Spring Break 09: Rome

Rome was indescribable, but I will attempt to do it justice. We arrived at 8:30am. Since my parents were coming to London for the second half of my spring break, I cut Italy short and had one day in beautiful Roma. Actually, I had 8 hours. I had to see the Colosseum, Vatican, Trevi Fountain and countless other sights... in only 8 hours. Luckily, Ryan was up to the task and we had the most intense day of traveling of my life so far. We met these girls our last night in Florence that had just come from Rome- they saved our lives with their advice...

After we dropped our bags at the hostel, we took the Metro to the Colosseum. The Colosseum is one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world- and I could tell exactly why- it was stunning. In Italy, people get an actual syndrome from sensory overload. When I first read about it, bullshit came to mind. After this trip, I understood- there just comes a point when you're surrounded by so much beauty and history it becomes impossible to fully appreciate it.

We took a tour around and learned the history of the great structure. With the many different types of gladiators, countless games were held in the area, but it also had days of disrepair. The structure is actually called the Flavian Amphitheater but was named Colosseum after the 'colossal' statue of Nero. I could have stayed at Palatine Hill for days taking pictures of the extensive ruins. Every ruler of Rome had built new palaces, not next to, but on top of the previous rulers' palaces.This statue represents the two brothers who founded Rome, Romulus and Remus. Romulus ended up killing Remus and becoming the first king of Rome. The Museo Capital was beautiful, and the weather in Rome couldn't have been more gorgeous.We went to the Campo de Flor market, the Piazza Campi Digilio and the Piazza Navona where we saw charactering artists and sellers of everything.The Pantheon was one of the first churches I saw where I felt moved. Instead of massive ornate religion, I was more attuned to comfort and community worship.

We saw a few more plazas and gorgeous buildings and then stopped for gelato at the Della Palma- the most amazing and massive display of gelato I have ever seen... heaven.

I saw this beggar while climbing the Spanish steps. I was stunned her humbleness. Usually beggars ask for food or money or just sit on the street and stare, but she just knelt with blind faith that people would give her change. The Plaza Spagna and the Spanish Steps Trevi Fountain- I tossed in a coin and am definitely coming back to RomeAround three thirty, we made it to the Vatican. I had about two hours left to do the Vatican and the St. Peter's Basilica.The Vatican was huge, cold and empty with treasures scattered about like they were the avocados in the Alpha Phi formal room. It should have been stunning, but it put me in an off mood.The Sistine Chapel... Impressive in the work that went into it, but definitely not the
defining spiritual moment I was expecting. Steps going out of the Vatican.
St. Peter's plaza and Basilica... BREATHTAKING. What the Vatican and Sistine Chapel lacked, St. Peter's more than covered. I don't know whether it was the stunning sunset or the vast area, or the fantastic architecture of the square, but it was literally moving.

St. Peter's and inside the basilica

Spring Break 09: Florence

We got up early the morning of February 29 and headed to Florence. Even though the weather was crummy, Florence was amazing, I fell in love in the first three seconds.

The Duomo cathedral and opera house next to our hostel. It is the largest (non-sports) dome in the world and the largest building made of its material.

I snuck a picture in the Accademia. This is Michelangelo's the David- upon first glance, it was perfection. The head is actually bigger than a proportioned head is because it was supposed to be posted at an extremely high point.Ok, so this is one of the oldest leather stores in Florence. Only 25 people in the world know how to craft real Italian leather- that's why it's so expensive. The only way to learn how to craft the leather is through apprenticeship. Actually, the leather isn't Italian, its the craft that is- the Italians buy the leather from Australia and New Zealand. We walked into this shop and got a leather demonstration and information session. It was shockingly fascinating- showing the dedication and time spend in the craft. The most interesting thing we looked at was the Florentine box. When Florentine married Henry II in France, she wanted to take with her something to remind her of home.
She took the box. These boxes took months to make layering layers upon layers of leather. The boxes are one piece of leather soaked and then formed around a wooden mold. After the months of layering, crafters used a specially heated instrument to imprint a gold design on the top of the box. If the gold design got messed up- the whole box was a waste.
The box was originally shaped like a saddle because she had to sit on it on her way to France. Now various designs have been recreated.
View from Ponte VecchioStatue of Jason slaying Medusa
Basilica San Croce: where Galileo and Michelangelo are buriedGalileo's tombMichelangelo's tombThe Medici Chapels
The big market in FlorenceAnd here's my favorite part: The view from Michelangelo's Hill. Simply stunning...