Salve! (health to you)

Sorry it's been forever and a day since I posted, and because of this... You have a super long post in store for you.  Hope you enjoy and that the world is treating you well :)

This past Friday, we took a walking tour of the city, a four hour walking tour.  This idea was not exactly thrilling at the outset, because in order to get or bearings in the city we were taken on several “survival and landmarks” tours, and yet another in the heat of the day was just not making the top 10.

But it turned out so well.  We went into the Cathedral and admired the art work, and learned about San Giovanni, the patron saint of Macerata.  Sitting in the “humble” Cathedral of Macerata, I can’t imagine how profoundly beautiful the Sistine Chapel must be… I also marvel at the craftsmanship, building such monumental and ornate structures centuries ago.  Next week, we start our Music in Italy class, and I can’t wait to learn all about the carefully orchestrated acoustics of all these buildings.  I always love the feeling that I get listening to music in a sanctuary with such high ceilings, its like each note is soaring, and it takes a little bit me with it. 

We also went through a small chapel built in honor of Madonna de la Misericordiae, credited with saving the town from the plague.  It is beautiful inside, with marble and stained glass, and small silver hears that have been donated as representations of answered prayers.

From there, we headed to climb the clock tower.  Not for the Faint of heart… We headed in and began our ascent on some cave-like brick stairs.  They were at least well lit, but that doesn’t really make up for the size.  After several flights of these with two rooms along the way to stop off and admire some of the previous historical fixtures which kept the clock ticking, we came to a room with windows, and we thought the views were awesome, but we had no idea.  We continued climbing on a new set of stairs, which were new, metal stairs with a single support bar running like a spine beneath them.  They were also open in the back (although unlike in my favorite lighthouse they were not also open grate) and that was the most nerve-wracking part of the climb for me.  As logic would tell you, it got warmer as we climbed up, but then suddenly I felt a cool breeze, and saw sunlight.  We made it to the top.  360 degree views of the city, and far, far beyond the walls.  I was pretty much speechless.  Amazing.

After the clock tower, we crossed the Piazza and went into the local opera theatre.  It is a small horseshoe shaped theatre, full of beautiful sky blues, and some fairly convincing fake marble (very carefully painted) We sat on the stage, and went into the boxes, and someone said it felt like Hollywood Squares.  Super awesome. 

From there, we went to the Sferisterio, athletic arena, turned into and outdoor opera venue.  There are several girls in the group who have danced, so we overtook the stage.  We goofed off for a while, and a few people threw a Frisbee around.  The Sferisterio is not quite as pretty as some of the other buildings, but in the summer it is home to a huge outdoor opera festival, that I am incredibly sad to have missed, but I will hopefully be seeing some opera while I am here, even if it has to be inside. 

I had the most amazing pizza for dinner, it was arugula, tomato, proscuitto, and mozzerella (and by mozzerella, I mean legit pieces of fresh mozzerella, not some little shredded stuff)

Spent some more time out at the sea.  My friend Shannon and I would swim out a ways and float back in because the sea is so calm.  One time we swam out and ended up with a school of fish.  It was pretty cool.  Its pretty normal to pay to rent a beach chair along the beach, so our group claimed a couple and when the attendant came along to for us to pay he complimented us on how wonderful and respectful we were.  Quite often college age kids that come to his beach are rowdy and disturb other beach-goers.  He encouraged us to study hard, and reminded us that God gave us this incredible, world, but to truly appreciate it, we need knowledge.  But he also said if the weather was nice, don’t forget to come back to the beach.

Monday, we finally got the much-anticipated rain, and it has been glorious.  And there was a rainbow outside the apartment.  That afternoon, Erin, Carlye (my roommates) and I headed to il supermercado, on the bus.  On the way we played a game of Gilmore Girls style “1, 2, or 3”  (if you don’t know what that is don’t worry about it…)  Then we (mostly Carlye) made some carbonara for dinner, which we ate with a loaf of bread that was still warm when we pulled it off the shelf.  After dinner, we made attempts at homework, but were frequently overcome by many healthy fits of laughter.  Eventually the homework was finished and was rewarded with gelato.

Tuesday, it was still rainy, and I have taken a few walks around town in the rain, but no umbrella. Walking in the rain reminds me of Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina, instructing Linus Larabee on how he is to spend his first day in Paris.  He is supposed to walk in the rain, but not to carry an umbrella (and being the powerful man that he is, he can order a rainstorm for his first day) Now I may not be in Paris, but this is the closest I have ever been…  In Roman Holiday, one of Princess Ann’s wishes for her perfect day is to walk in the rain.  So this morning that is what I did…but I am planning to bring an umbrella to my next class.

So…Today was incredible.  We started off our day be going to see the ancient Roman ruins at Urbs Salvia, just a little bit outside of Macerata.  I touched a wall that was built over 2000 years ago.  Urbs Salvia had one of the largest amphitheaters outside of Rome in its day.  Then we walked through a temple with remnants of frescoes on the walls.  Our “tour guide” let us walk outside the fenced areas and get up close to everything, which was pretty much awesome.  We also saw a chunk of an original Roman road where you could see the ruts from the wagon wheels.  It was crazy to walk amongst the walls and think that people were walking between those same walls 2000 years ago….

A short distance away, there was an abbey and monastery.  “Abbazia di Santa Maria di Chiaravalle di Fiastra.”  The monks pray seven times a day, and we were allowed to sit through their noontime prayer service.  It was my first experience hearing singing in a building with such a cool acoustic design.  And although all the prayers were in Latin, I was reminded that God is everywhere.  It was a beautiful moment.  After the prayer service, we looked at some other artwork around the church and learned the history of the campus, which is now also a historical site and nature preserve.   But then we got a lunch break, and there are a few small pizzeria type restaurants next to the abbey.  I had an amazing sandwich made with 2 pieces of rosemarino pizza (crust with butter, sea salt, and fresh rosemary) and proscuitto, simple but incredibly delicious.   We had a nice long lunch break, so we hung out on the expansive lawns around the abbey, then continued our tour, through the cloisters and the chapter room, and the gardens.  The chapter room is where the monks would sit to hear chapters from the Benedictine Rule.  This abbey was actually used as a holding cell for Jews on their way to Aushwitz.  But at the time, no one knew the ultimate fate of the Jews.  One who survived, Paul Pollak, has a quote on a plaque “In the gray and obscure hours of Auschwitz we always saw before us, like a mirage, the luminous garden Abbadia di Faistra, in Italy, coutry sun and good people.”

Because of the close proximity to the Roman town, most of the marble in the abbey (built in 1142) was taken from Urbs Salvia.  At the base of one of the walls, you could see the capital of an ionic column.  (the kind with the scroll-like top) Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!!!!  Haha.

After monastery we went to small winery and got a tour.  And then we got a sampling of wine with a delicious spread of appetizers.  We tried a red before it was actually released to the public, because we are that cool.  Granted, it is being sent to stores tomorrow, but hey, we were a day early.  Then I bought myself a couple bottles of red that I am anxious to try soon. 

But… I took approximately 500 pictures…today.  Soooo… new pictures will be coming soon, I hope.  I am going to be lots of editing and selecting, because I also have a couple hundred from last week, YAY DIGITAL! 

Question of the week, what three words in the English language start with “dw-“…?