Sundays usually mean crowded churches. They also mean that you'll have the museums to yourself because the tourists are sleeping in and families, for the most part, are spending time with each other. I decided to take advantage of this and headed for the Capitoline Museum with Kathryn and Kylee. I heard nothing but good things about the Capitoline, so I was looking forward to it.
The view from Piazza del Campidoglio was stunning. The statues leading the path to the entrance of the museum were enormous and a little intimidating. They didn't get any smaller once you entered the museum. The first glimpse of the museum was a http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifcourtyard that displayed the remains of a Colossus, which was awesome because I've never seen one in person. When we left the courtyard things got a little tricky because the museum is sectioned off in to two buildings. En route to the second building we saw the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, the bust of Medusa by Bernini, the bust of Constantine I and the She-Wolf of Rome (which was pretty cool because we saw a replica on the hike to the top of the hill at Piazza del Popolo our first night in Rome). Fun fact: Pope Sixtus IV was a huge fan of sculptures. He placed the gigantic statues in the courtyard in 1471 which eventually expanded into a museum designed by Michelangelo in 1536.
We initially didn't realize that you had to enter an underground tunnel to cross from one end of the museum to the next, so in the process of finding the opposite end we accidentally crashed a wedding reception at a caffeteria on the top floor (their dresses were stunning, let me tell you!) and tried to sneak a peek at the Pope John Paul II exhibit on the top floor - turns out you needed to purchase a second ticket to gain entry, oh but no - and stumbled upon a war museum in the Vittorio Emmanuel monument. Initially our goal was to find the exit so we could get back to the museum as quickly as possible, but then I spotted a model of Mount Vesuvius erupting mounted next to a sculpture. It automatically caught my eye considering we were in Pompeii just days before. It was also very out of place in comparison to the decorative guns, uniforms and war-time doctrine that surrounded it. Creative liberty on behalf of the curator, I guess?
We found our way out of the war museum and stopped for a moment to view the city. I caught about seven different basilicas and tried to take a photo, but it didn't turn out well (Note To Self: ditch the Casio when you get back to Jersey). After about two hours of viewing the sculptures we began our trek back to the Barberini station. As much as I liked viewing the art inside the museum, I have to mention some of the things I noticed on the walk there and back. For example: this wall frescoe at the bottom of Capitoline Hill. I was told it's a portrayal of the baptism of Christ; a scene that solidified the beginning of his ministry. The baptism is mentioned in all of the gospels, but I think the artist of this fresco didn't take inspiration from Luke because he referenced a baptism by water (And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, Luke 3:3), whereas Christ is seated with Mary surrounded by icons in this image. I'm not sure why this artist decided to portray this scene differently, but I saw it and thought it was gorgeous.
Kathryn and I also ran into this art work on the way to the metro stop. Unfortunately the artist wasn't there so I couldn't ask him any questions about this piece, but his tools were left behind so I'm assuming we missed him by a few minutes. On the ground is a 3D image of a woman in robes surrounded by Angels and Demons. I've always been impressed by artists who could make images come to life with chalk and pastels, so I spazzed when we saw it. I think I may have scared Kathryn a little.
We wanted to visit the Crypt of Capuchins right after the Capitoline, but then I remembered I had shorts on. By the time we would have made it to the Collegio and back siesta would have started, so we decided to reschedule. If/when I return to Rome I seriously need to remember to pack more skirts.
After a personal siesta and classes, I went out to dinner at a cute spot around the corner - we saw Cooper Nielson: breakdancer edition, YES YES YES! - followed by another night at Piazza del Popolo. It was a fun time. I plan to take a personal adventure next.
Ciao!
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