Temple University Athletics
Temple Owls Take On Rome
3.10.23 | General
Follow along with the Owls on their spring break trip.
FRIDAY, MARCH 10
Eoin Gawronski of men's soccer and TJ Pergine of football blog about Day 7 in Italy.
For our last full day in Rome we took a quick bus ride to the beautiful city of Tivoli. We arrived and walked a bit before entering the famous Villa D’este. Our tour guide led a relaxing but very informative tour around the area. The Villa had many cool fountains and great views that overlooked the city. We then had a beautiful lunch at II Ciocco that overlooked the city of Tivoli. We had a meat board appetizer, chicken cooked in olive oil with potatoes and a lovely tiramisu dessert!
Later that night we went to a local families house. While there we started with a bunch of traditional Italian appetizers, including ham and cheese sandwiches, vegetable quiches, bruschetta, fried Mozzarella balls and an assortment of meats and cheese. Then we went inside and we got to make our favorite dessert of the week: Tiramisu! We were split up into teams of three and we got to compete against each other to see who could make the best, of course my group got first! Then we started to make the pasta, it only had flour, eggs, and some water. We mixed it all together and rolled it out until it was nearly see through. After we did that, we cut the dough into strips to make fettuccini noodles. To end the night, we talked about all the good memories we had throughout the week and Dr. J gave a very touching cheers to wrap up the great week.
PHOTOS FROM DAY 7
PHOTOS (L to R): Photos 1-4: Tivoli; Photos 5-6: Making pasta
THURSDAY, MARCH 9
Evan Boozer of football and Falanika Danielson of volleyball blog about Day 6 in Italy.
Today, we took a train to spend the day in Florence. We attended the Academy of Fine Arts to see Michelangelo’s “David”. This statue was inspired by the story in the Bible “David and Goliath”. Rather than holding a sword, you notice he’s holding the slingshot around his back. A lot of controversy happened when the statue was first made because the story portrays a young boy but the statue is an older younger man. Notice how he is in the position of waiting as if he is concentrated. They say he is a man ready to fight against an enemy and fight for freedom.
An interesting concept that was mentioned was that Michelangelo gives freedom to a sculpture within marble. Rather than sculpting it, he is releasing a beautiful sculpture and freeing it.
We enjoyed admiring the architecture of all of the churches and learning about where each of the marbles used were from different countries all over the world.
PHOTOS FROM DAY 6
PHOTOS (L to R): Michelangelo’s “David”; This is known as the Ponte Vecchio; Florence Cathedral, the 4th largest cathedral in the world. Just take a look at the details!; an example of a very famous and most popular Tuscan food. The Florence style steak. 10/10 RECOMMEND!
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8
Volleyball's Nikki Shimao and football's Kevin Smithwick blog about Day 5 in Italy.
We started the day off by meeting our amazing tour guide, Myriam, at the entrance of the Vatican Museums. We had a little time before entering, so a bunch of student athletes went to get a quick coffee, which has definitely become a part of our daily routines on this trip. The Vatican City is actually its own country and the home to the Pope. The museums hold ancient Roman sculptures, paintings, and the Sistine Chapel, which is where some of Michelangelo’s most famous work can be found on the ceilings and huge wall, depicting The Last Supper. So after going through security, Myriam shared some information with us about what to look out for when we entered the museums and chapel. She especially informed us a lot about the Sistine Chapel because photography is not allowed inside due to security reasons and just overall respect for this spiritual place.
In the images below, Myriam can be seen to the left, next to images of the ceilings and side walls within the chapel. The side walls were done by a combination of different artists, but the ceiling was done alone by Michelangelo. He refused to let anyone help him complete it, which did take a few years. On the ceiling are 9 panels and they depict Genesis. Myriam explained to us that he started at the opposite end of the panel where he depicts God so that when he did get to that last panel, it would be perfect. Then in the right image, is The Last Supper, which shows about 390 people around the central Christ figure. She explained to us that his hand motions show how he’s pushing some people to heaven and the others down to hell. We actually got to see Michelangelo’s work in person a bit after this and it was absolutely breathtaking!!
