Today was a great day for a short walking tour. We were lucky to have Teo present to us about street shrines: their history and purpose in Rome. The street shrines are mainly of the Virgin Mary, and are paintings on buildings above eye level (about 10 to 15 feet above street level.) They can be seen all around Rome, and could be on any building or wall, on any road. The street shrines are religious art that everyone can participate in at any time of day or night, because they are right on the street, and in all parts of the city. These street shrines represent the religious influence in the city of Rome, but also let every citizen have their own personal religious connection and interaction with the Virgin Mary.
When Teo was taking us to look at these shrines, we saw the offerings of candles, flowers, and other items as a sign of people’s dedication to these religious figures. I actually had the pleasure of lighting a candle for one of the shrines that Teo brought, and we left the candle there on the mantle.
Later in the afternoon after our short walking tour, we had another Italian class (two days in a row!) with Fede from 3 to 5. We learned more about how to express what we liked to do in our spare time. We also ended the class with a much-needed question and answer period with Fede that usually involves us asking “how to say this” and “how to say that,” usually only discussing how to order food and coffee!
After Italian class I went on a run, therefore missing the optional excursion to a Liberi Nantes soccer practice, however I later found out that the excursion got cancelled for lack of interest. Maybe we were all too tired!
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