Two in One!

Instead of posting two separate blogs, one from two weeks ago and one from this past week, I decided to surprise you by combining two weeks in one - yay! Since time takes details and forms them into vague memories, I'm going to go ahead and share with you everything I remember from these past two weeks, starting with the freshest ones in mind...

Today was a great day! I went to Chianti with a group of 16 students who are also studying abroad in Florence. Getting up at 6:15 a.m. definitely wasn't fun, but hiking through the vineyards and wine tasting sure was. After an hour bus ride from Florence to the Chianti wine region of Tuscany, we arrived just in time to stop at a café for a mid-morning cappuccino. Yes, how very Italian of us. It's actually quite comical - even when Italians are in a hurry, which isn't often, they always seem to make time for a café. And this kind of lifestyle, standing in a café bar sipping the best cappucino you've ever tasted, in a pastry shop that overwhelms your senses because it smells so fresh and looks so good, is definitely something I could get used to. Actually, I'm pretty sure I already am since caffeine deprivation headaches start to set in at around 10:30 a.m.

Anyway, hiking was awesome! What started as an easy downhill stroll ended up being a three hour uphill hike through leftover mud from the previous day's rain. Albeit challenging and resulting in a little foot soreness and high heart rate, the weather remained warm and beautiful, and the view was constantly breathtaking. Rolling hills lined with rows of growing grapes, and a villa plopped here and there... I know what you're thinking, "where was the film crew?" I assure you, there was no film crew! This is real life Italy. The long hike worked up our appetites. Come 1:00 p.m., the traditional Italian meal of bruschetta and pasta was even better with the wine tasting and yummy biscotti! Good thing I took pictures and savored it over the course of two hours. Wish you were there to enjoy it with me!

Wine tasting with Gen and Allie

View of the Chianti vineyards (before we started our uphill trek)

After we made it to the top!

The little town of Chianti. Population: 2,000. Primary language: Italiano. Beverage of choice: red wine. Favorite meal: PASTA!

A plaque in the ground that marks the exact halfway point between Florence and Siena. (I thought this was interesting.)

Rewinding to Friday night!

Last night was just as much fun. I had dinner at a Mexican restaurant with four other girls. What do you order at a Mexican restaurant in Italy? Same as you would in America: chips and salsa, nachos, quesadillas, fajitas and awesome sangria! Mom, you would have loved the atmosphere! It was colorful and energetic and had great music! No "On the Border" but it came pretty close. Before our Mexican study break, Blair, Amanda and I spent almost three hours studying at Edison, an Italian bookstore. Italian Midterm Wednesday, need I say more? Even though this is my fourth semester of Italian, the irregular verbs are still killing me! Blair and Amanda helped a lot, so studying together was most definitely beneficial. Although, I'm pretty sure they were curious when I announced I had to use the restroom for the fourth time in two hours. Casey, Karolina, Lauren, you guys definitely wouldn't have been surprised about that. Oh, all the things you learn about your friends living in the sorority house...

Interior of the Mexican Restaurant. By the way, it was so odd being served Mexican food by Italians.

Me, Amanda and Blair at Tijuana

Last Weekend

I woke up Friday morning to the sound of rain hitting the overhang in the garden and water being sloshed around on the streets by passing cars. Trying to wait patiently for the rain to let up, Jay, Kit, Leah and I were getting too anxious to start our Fiesole climb. Fiesole is a small town seated in the hills of Tuscany. You can see the villas and rolling hills from Florence, although from such a far distance, the mansions look more like specks of colorful orange and yellow, rather than beautiful Italian homes.

The climb is all one way up hill, and while I was expecting a liesurely stroll, Kit had a workout in mind. She was the lead and set a pretty fast pace. I was so out of breath, I couldn't contribute hardly anything to conversation, but that's okay - I was a good listener. After an hour and fifteen minutes, we reached the top! There's not much to do in Fiesole. It's a tiny, tiny town with a convent and a church, so we of course visited both of those. Then we planted ourselves at the most scenic part: the "picture taking" spot. While the rain came in and out and was trying to masque Fiesole's beauty, it was unsuccessful. The view we saw of Florence from the highest point in Fiesole was so picturesque: pointing out the Duomo here, the Ponto Vecchio there and Santa Croce just over there... it was awesome. This huge city we live in called Firenze looked like it could fit in the palm of our hands.

