by Greg | Jun 9, 2010 | Blog Posts
After a rather restless night of sleep – I think I am past jet lag and simply over-caffeinated coupled with mental overload – I caught the bus at 7 AM for the city center. From there I hiked another mile or so to meet up with Dr. Schwartz, Dr. Shotwell and the art students. This morning was dedicated to visiting churches that were artistically and theologically responding to the reformation of the early 16th century. Our first church for the morning was Santa Maria in Vallicella. Don’t bother checking a typical guidebook because the chances are it is not mentioned, although that does not mean that it has no gifts to offer the eye. Neri was the architect of this “pre-baroque” style although it has suffered (yes, I meant to use that word) many later additions of paintings, sculptures and tapestries. The design of the church – a straightforward nave with shallower chapels and transepts, however, could still be appreciated beneath the “busyness” of everything else. There was a fine early 17th century altar piece by Peter Paul Rubens. Michael summed the interior of this church by stating, “this anticipates what we now experience of the continuous bombardment of the visual.” It made me long for something a bit simpler. As we walked to our next church Michael took the opportunity to point out buildings we have been passing nearly every day and noting how one can determine if they were renaissance or something more modern. We next entered the Basilica San Andrea della Valle. This church is the scene of the first act of Puccini’s beautiful opera Tosca...
by Greg | Jun 7, 2010 | Blog Posts
We learned of some sad news regarding one of the ASU students. She received a call last night by cell phone that her father died in a car accident. For privacy sake I will not share her name but I do ask you to remember her and her family in your prayers at this time. The faculty is working with her to get her back home early. Michael Schwartz sent me an email this morning sharing with me that they may or may not make it to our site lecture at the San Callisto Catacombs along the Appian Way. We decided as a family to go on ahead on our own since we are a ten minute walk from our apartment to the catacombs. In spite of the morning’s news it was a beautiful day of mild temperatures, low humidity and a blue sky framed by flowing, sap-green fields. The grounds are meticulously kept, making for a striking contrast to the urban grit of the city center. There are no vehicles driving through with the exception of a few chartered buses parked discreetly behind one of buildings. Workers are constantly sweeping and trimming caring for this ancient place of burial. The catacombs served as the burial grounds for Roman Christians in the first several centuries. Romans chose cremation while early Christians chose a simple burial because of the belief of Christ’s immanent return with the bodily resurrection of the believers. In the city, however, burial was not allowed. Christians dug an estimated 375 miles of tunnels lined with tombs many layers deep. Touring the catacombs is always guided and...
by Greg | Jun 7, 2010 | Blog Posts
This morning marked our second Sunday in Rome and I was determined to go to Rome Baptist Church. This church was founded by Doug and Helen Ruchti in 1962. I came to know the Rutchis when they retired in, ironically, in Rome, GA when I was a student at Shorter College. The church is an English speaking congregation that ministers to Baptists worldwide. Factoring in a slower bus schedule and allowing for 30 minutes of walking I left earlier than necessary – 9 AM for a 10:30 worship service. As I was walking out of my apartment I caught a glimpse of the bus rounding the corner so I raced to the stop just in time to leap in the bus as it was about to pull away. Once in it occurred to me that I may not be on the right bus since the stop serves two other lines. I asked the few passengers on board and of course none of them spoke any English, no matter how loud I spoke! One lady was convinced that I was on the wrong bus after I pointed to her on my map my intended destination, so I promptly got off the next stop a mile down the road in order to wait for my bus. As the bus pulled away I saw the number – you guessed it, I just got off my bus. Forty minutes later my next bus came around again. Nonetheless I made it to church with five minutes to spare. As with any travel to “strange” places that involve living, eating and traveling differently, I am...
by Greg | Jun 6, 2010 | Blog Posts
Last night before bedtime I had one final chore which was to secure some drinking water. Yes, we have indoor plumbing but the water coming out of our faucets tastes, well, a bit flat and a bit off. Rome is known for its water, having long ago secured fresh water for its entire city to the extent that on nearly every block there is a drinking fountain of free flowing water. Each day as we are rambling through the city I keep two nalgene water bottles with me and as need arises find a spigot or some other drinking fountain that is flowing and fill them up. The water is clear, cold and happily tasteless. The water out of our kitchen sink, however, is tepid and just seems a bit heavy with minerals. This brings me around to last night’s chore. In spite of all our walking and an over-the-top meal of hamburgers and fries I took one final walk for the day and found one of those drinking fountains and filled up a one liter water bottle for us to keep in the fridge. Sure, I could have just bought some water from the store, but why buy when Rome offers it free and in abundance? Plus, I felt sort of like the old farmer of bygone days going out to the well to secure what every household and every person must have in order to live – water! When I see things out and about I no longer depend on my middle-aged, “ADD” memory to assist me in recalling them when I sit down to write. Instead...
by Greg | Jun 5, 2010 | Blog Posts
It has been another interesting day in the Eternal City. Besides what has now become the routine of making a morning walk for coffee and a pastry, I spent much of the morning reading and getting prepared for the afternoon at the Borghese Gallery. There are two books I have used on a daily basis in regards to my travels around Rome: Eyewitness Travel: Rome, and Rick Steve’s Rome 2010. After reading and mapping our route for the day, I took a solo walk just around the block to visit moving memorial from World War 2. The “Fosse Ardeatine” remembers 334 Italian POWs who were summarily executed at this quarry in 1944. The victims included various political prisoners, 73 Jews and ten other civilians, among them a priest and a 14 year old boy. The husband of Dr. Karen Aubrey, Phil D’Ambrogi, has a distant cousin who was one of the victims. He was able to go and visit the memorial as well as locate the marker remembering that terrible event. Not too many days ago in America Memorial Day was observed and in some ways this was my own way of remembering the many people around the world that made sacrifices on behalf of the ideals of democracy. We boarded our bus with a few sandwiches packed to eat at the first piazza we crossed. After swallowing peanut butter and jelly sandwiches we made the one or so hour walk to the beautiful Borghese gardens en route to the Gallery. Honestly, how can I write in a blog my thoughts on the Borghese? The Gallery is a villa...
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