk, we saw the bones of St. Peter, before exiting through the crypt, where all the Popes are buried.
The Scavi Tour was almost an unreal experience, and I’m sure it will take time for me to understand exactly what I encountered. Standing in an underground city of the dead was not only surreal, but hauntingly beautiful. Here, buried under the current Vatican, lies an ancient Roman necropolis, and inside, lie the bodies of ancient Romans who will remain undisturbed for the rest of time. The most moving moment occurred when we were looking at the bones of St. Peter, and, suddenly, the sounds of an organ and choir, singing above in the current church, drifted down into the ancient chapel and the tomb of St. Peter. It was so inspirational to know that, some how, even “St. Peter” can hear the sounds of those who come to honor his death, some 2000 years later.
Before Wallpaper
Michelangelo’s painting of the Sistine Chapel has always been familiar to me, but I was not prepared for what I saw when I stepped inside. The building itself may not be extremely large, but every inch is painted in scenes depicting all aspects of the Bible. The painting uses a technique known as forced perspective, which makes the statues and biblical figures on the ceiling look more three dimensional than any 3D movie I have ever seen. In fact, the arches painted on the ceiling were so believable that it was impossible to distinguish actual architecture from that which was painted. What was most moving, however, was the scene painted directly in the center of the ceiling, depicting God reaching out to Adam. God stretches out his hand to Adam, but Adam’s hand is not fully extended. This detail made much more sense when a member of our group pointed out that God’s figure is encircled by a cloud resembling the shape of a human brain. It seems that Adam’s lack of motivation is actually a lack of knowledge, and God’s gesture is a sign of transferring that knowledge to mankind. Michelangelo’s scenes are full of exquisite beauty and detail, along with carefully planned action. It is incredible that one man could create such beauty from a space that would otherwise be so ordinary. All I could think of when viewing the painting was a symphony by Mozart or Beethoven, and how these men could accomplish works of art beyond our imagination, or even comprehension. Anxious tourists walked in and out of the Sistine Chapel with the same attention span as someone who quickly changes the radio channel when Classical music is playing. What I realized today is that often it’s not because we are “spoiled Americans,” but because the work is simply overwhelming. The Sistine Chapel’s detail is so vast that I simply didn’t know where to begin. It was not until someone pointed out that the scenes progress in a particular order that I was able to begin understanding what I was seeing. Seeing into the mind of a genius is not as easy as it seems.
A Day at the Vatican
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Day 5 in Food
LUNCH: Vegetable Lasagna, Bruschetta with Artichoke cream, Crème Brule. Our lunch today offered exceptional views of the Coliseum, along with the best vegetable lasagna I have ever tasted. It was stuffed with artichokes, green beans, and cheese, and topped with a garlic pesto sauce.
DINNER: Fried artichokes, Jewish style, and Fillet of Turbot with an Almond cream sauce. Tonight we ate dinner in the Jewish quarter and started off with a fried artichoke, which looked like a Bloomin’ Onion, but tasted even better. My main dish was incredible; the almond sauce was the best part. It was easily the best dinner so far. Thanks, and Goodnight.
Sunday Mass
Today began with a group of us attending mass at the local church in our neighborhood, Santa Maria in Trastevere. What an interesting experience it was to see the similarities and differences between Catholicism in Rome versus Salem, Ohio. First of all, I woke up early, because I knew that it would be good to arrive before all the seats were full. Secondly, I wasn’t sure how well dressed churchgoers would be, but I assumed it would be more so than in America. When I arrived, I saw that my expectations were incorrect. People walked in at the last minute, and many of the members of the congregation wore jeans, t-shirts, and other casual attire. The ring of a bell signaled the start of mass, and everyone quickly rose as the priest, deacons, and altar servers entered. From this point forward, the mass may have been in another language, but every aspect of the mass was recognizable to me, and I felt comfortable reciting parts in English. One of the greatest things about being Catholic is that the mass is universal. When the priest initiated the giving of peace, all of those around me graciously shook my hand and offered me the peace of the lord. It was a moving and powerful sign of the universality of the Catholic faith. The particular mass we attended happened to be the low mass, which meant that the major portions of the liturgy of the Eucharist were spoken and not sung. Even so, the main hymns, along with the psalms, were all recognizable to me. Our teacher, Ms. Dalton, who is also Catholic, made a good point about the Alleluia psalm before the Gospel. She remarked how she had never understood the purpose of this prelude to the Gospel, but after seeing mass today, it made much more sense. During the time that we sing Alleluia, the priest processed up and down the aisle carrying the Bible, before ascending a spiral staircase to read the Gospel from an elevated box on the lefthand side of the church. Such an observation really reminded me of how easy it can be to attend mass without truly understanding and appreciating each aspect of the service. When I head home, I will surely be more attentive to this in my own church, as I continue to learn more about this ancient tradition.
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