A very zoomed-in picture of the Duomo from the highest point in Fiesole. Do you see the villas and cyprus trees?

Our cameras told us it was time to stop taking pictures when mine died. Oops... that's okay, because what do you do when your camera dies in Italy? Eat! Destination: amazing restaurant Leah recommended. I ordered the most delicious spinach and ricotta ravioli with a butter and sage sauce. Sound familiar? I'm glad if it does because that means you read my cooking class blog! Yay for you! If I was a teacher, I'd give you a gold star. For those of you who haven't read my previous posts, that's okay (I know they're long and you have a life). Let me just tell you that my lunch dish was the same pasta course we cooked in the first cooking class. You must try making this - I promise you won't be disappointed! After lunch, we headed back to our homes. Funny thing is, we took the bus down. I was really looking forward to the easy descent, but for whatever reason the collective decision spelled out "bus."

Leah, Kit, Jay and me at the most delicious restaurant in Fiesole. Scratch that - the only restaurant in Fiesole.

On Saturday, Jay and I went to Santa Maria Novella, a church situated right next to Florence's main train station. Of course it had beautiful art, like all of the cathedrals here. Unfortunately, I had only studied about two works from this church, so there isn't a whole lot of teaching I can do in this post, but that's okay because I have plenty more to share. After we strolled through Santa Maria Novella, Jay and I met up with Cooper for lunch. We went to The Diner, an American restaurant owned by English people (I think the owner said he was from London.) Being very American, I ordered a huge, juicy, drippy cheeseburger and fries. It was good, especially the toasted bun, but the meat tasted different - you could tell it was a different cow. An Italian cow, whatever that means. I'm sure this is due to a different livestock diet. As a side note, Italians eat their red meat VERY raw! You would never get served meat that raw in the U.S. Funny that they serve their meat so raw, yet their chicken is as tough as leather. Let's just say that if I go back again, I'll be ordering french toast. While the food was pretty good, the atmosphere was great! Beatles music, Beatles art... yes, now I'm certain the owner said he was from London.

Santa Maria Novella

Jay, me and Cooper at The Diner

After lunch, the three of us parted ways and headed home to study. I unsuccessfully worked on my research paper due that Wednesday. While I had all of my research compiled together, it was too overwhelming for me to tackle the paper on a Saturday. I know, I know, not being a good student. But do you have any idea how hard it is to get motivated to write a research paper when you're studying abroad in Italy!? Let me tell you, on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the most difficult), it's a 12. Instead, Rebecca and I decided to meet up for a sushi dinner. I know what you're thinking: first Mexican, then American, now Japanese? In Italy, nonetheless!? It sounds very silly for sure, but the American diet calls for more variety than pasta, so I looked at this departure from Italian food as a work up and greater appreciation for more Italian food come Monday with my host family. I am happy to report that the sushi was very good. Rebecca would probably disagree with the "very" part, but don't let her kid you - she was satisfied.

After sushi we headed to GROM for gelato. GROM is this amazingly delicious gelateria situated adjacent to the Duomo. I failed to mention that I went after lunch with Jay and Cooper, so this was actually my second gelato in one day. Did I feel guilty? Of course. Was it worth it? Of course! Four different gelato flavors in the same day and one report: If you ever come to Florence and are strolling the streets around the Duomo, stop in GROM and get extra dark chocolate ice cream and crema del GROM. Your taste buds will be singing from the explosive combination of dense dark chocolate mixed with chocolate chips and creamy vanilla mixed with chocolate chips and biscotti chunks. Oh yeah, I failed to mention (again) that the girls and I went out for gelato at GROM after Mexican Friday night. Woops... but in my defense, the portions are small, and... and... I'M IN ITALY!!!!

Best gelateria EVER!

Sunday was study day, just like it is in America. I headed to the library and chuckled when I saw the rest of my class in our tiny computer room in the basement. The eight of us were either working on our research paper for Nelson's 16th Century Art and Identity class or our presentation for Nelson's Botticelli class. Lucy for me I'm in both of his classes. At that moment, I was so thankful that I had already knocked the presentation out of the way and only had to tackle the paper. I say "only" but it was an eight page research paper, so I don't think the word "only" really fits together with "eight page." I will say, we had so much fun cracking jokes and discussing nerdy art history topics. It was the perfect combination of fun and productivity. While I didn't actually get any writing on my computer screen, I did gather my thoughts enough to know the direction of my paper. To make a long, frustrating story short, my topic changed a zillion times before I settled on a very difficult one: Michelangelo's Crucifix of Santo Spirito - Found? I tried to disprove the theory that Michelangelo sculpted the Crucifix currently located in the church of Santo Spirito.

