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083105 The Loooooooong Walk |
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written
by jwang3 / 09.03.2005 |
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Itinerary |
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| Judy Wang |
| To lie or not to lie? |
| Shawn fears the wrath of the Mouth of Truth. |
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| Judy Wang |
| In Parco Savello |
| Justin enjoys his hourly feeding. |
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Our day began at 9 am, bright and early. The entourage of 18 met with Shawn and we soon began our long walk, aptly named, “The Long Walk.”
We walked past the Jewish Ghetto and the Teatro Marcello. Having been there before, we didn’t bother to stop and admire it – we are so jaded at this point.
We arrived at the Santa Maria in Cosmedin, the home of the Mouth of Truth. Legend has it, if you have ever lied and you stick your hand into the mouth, your hand will immediately be severed (by the power of the mouth, of course). Did curiosity kill the cat? We don’t care. Put Professor Shawn Wong to the test: do professors lie? The outcome? See for yourself and in September, ask him how many artificial limbs were necessary after this point.
From there, we made the trek (all ten minutes of it) up the Aventine Hill. We took a breather halfway through and between our gasps for air, asked ourselves, “Is it worth it?”
Yes, it was. At the top of the monstrous hill lay the Parco Savello, a somewhat obscure park. Unknown to many tourists, it felt like a secret garden to us. We rested from our strenuous journey in the cool breeze under the orange trees, enjoying one of the best views of St. Peter’s dome in the city.
Adjoining the part was Santa Sabina, which has been cited as one of the most beautiful churches in Rome. Its carved doors represent scriptural scenes, and within the church, two rows of marble columns from the same origin line the main room. The atmosphere inside was pensive; we stayed in the church for a while, taking time to walk around, absorb the environment, and reflect in our journals.
After leaving Santa Sabina, we descended the Aventine Hill and journeyed towards the Protestant Cemetary, the site of the tombs of Percy Bysshe Shelley and John Keats. This cemetery of foreign non-Catholics seemed yet another secret treasure. One minute we were traversing the busy streets of Rome, and the next, in a peaceful plot of land, filled with vegetation and simple tombstones. The cemetery, also the site of the only pyramid in Rome and yet another cat sanctuary within the city, was a complete contrast from the chaos of Rome.
The next stop on our expedition was the British Military Cemetary, the burial site for the British soldiers of the World War II. Inscribed on the walls of the rotunda from which we entered was the sentence:
“These soldiers of the British Commonwealth gave their lives to preserve liberty and by their sacrifice restored the freedom of Italy and the ancient friendship of the Italian and British peoples. 1939 – 1945.”
Barely inside of the wall of Rome, this tiny cemetery consisted of several neatly arranged rows of tombstones identical in size, all with different inscriptions. Some had a cross, some the Star of David; some had names, some didn’t; some were men, some were women. Regardless of their roles in the war, religious beliefs, and place of origin, there they were – possibly one of the most orderly displays in all of Rome.
True to Roman form, behind this solemn site lay something completely out of the blue: Mt. Testaccio, originally composed of pigs’ testes. I only speak the truth. No further comments.
Much to my relief, we did not pay a visit to Mt. Testaccio, but we did conclude our excursion at the Piazza di Testaccio, one of the best food and clothing markets in all of Rome. Uncrowded with tourists, Testaccio boasts Formaggiomania (no, that’s seriously what it’s called), as well as a famed women’s shoe market. Being the prioritizing Honors students that we are and weary with hunger, we decided to eat lunch first, forgetting the ever-elusive detail – Italians love their siestas. To our dismay, the stands closed shortly after lunch. Shoe-shopping was not in the stars for today.
After reeling from the hard life we live, walking through Rome and such, we settled down and spent the rest of the day being the diligent students that we profess to be. At around 4 pm, the thunder and lightning began. About 20 minutes later, the rain came pouring down. Feels like home to me.
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Highlights |
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At each site we visited today, we were given moments to sit and reflect, time that we spent journaling, taking pictures, soaking in the fact that we just spent an entire morning walking around Rome. Rome itself is absolute chaos; the highlight of my day was to be able to step away from it for just a moment, slow down, and the enjoy the scenery.
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Images |
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| Judy Wang |
| Santa Sabina interior |
| The inside of Santa Sabina. Imagine silence, echoes of pens scribbling on paper, soft footsteps all around, barely audible whispers. |
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| Nicole Day-Bazhaw |
| Cats are everywhere. |
| I wasn't kidding about the cats. This is a donation box - for the cats. They are taking over this city. |
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The first picture is of Santa Sabina. It truly was beautiful in there - so peaceful, uninfested with tourists.
The second is proof that cats are everywhere in Rome. They live around the bottom of the pyramid and there were signs encouraging people to volunteer to take care of the cats.
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