ROME

Going to Rome, I excepted it to be somewhat of an outdated city still living in the past. My incorrect assumption, I believe, was formed from my previous knowledge that the Colosseum was centuries old and was used in ancient times making it, by default, much older than any city I am familiar with in the United States. I was also very excited to see and experience the Sistine Chapel it is so well-known and talked about with respect. My dad was also raised Catholic and my entire extended family on his side is still Catholic. Although my parents decided to raise my siblings as I as Methodist, I still have a great appreciation for the denomination and attend Mass and take communion with my grandparents whenever I stay with them even though that is not typically done for someone who does not belong to the Catholic church to take communion.

The Colosseum was built around 70-72 A.D. for the purpose of entertainment. It held many types of games such as naval combat, gladiatorial battles, and exotic animal fights. The most famous of these games were the gladiator games which consisted of gladiators, who were typically slaves or prisoners of war, fighting against these exotic animals. These gladiators were often forced to fight till their death unless the emperor declared the fight over early in which case the gladiator would win. It is so interesting to me that their source of entertainment so many centuries ago was so violent and inhuman. The way they prepared and preformed the naval battles was far ahead of their time. They would create and fill up a man-made lake inside the amphitheater which they filled up and drained through an innovative ditch/drain system. It was amazing to see the dedication and precision that went into creating such an architectural masterpiece.

• 

• 

• 

I lost my breath when I first walking into the Sistine Chapel because the artwork is so intricate and moving that brought on a overwhelming feeling of gratefulness for all that God and Jesus sacrificed for me.

Michelangelo was the artist that painted the infamous Sistine Chapel ceiling and one of the walls. It took him a total of 4 years to complete the ceiling. He stood on raised scaffolding and had to strain his neck so far back to see what he was painting that it left him with long lasting physical issues as well as permanently damaged eyesight. The most recognizable scene on the ceiling in The Creation of Adam, and it was strategically placed right in the center. It illustrates the creation story in the Bible where God give Adam, the first human, life. He uses color and body language in a way that expresses realistic emotion. The gesture of Adam’s hand is so realistic that that you almost feel like you are watching the story unfold in front of you, and the variations in the pigment of the paint help the figures appear more realistic by creating shadows as well as providing depth to the work of art. Another artwork of his covers one of the entire side walls. On this wall you can see depictions of several different bible stories and the way that he interprets and connects them all together. If you look closely, you can also see that, close to middle of the wall, he has added a self-portrait, however he portrays himself as looking more like a lifeless skin of himself than a human.