When In Rome

Beautiful churches and ancient buildings span across much of Rome, displaying its obvious architectural significance. The city is vast with many parks, tall buildings and wide streets and sidewalks, making this city the most modern in Italy while still being the most ancient.

The sites in Rome are taught in classrooms and are seen in textbooks, but in person, the size and detail give off a completely different feeling and lesson. Walking through the Vatican and analyzing each sculpture closely, you feel as though you are experiencing the making of it.

Hearing about the trials and tribulations Michelangelo went through to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel makes your heart soar for him and his dedication. Staring at the ceiling for as long as possible to take in every inch, your neck begins to ache and you can't help but wonder how he was able to produce such a captivating masterpiece. These masterpieces encompass the entire city and we are lucky enough to marvel at them all.


Beyond Rome's main characteristics we all know very well now resides Caravaggio's famous and Christen's favorite painting, Calling of Saint Matthew, at Chiesa San Luigi dei Francesei. He is one of the most famous painters of Italy because of his skill, his red toned palate, and his use of "Chiaroscuro" or light and dark.

The paintings are dark and barely visible until someone puts a coin into a machine and suddenly the painting appears: barefoot Jesus, barely illuminated, pointing at Matthew, with light from the window shining down on Matthew to heighten the experience of divine presence.

This presence can be seen through all of Rome, a city juxtaposed with ancient and modern architecture, stories both true and dear, connecting old and new in a place where the Empire once stood powerful and the heavens still shine down.