My Favorite Day Ever

Welcome to the last pre-Vienna enrty on my blog! I've finally made it!

MY LAST DAY IN ROMA

Our last day of "leisure" in the wonderful city of Roma was jam-packed full of tours... there were three, total, within the day, leaving just enough time in between for lunch and dinner! But we had finally adjusted to the time difference and were feeling quite refreshed and prepared for the grueling schedule ahead.

The first task of the day was to make sure that our clothing was appropriate. No exposed shoulders or knees, as we would be touring the Vatican City and many Cathedrals that are still in use. Check. The next task was to make sure we didn't miss our bus that left at "the buttcrack of dawn" as it was later referred to. Check. The final task? To enjoy and soak in the incredible history surrounding me. Cheeeeeck.

Originally, I had predicted (despite the fact that we would be walking basically ALL DAY) that this day in Rome would be my favorite. Not only would I be in the Vatican city and Sistine Chapel... in the presence of paintings that epitomize my faith and that define the beauty of Christian art... but I would later take a tour of St. Peter's Cathedral and the "underground Rome," filled with tours of some of the most amazing catacombs and buried church ruins dating back to the second century. My favorite day.

Alright... I'm already getting ahead of myself I'm so excited! So first thing's first. Our first tour was the tour of the Vatican City. We managed to have much better luck with the audio earpieces, and even lucked out with a very capable, funny ang highly intelligent tour guide. He introduced himself as "Maxamillianisma...etc" (something very long and impronouncable), and laughed lightly as he instructed us to just call him "Max." He was somewhat on the younger side, with a shaved head and a relatively short stature. Very kind eyes, I do remember that. And a keen sense of humor. It's hard to develop humor in a language that is not your primary tongue. I would have difficulty cracking a joke or being sarcastic in French... it simply wouldn't come off right. Perhaps in English it is easier to be sarastic and jesting (go figure). Max made this tour incredibly enjoyable... because I was learning so much interesting and pertinent information! Sure, it may have still been the "boring" historical info that mediocre tour guides give you, but it was presented so much more coherently--with energy--and was sprinkled with intermittent fun facts about the topic. I honestly learned so much that I could have given a lecture about the landmarks after walking away from that tourbus.

I don't know what it was about being in the Vatican City that felt so entirely special to me. Perhaps it was because the Vatican City is considered its own political country, or maybe it's because I knew that I was the closest I'd ever be to the Pope (why, as a Protestant this matters to me? I don't know), or maybe because I felt that I was on holy ground. Regardless, I felt special just being able to surpass the line that wrapped around the city walls... a near 3 hour wait just to get inside the door. Being part of a Prestige Tour? We walked right in, thank you very much! A very mean part of me just wanted to flash my Prestige lanyard to all the sorry saps standing in line as I walk by going: "Nya nya nya nya nyaaaa! What up NOW!?" But luckily, I restrained the ugly American in me :)

First, we went inside the Vatican Museum. It's SO HUGE and filled with so much art and masterpieces that if one spent only 4 minutes at each piece, one would be inside this building for nearly ten years. It would be like touring the Louvre. It just cannot be done in one day. But Max pointed out some important benchmarks along the way: some AMAZING wall sized tapestries that depicted some incredibly deep and meaningful symbolism, not to mention complete mastery. There were many statues, of course, including one woman who had a mass of globule looking things around her neck... almost like an oversized necklace. We were all puzzled to what this necklace-of-sorts was--and then he told us: She is wearing a necklace of Bull testicles. BULL BALLS ladies and gentlemen. A sign of fertility and nobility, this was actually done at some point in time.... uummmm, cool?? Then, Max showed us a downscaled version of the Sistine Chapel ceiling--like a mini-debreifing so that we could understand everything presented and not feel overwhelmed.

The funny story about the Sistine Chapel is that Michaelangelo was a sculptor. He loathed painting. Had it not been for the large lump sum of money he was offered (he was known to be quite greedy and unpleasant), he would have never agreed to paint it. Can you imagine such a masterpiece like "God creating Adam" on the verge of not ever being created?! But then again... what was it that made this particular ceiling so special--out of all the magnificent cathedral ceilings in history? Who knows. It was interesting to see how the body shapes of the characters resembled the shapely and posed figures he might have sculpted. One of the most interesting depictions was that of the Final Judgement.... Jesus, with one hand up to raise those belonging to heaven and one hand down to send the evil into damnation, is surrounded by saints who are aiding this process. St. Bartholomeu is one of them. He was killed by being skinned alive, so he is pictured (in his human, pre-death form) holding his skin in his hand. Scholars believe that Michaelangelo placed his self-portrait within this skin--he was relatively homely in general, but his expression is one of distaste and disgust for the mere fact of having been forced to paint this. I wish I could show you all pictures of this, but there was a strict No photography rule being enforced. But I wouldn't have wanted to fiddle with a camera... there was too muuch to see, and it could never be truly captured on film.

We proceeded into St. Peter's Cathedral--the largest cathedral in the world. No other building in Rome is allowed to be taller than this Basilica. If I could I would spend hours upon end in this place. It makes you believe that there is a God and that He deserves such beauty devoted to Him. I have never felt so spiritually blessed and unworthy at the same time. Our first stop was at the statue of Mary holding the lifeless body of the recently crucified Christ--it is called "Pieta" meaning "Pity and compassion." There is a lot of myth surrounding Michaelangelo's intentions with this sculpture. His mother died at a very young age, and it has been said that he missed her terribly well into adulthood. In "Pieta," Mary's face looks amazingly youthful considering she has a full grown son, and in the palm of her hand is inscribed: "Mater" or "mother." Many believe this is Michaelangelo's depiction of his own mother as he remembers her. Back in the 70's, a crazy man ran into the cathedral screaming "I am Jesus, I am Jesus" and struck Mary's face 15 times with the butt of a rifle... obliterating it. Luckily it was pieced back together, but it is now behind thick glass :(

This basilica is named after St. Peter because it is believed that he is buried under the pulpit, among with many other Popes. Also encased in the cathedral are many relics such as a piece of the cross on which Jesus was crucified, and the cloth used to wipe the sweat and blood from Jesus's brow. The acoustics were wonderful... mass was occurring at the time, which I found odd and quite sacreligious. Wouldn't you feel weird if random tourists were snapping pictures around you as you tried to pray and worship the Lord? Yeah... here's a video I took from inside. Not very good, but it's a glimpse!:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3810087037789026984&hl=en

Interestingly enough, the Vatican is known for its incredibly detailed and picture-like mosaic art. I had to get within hands reach of a mosaic depiction of the Judgement in St. Peters to know it was made from pieces of stone and not paint. But there is no fading, and the pictures looked like new!

Of course, at the gift shop, I purchased a hand-made mosaic cross necklace... with some of the most vibrant and beautiful bits of ceramic and glass I'd ever seen. My only momento slash souvenir of the trip!

That concluded the tour, and so mom and I grabbed lunch at a place called "Pepy's Bar." We ordered pasta and chocolate ice cream. Not the best for the money it cost us, but still good.I was thankful for the TV that was airing the Olympics... Men's Gymnastics at the time. I feel so out of the loop in world events... As of today (August 27th) I haven't watched TV since leaving the states on the 12th.

Even though I'm terribly excited to tell you about the catacombs and crypts, I am terribly tired. I will edit this post later tomorrow :)

Miss and love you all, as always!
Laura