Rome Blog

Thomas Cane                A marble weaving of terror and lust stands before me.   Motion flows through the piece starting at her face contorted in fear while she pulls her head away.   Her left arm pushes out against the empty air in a desperate attempt to flee his clutches.   The right arm pushes against the side of his face with such power that it stretches his eyebrow upward.   Looking at his face it bears a strained grimace as lustful determination has saturated his mind.   Curls of hair sit trapped underneath a crown while a similarly curled beard moves is swept to the side as he tries to pull her closer.   His arms stretch out, covered in muscular striations from the strain of forcing this goddess to his realm.   The grasping hands pull into her back and thigh, with his fingers pressing into the marble with such terrible elegance it’s as if the figures were truly alive.   Her perfectly polished legs are pulled up slightly from his hand clutching her thigh.   She is unable to

Thomas Cane                After being swarmed by mosquitoes and walking along tinkling amphora shards, Emma MacKinnon and I left Monte Testaccio and headed over to Santa Cecilia in Trastevere.   Having walked to Testaccio previously that day we decided to once again go by foot.   Walking over Ponte Testaccio the rush hour of the city came to life as cars and Vespa’s piled into the streets.   After scanning google maps and taking a couple unnecessary loops we finally saw the crossed keys designating that we had reached our goal.                  Passing through the gates opened up into a beautiful quaint green space in front of the church.   In the center of the courtyard was a small fountain adorned by a large amphora in the center acting as the spout for water to flow.   Small hedge bushes flank the entrance, and on either side of the fountain are rose bushes with several blooming buds on them.   Surrounding this courtyard are more bushes filled with flowers as well as some vin

Thomas Cane The excursion to Santa Maria in Trastevere began by meeting Em in the common room and heading over to the bus stop to catch the 230 to the Trilussa.   As the ride continued we exchanged brief words about the necessary stop and other logistics, but mostly sat in silence.   They continued to keep tabs on our location as to not miss the stop and I sorted out my personal time frame for the trip.   Reaching our destination Trastevere was swarming with tourists looking at the last sites for the day and locals sat in the open air caffes enjoying aperitivo.   As we approached the church we gazed up at the statues and exterior frescoes displaying symbols of Marian devotion.   In the entrance to the church the walls were lined with inscriptions in Latin, Greek, and Italian each looked like some form of graffiti.   I was initially confused why the church would decorate with art that was stereo-typically thought to detract from beauty.   Then understanding hit, and they had decor

Thomas Cane The young girl, no older than ten years old, is dashing around her circular cobblestone path.   She takes her strides in joy and great effort with her tongue curled up against her nose, lips pressed tightly together.   After completely the first lap she walks over to her father sitting on a bench who gives her a reassuring high five.   With barely a moment of hesitation she begins running again with the same fierce determination.   This cycle continues that eventually pauses as she high fives her father and takes a seat to wipe the sweat from her brow and adjust her sneakers.   The father sits back relaxing next to his wife and older daughter who is staring into her phone.   He proudly displays a beaming grin towards the youngest, clearly his plan had begun working.   Several months prior to this journey he was noticing how active his daughter was becoming, always seeking the next adventure or physical enterprise.   Coupling this with the family interest in a vacation