Bees

Bees sip honey from flowers and hum their thanks when they leave.
The gaudy butterfly is sure that the flowers owe thanks to him
(Rabindranath Tagore 1861 - 1941)

On day 2 in Rome as we were about to enter the Basilica’s cupola, we came across a bee relief sculpture. On day 3 the bees in the church at the Victor Emmanuel Church were a ‘sign’ to me…

What do bees mean? I have done a bit of research as to their meaning. I have decided that for 2012 the bee is going to be my Totem. It is also going to be my ‘wild’ year… ??

Bees have an ancient reputation as the bringers of order

Bees serve as images of the miraculous interconnectedness of life

Honey bees are a shamanic sign of passion, progress, and sexuality. They are also tied to joy and creativity

The Royal Bee Totem possesses the following virtues:

Messages from higher planes and consciousness

prophetic dreams and visions

industry

wealth

industriousness

diligence

cooperation

productive hard work

sexual attraction

the power of giving back when taking

the ability to turn something unassuming into a wonderful creation

ability to enjoy and savour the sweetness of life

connection with the Earth and living things

divine messages

productiveness

focus

sensitivity

and realizing the fruit of one’s labour

Rome day 3

There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to get wet and run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will not be perplexed, though you will still get the same soaking. This understanding extends to everything

Tsunetomo Yamamoto

The Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II (National Monument to Victor Emmanuel II) or Altare della Patria (Altar of the Motherland) is a monument built to honour Victor Emmanuel, the first king of a unified Italy, located in Rome, Italy.

It was raining on day 3 as we perambulated around Rome with our brollies, we would not be put off by a little rain, we thought. By the time we arrived at the Victor Emmanuel monument it was raining heavily. After posing for a photo on the steps in front of the Eternal Flame (which burns in memory of the unknown soldiers who died during the Great War) some of needed to find a toilet. Kyle, Roarke, Ariél and I braved the pouring rain, while Sarah, Tom and Gina went into the church.

The church is as magnificent as all the catholic Churches in Rome. Kyle and I wandered up to the altar and each lit candle, saying a little prayer. Part of prayer involved being shown a ‘sign’.  As I looked up I saw a bright blue window with three yellow bees. The day before just as we were entering the cupola walk, we had come across a lone bee relief sculpture at the entrance*

Outside the church we walked down some really slippery stairs and then came across an “Assassins Creed Statue” so had to take a picture.

By the time we reached the forum we were rather soaked. The ruins inspire contemplation of bygone centuries…

The coliseum dwarfed the enormous Christmas which stood smugly proclaiming a Christian celebration dating back to pagan times, with an ancient, wise superiority. A ‘gladiator’ chatted to Sarah and when he heard she was from South Africa, he exclaimed “Bafana Bafana!”

We took the Metro up to the capuchin crypts. We realised how fortunate we are to have the beautifully clean underground that we do in England! As we alighted from the train at our stop, three youths (!) shouted “Ciao Rossa!” to our red-haired Sarah.

The capuchin crypts which contain the skeletal remains of 4000 bodies believed to be Capuchin friars buried by their order. The Catholic order insists that the display is not meant to be macabre, but a silent reminder of the swift passage of life on Earth. I was superficially interested in the bones, until we reached the second last crypt which had a coat-of-arms… Suddenly my stomach lurched and I felt an overwhelming nausea take hold of me, I was repulsed and needed to get out in a hurry. I am not sure why…

*See next blog post

Rome day 2

 

Rome Day 2

Be happy when you reach the top: cry, clap your hands, shout to the four winds that you did it, let the wind - the wind is always blowing up there - purify your mind, refresh your tired and sweaty feet, open your eyes, clean the dust from your heart. It feels so good, what was just a dream before, a distant vision, is now part of your life, you did it! (Paulo Coelho)

Breakfast consisted of coffee and panettone. A flurry down the four sets of stairs to spill out onto the Piazza Navone, the square on which our apartment was set. It is a large and lively square containing three fountains and the   baroque church of Sant'Agnese in Agone, as well as many restaurants and cafés and market stalls selling wares of a varied nature.

A brisk walk to the St. Peter’s Square, armed today with my camera. St. Peter's Basilica is quite beautiful; there are not words to describe what it is like. It is a cornucopia of Christian iconography and opulent, ornate artwork, the scale, the detail, the sheer scale and abundance of beauty took my breath away. Ariél made the comment that she would have become a Christian just to come and drink in the art. But these words do not suffice the enormity of my admiration for what we saw.

Ariél, Kyle, Sarah and I did the Cupola climb. There are a few hundred steps which become increasingly narrower and curved, you have to bend your neck over and lean to one side at some stage. Once on top, there is a 360° panoramic view of Rome. What a breathtaking sight.  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Peter%27s_Basilica

After another ciolatta calda, we set off for the Spanish steps. We girls were enticed by the shops up and down the streets leading up to the steps. But, no we didn’t buy anything , just looked.

Rome day 1

There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age (Sophia Loren)

Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force...When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold and expand. Ideas actually begin to grow within us and come to life...When we listen to people there is an alternating current, and this recharges us so that we never get tired of each other...and it is this little creative fountain inside us that begins to spring and cast up new thoughts and unexpected laughter and wisdom. ...Well, it is when people really listen to us, with quiet fascinated attention that the little fountain begins to work again, to accelerate in the most surprising way (Brenda Ueland)

Rome is sensory overload on a humongous scale. Ancient buildings stand proudly, housing new shops and restaurants. Cobbled streets are filled with small cars parked haphazardly in maze-like complexity. Almost every street corner has a Virgin Mary effigy. Drinking water fountains are littered about the streets on unexpected little squares, with water spurting forth from some olden statue as it has been doing for centuries.

Roarke and Gina had had a week to reconnoitre and were our guides. After settling into our amazing apartment we visited the Pantheon. The original Pantheon of Rome built between 27 & 25 BC, was commissioned by Marcus Agrippa. It was dedicated to 12 gods of heaven and focused on Augustus’ cult. It burned down in about 80 AD. It was rebuilt in about 120 AD by Emperor Hadrian who wanted his temple to be a sort of universal temple where people could worship any and all gods they wished, not just local Roman gods. This would have been keeping with Hadrian’s character — a widely travelled emperor, Hadrian admired Greek culture and respected other religions. The Pantheon was converted to a Christian church in 609 AD and still serves this function.

We had our first cioccolata calda: thick creamy custardy hot chocolate, which is served with a spoon. We were taken to a gelatti shop, where the choice of flavours was enormous. On my first visit I had a scoop of torrone (nougat) and a scoop of crème caramel.

Being extremely tired, I walked around in a surreal daze through the narrow alleyways, down towards Fontana di Trevi, one of the most famous fountains in the world. According to legend a foreigner who tosses a coin into the Fontana di Trevi ensures his or her return to Rome, so we all stood with our backs to the fountain and threw a coin over our left shoulder to set our intentions to return. The scale and beauty of the statues is awe inspiring. The fountain is at the end of the Aqua Virgo, an aqueduct constructed in 19 BC. It brings water all the way from the Salone Springs (approx 20km from Rome) and supplies the fountains in the historic centre of Rome with water.

There is a sense of confident superiority in the ancient buildings and statues that line the streets of Rome, yet one is seduced, not repelled, by this arrogance…

Over my shoulder