In 1962, Margrit Lisner (a German art historian) claimed that the crucifix located in a corridor of Santo Spirito was Michelangelo's long lost Crucifix. The art historian community is pretty split between her findings - half of the community agrees that Lisner's evidence is substantial and convincing enough to establish authorship, while the other half is more than skeptical and emphatically disagrees. I have to say, with many facts supporting my doubts, my main reasoning stems from pure visual analysis; the crucifix Lisner attributes to Michelangelo is not consistent whatsoever with his style. Anyway, I won't bore you with all the facts and opinions, but if you really want to read my paper, I'll be more than happy to send it to you. Hahaha, I just heard what I wrote - someone asking to read an eight page research paper for fun is about as likely as a high schooler asking for extra homework! Well, then again, I might get a response from Taylor... Just kidding, Taylor. I love you!

Crucifix found in church of Santo Spirito, which Lisner attributes to Michelangelo. (From Web)

To sum it up, I cranked out an eight page research paper in a day and a half. Now that's what I call divine inspiration! With only one more major assignment (well, an exam) to go before spring break, I can see the finish line. It's so close! Florence is kindly giving us warmer, sunnier weather that's not only exciting our feet but making our minds wander to anything other than school work. Well, this is the part where I say thank you for reading my blog and let me know what's going on in your life. I love you all and miss you very much, but I'm so happy to be in Florence right now. Next post will come after spring break. Yay!

Ciao!

Is Spring Starting?

Today was the first day I didn't need my winter coat - yay! Away with the gloves and scarf. I got to show the world my colorfully patterned sweater top. It's amazing what warm weather does - how it energizes and excites people of all ages. For example, walking along the streets this afternoon I saw a group of Italian kids (probably about 10 years old) playing some kind of unfamiliar game on the steps of a church. Their supervisor, a nun, looked just as into the game as the squealing, squirmy kids that filled the air with a kind of springtime positivism. I just stood there observing Italian culture for as long as I could without looking awkward. After I soaked up enough laughs and smiles, I continued toward my destination. Where was I going? Well, let me back up thirty minutes... sitting in Italian class, I got a hankering for a piece of chocolate cake, which is easy to find in the states, but finding a piece of chocolate cake here is about as easy as waking up at the crack of dawn to go running; it requires time and determination. Funny to equate complete opposites - cake and exercise, but you get the idea...

Good thing Rachel and I had already stumbled across a bakery last weekend on our way back from roaming around the centro. This is exactly where I went. I had a craving, I had a destination and I went. Italians are lacking in their sweets department when it comes to cakes and brownies. Sure, they have a million and one pasticcerias with delicious looking pastries, but sometimes you just need a really good, dense piece of chocolate cake. I am happy to report that the cake hit the spot and was actually pretty tasty. Afterward, I headed to the Oil Shoppe, a popular sandwich place for American students. (Sorry, Mom - I know I broke the rules about food first, desserts second. But didn't I tell you that today is backwards day!?)

The Oil Shoppe is a tiny little spot that's impossible to miss with a line overflowing into the streets of Florence and a big awning sporting a font that even my Grandma can read from far away. What did I get? A chicken Parmesan sandwich with mushrooms and arugula. Yum! Unfortunately, they ran out of wheat bread so I got a baguette, but it was just as good. I think a big reason why The Oil Shoppe attracts so many American girls is that it's one of the very, very few places that have wheat breads. Believe it or not, in a country that is overloaded with carbs in countless forms ranging from pastries to bread to pasta, Italians seem to have forgotten about whole wheat. The health kick that has swept America appears to have bypassed Italy, although we are the country with more obesity than any other, so maybe there's a reason for it.

Being aware that this is not a food blog, I should continue and share my experiences from last week...

