Vidi, Part 3: Churches of Rome

This post is a tribute to my mother. She loves the churches in Rome and as I live alongside the architectural marvel that is The Eternal City, I can see why.

So today started Teryn, Courtney and I's "Church Crawl". I'll be updating this post with pictures and info about the churches we visit as the semester goes on. Unfortunately, we didn't rise and shine early enough to take in an Italian mass but we did say our prayers.

The first church we went to was San Marcello Papa e Martire on Via Del Corso. According to Wikipedia it is a church devoted to Pope Marcellus I and was supposedly build over his prison.


The second church we visited is one I remembered as my mom's favorite. It's located right behind the Pantheon and has its own piazza. In the piazza there is an elephant supporting an obelisk (which is what made me remember that this was one of my mom's favorites). It is Basilica di Santa Maria spora Minerva. Aside from the large organs and all-consuming frescos, Basilica di Santa Maria also houses the domb of Saint Catherine if Sienna.

The ceiling of Basilica di Santa maria spora Minerva.

The obelisk in the piazza outside of Basilica di Santa Maria spora Minerva.

Veni, Vidi, Vici: History 101

I took Latin I my freshmen year of school. In class we read stories about Quintus Horatius Flaccus and the farm that he lived on. We also learned basic verb conjugations (amo, amas, amat), stories from ancient Rome (Jason and the Golden Fleece), and about Roman architecture (I did report on Tiber Island and the Pons Fabricius, which I pass everyday). I'm not sure if I learned about veni, vidi, vici in Latin I, II, III/IV, AP or even before I began studying Classics but I found it a fitting title for my blog.

Veni means 'I came'. Vidi means 'I saw'. Vici means 'I conquered'. The man credited with speaking these words is Julius Caesar. He was born in Rome in 100 BCE, to a prestigious family. He expressed an interest in politics at a young age and held political positions in the Roman empire throughout Europe. When he outgrew these places, he sent a message to the Roman senate that he was on his way: "veni, vidi, vici". Once in Rome, he made himself the consul and dictator. He did a great deal to reform the city such as relieving debt and revising the calendar. However, Caesar's power grew so great that it threatened even his good friends, and on March 15, 44 BCE (The Ides of March), Brutus murdered Caesar. However, Caesar did not let Brutus have the last word. As he was dying he cried out, 'Et tu, Brute!'. This Latin phrase means 'And you, Brutus', as in 'karma will get you'.

The forum where Brutus killed Caesar.

I thought this was the perfect title for my blog while I'm studying abroad. No, I won't be invading any cities and hopefully won't be hearing 'Et tu, Julia!' from my friends, but it still applies. I already came to Rome and I plan to go to many more cities. I already saw so many amazing sights and I certainly will be seeing many more. And I do plan on conquering this system. I'm currently in the process of overtaking the public transportation system. I've already conquered Campo di Fiori, Piazza Navona, the Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon; I can get to these places with my eyes closed if I had to. By the time I return home in May, I want to be an expert on this city and many others and that is why I think "veni, vidi, vici" is the most appropriate title I could choose.

Ciao!

Vidi, Part 2: Rome by Day

Written on Wednesday, January 27th

Call it jet lag or maybe too much fun, but my roommates and I didn't leave our apartment until 2:15pm today and shortly before that we still hadn't left our beds. Too bad because it was so much warmer outside (the heat has yet to come on in the apartment).

Courtney, Teryn and I (my roommates who also go to UMD)set out to make our way into the heart of Rome. This involved a 15 minute walk to what we think was Viale di Trastevere. Either way, we got on tram #8 to Argentina.  Once again, we went to Rosciolo for lunch.  After we went to Campo di Fiori but had missed the open-air market.  We walked to Piazza Navona where dozens of artists were there, painting caricatures and selling their prints.

After strolling through the Piazza we met Ilana and Sarah (two of my friends from UMD) and their roommates at the Pantheon. The Pantheon was a crucial part of ancient Rome. Marcus Agrippa commissioned the building's construction as a temple for all gods. The building is full of religious art, marble columns, and many tourists. It's home to the tomb of Raphael and a few others. Today, it is still the world's largest self-supporting dome.

