Week 2

Week two really flew by fast. I am immensely enjoying my time here in Rome. Every day is a new adventure. This week we were able to go on three historical walking tours. Scott Schlimgen lead us on two of those three. I had heard good things about Scott but could not prepare myself for how truly inspiring and wonderful he was. Scott's story about how when he found out about his degenerative eyesight affliction he packed his bags and bought a one way ticket to Rome; his passion for Roman architecture and history is extremely evident when he speaks. Listening to Scott was not only entertaining but very informative. The idea of seeing Rome as a "palimpscest" really opened my eyes--helping me see Rome for its many layers and to understand how each effects the next. What I really found to be amazing what that even though his vision is impaired almost to the extent of complete blindness in the dark, he still knows exactly where everything in every building we visited was located. For example when we were in the underground complex of a church in almost complete darkness he pointed straight to a specific part of a wall containing a preserved fresco and began telling us about its importance. He didn't need to see where it was to find it because he was so well informed he just knew.

Another part of this week that I was unable to prepare myself for was our field trip Friday to Ostia Antica. Ostia was a small town on the coast that is now one of the best ways to really understand what a Roman town would have been like during the empire. Matt took us on a tour through the site and then turned us loose to do our own exploring and sketching. Nicole and I found this round temple and had the greatest time constructing it's plan. Entering the temple complex from the side we did not see the informational sign with the plan and history so we decided to explore the whole area and find out as much as we could about the building.There were a few standing columns so by pacing those off we deduced that there would have been 12 columns along the portico. After we felt that we had a very good idea of what this temple would have been like in its prime we exited the area, seeing the sign and the floor plan. Turns out we were very close! It was very rewarding to know that by being diligent and paying attention to the remaining building you can really learn a lot about 3rd century architecture.