Don't they look like Dr. Seuss trees? The grounds were gorgeous but so was the inside of the gallery. We weren't allowed to bring our cameras inside, and for that I am grateful. It gave us a chance to really look around and try to absorb as much as possible.
And believe me, this was a challenge. Literally everywhere you look, there is something beautiful.
The walls were beautiful.
The ceiling was beautiful.
The art hung on the walls was beautiful.
The statues were beautiful.
The floors were beautiful.
It was so much to try to take in. We walked through the gallery, one room at a time, looking around, and mostly having no idea what we were doing. It was incredible though. So much beautiful art: the work of many different artists who devoted their lives to the craft and produces some truly stunning products.
Even though I can't show you pictures of the inside of the gallery...I did take a picture of the building.
I had no idea how much magic we were going to find when we stepped inside that building.
One of the things that was the most amazing to me, was the ceiling art. Each room had a gorgeous painting in the center of the ceiling. Every time I entered a new room, I had to remember to look all the way up and see what was on the ceiling. It was hard to fully take in the painting given the awkward position of my neck, but it is amazing how much care was taken into making every part of the building beautiful.
---
After the Borghese Gallery, we went to find lunch. Angela, one of the girls on my program (who has spent quite a bit of time in Italy), said that spaghetti carbonara is a typical dish in Rome. Who was I to pass up a typical dish of Rome...in Rome? It's spaghetti with egg and cheese and meat, and it was quite tasty...and filled me up with carbs in preparation for the Vatican Museum.
Ok fine, I don't think I could actually be prepared for the Vatican Museum. We went in search, mainly of the Sistine Chapel. This is one of those places that we studied pretty intensely in Art History and is so super famous that we just HAD to see it. I'll admit though, it wasn't my favorite part of the museum.
It was beautiful though, and amazing to see in person. When I walked inside, I went to the center of the floor and just stood there for a moment. I wasn't sure what to do. There were tons of people in there, all speaking in whispers and looking around at the art on every inch of the room. I looked up, eager to see the famous ceiling. I searched out images that I was familiar with and found the painting of God reaching out to Adam in the center. I think that was my favorite part of the Sistine Chapel, because it was something that I was familiar with and seeing it in person was amazing.
But my favorite part of the Vatican Museum was the gallery of geography. I don't remember the official name, but it was so cool!
This is it. Well...ok, part of it. The room was extremely long and this cool all the way down. The ceiling was filled with art, and the walls were lined with huge paintings of maps from different times and of different places. It was interesting to look at the labels and see if it was a "new" map or an "old" map. It's a reminder that even our geography doesn't really stay the same. Borders change, names change (and continents even move very very slowly).
The main thing that I didn't like about the Vatican, was the overwhelming number of reminders that we were in a museum. There were tables set up in multiple areas selling various souvenirs. There were Vatican Museum puzzles, jewelry, posters, magnets, key chains, calendars, etc. And they were set up right inside the galleries...not to mention in actual gift shops. For me, it took away a little bit of the magic...but not enough that it wasn't magical.
Again, this is one of those places that you can't possibly take it all in. After walking through some of the galleries and spending some time in the Sistine Chapel, we decided to get a snack and pick one more exhibit to visit and really focus on for a little bit. We picked the exhibit on Raphael. And it did not disappoint.
There was so much amazing art to look at. And we learned (from the little headsets that two of my friends rented for the adventure) that Raphael died before some of the paintings could be finished. The designs were done, but the painting was finished by some of his followers. Cool, right?
This is a pretty famous painting. Recognize it? Look at those guys being bros.
---
After all of this art, we were completely exhausted. Mentally, physically...just plain exhausted. We attempted to buy our return ticket for the bus but the window had already closed so we had to go back in the morning, and then went out for a really delicious dinner.
Next, we got gelato (again) near the Pantheon. It's fun trying out different gelato places and lots of different places. There really is gelato everywhere.
I think those are the highlights for Saturday. I have one more cheesy post title so I'm going to end this post here and start a new one with a new title....don't judge!
No comments:
Post a Comment