J-term Abroad: Roman Structures, Engineering & Society

Buongiorno!

Today marks the first day of the Engineering Students of Saint Thomas’ expedition to the home of countless tantalizing feats of ancient and modern engineering, Italy! The Engineers have been working tirelessly throughout the Summer and Fall semesters to prepare themselves for the great trek across the pond. The Engineers will start their journey in the capital of Italy, the historic city of Rome. They will spend 11 days here, seeing the various sights of interest and documenting their observations. Notable sights include the ancient Pantheon which has stood the test of time, reaching the ripe old age of nearly 2,000 years old! The Engineers will also encounter sites such as the Roman Forum, The Sistine Chapel, and Pompeii. Nothing excites engineers more than some prehistoric architecture. Then, the Engineers will embark to Florence to stay for the remainder of the trip. Here, they will experience some of the more modern marvels of engineering. Visiting Milan, skyscrapers, and even a Pagani supercar factory. When the Engineers aren’t carefully studying these historic artifacts, many will be immersing themselves in the rich Italian culture. Enjoying the art of Italian cuisine as well as exploring some of the inspiring art galleries and churches are just some examples of the activities waiting in Italy.

From the looks of it, the future Romans are chomping at the bit to practice their flattering Italian accent. See you in Rome!

~Joe and Erik

Yes I have access.

As Alex said, today we met at our classroom then loaded into our bus to visit Hadrian’s Villa, near Tivoli, Italy. Hadrian was a Roman emperor from 117 to 138 A.D. Hadrian did not like Rome, so he built his own Villa, which better resembles a personal city for himself, outside of Rome. This Villa took many years to construct, but Hadrian was only able to live and enjoy the Villa’s beauty for 4 years before he passed. The Villa consisted of two libraries, one Greek, one Latin; bathes for him, visitors, and the workers; a pond; a building to host soldiers; and more.

Above is a model of the Hadrian’s Villa. The Villa stretches 250 acres, that’s a lot for one Emperor.

The Wall outside Hadrian’s Villa.

Intact piece of a fresco on the ceiling.

Hadrian even had a personal island so he could seclude himself when he wanted. There was a small moat around the island with no bridge to cross. If he wanted to be there the workers had to bring a temporary bridge for Hadrian to cross. There were fish in the moat, so that was the highlight of everyone’s day, as well as cracking the ice in the frozen over pond.

The site of Hadrian’s Villa was a beautiful place to visit and a good way to see some of the Roman building techniques. Specifically the way brick was used, compared to the way Greeks used marble. Today was a great last class adventure for everyone before we head home on Wednesday.

Ciao!

Emma Sullivan

Hello all,

Today we met up as a group at the UW Rome Center, loaded up on a bus, and headed for Tivoli, Italy for a day trip. We first went to Hadrians Villa (See Emm’s Post for more on that!) and then headed into Tivoli for some pizza. I got a spicy salami slice seen below at a place called Alice Pizza, it was fantastic:

After lunch we then entered the Villa d’Este. This was a renaissance villa that is known for its massive terraced hillside garden. The villa was commissioned by a Cardinal who was in the same family as Pope Alexander VI. After Checking in, we entered on the upper level of the villa, which has since been converted into an art gallery museum that was filled with modern art and renaissance frescos on the walls and ceilings. Our tour guide pointed out that these frescos were popular in an age where windows were uncommon and were a way to make a room feel bigger while also giving a “view of the outside.”

The real reason to see it though was the garden down below the main level of the villa. When we exited the villa into one of the higher level terraces, the view down below was enough to take your breath away.But we first had to hastily head down to a water powered organ that only plays every 2 hours. It was beautiful and made the view all the better. From above the main level shown on the right. In the distance you can also see the edge of the terrace overlooking the valley down below.

There were so many incredible fountains to look at in the garden. The water system used to support so many fountians is truly an achievement of engineering. My favorite was a fountain dedicated to Neptune that was originally designed by Bernini, but has since been remade (shown below on the left). On the right is the wall of the hundred fountains. This three tiered fountain represents the rivers Albuneo, Aniene, and Arcolaneo and meet at the fountain of the Rometta. Each of the hundred fountains takes on a unique shape of its own.

The fountains, the Garden, and the elevated view of the valley down below the terrace combined to quickly turn this destination into my favorite part of the trip! Truly a day to remember

I’ll leave you with one more picture of the oval fountain, named for its oval shaped pool. If you look very closely I’m hidden in the picture below!

Ciao!

-Alex

The day started as a typical Sunday morning, by sleeping in. It was decided by a few people to attend mass at the Vatican once again at 10:30. However, unbeknownst to all, the Pope had a special mass of his own that started an hour before ours at 9:30. The wait was unknown to those who planned on 10:30 mass. After an hour and a half came and went, and the special mass had ended, the Pope came out and did his weekly Angelus speech. Enjoyed that for the duration it was.

Then, the Borgo Angelico apartment with a few others went and journeyed to the park of Borghese to the Giarino del Largo. An artificial pond where we could rent rowboats for 20 minutes for only four euros. The lake was small, complete with ducks, geese, seagulls, and the Temple of Asclepius in the center. Unfortunately, the line for the boats was too long so we decided to hang around, watch and feed the ducks, walk around the pond and enjoy the scenery.

After the pleasant walk around Borghese, we wanted to go on a hike to Monte Mario, a large hill located north of Vatican City with amazing scenery. The bus and metro lines were pretty much the same time to get to the hill so we chose to walk. Walking is better and we get to see a lot more on our way there. We ended up hiking the hill and getting to the top just as the sunset, so it was a perfect moment. Even when the sun went down, we stayed on the hill talking and enjoying the view of Rome.