Tuesday

Tuesday was an exhausting day. For my Botticelli art history class, we went to the Uffizi, a very famous, mammoth museum housing an unbelievable collection of art history works from masterminds like Giotto, Cimabue, Michelangelo, Caravaggio, Vasari, Perugino, Annibale Caracci, Botticelli - all the big names. I need to go back to the museum because we spent our three hours of class time confined to only two artists in three rooms: Botticelli and Filippo Lippi, his teacher. We spent an extensive amount of time on the Primavera, Botticelli's most famous painting. First, let me say that Primavera is a beautiful painting that is difficult to turn your eyes from. There is so much to say about this painting, books worth really, and there is so much discrepancy over the characters and symbolism. So, not wanting to start a snooze fest, I'll quickly highlight some of the main points about this painting to make it more interesting for you to look at. (The above picture is from the Internet, because like most museums, photos are absolutely prohibited).

Primavera was painted for a member of the Medici family to possibly celebrate a wedding. It shows a collection of mythological figures set in an unearthly garden, perhaps the Garden of Eden. Venus, the goddess of love, is distinguished in the center of the painting and controls the setting. The really odd-looking blue figure lurking in the trees on the far right is Zephyrus, who is the winged Spring breeze. Yes, I know it seems a little weird to show a human-like figure as the wind, but then again we are talking about Greek mythology, which is full of all sorts of impossible and irrational happenings. Anyway, Zephyrus (a fun name to say) abducts the nymph Chloris in order to rape her and take her as his bride. This disturbing thought doesn't seem to bother art historians, like much of the other inhumane mythological experiences. Chloris is startled by Zephyrus and left helpless, as the option to escape has passed. The flowers coming out of her mouth suggest .... well, I won't get into that unless you want to be reading my blog for the next hour. Moving on: Next to Chloris is Flora, the goddess of spring, who scatters flowers in the garden, greeting springtime and welcoming love. Oh the left side of the composition we have the three Graces, as they're called. These delicate, dancing figures who are clothed in semi-transparent garments celebrate with each other. The middle Grace looks away toward Mercury, the messenger god, whose motion indicates him driving away clouds and whose sword deems him protector of the garden. It appears this Grace has caught the love bug from Cupid, Venus's son who stands above her shooting his arrow right at the Grace.

All that I have told you is just one of the many theories about the painting's significance, possession and creation. I'm really only scraping the surface with Botticelli's Primavera ("springtime" in Italian) painting. There is so much information it's overwhelming. How much easier it would have been if Botticelli had just written on the back what the scene was about. But then again, this would leave many art historians out of a job without having published any books, not to mention how much fun it would take out of the experience of hypothesizing...

Wednesday

Wednesday was an equally busy day with two site visits back to back. First, we went to the Academia to look at the David for my 16th Century Art and Identity class. Good for you (and my fingers), we really only talked about one piece: the David. It was beautiful! Honestly, there's no duplicated image of the David that can give you the awe and amount of appreciation that comes with standing in front of the sculpture. It's one of those moments where your mouth drops and you ask yourself how it's possible this could be a block of stone and not a real man.

The sculpture is way bigger than I had thought. The 17 ft statue dominates its space, showing David with his slingshot swung across his back with one hand and a rock in the other. While my professor assured us we do not know if this marks the moment before or after David slayed Goliath, I'm convinced this is a depiction before David's victory. And here's why: standing in front of the statue, David's facial expression looks almost neutral, like he's just this naked man strutting with something over his shoulder, nonchalantly gazing into the distance. However, when you walk to the side of this statue and see David's frontal facial features, you see furrowed brows that create a worried expression, like he's sizing up his enemy and doubting his ability to defeat a giant.

It really is incredible, but the most amazing piece of the sculpture, in my opinion, are the enormous, masculine hands. These are the most beautiful hands I've ever seen (definitely hands you'd want to hold in the movie theaters, without a doubt). You're probably laughing right now at the fact that David's hands infatuate me, but they look so real and so idealized at the same time. You can see his veins running from them to the arms. His torso is stacked, his hair is perfectly ruffled, his arms are beautifully cut and his nose is perfectly sculpted. Hands down, a gorgeous man/sculpture. Not only is he appreciated now, but during Michelangelo's day, he was just as popular. In fact, this sculpture was commissioned to go on top of Florence's Duomo. However, after seeing what an amazing job Michelangelo did, it was almost an unanimous decision to place it near the streets for all to admire.

