{"id":9857,"date":"2015-06-23T17:09:21","date_gmt":"2015-06-23T17:09:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/international\/?p=9857"},"modified":"2024-01-30T10:09:12","modified_gmt":"2024-01-30T15:09:12","slug":"to-the-top-of-the-basilica-and-to-the-top-of-the-castle-by-jonathan-corrao-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/international\/to-the-top-of-the-basilica-and-to-the-top-of-the-castle-by-jonathan-corrao-2\/","title":{"rendered":"To the top of the Basilica and to the top of the Castle"},"content":{"rendered":"

St. Peter\u2019s Basilica is simply a masterpiece of the Renaissance world.\u00a0 Walking up the 570 steps to the top of the dome is as if you were bringing yourself closer to God.\u00a0 The entirety of Vatican square could be seen from the top, which accentuates the perfect symmetry difficult to visualize from standing at its base.\u00a0 Also from the top we were able to see the building where the Pope lives.\u00a0 Within the Basilica were many examples of the power of the church in the fifteenth century.\u00a0 The church was so voluminous that the d\u00e9cor within not only added to the richness of the place, but made the sheer size of the place comprehensible to behold.\u00a0 My favorite work of art that resided within St. Peter\u2019s was the very first work of Michelangelo, a piece that puts the then professional artists to shame.\u00a0 It was a contrapposto piece where Mary held a dying Jesus in her lap, a very intimate scene between mother and son, the strength of the immortal and the ephemeral nature of man.<\/p>\n

Learning about the Pope\u2019s symbol, the seashell, was the perfect way to wrap up our tour.\u00a0 The story essentially went like this:\u00a0 A priest walks along the beach and finds a young boy digging a hole.\u00a0 The priest asks the young boy \u201cwhy are you digging a hole?\u201d\u00a0 The boy responds \u201cso I can fill it with the entire ocean.\u201d\u00a0 After the priest explains to the boy that this task was impossible, the boy reveals himself to be the Lord.\u00a0 The Lord says: \u201cyou are a wise priest, but your teachings are but a small part of my glory.\u00a0 You have dug a hole as I have, bringing out knowledge and wisdom to the beach, but when the time comes, I will wash upon your world and fill these holes, wash away the mounds and seashells and, after the world is reformed, take them all to eternity.\u201d\u00a0 Essentially, the tale compares something like St. Peter\u2019s to the smallness of a seashell; beautiful but a mere fragment of the big picture.\u00a0 After being in one of the largest works of man in the world, the power and significance of God as described in the story is put in a perspective few can comprehend.<\/p>\n

After this we went to the Castle Sant\u2019Angelo.\u00a0 This castle was built in ancient Rome, rather than in the Renaissance, so it certainly is a piece to behold.\u00a0 As Rome entered a state of decline, they had to build fortresses to protect themselves.\u00a0 This fortress was originally built as a home for Hadrian, then latter for Rome to protect itself from its enemies such as the Visigoths, and even later than that as a museum for Christian art and relics. \u00a0The structural integrity of Roman architecture is mind-blowing, as after so many years of cultural change and erosion major landmarks can remain standing taller than many buildings.\u00a0 Also, it was very neat seeing the similarities with modern architecture through the use of concrete securing stone and brick.<\/p>\n

After this we ate dinner.\u00a0 I had spaghetti with bacon.\u00a0 After the past three days I now can formulate an opinion on Roman food.\u00a0 I once ate at my friend Rey\u2019s house for his birthday dinner, his Italian grandparents cooking an abundant, multi-coursed meal.\u00a0 The food was unbelievable in its quality.\u00a0 Here in Rome, that is the sort of food they have here every day all over!\u00a0The food here, if I dare say, is almost equal in its grandeur to the buildings of the ancient world.<\/p>\n

\"View<\/a>
View of Vatican Square from the Basilica\u2019s top!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Dome<\/a>
Dome of the Basilica. Looking at it from below, it was hard to believe we had walked all the way to the top!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"St.<\/a>
St. Peter\u2019s interior.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

St. Peter\u2019s Basilica is simply a masterpiece of the Renaissance world.\u00a0 Walking up the 570 steps to the top of the dome is as if you were bringing yourself closer to God.\u00a0 The entirety of Vatican square could be seen from the top, which accentuates the perfect symmetry difficult to visualize from standing at its … Continue reading To the top of the Basilica and to the top of the Castle<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":403,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,13],"tags":[17],"coauthors":[162],"class_list":["post-9857","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-study-abroad","category-italy-2021","tag-italy-high-school"],"yoast_head":"\r\nTo the top of the Basilica and to the top of the Castle - 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