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Day Two in Rome ...

... was fabulous.  It began with the boys visiting Santa Maria Maggiore to view up close and personal the 5th century mosaics on either side of the nave that depict scenes from the Old Testament. The left-hand side displayed scenes of Abraham, Jacob and Isaac; the right-hand side, scenes of Moses and Joshua.  Many of the boys, completely astonished, thought the mosaics were paintings.  They also viewed the 13th century mosaics depicting the story of the vision and building of the church--a dream by a pope inspired by Mary to build a church where it snowed.  On August 5th, believe it or not, on the Esquiline Hill, it did just that--and here the church of St. Mary Major stands today.

The highlight of the day was at the Colosseum, late morning, when Coach Morales presented "A day in the life of a Roman" complete with an analogy to modern day sports--the gladiators are the athletes and Spike Lee, the coach insisted, with his special Garden court-side seats at NY Knicks' games, is the emperor.  There were smiles all round as Coach related, and the boys visualized, the activities of the Colosseum two millennia ago as they stood where Vespasian, Titus and blood thirsty spectators all stood.

After lunch, the boys moved slowly through the Roman Forum as Mr. Romanosky regaled them with ancient tales.  The boys then chose temples and ruins to sketch and draw--incorporating in situ the specialized drawing skills learned in art class.

All remain healthy, well hydrated and in great spirits.  At the time of this writing, the group was preparing for dinner.






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