Do As the Romans Do

So, traffic in Italy is absolutely haywire. They stop if the feel it is necessary to stop, and they honk their horns as if they were in New York. The best part though is that there are no green and red people to tell you whether it is safe or unsafe to walk across the road. Instead, you just have to step out into oncoming traffic and pray that you do not die in the process. Fun, huh? I was afraid Kathy and I were going to get killed in front of the Colosseum, but fortunately, cars do stop. We tried to keep up with the locals and only cross when they did, but that only works for a little while until you realize there are other places you need to go. People also dress up quite a bit more down there. It was hotter than Texas with no air conditioning, and the Italians are still dressed in full suits. Craziness. They seem to make it work for them though, and I did not see anyone passing out because of heatstroke, which to be quite honest was somewhat of a suprise to me. There are also fountains everywhere, and you can drink the water! And, it is free! Whoop! Free water! That is really good because the restaurants are horrendously expensive, and I think they enjoy ripping people off. I had to pay 5.20 for a coke at a shop. I would not have ordered it if I knew it was going to cost me so much, but I figured that it would not be any more than 3 euros. Apparently, I was wrong.

On a happier note, Rome is absolutely beautiful, and I think everyone should go there! It truly is a sight to see. The Vatican Museum was amazing. I could have stared at the School of Athens frescoe in one of the Raphael rooms for ages! It amazes me how much detail he was able to capture in a frescoe. One of the things I learned is that frescoes are quite different from paintings in the sense that the paint is mixed with the plaster, and therefore, the "painting" is actually apart of the wall. The artwork in the Sistine Chapel by Michaelangelo is also done as a frescoe. With frescoes, things have to be painted more quickly since the plaster dries rather quickly. In the Sistine Chapel Michaelangelo depicts the story of creation across the sealing, and on the main wall depicts his view of heaven and hell which is disturbing and amazing all in one.

St. Peter's Basilica was probably my absolute favorite place in Rome! It is absolutely magnificent, and the "paintings" are actually mosaicis. There are no paintings in the entire basilica, which is almost unbelievable until you look really really closely at the artwork on the wall. Bernini's dove in the center is gorgeous. Kathy and I went to mass there on Saturday night, and I spent the entire mass staring at it. Absolutely beautiful! All in all, everyone should go! Tschuss!