Yesterday was our arrival to the Roman airport and first day of immersion in Rome.Personally, I find this place very fascinating in both its similarities and differences from back home.  Seeing the main square with the fountains and St. Peter’s Basilica right behind is an experience I won’t soon forget.  (The photo to the right here is of St. Peter’s Basilica from our classroom. Such a surreal experience!) It is interesting to know how much smaller it is in person than in pictures!  The city is simply beautiful; large buildings sporting classical and renaissance inspired architecture, almost all with gardens of flowing greens draped upon their balconies, distinct with flowers blooming pink and lavender. The Tiber River stretches for ages.

What is very humbling about Rome is that, while the city is built on the foundation of many greats throughout history; the highlight of the Western World, the people here live very humbly.  They go to markets, live in apartments not much different than our own, and live life like any other people.  There is a simplicity in it that one would not expect when thinking of Rome.

Rome is a city that appears to encompass two worlds: the cultural and the commercial.  The cultural is found in the ancient works of the Romans and Renaissance artists, all distinct windows into the past normally only read about in textbooks.  There are also many priests and nuns and a large University (the Pontificate) in which theology is taught.  It was a very surreal experience learning about Judaism and foreign policy with St. Peter’s Basilica right outside the window.