Rome | Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, Pantheon, Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, Contarelli Chapel + More

7/28/2024

Yesterday was one of the best days of my life. I took a day trip to Rome with my friend and fellow classmate, Jordan. We caught an early train out of Florence (by the way, the train system in Italy is top notch) and we arrived in Rome around 9AM.
We started off our day with an excellent guided tour at the Vatican museum, which was very impressive. I knew we were going to see the Sistine Chapel, but I didn't know that there were so many other famous works here. The original Laocoön group, the original Belvedere torso and the School of Athens by Raphael were all on this tour. The Sistine Chapel itself was much larger than I thought it would be and I also didn't know that the ceiling was vaulted (I thought it was flat for some reason); the vaulted ceiling makes it even more impressive. Photos aren't allowed in the chapel, but I did take one.
  Our next stop was the Pantheon. The oculus in the center was also much larger than I anticipated. And I wondered what they do if it rains? It was a beautiful space and I could feel the history there.
  An added bonus was seeing the Trevi Fountain which, once again, was huge and spectacular. Jordan told me about the traditional coin toss which we both did for good luck and a return to Rome someday. There's something else about doing it to find love.
  If that wasn't enough, we then went to the Colosseum. It didn't look so big from a distance, but as we approached it we were both in awe. The inside was really interesting and I enjoyed walking to the various levels to see it all from different viewpoints.
Our last stop was a place that I've always wanted to see. It was the Contarelli Chapel and holds some very famous Caravaggio paintings. The large scale paintings show some scenes from the story of St. Matthew. The paintings are in darkness, but you can illuminate them by putting in €1 into a coin-operated box on the wall. We didn't have any coins, but a fellow Caravaggio fan kept putting in coins so we got to see it for about 5 or so minutes. I remember watching Simon Schama's Power of Art when I was a teenager in 2006 and it really motivated me to pursue painting. There's a great episode about Caravaggio which I really love.
We got back to Florence around 10PM and I was in a surreal art stupor. The trip really made me feel good about the path that I'm on. And in a way it also made me feel like I have a lot more work to do. I guess I could say that it just really inspired me. And a big thank you to my friend Jordan for sharing this experience with me. Artists need each other.