Last Tuesday we had a workshop on the Nolli Plan instructed by a professor from Penn State’s Rome Program, Allan Ceen. A very simple description of the Nolli Plan is a large, intricately detailed map of Rome created by Giambattista Nolli in 1748. Both the graduate and undergraduate students were divided into groups of three and sent off to study a specific area in the city, armed with multiple maps from different years. Generally, we were asked to examine building-street relationships and document how the area has changed over time. My group was assigned Palazzo Spada, which we had learned about in previous years. After an attempted conversation in Italian with the guard we learned that, unfortunately, the Palazzo is closed to the public on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so we missed seeing Borromini’s incredible forced perspective gallery. Luckily, not being able to go in didn’t affect our analysis, but it gives me an excuse to go back another day!

On Wednesday morning I had my first drawing class where we sketched the courtyard of San Clemente and received our assignment for next week: drawing the courtyard of Palazzo della Cancelleria. In the afternoon I was back at my site, Piazza Margana, working on my studio project. That evening I met up with some ND friends who were travelling before starting their study abroad in Dublin. We got gelato and checked out a local “Irish Pub” that’s popular with many American students.

Thursday morning I had my first history class and then ate a packed lunch with friends in the Campidoglio, a piazza on top of the Capitoline hill that Michelangelo designed. It is a truly incredible space, and it was so exciting to casually eat lunch there with my friends! After lunch we went to work on homework for drawing class, sketching the courtyard of the Palazzo della Cancelleria. Later in the afternoon, I had my Italian Experience class, which is almost like tourism class because we try speaking Italian while our professor, a native Roman, takes us to various sites and museums that we wouldn’t typically go to! That day we went to the Baths of Caracalla which, like most things, were huge and impressive.

Friday I had my Roman Urbanism class during which we went to the very top of the Altare della Patria to introduce our first project: building a model of the original seven hills of Rome (Aventine, Caelian, Palatine, Capitoline, Esquiline, Viminal, and Quirinal), the two additional hills (Pincian and Janiculum), and three of the city walls (original Palatine walls, the Servian walls, and the Aurelian walls). Then, after my studio class, I met up with my ND friends again for dinner, and we said our goodbyes!

Saturday was my friend Cal’s birthday, so a big group of us went to Anzio, a small coastal town, for the day. It has beautiful beaches where the “Caves of Nero,”  ruins of one of Nero’s imperial villas, are located. It was a relaxing yet exciting day. We got back that night, made dinner, and caught the end of the Notre Dame football game in a bar!

Sunday was basically a work day. I did get to chat in English and Italian with tourists and locals who approached me as I sketched on site, which was interesting. That evening I went to Mass at a church across from the Trevi Fountain, Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio. Monday was also a very busy work day.

On Tuesday we had a day trip to Ostia Antica, which is the ancient port of Rome. I had a fantastic day with perfect weather. (it finally started to cool off!) In the morning our studio professors gave us a tour, and then after lunch we had free time to explore, sketch, and paint. Ostia has everything from single family “domus” houses, restaurants, temples, theaters, and baths to multistory apartment buildings called “insula”. I actually got to go to the second floor of what’s left of an insula and look out over the whole city! Click here to see a gallery of pictures just from Ostia!

Wednesday was another typical workday except that for drawing class we sketched the courtyard of Sant’Ivo alla Sapienza. At night we went to a light show in the forum of Augustus, Trajan’s forum, and Julius Caesar’s forum. It was one of the best things we’ve done so far. Basically, it’s a mixture of seeing the actually ruins and watching projected recreations of what the area would have looked like.

For architectural history on Thursday we went to Villa Giulia, which now houses a museum focusing on the Etruscans. In the afternoon for Italian Experience we went to Centrale Montemartini, a museum inside a former power plant which juxtaposes industrial electrical equipment with Roman sculpture. Thursday night was a mad dash to finish our piazza analysis and model of Rome, which were both due the next day. On Friday we presented our models in Urbanism and reviewed our analysis for studio in the afternoon. That night we went out for dinner for another friend’s birthday.

Today is a lazy chore day after a very action-packed week! Next week will probably be even more jam-packed since it’s our first week-long class field trip to Tuscany!

Palazzo Spada
The baths of Caracalla
The Campidoglio
Some ruins of "the Caves of Nero" at Anzio
A statue of Nero at Anzio
The beach at Anzio
Columns of the Temple of Venus in Caesar's Forum light up during the light show.
Detail of an Etruscan pediment
Me in front of the Nymphaem at Villa Giulia
Centrale Montemartini museum exhibit