After walking around the Pantheon we went to the Trevi Fountain. We were a little lost and asked a police man for directions. From my limited experience in Rome this semester, I found that if you speak with even the phoniest Italian accent it helps the Italians understand you.  He pointed us in the direction of Via Del Corso. We quickly heard the sound of the running fountain water and soon saw the hoards of tourists there. When visiting the Trevi Fountain, it's imperative that you throw a coin over your right shoulder and into the fountain to assure that you will return to Rome one day. I did this three years ago and I'm back!! Just as we were leaving we witnessed an American man propose to his girlfriend, and caught a glimpse of the ring. Proposing at the Trevi? My kind of guy.

We continued on our walking tour and found ourselves in front of the Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, more commonly known as "the wedding cake". I tried to navigate us back to Largo Argentina but failed miserably. I wanted to pull a Joey-from-Friends and be "in the map" but thought that would scream 'American'. Once we realized we had walked a half mile in the wrong direction we waited for a bus...for 40 minutes.

Once we got home we were too tired to venture out again.

My favorite pizza in the whole world!

Piazza Navona

Piazza Navona

Pantheon

Fontana di Trevi

Sarah, Ilana & I making a wish at the Trevi Fountain

Ciao!

Vidi, Part 1

Getting around Rome is pretty challenging when you don't know where you are to begin with. I still cannot locate my apartment on a map nor my friend Ilana's, which supposedly is not to far from mine.  Not knowing where you are makes it pretty hard to figure out what public transportation to use.  We rode bus #44 aimlessly for 45 minutes last night.  I did my best to ask for help from the locals but again, English is not their strong point. One nice man got off the bus and led us to where we needed to go.

Once on tram #8 to Largo Argentina I had no trouble getting places.  Rome really is that memorable.  Without a map I lead our group to Campo di Fiori.  On our way I pointed out Roscioli.  I can't even describe the sheer excitement that consumed me when I saw it and could still find it three years later without a map. Perfect photo opportunity.

We proceeded to Campo di Fiori where we ate outside at  restaurant.  My roommate, Teryn, and I split a Caprese Salad and a muscles-and-past dish.  I'm not one to like seafood but it was very,very good.

After dinner we took a few pictures in Campo and then walked to Piazza Navona.  I forgot how pretty it is at night.  There was a film crew there filming what we were told was a commercial for Saudi Arabia. Several more pictures were taken before we were too cold to stay outside.

Overall, a very successful, very fun first night out in Rome. And I ran into a friend from home!!

Ciao!

Veni, Part 1

After a delay in Philadelphia, a long wait at baggage claim, and an even longer wait for the American University of Rome (AUR from here on out) shuttle to take me to my apartment, I finally made it.

The ride from the airport to my apartment took some time but was a blur.  It was nothing like I remembered from my visit to Rome three years ago.  I thought I would start to see familiar sights as we drew closer to the city.  I partly expected to be dropped off on a curb in Trastevere, the neighborhood I am mildly familiar with as it is where my sister lived when she studied abroad. Instead, I am in an area full of 6-8 floor apartment buildings, mostly orange in color.  My apartment is in what is called "Monte Verde", a largely residential area.

There are six girls in my apartment, including myself.  Two are friends from the University of Maryland and the remaining three go to Michigan State. Coincidentally, two of them are also members of Kappa Alpha Theta.

After I threw my belongings into my room, the six of us headed out for our first taste of Italian culture.  After some aimless walking on Via dei Colli Portuensi we stopped at a grocery store to pick up some things.  Grocery shopping is very different in Italy. We left with brie, bread, water, a few other things and lots of vino. Surprisingly we only wracked up a bill of 77 euro.  We had worked up an appetite while grocery shopping and stopped at Potter Pizza on Colli Portuensi.

I had this misconception that most Italians could understand English, if not speak it. How very wrong I was.  I've learned from experience that pizza is generally cold and you have to ask them to heat it up.  Based on its seemingly less-than-Italian name, I thought the workers at Potter Pizza were frequently visited by Americans, especially students, and would understand my request to heat the pizza up.  Instead one of the attendants pointed me in the direction of the refrigerator to show me where the 'aqua' was.  The pizza was delicious but I only have room for one pizza place in my heart...Roscioli.

The word for heat is 'scalda', by the way.