Unfortunately we only spent 45 minutes staring and talking about the David. I unwillingly had to leave for my next site visit: the library. Wahoo (note the lack of exclamation). There are many libraries in Italy, but we went to one near the Piazza Republica, this really pretty piazza lined with pastry shops and adorned with a carousel. The library was okay - nothing too special. You're also hearing this from a person who tries to avoid libraries and has only been to her college library twice in the past three years. The best part of the outing was meeting a French student, with whom I tried to speak French. Taylor, I needed you with me! My brain is holding too many languages and mixing them all up to the point where I say things like: Cosa did hai fatto aujourd'hui? What would you call that - Englifrentalian? Anyway, I had this huge brain fart when she asked me my name. Um, I believe it was in French 1 when we learned the phrase, "Je m'appelle." I couldn't spit it out, just like on "Friends" when Phoebe is trying to teach Joey French and he repeats anything but "Je m'appelle." Yeah, let's just say what he said was better than my response. I also thought of you, Nick. Maybe I should practice my French a little more next time I see you - it's getting too Italianized.

Thursday

I went to my second cooking class Thursday night. We made gnocchi, roast pork and an apple torte. Do I even have to tell you it was absolutely delicious? The gnocchi was definitely the most fun to make. Made completely from boiled potatoes and a tad of flour, it is rolled and cut into small strips that are then boiled for literally 30 seconds. I was assigned the task of fishing out all the suckers who were done boiling. As soon as they have risen to the top of the boiling pot, you have to get them out quickly. This was SO fun! It turned into a game for me. Amazing how easily amused a 20 year old can be in a kitchen. Anyway, we made two types of sauces for the gnocchi: a three-cheese sauce and a leek and walnut sauce. YUM to them both! The roast pork was stuffed with garlic, rosemary and sage, so needless to say it was quite flavorful. And the apple torte... well, I'm not a torte lover, but it was okay. The powdered sugar made it look tastier than it really was. Note the picture on the wall - isn't that so clever!? I thought it very fitting to include it in this post after talking about Botticelli's Primavera.

Friday

The 7:30 wake up call wasn't pleasant Friday morning. I and three other girls here at Syracuse had volunteered to go to an elementary school just outside of Florence and read to fifth grade students. Let me tell you, getting up early was so worth it! We read the book "I Wish That I Had Duck Feet" by Dr. Seuss. The kids were so appreciative and so interested in us, our culture and learning English. Not only did they get to experience our culture, but we also got a little taste of theirs, so it was mutually beneficial. To see their smiles and to have them hug us and ask for our autographs was beyond satisfying.

On the way back, Vincenzo, our super friendly, talkative driver, took us to Piazzale Michelangelo for a wonderful (albeit rainy) panoramic view of Firenze. It was my second trip to the piazzale, and it was just as magnificent the second time.

Saturday

I went to a local pizzeria Saturday night with four other Syracuse girls. We had heard of this place from a couple of people and wanted to check it out. It was delicious! Such an Italian pizzeria with basement seating and a brick oven. Definitely a spot we will go again - maybe sometime next week. During the day, Rachel and I went to the Academia to see the David (again) and strolled the streets of Firenze. It was so pleasant going from shop to shop, pasticceria to pasticceria. We tried roasted chestnuts, a popular food to buy on the side of the street during the winter months. I have to say, I'm not a fan and neither was Rachael. That night, I gave my leftovers to Nonna, who was very appreciative. Oh, I also bought a black leather motorcycle jacket and a red leather purse! I know, Dad, I'm sorry! But I'm pretty sure I can promise you that I'm finished buying goodies now.

Well, that was my week last week, in a nutshell. In a big nutshell. This weekend is full of papers, presentations and homework, so I should probably go now before carpal tunnel starts to set in.

Oh, and did I tell you that I'm contemplating getting a haircut? Reasons to do it: I'm in a European country and it would be a cultural experience. Reason not to do it: I could end up looking a whole lot like my brother.

Ciao until next time!

Week 4 - Catch Up!

I know I'm still a little behind on my blogs, so I'll recap week four. Last week was a great week, so I definitely want to share all that I can remember! Let's start with Tuesday's cooking class.

Syracuse University in Florence is this cute pink building called the "Villa Rossa" (literally, "pink villa"), situated in a little piazza. The school offers many activities, from cooking classes to knitting to choir singing (believe it or not) to soccer, etc. Really about anything you could think of, the professors could find for you. Not being blessed with amazing vocals (like you, Casey. Haha!) or having any knowledge of soccer whatsoever, I decided to sign up for several cooking classes. Taught by chef Jacopo and his wife, the classes are held in the Villa Rossa's basement kitchen, which is this adorable small kitchen that reminds me of one in the movie "Ratatoulli." Have you seen it? If not, it's an animated movie that should definitely be high on your film list (right next to "Up" and "The Incredibles").

