Secondo Giorno

Today felt much longer than yesterday.

I'm surprised at how easily I adjusted to Roman time. I didn't need an alarm because I naturally woke up at 7am. After a cold shower, a brief orientation and a 63 cent breakfast from a bakery around the corner from the Collegio (WINNING!) we explored the city.

We walked past one of the oldest castles in Rome and into Saint Peter's Square where we saw the Pope promenade around the square and perform mass. I would've never thought I'd see that in my lifetime. Epic.

Aside from having my mind blown from seeing the Pope, I think what I appreciated most about Saint Peter's was the architecture. I'd like to find out more about the process behind the sculpting and placement of these statues above the columns.




I took AP Art History in high school and we covered it briefly, so unfortunately I don't remember much. But I think I'll look into it while I'm here.

After Saint Peter's we explored a small town that lead us to another square. It honestly looked like a movie set. The caffes, flower shops, gelaterias and markets looked staged. I don't know how else to describe it.







What also caught me off guard were the gardens tucked away off the street. If you weren't looking for them - the few I spotted were thanks to Dr. Sebastian - you would've missed them completely. Again, the scenery was unreal.



Finally we made it to the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain! This was my favorite place. If I could, I would like to see the building process of this fountain. It blows my mind what these artists did with a few blocks of marble and their imaginations. I think my album will have a ton of sculpture photos to accompany my growing street musician obsession (I had to stop myself from taking a picture of a harp player when leaving the second square after lunch because my batter was dying).



Oh and the clothes. We can't forget the clothes. After passing dozens of shops today en route to the Spanish steps I began scheming on how I could fit a collection of scarves from the flea market in to my suitcase. We shall see ;)

Any way, the only thing better than the Trevi during the day is the Trevi at night. The atmosphere is different. There's much more excitement and the space is emptier, but not completely void of people, for lack of better wording. It was perfect.

Stay tuned!