The delicious cheese we tasted before making our very own!
Ruins of the Temple of Castor and Pollux in the Roman Forum
Raphael's famous "School of Athens," painted inside a room in the Vatican Palace
An ancient Roman copy of a famous Greek sculpture depicting the story of Laocoon and his sons being attacked by serpents after they tried to expose the truth behind the Trojan Horse
Bramante's circular horse ramp that led from the countryside up to the Belvedere Courtyard
I spent Saturday morning in Orvieto!
The Duomo of Orvieto
A medieval palazzo in Orvieto
The view from the balcony of a medieval palazzo in Orvieto
This picture is from inside the wine cellar at the winery where we had our wine tasting. Their cellar extends about 15 meters under ground. The white stuff on the bottles is actually mold.
The Angelus in Piazza San Pietro. If you look closely, you can see Pope Francis on the top level, in the window above the banner. He concluded his blessing by asking us not to forget to pray for him and to have a nice lunch!
The Baroque ovular dome in Sant'Andrea al Quirinale. The whole church contains a mixture of architecture, paintings, and sculpture which depict the crucifixion of Saint Andrew and his ascension into heaven.

Hello again! Most of this week has been pretty typical, with classes and lots of school work, though things did pick up at the end of the week! Monday was a busy day since it was the official start of our urban design group project. The site of our project is actually located right behind our villa! After studio, a bunch of us went to a cheese making class in our neighborhood and had a blast sampling wines and cheeses while making our own. Unfortunately, we had to leave a little early to make it back to the RGG in time for a make-up history class, after which, we celebrated my friend Olga’s birthday! On Tuesday, I completed homework drawing of the courtyard in Santa Maria della Pace, worked in studio, and watched “The Fall of the Roman Empire,” the 1964 movie which inspired the more famous remake “Gladiator,” for my Italian Experience class. Wednesday was busy with drawing, studio, and homework.

On Thursday we went to the Roman Forum for class where we each gave presentations on a specific temple or monument. I had to research the Lacus Curtius, which is one of the lesser known and more mysterious monuments. Basically, it is a well that remains from when the area was still marsh land and various mythical origin stories give it a spiritual prominence. For Italian Experience in the afternoon, we toured the Monte neighborhood and made it to the outside of the Quirinal Palace, where the president lives.

Our urbanism class was held in the Vatican Museums on Friday morning. Although we practically sprinted through the complex, we still got to see a lot. We primarily focused on the art and architect of Raphael, Bramante, and Michelangelo, examining “The School of Athens,” the Belvedere Courtyard, and the Sistine Chapel, respectively. Our professor did get us special access to a spiral “staircase” (more like a ramp for horses) which Bramante designed! After studio in the afternoon, I hustled back to the villa to be a tour guide for the official inauguration and blessing of the building. There was a fancy party that made for a lovely night!

On Saturday we went on a day trip to Orvieto sightseeing and wine tasting, which was organized through the RGG. In Orvieto, another quaint hill town, we visited the Duomo and a museum focused on the area’s Etruscan heritage. After lunch we headed to an even smaller hill town were had a wine tasting at a family legacy winery. In addition to sipping wine and munching on snacks, we got to tour the wine cellars underneath the shop/house and learn about how they make the various wines.

Sunday was pretty busy! A group of us woke up early to go to an American Mass in Santo Spirito in Sassia followed by the papal Angelus at the Vatican. Being able to see Pope Francis and receive a blessing from him was extraordinary! Afterwards, a few of us went to Bernini’s Baroque Sant’Andrea al Quirinale to do our out-of-class drawing assignment. After finishing, I peeked inside to see the incredible interior. I spent the afternoon and evening working in studio and completing chores. Till next week!