AAR CSS: Day 16

We had an Italian summer thunderstorm this morning. By which I mean the ninth plague struck and it hailed cats and dogs.

Between 8:30 and 8:45am:

The lights on the Vittoriano (a.k.a. the Wedding Cake, the Typewriter) came on at 9am:

We had made it to the forum by the time the skies opened up, so we spent a solid half-hour crowded in the bookstore with a very annoyed saleswoman. She claimed "she couldn't work" with all of us in there, but the reality of it was that 1) some of us were buying things, and 2) there were at least fifteen other people in there with us, none of whom were buying things, which leads to 3) by "couldn't work" she really meant that she couldn't tell if anyone was stealing anything with that many people in the same room. She told our director that we could wait in a different building across the Via dei Fori Imperiali, but we declined her generous offer of getting soaked while running across a 4-6 lane artery (it varies depending on how crazy the drivers are) to appease her.

End result:

What we were supposed to do today:

-Forum Romanum: Basilica Iulia, Rostra, Curia Iulia, Temple of Divus Iulius

-Forum of Caesar

-Forum of Augustus

-Museum in the Markets of Trajan

What we actually did today:

-Waited out the rain, then went to the Curia

-Attempted to get a bus to Termini to see the Palazzo Massimo:

-Gave up waiting for said bus and took the Metro to the Palazzo Massimo instead:

It turned out to be a very nice day. We were released at about 1pm. Headed north to the Piazza della Repubblica (because Italians use a double b in pubblica and its compounds, not sure why), got lunch, then to the Borghese gardens. When I was at the Colosseum last week I asked after the catalogue to the triumphs exhibition that was on a few years ago, but they didn't have it. However, I was told the Museum of Modern Art did, so I went there first only to find that they only carry modern art books (duh). Crazy Italians. It wasn't a total loss, though:

Just inside the northern entrance to the Borghese gardens is Rome's Bioparco (a.k.a. the zoo). I added to my elongated penny collection and went to see the animals. Stayed until closing (6pm) and managed to get back to the Centro with 15 minutes to spare before dinner. Will return to the zoo before the end of the summer, since I didn't even see half of it in the three hours I was there. It's no Bronx, but Italy has very few zoos, and this one is worth the price of admission.

Dinner: Riso e lenticchie | Coniglio (yes, that's rabbit) al limone, zucchine dorate e all'agro | Torta al profumo di caffè

AAR CSS: Day 15

Just a half(ish) day today. We had a special permesso to see the Palatine houses this morning.

Casa di Augusto (probably not actually his house):

Saw this on the way to the next house (it's a bug of some sort with a bee in its 'mouth' - really neat close-up):

Casa di Livia:

Casa dei Grifi:

Aula Isiaca:

Then we toured the first floor of the Palatine Antiquarium (some nice frescoes and statues):

The afternoon was free, so I went with Kim Ashcraft (a high school Latin teacher) to the Colosseum, where I got the Nero catalogue and a poster with the Roman emperors' portraits from coins.

Colosseum with NERONE ("Nero") in the intercolumniations:

The evening lecture was by James Packer (emeritus, Northwestern University), who spoke on "Digitizing Imperial Rome: A Computerized Approach to the Architectural History of the Roman Imperial Forum".

Dinner: Fettuccine al pomodoro | Saltimbocca con funghi trifolati | Bavarese al cioccolato (a kind of chocolate mousse cake)

AAR CSS: Day 14

Day off (mostly). Didn't do much of anything today except attend a lecture (The Transition to Empire & Introduction to Roman Wall Painting) and a cookout.

The only picture I took today was on the way back from the AAR (and it didn't even come out very well):

AAR CSS: Day 13

Alba Fucens

Another 7:30am bus trip. Stopped for a bar & bathroom break in San Cosimato, where someone found a porchetta stand:

Then onto "Horace's Villa", which was certainly an ancient something, but probably not Horace's villa:

Pretty view of Licenza:

And the so-called "Fons Bandusiae" (a spring Horace addresses in his odes which might have actually been in Apulia):

On to Alba Fucens. On the way there, we stopped at an Autogrill. While we were inside, a pair of police officers decided to wander over to our bus and check Carlo's logbook. Turns out he drove a half-hour overtime a week ago. That meant a half-hour filling out paperwork and a fine (which he pays, since he owns the business with his brother Fabio). We still arrived at Alba Fucens with plenty of time for a picnic lunch.

Saw this critter (click for larger image):

Then we were split into groups for our "autoptic exercise" (which is really just a fancy way of saying "let's see what we can tell about this site by looking at it"). Our group found the suspensurae of a hypocaust (technology for heating a room):

Technically the suspensurae really just elevate the floor, which could have served to keep grain dry instead of heating the place, but then we found an ancient flue:

So we had baths on our hands. In the middle of figuring out the second area assigned to us, it poured for about 15 minutes. Our group found a tree to stand under, and I found this little guy:

The temple off of our second area:

The second area, showing evidence of an altar, a groove for draining water, and a double portico (we figured "large public space" - it turns out to have been possibly a sheep market):

Then we found the amphitheatre, and certain people proceeded to do a re-enactment:

View of the site from the road path to the amphitheatre:

The Circus Maximus (as we passed it from the bus on the way home):

Bus driver: Carlo

Free time!

Strolled around Trastevere for two hours, picking up pizza and gelato on the way.

AAR CSS: Day 12

Praeneste

Bus left at 7:30 this morning. (I was on it. Not necessarily awake, but on it.) We stopped briefly at the Tomb of the Baker:

(The spicus of an aqueduct next to the tomb):

...and then at the Ponte di Nona - not your grandmother's bridge, but the bridge at the ninth milestone from the golden mile marker in Rome:

In Praeneste (now Palestrina) we saw the general shape of the Forum, which is now the main piazza; the Duomo, which is pretty much built right on top of an old temple; and the Antro delle Sorti, where one can still see remains of the mosaic floor and grotto finishing on the walls. But first, we saw a baby stick its head half its body out of the window of a (parked) car:

Ancient temple under the church in the main piazza (Santa Regina Margherita - which means "pizza queen," as far as I can tell :P):

The grotto bit of the Antro delle Sorti:

Detail of mosaic floor:

View down from Praeneste:

Museum of Praeneste:

Erin pretending to be a column:

View from the museum of Praeneste:

Model of ancient temple of Praeneste:

The Nile Mosaic (click for larger image):

Detail:

Detail with lion hunt:

The only extant sculpture of the Capitoline triad (Minerva, Jupiter, Juno with their respective birds):

Surprise! He's a little cross-eyed:

Returned to Rome for lunch.

At 3 we had a lecture by Rabun Taylor (rhymes with raven - don't ask; we think it's a family name), who nearly put us all to sleep by talking about the Aqua Traiana, Trajan's aqueduct. Then we went into the hallway of the basement of the AAR and got to climb into the spicus of the Aqua Traiana.

Tom climbing down up, actually:

The spicus:

Pretty sure that spider is plastic:

After Seth played "bad cop" and got us moving, Katherine Rinne walked us to the Fontanone (Acqua Paola fountain), where she talked more about aqueducts.

Dinner: Linguine al pesto Trapanese | Calamari fritti, patate e carciofi gratinati | Gelato (pistacchio & hazelnut - I ate both)