On our way back home, we stopped at an amazing Gelato place called Guttilla Alta Gelateria Italiana. With the small cone being 0.50 euros more than some other places, it was x100 better. It was a nice way to wrap up the fun-filled day of enjoying the wondrous culture and interesting places Italy has to offer.

Until next time,

Ciao!

-Tom

We got off to a late start in the morning after an exciting Friday night of great food and wine. After we got up and finished our homework for the day, many of us decided to go back to the Borghese Garden where they have soccer fields open to the public. We have been looking to play soccer for the whole trip (especially Jack) and today was finally the day. We bought an AS Roma soccer ball from a local vendor for 18 euros last night in anticipation of today. A bunch of us met up around 2 and made our way to the garden. We found an athletic center with a couple of fields. We got on the field, but a man came out to tell we had to pay. Since there was 11 of us, we agreed to pay the 50 euros for an hour, but an hour turned into almost two and he never came back to kick us off! We played some 6 on 5 for a while until Hergie started feeling the wine from last night a little too much to keep playing. We played a game for more than an hour before we finished off with some world cup. Team Spain (Max and Jack) won the ship.

After soccer we walked back to our apartments and a few people stopped for kebabs at Istanbul Kebab. The spicy sauce on the kebabs was all the rage. After some dinner, 8 of us made our way to Stadio Olimpico, the home of AS Roma and Lazio. We were there to watch Lazio play Atalanta. The stadium was awesome, but it was only 20% full (maybe even less) because of covid. Even at only 20% full, the stadium was electric. Before the game started, we listened to 2 or 3 Lazio songs being sung by fans and countless chants. The fans were chanting constantly, but it wasn’t enough to will Lazio to victory, or even a goal. The game ended disappointingly at 0-0. Even without a goal it was entertaining enough to watch the intense reactions of the fans and try to understand what they are saying. Soccer fans are as intense as you’d expect.

Another great day in Rome, full of all the soccer we could take.

Connor

Hello! Today the Roman Engineers focused on infrastructure engineering. We started the day with a lesson and presentation on how they built the Appian Way, the first Roman road that led to and from Rome. After we gained some background knowledge on some of the first infrastructure work done by the Romans, we had an activity focused on the lessons we’ve learned from our experience and how we will apply it to our future engineering careers!

Then we hopped on a bus for our tour of the day. We drove through Rome towards the Appia Antica (original/first Appian Way) with our tour guide, who pointed out important sights along the way. Once we left the old city walls, we saw the first mile markers that were ever used on a road. When we got to the Appian Way, we walked along it for a while looking at the ruins and villas along the road. Many parts of the road are still in use today, although it is made of large basalt stones that probably aren’t good for the cars.

After exploring the road, we stopped at an old mafia villa that the government seized and excavated. The grounds included the ruins of a private thermal bath. The class enjoyed the wild rosemary that was growing near the villa, as well as the four cats. On the way back to the bus, we stopped at the Mausoleum of Cecilia Metella, which is the third largest mausoleum in Rome and acted as a castle during the Middle Ages.

Continuing our tour, we drove to Aqueduct Park. Though Rome had 11 aqueducts, this park is special because five of them pass through its boundaries. In one place, three aqueducts were stacked on top of each other. Another area of the park included a classic aqueduct that used arcades to transport it over the ground.

The class took a group picture and then it was time to head back. We are preparing for our last few days in Rome, and there is still plenty to do before we leave.

Ciao!

Elise

In the morning some of us went exploring the streets of Florence. We walked down to the river and saw this historic bridge, the Ponte Vecchio. There are jewelry shops lining the sides of the bridge selling all sorts of necklaces and watches. We took a picture along the river and met in the square in front of the Santa Maria del Fiore, the Duomo.

After our tour of the Santa Maria del Fiore we ventured to the Duomo museum where we watched a video of the dome construction and saw some of the rigging and posts that were used. We had a short break where some of us grabbed paninis, and then we returned to the Duomo to climb the top to the cupola! It was interesting to climb between the inner and outer shell of the dome, and to see where the bracing used in construction would have been as well as more rigging examples. Climbing the 463 steps to the top of the Duomo was the crowning achievement of an awesome day. We arrived just in time, as the city came alive with lights as the sun set. We took some pictures before hurrying back down to the ground and then to the train station.

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Ciao! My name is Emma Rae, and I am a Junior studying Civil Engineering.

Today our group traveled to Florence, Italy. Our day started right away with a 9 am train from Roma Termini to Florence. Riding the train was a very unique experience. It is similar to a plane, yet some seats face each other with a table in between, allowing for fun conversations and games to be played, along with gorgeous views of the Tuscan countryside.

Engineering and Artwork

When we arrived in Florence, we saw beautiful works of art and engineering. First, we saw Michelangelo’s sculpture, David. David is a 17-foot-tall sculpture made of marble, and it was created in the 1500s. Next, we toured the Florence Cathedral. It was engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi in the 1400s. The dome on the cathedral is the largest masonry dome in the world. Next, we visited one of the oldest buildings in Florence, The Baptistry of St. John. The baptistry has an octagonal shape which represents the Octave of Easter also known as the eight-day period that begins on Easter and ends on the following Sunday.

Michelangelo’s David

Florence Cathedral

Shopping

Florence has many great places to shop. Today, I shopped at was a jewelry store called Torrini that has been open in Florence since 1369. Torrini is my mom’s maiden name, so I had to check it out. They had many beautiful pieces of jewelry to choose from and so much history to share!

Viaggi sicuri!