I bet you can guess what we made for dinner. Yep - pasta! Not just one kind of pasta, but three! The first pasta we made was ravioli stuffed with spinach and ricotta in a butter and sage sauce. This was my favorite! The second was spinach fettucini with a garlic cream pepper sauce, and our last pasta dish was angel hair with a carrot, celery, onion and tomato sauce. Yum! Not only did we get to make all of the pasta from scratch (which was tons of fun), but we also ate a generous helping of each! It was absolutely delicious - so fresh and flavorful - enough to make your taste buds sing. And for dessert... drum role please... TIRAMISU! This was the first (and only) tiramisù I have had since arriving in Italy, and it was good. To be perfectly honest though, my Italian teacher at UGA makes better tiramisù. After stuffing my tummy with tons of carbs and sweets, my digestive system (and waistline) was thankful for the 20 minute walk home.

Thursday evening, I went to a chocolate festival with Jay, one of my friends here at school. Firenze has a chocolate festival once or twice a year (I think), and it's a huge four day event that is held in Firenze's biggest piazza - Piazza Santa Croce. Vendors from all over Tuscany come to show off and sell their chocolate. Oh - my - gosh... Dad, Megan, Casey, Karolina, Meredith and all my other chocolate-loving friends: You would have thought you were in heaven smelling, seeing and sampling all of the chocolate. Under this enormous white tent were probably about 100 booths of chocolate vendors displaying almost any kind of chocolate you could imagine: white, dark, milk with and without nuts and covered with candy and fruit. Truffles, fudge, hot chocolate, cake, brownies, fondu... enough sweets to put Willie Wonka out of business! The first question I made sure I knew soon after entering my paradise was "can I try some?" Thanks to a very friendly Italian man, I now have the phrase "posso saggiare questa?" down pat. I said it so much that I wouldn't be surprised if my roommate heard me asking this in my sleep. Hopefully that won't happen, Emily.

I was anxious to buy something from every booth but Jay insisted we walk around the whole exhibition before making any purchasing decisions. This was torture! I didn't understand at all why we had to wait to buy something, but he was pretty insistent for whatever reason, so I just went along with it, sampling chocolate at almost every station. (Blair, you would have let me take my time.) After two hours of filling our stomachs with enough sweets to last a year, I ended up purchasing as much chocolate as I could for 10 euros (that was my limit). I think I left with a white and dark chocolate rice bar and six truffles. This was a week ago and I've only had one truffle, which is pretty good self control. However, I can guarantee that it will be finito by my next post!

I woke up at 6:00 a.m. Friday morning to meet my art history class at the Santa Maria Novella train station. Destination: Roma. Art = AMAZING! We all must have been energized with anticipation and excitement because this weekend trip was non-stop. Our charged battery selves were dead come Sunday (after a long wet and rainy weekend). Our 8:00 a.m. train, which we were told was at 7:30 a.m., got us to Roma a little after 10:00 a.m. From the station we took a bus directly to the Vatican museum.

Okay, so let me just tell you that pictures in art history books and online images don't do paintings and sculptures justice. Tears filled my eyes when I saw Raphael's Transfiguration. The Transfiguration, commissioned by the Medici for a French cathedral, marks the moment when Christ reveals himself as divine for the first time. Peter, James and John (Christ's followers) fall asleep atop Mount Tabor and are awoken by Christ's radiating light. Christ is accompanied by Moses on one side and Elijah on the other, giving us more proof that He is the Savior of the world. Raphael included two scenes in this composition: the first just mentioned and the second an illustration in the lower half of the painting. The lower scene depicts Apostles unsuccessfully attempting to free a boy who is possessed by demons. They wait for Christ, who performs a miracle by liberating the child. Raphael's Transfiguration expresses the connection between God and His people (through Christ). As much as I would like to think that the entire painting was completed by Raphael, it was actually unfinished. After Raphael's unexpected death in 1520 (he died in the arms of a prostitute - interesting story for another time), a student of Raphael's, named Giulio Romano, was believed to have completed the work. Until this piece, I had put Raphael on the second string of my list of favorite Renaissance artists. However, after seeing how he successfully and amazingly combines Leonardo's chiaroscuro and Michelangelo's vibrant colors and muscular figures, Raphael earned himself spot #3 on my "favorite artists" lists (behind Caravaggio and Michelangelo, of course). I know the photograph I took doesn't allow you to fully appreciate the work, but I promise you that since it was oil painted on wood, the colors are still so vibrant and rich. As a side note, if it was frescoed or painted on canvas, the colors would have been more heavily absorbed and would have faded over time.

