September 12, 2023
Day Seven: Wow! A Spectacle!
September 7, 2023
Bomboloni – Madeline G, Layla, Moa
Moa – Morning!
For UW Students, this may have been one of the best mornings on their Rome trip so far. Alarms need not be set as the class’s first meet up would be at 1:30pm at the UW Rome Center.
With their free morning, the majority of students chose to sleep in, but some unfortunately got too used to waking up early. (Or somehow, still have jet leg). For those that did get up, many went to cafes to indulge in some Italian Coffee and Pastries, taking pictures for Instagram all the while. (Or, flirting with cafe waitresses, in Jacob’s case). Many students walked around the neighborhood their St. John’s University Dorms reside in, journaling, taking notes, or sketching their surroundings. And almost everyone took a much-needed-“everything”-shower. You’re welcome Shawn and Juliana. But it is your fault for having us walk and sweat so much.
Personally, I fell victim to the select few that could not sleep in, so instead, I spent my morning at a nearby gym. It was very Italian, with Kilometers and Kilograms galore, but I was surprised by how many of their “fitness” advertisements were Americanized. A Bruce Lee poster started back at me as I ran on a treadmill, and to my right was a life-size cardboard cutout of Sylvester Stallone as Rocky. In a way, this made me think of our theme for the day: Spectacle. Sylvester and Bruce are surely here because of their inspirational yet intimidating visual impact. Does that make them a spectacle? As the definition of a “Spectacle” reads, “a visually striking performance or display”.
After meeting at the UWRC, Shawn and Julianna led UW students to their first visit of the day: The Pantheon. The Pantheon is well known for its historic significance, but almost more than that, it is recognized for its visual and aesthetic impact. The Pantheon was built as a temple in 125 AD to honor the twelve Gods, but it is now famous for being one of the greatest spectacles in Europe. Its size is one thing, but its architectural brilliance leaves you with your jaw on the floor. Shawn, Juliana, and the students had to fight off a mob of sweaty tourists, also waiting to view the spectacle from the inside, before entering the building. As they entered, everyone’s eyes went up. They were greeted by a 7.8m in diameter skylight at the center of the building’s famous dome, which warmed the rest of the room with a golden, bright light. The students took their time browsing many artifacts, sketching them or sitting on benches and journaling. Everyone took one last look and said ‘wow’ before leaving to go to their next destination…
Layla – Afternoon!
As we ventured our own ways for a quick break before our tour of the colosseum, some of us found a quick bite to eat and others (like me) found gelato and ICED coffee. This day was one of the hottest and the longest and a gelato break was a definite need. We made our way to meet in front of one of the oldest buildings in Rome. On our way, we stumbled upon a cafe that had actual iced coffee with more than two ice cubes. We couldn’t help but to get some after missing our American iced coffee for what seemed like forever. (It was barely a week). The sweet treats cooled us down and began our tour of the largest ancient amphitheater in the world.
The Colosseum not only held breathtaking spectacles but was a magnificent spectacle itself. As the largest ancient building in Rome standing at 57m tall it was certainly hard to miss. During daily walks or explorations you were always guaranteed to stumble across a sight to see whether it be the Colosseum, the Pantheon, or even a seagull posing for pictures. Within the Colosseum, there were three different levels that held around 50,000-70,000 spectators. Theaters were very popular in ancient Rome so the Emperor Vespasian, who aimed to get back Roman support after the reign of Nero, ordered the construction of the Colosseum that was finished around ten years after it began. The greek root “amphi” meaning two came from the colosseum as it was the first amphitheater in the world and provided twice the amount of spectators and gave a complete view of the shows. The eighty arches around the outside of the building provided a quick exit that made it possible for the great number of people to clear the arena within ten minutes. The spectacles were hours long with a morning and evening show; the evening show was always the most popular.
In ancient times, TVs were not a thing so the most attended entertainment came from events and shows within the Colosseum. Gladiator fights were the main attraction and the most interesting thing was that they didn’t always fight to the death every time. The winner was usually decided by the loser either dropping down from defeat or giving up. The crowd commonly decided the fate of the loser as well, which was either execution, or in most cases he would get sent away because they believe in sportsmanship. More gladiators died of infections or wounds after the battles instead of the battle itself. Most gladiators were men as only 5% of gladiators were women and were often viewed as exotic or weird. The gladiators were not Romans, however they were usually soldiers caught in war who were trained to fight and lived their sentence through fighting in these shows. They were another form of slaves who were owned by the richest people in Rome who could financially provide for the gladiators. Comparable to today, gladiators were more like wrestlers in the WWE or UFC. The most famous winners often received money and could buy their freedom back but most found it very difficult to go back to everyday life and instead started a gladiator school themselves if they had enough funds. There were endless amounts of entertainment through this time but today, the hum of tourists, the views, and the strong sense of history of the Colosseum provided us with our own spectacle as our amazing tour guide gave us a little look into the ancient entertainment before leading us to our next destination of Roman life.
Maddy G – Evening!
The sun began to set soon after our group left the Colosseum, giving us a much needed respite from the heat of the day. Before heading into the Roman forum, we visited a park and saw a seagull that was very cool. Even if we went close to him, he wouldn’t budge from his spot, and so he became our spectacle for the next fifteen minutes or so. We named him Romulus Bernard Wong, after the legendary Romulus and also after our teacher Shawn Wong.
(Pictured: Zoe the human and Romulus the bird)
After taking plenty of selfies with the bird, we refilled our water bottles at a fountain and headed into the Roman Forum, which was full of its own, much more ancient spectacles for us to admire. One of the most interesting landmarks we visited was the Arch of Titus – a standalone archway that looks somewhat out of place in the middle of the Roman Forum. Our guide explained that this landmark was built to commemorate Emperor Titus after his death, setting him in stone and raising him to the status of a god. The carvings on the walls and ceiling of the arch depict the battle between Rome and the Jewish people, and celebrate the subsequent victory of Emperor Titus. When I think of our time in the Roman forum, these images stick out in my mind: a carved menorah as a symbol of the Jewish diaspora; a winged Victoria, the goddess of victory; and my classmates craning their necks to see what was carved into the ceiling of the Arch of Titus.
After getting a good look at the arch up close, we sat on a nearby fence and listened as our guide told us the history of the arch – I, and many others, were a bit too tired and hungry to remember all the details. But still, we listened with rapt attention as she told us the stories behind each engraved scene and complex sculpture. And our attention didn’t go unappreciated; as our tour came to a close, our guide smiled at us and told us we made a beautiful audience. Even though our tour was already going over time, she asked if we had any questions. Inevitably, we did have questions for her, and she continued talking until a loud voice came over some sort of hidden intercom in the Roman forum. It was in Italian, but the main idea was that we had to leave as soon as possible. So, we all headed our separate ways into the warm evening, most of us in search of food after a long day of learning (and walking). But, no matter what each person’s evening plans included, it’s safe to say we all left the tour with a little more appreciation for the magic and legend that is steeped into each cobblestone and grand archway of the eternal city.