Reflections

Looking back on my application to the class and program, it was obviously a plead to return to Rome. Italy, pushed as the best place I had ever traveled, was a country I wanted to get back to. Amongst all the cities I had ever visited, both domestic and international, Rome certainly made the top five. All of this still has not changed; of course I still wish to return!

Before going in 2008, I had taken a wealth of classes in high school that prepared me on a level that seemed one step above the average Joe, but after taking Reading Rome, I’d argue a few more layers of both interest and knowledge have me ready to go. What is clear in my essay is my background in art and art history. Going to Rome while in the middle of my survey of western art class was very helpful in understanding the pieces I was learning. I had knowledge of artistic and architectural vocabulary, which only continued to be repeated and built upon after taking more art history and classics courses in college. I could tell anyone the Pantheon had a coffered ceiling, that there was a rotunda on top and it had an oculus where the snow crept through, and that the columns in front of the entryway were Corinthian.

The architecture, however, is not all there is to Rome. Though I was glad to recognize things upon travelling there, I know this time I will see even more. There will be many areas and sites we’ve learned about along our walks, and it will feel good to know them. The purpose of different buildings was something else I was more interested to learn this time around as well. Knowing only structure is knowing only the surface of the building's history. Reading Rome has added many more sites and their histories to my list than just the basic highlights of my art history class.

Reflecting upon the readings in class, Rome from other people’s perspectives is a topic I had never previously divulged in. Not only could I understand what others thought about the city or what activities they chose to partake in, but also views from other centuries. I was aware of the romantic draw to Rome, and the artists who were fond of depicting the ruins in such a light, but I knew nothing of the actual travelers or their stories – the Grand Tour was a concept I had never even heard of.

Travelling with someone other than my parents will also create a different dynamic. Then, I had taken one friend with me, and we loitered around together most of the time. Similarly, I only knew one person when I entered the class, but now I feel as if I can talk to anyone. Travelling with nineteen other people I feel familiar with will be exciting.

I look forward to many new sites, but I feel as if I cannot forget the sites I have seen, and my favorites from before. My entry essay does not mention specific places, but I hope in seeing some of them for the second time, I will be able to absorb much more. When I mentioned in my presentation that our time spent in St. Peter’s Square was more of standing in line and less of observing the surroundings and architecture, it notes that there are things I probably missed my first visit that I might notice now.

Though I came in with a small bank of knowledge about Rome, the layers added through the class have certainly contributed much more. What I had learned before were but a few structures and people from one time period, where as we have stretched out Rome’s timeline to several other eras I had never learned about in conjunction with the ancient city I was familiar with. I feel as if I have completed what I hoped to achieve in my entry essay, and am now only missing the experience of simply being there.