I thought I couldn't get more excited after seeing Raphael's Transfiguration - boy was I wrong! I almost broke into sobs when I saw Caravvagio's Entombent. I know this sounds so incredibly nerdy, but I have been looking forward to this experience for the past two years, right after I began studying art my freshman year and developing a passion for it. Caravaggio, another Italian Renaissance artist, is also my favorite painter. Despite his personal reputation as being a hell-raiser and his sad life of having been exiled from Rome and serving several sentences in prison, there is no other artist who I admire more than Caravaggio. Amazingly, he prepared no sketches for his works. Not a one can any art historian uncover, which is pretty unbelievable. Also, and for this reason, x-rays of his paintings reveal messes of figures displaced throughout. Essentially, Caravaggio used his canvas as a sketch board, so you can imagine how different the beginning composition would look compared to the finished product. I could go on and on about him and his paintings, but then this post would turn into a book. So, let me just give you this photograph and tell you that no other artist pre or post Caravaggio (in my opinion) has been able to pick up a brush and create such beautiful contrast between light and dark (a term called "chiaroscuro").

The next two pieces of art we saw were sculptures. The first one I'm showing you is called the Laocoön. It is an ancient sculpture depicting Greek/Roman mythology. I do not know much about this protagonist in the middle other than he was a Trojan priest of Poseidon and was credited with the infamous line, "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts." Anyone ever seen the movie "Troy?" (Katherine I know you have! Let me take a moment to say: "Hector! Hector! Is there no other!?") Well, this first line of warning refers to the moment when the Trojans gave their Trojan horse as a gift to their enemies. Laocoön was a smart one - his people should have listened to him. I wish I knew more about classical mythology, but I don't. Sorry, that's about all I can offer when it comes to the story. However, I can tell you that this sculpture, as well as the Torso Belvedere inspired Michelangelo and forever changed him as an artist. Look at the way Laocoön, as big and as strong as he is, is struggling to save his sons. This sculpture shows an enormous amount of drama and emotion, emotion that was definitely missing from classical sculpture. Know that this sculpture has been said to be the "most important sculpture in the ancient Roman world."

This next image (above) is the Torso Belevedere. While the sculptor is unknown, this ancient piece has a tremendous impact on Michelangelo's life and how he would later craft the male and female figure. This huge sculpture (bigger than life-size) shows extreme and unnatural body definition. It is evident in Michelangelo's works (especially in the "Sistine Ceiling") that he recycles this sculptural body type over and over.

Speaking of the Sistine Chapel, or la Capella Sistina, that was our next stop. Unfortunately, photographs are prohibited in the chapel so I don't have any pictures to show you. However, I can give you a written visual: When you come into the Sistine Chapel, right in front of you is the Last Judgment fresco, which covers the entire wall. It was painted by Michelangelo about thirty years after the ceiling. The work took four years to complete and depicts the second coming of Christ. Human souls rise and descend according to their judgement - a very intense moment, needless to say. The two side walls are adorned with frescoes: on the left wall are scenes from the life of Moses, while on the right wall are scenes from the life of Christ. These paintings were carried out by a handful of artists, including Botticelli, Raphael and Bernini. Above each fresco of either the life of Moses or the life of Christ is a papal portrait.

Okay, now to the ceiling... The ceiling records nine main scenes from the book of Genesis, starting with God's creation of the world and ending with Noah's drunkenness. The figures are absolutely amazing. Painted with conviction and passion, they show extreme emotion from every one of God's major happenings. My favorite, like most, is the Creation of Adam. It's a fresco painting you can actually feel - one that gives you goosebumps as you imagine the moment when God sparked life into Adam. As weird as this sounds, that feeling of coming alive (like Adam did) happens when you look at this picture. It's as if Michelangelo wanted to create a moment that viewers could experience on site. Amazing.

