Reflections of Roma

As I'm sitting here reflecting on the past 8 weeks, I am struck by how much I have learned, and how inspirational Rome lends itself to be when studying culture, design & architecture. You can't come to Rome just expecting to learn a little bit about the history and the architecture, because everything is so embedded in everything else, that when you study a small space within the city, the doors open well past the designers or architects and you're then thinking about politics, history, religion, anthropology at the same time as looking at the urban fabric and figuring out what decision led to the city we see today. To me, its incredible to be able to see the remains of the Roman Forum, be able to walk 5 minutes to Michelangelo's Renaissance Era Campidoglio and then look out onto the Monument of Victor Emmanuel. But what I think makes Rome truely special is the spaces within the city dedicated to the public in the form of the piazza. Big or small, each one has something to offer. I think that is one of the most fascinating things about studying architecture is that you are also studying people and culture and learning how to enhance people lives through the built environment. Rome has left a huge imprint on how I'll think about these things in the future. Culturally we have to much to take away from, the pace of life is different here, the people are truly genuine, Romans have a culture built around socialization and interaction. People are here to be seen, but also to be heard. I was so nervous to come and not know very much Italian, but just to try really does count in a lot of situations. I couldn't have asked for a better place to study, and I can't wait to come back, in whatever form that may be, only time will tell.