FIRST DAY OF CLASS

After having class in the streets of Rome while looking at examples of classical architecture, it is going to be very difficult to go back to school next semester and settle for PowerPoint presentations on architecture. There is so much that can be learned from seeing every building in person that cannot be explained with a picture. We spent half of the day walking around Rome with our professor as he lectured us on the importance of each building and its significance within the history of architecture. At about noon we took a break for lunch and we were left to sketch and analyze all of the buildings we had seen. I was really excited to start sketching everything I was seeing in order to document my experience in Rome. Lucky for me we were assigned a series of sketching assignments that I would not have enough time to finish even during the 2 weeks I am in Rome. Everyday there are more drawing assignments and everyday it seems like there are fewer and fewer hours in the day. My current schedule seems to be: sketch, eat, sketch, drink wine, sketch, sleep, then repeat.

On a side note…

I didn’t think it was possible but today I ate the worst pizza in Italy. We went to a restaurant in Piazza Navona for a nice little lunch after we were dismissed for the rest of the day. I decided to order a Capricciosa pizza that was topped with: tomato, mozzarella, artichokes, hard egg, olives, mushrooms and raw ham because it sounded like something that I had never had before. Well, I had never had it before and I will never have it again. The pizza arrived with a pile of mushrooms, three olives, one artichoke and one whole hard boiled egg. I think this picture that is included is worth a thousand words to describe how awful the pizza looked and tasted. I learned later that almost every restaurant serves a form of Capricciosa pizza and they all are served the exact same way. It was a lesson learned the hard way.