Rome was amazing. In fact, the entire trip was amazing; but I put much effort into the planning of the Rome day, and it turned out much better than I had expected. We were blessed to see such sights as the Spanish Steps, shown here, as well as the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the house where Percy Shelley died, and the charming, cobblestone streets that reminds one of the city's great history.
The Pantheon, left, took my breath away. Commissioned by Marcus Agrippa as a temple to all the gods of Ancient Rome, it was rebuilt by Emperor Hadrian in about 126 AD after a fire. Later, it was given to Pope Boniface IV and turned into a church. It's now officially known as Santa Maria dei Martiri, but everyone understands that its origins lay in the Battle of Actium.
At the peak of the tourist season, the more than 40,000 people visit the Vatican daily. Crowds were certainly our companions as we made our way through the hot, sticky, and exhausting tour. But we were rewarded by tales of those who have lived and worked here throughout the ages, including Michaelangelo, shown left, in Raphael's School of Athens, located in the Room of the Segnatura.
As a cap to the Vatican visit, I stood before Michaelangelo's Pieta, carved when he was merely 24 years old. Mary's face, serene yet full of grief, has no tinge of hopelessness or despair. It is a fitting example to take away from St. Peter's Basilica, where the great work is housed. For me, she was the most beautiful image of the trip, and the most satisfying masterpiece that I have ever seen.
