Lucy's Locale: Half the fun of the travel is the esthetic of lostness. ~Ray Bradbury

On Saturday I went to Trajan’s Forum, the Roman Forum, and the Piazza Navona. On Sunday (for Palm Sunday) I and the other students attended St. Paul’s Within The Walls Anglican Episcopal Church. Then, I walked around the Palatine Hill area, which overlooks the Roman Forum. On Monday I went to the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s. On Tuesday I went to the Pantheon, Fonte Acqua Paola and the Church of S. Maria in Trastevere. On Wednesday I traveled, along with the other students and our Professor, to Ostia Antica, which is a large archeological site, close to the modern town of Ostia, that was the location of the harbor city of ancient Rome. "Ostia" in Latin means "mouth". At the mouth of the River Tiber, Ostia was Rome's seaport, but, due to silting and a drop in sea level, the site now lies 3 kilometres from the sea. The site is noted for the excellent preservation of its ancient buildings, magnificent frescoes and impressive mosaics. Ostia was almost like a city-sized playground of ruins. This year marks 150 years since Rome’s unification, and today there was a theatrical reenactment of Rome’s history in the Circus Maximus, which the other students, our Professor, and I attended. Afterwards, I went to the top of the Victor Emmanuel (he was the first king of a united Italy) Monument and visited the Church of S. Ignazio di Loyola. It has been wonderful being back in Rome. I am able to see, do, and experience so much more this time around. It is suppose to rain on Easter morning (when I and the other students are suppose to be in St. Peter’s Square for Mass), so I would appreciate everyone’s thoughts and prayers for a dry, instead of wet, morning on Easter.