Even in the dead of Italian winter, Rome is absolutely beautiful! This is a view overlooking the Tiber River on one of the many gorgeous sunny days.
For my sketchbook class, we set out to an onsite location and ended up at the Pantheon. The stark contrast between this towering ancient building and the more modern apartments/buildings surrounding it just made the Pantheon even more breathtaking!
Inside of the Pantheon we ended up sitting on the benches to draw for an hour or so, attempting to perfect the dome roof above us.
Looking up at the dome was such a humbling experience. Our professor was telling us about how he remembers one time when it snowed last year, being at the Pantheon was the coolest site ever! He said how the snow would come down through the hole in the ceiling so that when you were standing inside the building there was this small area that had the magic of a slight snowfall. How cool is that?!?
After drawing the Pantheon, our teacher took us into a nearby church that had the most amount of leaf gold on the walls that I have ever seen so far! It was all so extravagant and beautiful.
The next day for my photography class, we went out to an area that was known for its traffic and fast driving in order to capture action shots. I loved photographing the scooters that drove by because they are one of the easiest and most common means of transportation here.
Although Venice is known for its carnival this time of the year, each city has their own smaller version to celebrate! In Rome, there were events taking place in both Piazza Navona and Piazza del Popolo. Here in Piazza del Popolo, they kicked off the festivities with a parade and a horse show following that which was set up in a portable arena built just for this time.
Confetti, as well as decorative masks, are the most common items seen all around the festivities. Here my friend is joining in the festive spirit and throwing a bit of her own confetti into the air!
Later that night on the opening day of the carnival in Rome, occurred one of the coolest things I have ever seen! Projected onto the main archway of the piazza was a video that matched up perfectly to the architecture of the structure. Complete with more abstract modern designs as well as painterly historical images, the whole video lasted around 15 minutes in which they also included some history/stories. It was so entertaining my friends and I watched it twice!
Here is my roommate and my friend gathered near the arch, fully filled with joy from the amazing version of the carnival that Rome had to offer to us!