Early December – beautiful cyclamen with tree foliage in the distanceOn the trip 2 years ago, the Coliseum ticket line was nuts – crowded and the wait was nearly an hour simply to get tickets. This time I went with a more expensive timed reservation to get us entry at 9:20 am. Breakfast went well today with a couple of late students. After breakfast we departed at 8:30 walking downhill to the metro station at Valle Aurelia. We caught the subway towards Termini where we would make the transfer to the B line to the Coliseum station. We arrived at Termini, but all of the entrances to the B line to Laurentina were closed! As the group leader, I was forced to consider alternate transportation. Taxi was out because the students were not told to prepare in advance for a cash outlay and frankly, I do not know the bus lines to that part of the city. Walking was the option and seemed like a good idea, so Jack (my assistant) Google mapped the walk and we did it, sort of – at a fast pace, because remember, we were now behind schedule for a timed entry. Well, there were folks in the group who could fast pace, and a good portion who could not. This is something I am always curious about; how can a group of 20-year olds not be able to keep up with an out of shape 60 year old man? I suspect it is because most of their life is virtual. Add to the mix that today was not sunny, but at least it wasn’t torrential rain! The temperature was in the 40s and the mix was on and off light drizzle.
Coliseum InteriorWe arrived late but it turned out not to matter. The attendants let us in without an issue. This time, there just were not very many visitors to the venue. I usually give the group an hour to explore the interior of the Coliseum on their own and then meet at the adjacent Arch of Constantine. I’m not sure I have a lot to add to the Coliseum discussion. I saw a Piranesi book in the bookstore that I wanted – I wanted a copy that was not shelf-worn, so I left it on the shelf for someone else to carry home. No other artist drew Rome like Piranesi did, with such incredible draftsmanship and ability to compose while simultaneously never losing the sense of expression. It is sometimes hard for me not to see a place through the minds of others. Rome is like this for me. I see it like Piranesi saw it. In my past, I have visited Yosemite and Yellowstone. The photographer, Ansel Adams, provided to me a lens to see through which to see those places. Some artists find ways to define a place and that is the way it is. It gets stuck in your vision and your mind. I am not sure my photos necessarily do the same thing, but I try to make images that not only record, but images that translate my experiences.
View of the Flavian Ampitheatre from the Temple of Roma and Venus in the RainIt is hard when I am leading a group. You have to find your moments of quiet when you can. That is why I think it is important to convey and cement knowledge back in the classroom. I also think it is important for the students to carry their knowledge into the experience of the actual site and interpret things for themselves. What many of them have not learned is how to stand and look deeply. It takes practice. Most of their life is one phone click away to the next phone click away….etc. I, too, understand that experience and have learned that while there is a certain infinity and efficiency to the interactions, there is also the superficiality and smallness of it all. We all pay for our phones with our money and our lives. What is the difference between standing at the Arch of Constantine and viewing it on a phone browser? What can we experience if we carefully decode and monument in situ? Can they even remember which arch it is and differentiate it from the others? Answer: Only if we carefully look.
One issue that we experience is the vast span of time and disciplines necessary to grasp Rome including Latin, Italian, History, Art, Architecture, Literature, and Religion. Standing in the midst of these monuments has a way of reinforcing how little one knows. In a lot of ways, antiquity is a marvelous collection of fragments that we have tried to preserve. On a course like this, I am afraid that our experiences are also fragmentary, governed by our preparation, time limitations and fatigue. It is one thing to wander through the ruins with a basic understanding of what we are experiencing but another to take it to a deeper engagement. It is my hope that students will absorb some of it but they also have to work at it. Maybe they are!
I like the look of concern on the students’ faces after the Forum Tour. We direct them to the Palatine Hill where one’s attention span is influenced by the weather, the tiredness of legs/feet, and the hunger pangs that come from not having food since breakfast. The Palatine under all circumstances is a poetic set of ruinous remains, one of my favorite places. Time and management have shaped it into what it is today. The archaeology under our feet is partially discovered and much remains sealed into the earth that has covered over the majority of the Empire. It was once a little more peaceful than it is today now that it falls under the ticketing of the Coliseum. It might be brilliant marketing but I liked it better 20 years ago when no one else cared about the Palatine. I liked having it for myself. That is a part of Rome that I now experience, that is, my memories and expectations fused with the current moment. I cherish the people I once walked with in these sites. I fondly remember my photographic escapades when admission was free! Today, I would treasure a little warmth from some sunlight but that isn’t going to happen. Today, I have become a little disconnected in the weather and a bit tired from my earlier power walk to the Coliseum. So Jack, Rolfe and I depart for a pizza restaurant some where below us in the city.
Beautiful Interior of San Clemente, RomaAfter lunch, Rolfe abandoned us via Taxi; Jack and I walked a couple of blocks down to San Clemente, one of the older churches with a Mithraeum in its lower bowels. They’ve changed the entry, a fortuitous change since it now gives me a better understanding of how the courtyard functioned in accordance with the older basilicas such as the original St. Peter’s and St. Paul Outside the Walls. They ask for the COVID vaccination card (Everywhere asked for this card “the green card.”) I have seen San Clemente before and this time, I am finding the ticket cost too prohibitive to go down to the Mithraeum so I decide I can be happy looking at the apse mosaic with the nice crucifix surrounded by doves. It really is a charming and beautiful Romanesque church with a nice baldacchino. In the left-hand corner of the front of the church is a crucifixion fresco by the late Medieval/early Renaissance artist Masolino.
Michelangelo’s Moses at the Tomb of Pope Julius II at San Pietro in VincoliIt is now late afternoon and it is raining. Being outdoors is miserable. Cold December rain is my least favorite. I am prepared. I have my umbrella. I have the waterproof bag for electronics. I packed one pair of sneakers so describing my “puddle avoidance” as paranoia is an understatement. Jack and I trek onward past the Baths of Trajan. We check out the Golden House of Nero. We have to get tickets online, so it is a no-go. We find our way over to San Pietro in Vincoli. A few students emerge from the entrance as we make our way in. I’m thinking they need to slow down. All of them do. This whole thing needs to be a little deeper than a scavenger hunt.
Once again, I get to encounter Moses. Keep in mind that this is simply a marble statue of Moses by Michelangelo. While the Old Testament describes Moses and reveals a narrative about a guy who talks to God and leads his people, Michelangelo defines Moses, and I might add, he has defined Moses for all of eternity. He defines Moses by bringing the ancient story into the physical present. It is one of power, one of confidence, and one of wisdom. Seeing the tomb of Pope Julius II is impressive and a pretty good stop. This is where the itinerary ended for the day. Realizing that we were within a few blocks of more great stuff, Jack and I climbed the Esquiline toward Santa Maria Maggiore. We stopped at a smaller church on the way, rested for a bit, and continued our quest.
Interior of Sta. Maria MaggioreSometimes in these places it is interesting how things come full circle. The Toritti mosaic in the apse is a marvelous work. So are the baldacchino and crypt. The full circle part was seeing the Bernini Burial Slab to the right of the altar area. Here lies much of his family and includes himself. Bernini, along with the earlier Michelangelo, was a tremendous transformer of the Rome that we see today.
The Altar and Apse of Sta. Maria MaggioreWe jumped onto the metro at Termini and trekked back to the hotel for dinner. We walked 12.9 miles today.
Rome & Beyond 