LET’S TALK ABOUT ROME: Part 1
arthisto September 8th, 2010
Down the Street and Around the Corner, Rome
Why is it that of all of the wonderful places that I have visited in my traveling life, Rome, above all others, gripped me, holds me, and haunts me?
I have wrestled with this question for twenty years. Friends do not understand why I keep returning, when there is so much more “out there”, to see. They ask if I will guide a trip to Greece or Hong Kong. I smile, as I think about those amazing places and say, ” maybe, someday.” But in my head I am saying, ” I don’t want to, I want to go back to Rome.” There is still, after countless visits, so much of Rome that I long to understand, be familiar with, and appreciate.
Maybe it can be explained this way. When I buy a car, I think it through, wrangle, and weigh every aspect and option, and by the time my decision is made, I am in love with it, and drive it for years. I’ve sort of sunk my teeth into it. Very unlike the car buyer that enjoys flipping cars every couple of years. That is the kind of traveler that I have become too. Now, I am determined to catch the spirit of a place and sink my teeth in. When I am not traveling I am reading, highlighting, margin noting, and learning more deeply about Rome. A list of destinations, to see in this world, and tick off, could not be more unappealing to me.
However, it hasn’t always been that way. In 1989, I was traveling around Europe with my list in hand, happily visiting Switzerland, Paris, Florence, all beautiful and stimulating, tick, tick, tick. Not sinking my teeth into any of them. But then we arrived in Rome, and everything changed, only this time I was blindsided, as I felt Rome sink her teeth into me! How?
One thing I am sure of is that there is more than one answer to this question. In Part 2 of LET’S TALK ABOUT ROME, I will discuss a few, and maybe you will feel your own reaction to a place being described.
As a guest with Art History Alive, my intense passion for Rome and its living history will be my gift to you.
ITALY: TUSCANY AND ROME ~ June 11-19, 2011
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- Comments(2)
I find myself thinking the same thoughts and feeling the same pull to return to certain places again and again, even though there are SO many other places I would love to see and experience. Paris, for example, or Florence. I feel I could explore the Parisian arrondissements endlessly and never tire of it — it’s ever new. Florence is more intimate, but the thought of walking in the footsteps of Michelangelo captivates me. A couple U.S. cities have the same pull — I could endlessly enjoy the architecture in NYC, for example, watching the light and shadows change across the facades of the skyscrapers throughout the day. And in Italy especially, each evening’s passeggiata is endlessly fascinating. While the lure to experience new sites and scenes is powerful, the feeling of gaining ever-deeper familiarity with a few places may be stronger still — at least for me.
Ellie,
So wonderful to hear from you. Clearly we are on the same page here. I have received some great emails in response to this subject. Yours is particularly well put.
Thanks, Cynthia