July 22nd & 23rd

Today! (July 23rd)
So after not having internet all week, I am finally caught up with my blogging!  I actually missed it, too.

I haven't done much today besides lectures and translating, but I did save a good story until this post from several days ago, because I hope you all read it.  It's been the best story I've heard all trip.

So like good Latin teachers, we've all been trying to use our Latin knowledge to help us pick up and communicate in Italian with the natives.  It surprisingly works quite often, and so we've had fun trying out Latin words with the Italians.  Sadly, some numbers do not translate so well, like the word for "6" in Latin. One guy found this out the hard way when he wanted to ask for 6 stamps at a local shop.  As he was handing over his money to the clerk, he sweetly requested "sex" please.  Oops.  6 is "sei" in Italian, not "sex" (like in Latin).  Even the Italians were giggling at him.


Thursday (July 22nd)
Yesterday we started off at the Palazzo Massimo, which is one of 4 major Roman archaeological museums.  Here are a few (not-quite-so-exciting-for-you) pictures from yesterday:

Bronze statue of the boxer

Fresco from the garden of Livia, Augustus' wife (one of my favorites)

In the afternoon, we had a special reservation to visit the Scavi, or excavation site, of St. Peter's Basilica. We travelled underneath the modern basilica to see the foundations of the original St. Peter's, the tomb and bones of St. Peter (which are in 2 different locations), and the remnants of a Roman necropolis and Nero's circus (or racetrack).  It was super neat, since not many people get to go, and very interesting.  We couldn't take pictures, though, so I have nothing to prove I went there, but it was worth the trip!

July 21st

Today our pal Henry Bender (from yesterday) came to lead us on a tour of the Ara Pacis ("altar of peace") and the Mausoleum of Augustus.  I had never seen the Ara Pacis before, and I loved it!  It is one of the best preserved monuments from ancient Rome, and it is such a testament to the power and iconography used by Augustus.  Here's a model of it in the museum, because it was just too big to get a single shot of it:

In the afternoon, we travelled across the Tiber River to visit the Mausoleum of Hadrian (now known as Castello San'Angello).  Here is another model of what it originally looked like when it served as a tomb for Hadrian and his dynasty:

Me about halfway up the Castello

July 20th

For our second full day in Rome, we had another visiting scholar (Henry Bender) lead us through the Imperial Forum of Augustus (the first Roman emperor).  I usually have ignored the imperial fora (that are on the other side of the main road through Rome, across from the Forum Romanum) since I didn't know much about them, so today was more enlightening.

After lunch, we headed to the Colosseum--since what visit to Rome is incomplete without it.  They run special exhibits in the Colosseum, and today we saw one on gladiators (very appropriate).  Here are some pictures:

One thing I never knew until this trip about Roman amphitheaters and gladiator matches in general was the way the underground system worked.  For instance, I didn't know that there was scenery used for the gladiator matches, so that it felt more like a play than a hard-core battle.  In the picture below you can see a little tree about to get pulled up to the top to add to the scenery:

July 18th & 19th

SO, we made it to Rome on Sunday!  Here's a look at the first 2 days:

Monday (July 19th)

Today was a FULL day!  We started at the Palatine Hill and worked our way down into the Forum Romanum (which is the main forum of ancient Rome).  Our tour was led by Darius Arya, who is one of the speakers on a movie I always show my students: "Rome: Engineering an Empire" (done by the History Channel).  Naturally there were several of us who show the movie and were dying to take a picture with him to show to our students, so here it is:

I'm sure he didn't love us quoting him the entire time, but he did love the attention, that's for sure.

Sunday (July 18th)

On our way up to Rome, we stopped at 2 sites: Capua and Formiae.  Capua is famous for having the 2nd largest amphitheater, and it was here that Spartacus (the gladiator who raised a rebellion against Rome and almost won) trained.  

Although not much remains today, Formiae was once the location of one of Cicero's villae.  We saw a little museum and then went to "Cicero's tomb" to pay homage to the great orator.  No pictures from today because I left my camera on the bus!

For my last day in Southern Italy, I went with 8 others to Paestum, which was founded as a Greek colony back in the 6th century (or so) BC.  Paestum is famous for having some of the best preserved Greek temples of the ancient world, so it was a real treat!  Of course we chose the hottest day ever do stand in fields and stare at temples, but it was worth it.

