roma

roma roma roma.
when in rome right?

well pretty much words fail to describe things here in rome. absolutely amazing. the first day i was here it started off with church. all of it was spoken in italian and it was definately an experience for sure. i've never been in a place so foreign where the people surrounding have a hard time understanding me. it puts things in perspective a little bit...after church we walked through the city and went to see st. peters cathedral. by far one of the most incredible things i have ever seen. the size of it cannot be captured by a picture or a description. we walked up 570 steps, which still has my calfs burning, to the top of the inside of the dome. being able to see the artwork on the inside of the dome was amazing. how people have the talent to do things that are so massive but yet still perfectly in proportion is beyond my comprehension. we then traveled outside of the dome on a viewing deck at the very top of the cathedral and were able to have the most amazing view of the whole city. the old structure that was used to plan cities is so impressive. there are two 'arms' that extend down from the catherdal that have a long road that leads into the the piazza in front of the cathedral. in the piazza are two bigger fountains on either side of a tall column.
a side note about rome- they have fountains and water coming up from the ground all over. it is unbelievable. apparently they found under water aquafirs (?) and so they built tons of fountains for display as well as tons of drinking fountains that all continuosly flow. the water is clean and refreshing--i don't know how we would survive without it. it is one of my most favorite things about rome.
i saw the cistine--sorry spelling is rough cause its all in italian here so nothing looks right in english--chapel. the cistine chapel! it is much much larger than i imagined. i didn't realize there was more than the god touching adam's finger scene...that is one square of hundreds. i don't have any way to describe how incredible it was. the colors are rich and the figures are larger than human size. how it is all in proportions is unknown to me. the feeling when you look at something that you have heard of your whole life but never thought you would actually see is quite the experience. my mind is so overwhelmed with all the things i have seen i can't quite express how i feel about them all and its frustrating. the days blur into what seems like months. i am still trying to process all the paintings, sculptures, and buildings i have seen and the hands that have made them. we looked at a banini statue today of the capture of percephine--the white marble figures looked real to say the least. the grip that pluto had on her was so lifelike and the stuggle and emotion shown in their stone bodies was undeniable. pluto had veins and muscles and so much power and authority while percephine was radiating such pained emotions. the struggle that played out from the tears on her face and the struggle she was putting up with as well as an overrall resignation to the inevitable was so moving. never before have i thought it possible to be so touched by something made from stone. every angle of the statue provided the eye with more movement and emotion to take in. banini's attention to fine detail makes the textures rich and so life-like.

i walked in the colloseum today. walked where ancient romans walked and watched people die for plesure. its hard to think of a time where that could be possible but then i can't help but think of the entertainment we have today. video games and movies that are filled with violence- yes it is 'pretend' but still fills our minds. its unfortunate that the colluseum wasn't better preserved, much of the white marble that was used to build it was harvested for other things around the city. it is still such an amzing structure that is absolutely mind blowing how something of that size could have been constructed and used so functionally.

as you may have noticed--size is a major theme of rome. everything we see here is on such a massive scale it is hard to describe. pictures can't capture the magnificence of everything we come upon. the only way to start to comprehend is to see it in person...something i feel very blessed to have the opportunity to do. this is such an amazing life experience. even just the seemingly insignificant things that go on here are meaningful. the friendships being made are all so unique--i love it. all being away from home in such a strange place pushes you to form close, intimate relationships with those around you. i already feel so connected to the amazing girls i have speant the last 3 days with.

italia.