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091205 Back to Roma and Church Boundaries and Desserts |
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written
by daw84 / 09.14.2005 |
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Itinerary |
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| Good Morning!!! |
| Peter working hard making pancakes for breakfast. |
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| The Commute |
| This view is about two seconds outside of our apartment...life's good. |
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| The 2 pm Start |
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| The Jewish Ghetto |
| Kayanna presenting the Jewish Ghetto in front of one of the gateways to it. |
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| Patricia Presents Bruno and Galileo |
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| Bruno |
| This statue of Bruno stands in the middle of the Campo di Fiori at the site of his death. |
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| Bernini's Elephant |
| Shivali presented this peculiar monument in front of the Basilica S. Maria sopra Minerva. |
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| The BEST Gelateria in Rome! |
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| Tiramisu Prep! |
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This morning provided us with an amazing opportunity to sleep in and recover after a long and wild excursion south to Paestum, Pompeii, and Herculaneum. Others took additional trips to gorgeous islands just off the coast near Napoli. Personally, I went to Capri, which was incredible…however, I returned utterly exhausted, so classes starting at the luxurious hour of 2 pm was very much appreciated. Setting my alarm for 8:40 am, I laid down anticipating a long, refreshing night’s sleep.
I snapped out of my unconsciousness to machine gun fire and yelling men’s voices outside my room. Rolling over and wondering, “Why me?” I cracked my eyes open to see that it was merely 7 am. Turning to the window, I discovered the cause of my rude awakening—a construction site immediately outside my window. Thank you, city of Rome, for your impeccable timing.
It wasn’t all that bad though, and by the time I finished my bowl of bran sticks and milk, which tastes like it’s straight from the cow, I was ready to carpe diem. Peter was also up by then and already slaving away making pancakes. Wow! That man can cook! Too bad I had already eaten. After the long trek from my apartment to the Rome Center, it was clear we had all taken a break, as entering the library, I ran into at least half of our class pounding away on their computers playing catch-up on all the e-mails and assignments neglected over the weekend.
When 2 o’clock finally rolled around, Kayanna started the day off on the right foot with her presentation of the Jewish Ghetto. This small section of Rome, just a few steps away from the Campo di Fiori was at one time the home for all of the Jews in Rome. Her presentation began at a large empty doorway which used to be one of the four entrances to the ghetto, through which Jews could enter and exit only from sunrise to sunset. The restriction was a feeble effort by the church to convert Jews to Christianity. Later we had the privilege of touring the large Jewish Synagogue adjacent to the ghetto, where we learned even more about the Jewish people and their religious practices.
From the synagogue, Patricia took over with a detailed account of two of the greatest minds ever to tread upon Roman soil, Bruno and Galileo. During her presentation she kept us active and intrigued by parading us from the synagogue, through the Campo di Fiori, to the Basilica S. Maria sopra Minerva. Both of these men fought against the church, claiming the existence of a heliocentric universe rather than the geocentric universe accepted by the church at the time. In Bruno’s case, as he seemed to lack much social tact, the battle cost him his life. In Galileo’s case, it cost him his freedom until his death.
Shivali followed up those two fantastic presentations with a brief look at the Bernini statue of an elephant immediately outside the basilica. As he made the statue, Bernini’s style was continually kept in check by the pope, much to his dislike. To express his feelings, the sculpture’s wide backside, tail drawn to the side, is directed towards the adjacent monastery.
In Italy, a long stretch of hard work can only be followed by one thing; GELATO!!! So, Lisa took us to the best gelateria in Rome, Giolitti. It’s the biggest gelateria I’ve ever seen, with every imaginable flavor available. After a long debate, I selected blackberry, sour cherry, and watermelon…I don’t think I’m going to try that combo again. But, it was an incredible place, and I’ll definitely be a regular attender.
The day wrapped up with a lesson in Italian dessert given by Sabrina. Tiramisu was the dessert of choice, and since it must chill in the refrigerator for a day prior to being eaten, we made it in preparation for Tuesday’s feast. I learned a few things at the preparation session. First, after waking up the next morning with a sore arm from using a whisk, electric egg beaters are the best invention ever. Second, Italian coffee is the greatest in the world, especially when it’s made from these incredible stovetop espresso devices they have here. Third, even a guy like me can make tiramisu, so everyone back home should ask your friends here to make it for you when they get back. Overall, it was a great, full, Roman day, and that is a beautiful thing.
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Highlights |
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Other than the tiramisu assembly festivities and the best gelato in the world, the highlight of the day came when seeing Patricia’s eyes light up when she wove physics into her presentation. I don’t know how anyone could ever get that excited about physics, but she seems to really love it. Fortunately people like her make great physics discoveries so that the rest of the people like me don’t have to think about them.
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Images |
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| Angela Taking a Bite |
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| Inside the Gelateria |
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| The Options |
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| Justin Breaking a Sweat at the Whisk |
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| Uova |
| Mmmmm...my favorite. |
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| Sabrina Teaching Us the Proper Whisking Technique |
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In honor of all our dessert activities today, here are some pictures of our sweet adventures.
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