Submitted by Eric Szot on the 2014 winter session study abroad program in Italy sponsored by the Honors Program…
After living in Rome for one week, I have had many unbelievable experiences. Just within this one week, I have learned and grown enough for a whole trip, although I am only one-fourth of the way through. Being in the midst of incredibly ancient and astounding structures is dumbfounding. The people of long past were nothing close to primitive to figure out the projects that are still pocketed around the city. The most memorable and influential ones I have seen and explored so far are the Coliseum, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Circus Maximus, and the world-famous Roman Baths of Caracalla. In regards to the religious aspect of my studies here, I have visited several Basilicas, one of them being Saint Peter’s Basilica. The Epiphany Mass in Saint Peter’s was the most humbling mass I’ve ever been to; I can’t remember the last time I was proud to consider myself Catholic. I received communion there, blessed by Pope Francis (Papa Francesco) himself. The Vatican also houses the world-famous work of human perfection, the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo. No pictures are allowed, but I simply stared for 30 minutes in an attempt to permanently imprint as much as I could of it into my memory. In broader terms of Christianity, we visited the ancient Catacombs of San Callisto. Our tour guide brought us as far down underground as 25 meters, which is the second level out of the total four of the catacombs. We have also learned about Judaism by visiting the Jewish ghetto. There, we visited El Museo Ebraico which houses the Great Synagogue of Rome. It is the second largest synagogue in the world. No photos were allowed there either, but I made sure to never forget the dome by vividly describing it in my travel journal.