Temple Number 1- attributed to Athena

Temple Number 2 & 3- attributed to Poseidon, Hera, Zeus, Apollo, and Demeter depending on who you ask or what guide book you read

One of the most famous frescoes found in a tomb on site-- the fresco of the diver (famous because it shows Etruscan influence directly on the Greek colony rather than a Roman influence)

Ciao!  These past couple of days have been a little slower than usual, so not much to report here.  On Wednesday we stayed at our hotel (the Vesuvian Institute) for a day of lectures, translations, and discussion, and today has been similar.  Thursday we did go to Ischia, a nearby island in the Bay of Naples and the location of the first Greek colony in Italy, and I burned myself to a crisp on the beach!

I feel like I'm getting a pretty good taste of the "real" Italy these days.  Last night, an aqueduct broke... who knew they still used aqueducts in Italy... and so we didn't have water in the hotel for about 12 hours!  Imagine all the things you do with water--shower, brush your teeth, flush the toilet.  We couldn't do any of these things last night!  As you could probably have guessed, the hallways started smelling like a sewer system by the time I went to sleep.  And the front desk's advice was merely: "Breathe through your mouth instead of your nose."  Thanks.

Tomorrow is our last day in Southern Italy before we move up to Rome on Sunday!  I'm ready to be in a city again where I don't have to march up a ridiculous hill to reach my hotel at the end of a grueling day outside.  Keep your fingers crossed that the aqueduct doesn't break again before Rome!

Today has been a nice, slow day so far.  In the morning we went to the nearby site of Oplontis, which is located in between Pompeii and Herculaneum, to visit the House of Poppaea.  Poppaea was the 2nd wife of the emperor Nero, and she was famous for being the most beautiful woman of her time (a "Helen of Troy" if you will).  I guess her good looks weren't enough, though, because the Roman historians all say that, while pregnant, she was kicked to death by Nero.  Her house is wonderfully intact now, and there were barely any other people at the site, so it's one of my favorite houses so far.

This afternoon has been free for relaxing and studying, so I allowed myself a little nap before getting to work on my final project for this trip.  I also have some translating to do, since tonight I lead part of the translation session with an excerpt from Petronius' Satyricon.

Yesterday was our 2nd full-day excursion to Pompeii.  We had 10 house presentations and marched all over Pompeii, from one side to the other, to see the highlights.  It was exhausting, but worth it.

While not the greatest picture, it gives you an idea of a typical Roman dining room set-up (from the House of Julius Polybius)

Another free day, and it was lovely.  We travelled to beautiful Positano, a town that clings to the mountain-sides of the Amalfi coast.  We took a train to Sorrento and then a bus to Positano, and boy was I glad to have survived that bus ride!  Literally the road snakes along the mountains high above the coast, so while the view is great, it takes a great amount of courage to look out the window.  Here are some pictures from our day:

(Meghan- this one's for you!  Homemade pasta with tomatoes, mushrooms & shrimp... mmmmm)

Also here are a few snapshots from last night's dinner in our dining hall, so that you get a better idea of some of the people in our group.

Justin, Ryan, Alan, Justin, Terri

Sophia, Katelynn, Matt

One of my faves!  Me and Diana

2 posts in one day?!  Wow, aren't you lucky to have so much reading material!

We had a shorter day than usual.  We took the nearby train (more like a metro, called the "Circumvesuviano") to Herculaneum for 3 presentations on houses and a little tour of the site.  Herculaneum is much smaller than I had thought, only a small amount of the Roman town has been unearthed, because it has been so difficult to excavate the site.  Herculaneum was hit faster and harder by Vesuvius in the eruption of 79 than Pompeii, so it's actually in better shape, but it requires drills and axes to break the rock surface that now covers it.  Because of the way the lava hit Herculaneum, the city still has original walls, roofs, wooden beams, and wooden furniture--amazing!  Even though Pompeii is impressive in the extent of its ruins, Herculaneum is special for its state of preservation.

Typical road in Herculaneum; in the background are modern houses

One of the most interesting houses that has been partially excavated is called the Villa de Papyri ("House of the Papyrus").  Although we couldn't see it today, it is worth a mention because in it were found almost 2,000 carbonized papyrus rolls which are still being deciphered today.  I just can't believe that we've still got authentic ancient writings from 2,000 years ago!  Two nights ago we saw a neat documentary video about it that I think I may buy for classroom use later on.