Two fun facts about the Sistine Chapel: 1. Michelangelo was in Rome for another project when he was asked to paint the ceiling, which was a project he took on with the assumption of it being a short work to do on the side while he was already in Rome. Yeah, I think he figure out after the third year of painting the ceiling that it was going to take a little longer than he had planned... Fun fact number two: The Sistine Chapel's dimensions exactly match those of the Temple of Solomon (in the Bible). Our visit in the Sistine Chapel definitely wasn't long enough for me, so I can assure you that I will be going back.

I know I'm skipping right over Raphael's "School of Athens," but I'm giving you pictures (which I'm pretty sure we weren't supposed to take). This is another absolutely beautiful and interesting work - one that you should research in your free time.

On to St. Peter's Basilica...

St. Peter's Basilica is the largest Christian church in the world, followed by St. Paul's Cathedral in London and then Florence's Duomo. St. Peter's Cathedral is 186m long (longer than the length of a football field). Why is it so enormous? Well, the point was to create a church big enough for God himself. I say wow to the goal and wow to the finished product. The interesting thing is that St. Peter's doesn't feel that big on the inside, or at least not to me, and I figured out why. Because everything is so massive, there's nothing to compare size to, so when everything is on a monumental scale, it's more difficult to decipher exactly how big the space, architecture and sculptures is/are.

Not wanting to take up too much more of your time, I'll just briefly talk about one piece: Michelangelo's Pieta: Okay, so the Pietà is an extremely famous work in the art world. Carved when Michelangelo was just 23 years old (in 1498), it shows the Virgin holding her dead son in her arms. The Virgin looks biologically younger than her son, a representation Michelangelo purposefully crafted in order to suggest a theological mind-bender that the "eternal Virgin" would be best shown as "eternally young." So, her inside purity and youthful innocence is then shown on the outside. Interesting thought, Michelangelo. In my opinion, the Virgin's expression shows us she knew the whole time she'd have to give up her son, and now is the time - the moment she knew would come, but as a mother didn't want to. The Madonna and Child pictures depict the beginning of the tragedy of Christ's crucifixion, while the Pietà is the conclusion of this tragedy. So, we've come full circle from birth to death in regarding Christ and his mother.

Our Christian art feast ended there. Later came the Pantheon and Coliseum. The Pantheon, built in the first century A.D., was a place of worship for the military men for whatever gods they worshiped. And the coliseum, well... movies do a great job of showing you what they were used for. While I haven't seen "Gladiator" (I know, I'm such a bad American), I'm pretty sure the film is successful in showing you that death was a form of entertainment during those times, as disgusting and disturbing as that sounds.

Saturday was awesome! We went to the Villa Farnese and the Villa Borghese, two villas housing amazing art. The Villa Farnese is mainly adorned with gorgeous frescos while the Villa Borghese is more of a museum. Both were built by extremely wealthy men during the Renaissance. They were their vacation homes. Needless to say, these mansions were more elaborate and decorative than any "vacation" home or regular home I've ever seen. These villas were huge show-offs during extravagant dinner parties.

You would think come Sunday I wouldn't want to do anything but go into a deep sleep comma. However, somehow I managed to muster up enough energy to go to a football game - Firenze v. Roma (very fitting since I was just in Roma). The Italians get VERY into their football (soccer) here. As a matter of fact, the Roma fans were contained in this little section with bullet proof glass. They lit fireworks every so often and were screaming nonstop. Unfortunately, Roma won. But the Fiorentina fans were still proud of their team, which was great to see. Speaking of games and fans and football, congrats to the Saints on their huge Super Bowl win! Megan, I know you are absolutely ecstatic! Well, you and the rest of Louisiana.

This is me completely worn out on our hotel bed in Rome. And I'm sure this is exactly what you feel like doing right now after I've taken up 30 min of your life with this blog post. Thanks so much for listening (those of you who actually read everything). And those who just looked at the pictures... well, thanks to you for checking out my photos!

I know you're probably wondering if I actually go to school here in Italy, and the answer is yes! Even though it may seem like my current job is touring Italian cities, I actually have quite a load of homework piled on my desk. So, I should probably go and get that stack thinned out a little. But for those of you who read by last post and haven't tried a blood orange before, I took a picture of one at breakfast to show you what they look like:

Ciao! (I promise next post will be shorter.)