NOTE TO READERS

NOTE TO READERS: The Rome 2014 trip begins with post #30. Posts #10—29 were Rome 2013. Posts 1–9 were Florence 2011. If you'd like to be notified of new postings by email, let me know at gulliver.initiative@gmail.com

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

#18—Fountains

Ciao,
Well, nothing says Rome like fountains. Here I am at the Trevi with my envelope of coins I would soon toss over my left shoulder to fulfill the wishes that some sent with me.




I realize I am not hip here in Rome in my orange bag and sneakers. In Rome, it's leather purses and tall leather boots, often with heels that would have me in knee surgery within the day. But, hey, I'm not hip in Netarts either. Perhaps one day I will rise to the level of eccentric and my casual attitudes toward dress will be justified.
I have wondered if the Italian attention to fashion has to do with the fact that it is difficult to feel important here where each tiny person is surrounded by ancient, massive and beautiful gods breathing marble into life. When your head would fit in the hand of one of these gods, you think twice, at least subconsciously.
In America, the land of incessant reinvention, everything is new again and again.
It's not quite 8 in the morning, so I am not even going to try to draw a conclusion from this.
Oh, there is a story of reinvention. Remember the restaurant, Scalette Degli Artisti? Well Maddelena started it at another location back in 1939. It was bombed to smithereens during the war in 1943. A single mom with kids, she started again at the present location. It was an old building with a staircase (scallette) up through the middle of it. The place was filthy, but she apparently had it all spiffed up in three days and open for business. It was very popular with everyone, especially the artists.
Now, the Pantheon is a place where the gods, Christians, and artists come together:




Here is Raphael's tomb in the Pantheon:




It was said that Nature resented the artist when he was alive and when he was dead wondered if it could ever rise to his level.

Something extraordinary flows from Rome. History, spirit, and the human condition with all of its possibilities, tragic and creative. Yesterday, I went to the old forum, today to the Sistine Chapel...I am wandering the maze of glory. A sign on at an art exhibit said Faith is the miracle of wonder.


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