I've noticed how great a role Mount Vesuvius and the other volcanoes/mountains in the area have played in Southern Italy's history.  Vesuvius dominates the skyline, and even now as I look out the window of our computer room I see water and Vesuvius towering above.  I've never spent much time in this region of Italy before, so I've learned much more than I thought I would since I've been here.  Southern Italy was founded originally by the Greeks, so it still retains that Greek flavor.  It even reminds me of Greece, with its mountains plunging right into the see with towns squeezed onto their hillsides.  Because I can't help myself, here is another picture of Vesuvius from my window taken just now, with a part of the Bay of Naples in front of it:

Tomorrow is our second free day of the trip.  I think I will be going with a group to Sorento and Positano (on the Amalfi coast!), which are farther away from Vesuvius.  We barely have had free time on this trip, since we go touring usually from 8am to 5pm or so, and then we have a translation and discussion session from 6:30 to 8pm usually, and we eat dinner from 8 to 9.  Usually by the end of the day I'm ready for bed!  I hope tomorrow will be filled with eating, sunbathing, slow walks, and perhaps a few glasses of vino.  I've also heard that these 2 towns sell some of the best souvenirs, like unfiltered olive oil for Charlie, so I'll be stocking up while I'm at it.  If you have a request, let me know!

Today (well really yesterday by now) was a full day!  We hit two volcanoes, one cave, one Roman market, and an amphitheater.  Woah.

We started off at the cave near Lake Avernus, which the Romans thought was the entrance to the underworld.  The cave was originally thought to be the grotto of the Sibyl, until my cave (from a few days ago) was found in 1932.  The entire Bay of Naples is volcanic, mountainous, and full of craters, so it's no wonder the Romans thought this is how you got to their underworld.  We walked down the cave to the "real" entrance to Hades, and our guide supplied us with candles to make it feel more "authentic."  Here are a few shots of me going into the cave:

Outside the entrance to the cave (we nick-named the dog "Cerberus")

Going into the underworld (note the scary faces)

Because of all the volcanic activity in the area, there are lots of thermal baths and steamy potholes throughout the region.  The Phlegrean Fields were thought to be located directly above Hades (the underworld) because of the amount of thermal activity.  We went to a part of the Phlegrean Fields, which was located inside a crater of a volcano and reminded me a ton of Yellowstone Park.  While it's hard to capture on picture, here's an idea of what they looked like:

Because this is a volcano, the space right below the surface of the ground is hollow.  One of the guys grabbed a rock and threw it a few times onto the ground, and we could see (and feel) the ground shake below us!  Apparently we almost ended up in the underworld ourselves.

For the climax of our day, we hiked to the top of Mount Vesuvius, which by the way is an active volcano and is due to explode sometime soon.  It was worth the trek, because the view was astounding.  It's the first time I could see the entire Bay of Naples and understand how the geography related.  It was almost eerie how quiet it was on top.

Ok, off to Herculaneum now for the day!

Us having a mock gladiator fight inside the amphitheater of Pozzuoli... don't we look scary

Today (July 8)
Today we went to 3 different Roman villas--2 in Stabiae and 1 in Boscoreale.  Stabiae was an exclusive Roman resort, much like Malibu, CA today, and the villas there were immaculately done.  Just one villa alone was over 160,000 square feet....yes please!  Here is me and Katelynn "eating dinner" in one of their dining rooms (called a "triclinium" in Latin):

And yes, the Romans ate their dinners while reclining.  After Stabiae, we moved on to a working farm villa at Boscoreale, so we got to see how most Romans really lived.  The museum at Boscoreale also had a special exhibit of body casts from the area, so here are a few interesting ones:

Yesterday (July 7)
We had a more sophisticated day yesterday since we spent our day at the Archaeological Museum in Naples.  The museum is huge, so even though a major section of it was shut down, I was exhausted by the end.  My favorite part was the frescoes, taken from the ancient sites around Mount Vesuvius.  I've never seen so many up-close--it was wonderful!  Romans used frescoes in such imaginative ways, and it was really cool to see the variety of style and mythological reference.

On a separate note, Meghan pay close attention now, I had a total Liz Gilbert moment.  I went to the best (and most famous) pizzeria in Naples for lunch and shared a cheese pizza!  The choices at this place are cheese or extra cheese, so it was not a tough decision to make, but boy was it good!  This place is such a hole in the wall, was full of Neapolitans, and I swear at one point we thought there was a man getting beat up or something in the kitchen.  Sadly, I forgot to take a picture of myself enjoying the yumminess, but it was one of the highlights of the trip so far.

The food overall has been just fabulous, by the way.  We've been eating all meals at our hotel (or getting a bagged lunch), and the pasta has been the best at night!  I'll try snapping a few pictures for you foodies to enjoy.  Miss you all!

Me being served a nice cold beverage by the "ancient bartender," Terri (at Pompeii the other day)