After our amazing time at the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and Basilica, we headed to Lunch at Papa Rex, which was so delicious. Then we took the bus to the Olympic Stadium for a tour!
The first spot we saw as we walked in was the tunnel. We felt as if the tunnel was talking to and getting us in the mood to win. Then we were able to see the field! It can hold around 70,000 people! We got to see the locker rooms of both home teams, Roma and Lazio! As well as what it would look like for the National Team. It was especially cool to see the jerseys of Roma because we got to see them play in this stadium just a few days prior.
After seeing what a professional stadium set up was we felt very much connected to Rome as we are student athletes and many of us aspire to be at that level one day. After the tour we finished our night with a fantastic experience as we ate dinner as a family at Hostaria Dar Buttero in Trastevere!
PHOTOS FROM DAY 5
PHOTOS (L to R): Images of the ceilings and side walls within the Sistine Chapel (photos 1-2); Some photos of the many statues found within the Vatican Museums (photos 3-5). Photo 5 is a sculpture of an eagle. This reminded us of home in Philadelphia and all we can say is GO BIRDS!!!; a few pictures of the amazing paintings and tapestries that are housed within the Vatican. We were able to witness people restoring some pieces and cleaning the tapestries as we walked through the museum! (photos 6-8); Olympic Stadium (photos 9-14).
TUESDAY, MARCH 7
Volleyball's Taylor Davenport, football's James Della-Pesca, and Myrthe Schuilenburg of field hockey blog about Day 4 in Italy.
On Tuesday March 8th, we started the day off strong by walking to the Galleria Borghese museum in Rome. Galleria Borghese is one of the biggest private art collections in the world & consists of over 20 halls and rooms of art works reflected on the renaissance. We discovered different types of art such as paintings & statues! It was beautiful to look at all the different statues drawn from the renaissance. It shows elegance, athleticism, an eye for detail & perfection. Its outstanding how everything in every painting & statute is displaced perfectly.
After finishing our tour, we visited Temple University Rome to have lunch with some of the Temple students, who were mostly Italian or international students! The Lasagne, meatballs, potatoes & desserts we got were absolutely awesome! Overall, it was very interesting to talk to different people across the world and gain new perspectives as well as personal experiences from people that thrive in different cultures.
Later on the day we visited another similar museum with the addition of mozaïek: Palazzo Massimo alle Terme. We received an awesome tour that provided lots of information on the history of all arts as well as all details provided to the statues. Some statutes were very old and missed certain body parts, which made it even more appreciative of the history & preservation of these creatures.
After the museum visits & lunch at Temple Rome, we were off for the rest of the afternoon! We chose to go off to different local restaurants to end with the famous Italian gelato ice cream! Also, the lasagna & gnocchi is highly recommended when visiting Italy!
PHOTOS FROM DAY 4
PHOTOS (L to R): Galleria Borghese; A group of us at a lookout in the Villa Borghese. It was beautiful to see Rome from this perspective.; Eating lunch with students & staff in the art gallery room at Temple Rome.; A statue that was shown in the Palazzo Massimo. It is a Museum filled with hundreds of statues, paintings and art that has been discovered from hundreds to thousands of years ago. It is very cool to see that the people depicted in the statues are not that different from us. Each statue had a high attention to detail which could be used to tell a story.; Lasagna; Gelato.
MONDAY, MARCH 6
Field hockey's Cassandra Romanczuk and football's Bryce Thoman blog about Day 3 in Italy.
On Monday night, we took a pizza making class at a local pizzeria in Rome. During the class, the first step was making the dough. The ingredients used were salt, flour, olive oil, water, and yeast. These ingredients were mixed together to form the dough. The instructor explained the importance of using the right proportions of each ingredient to create a perfect pizza dough.
Once the dough was made, the next step was to work with it. The instructor showed us how to knead the dough, stretch it out, and shape it into a perfect circle. He also taught us different techniques for shaping the dough, such as using a rolling pin or stretching it by hand.
After the dough was shaped, it was time to add the toppings. The instructor provided a variety of toppings, such as tomato sauce, cheese, vegetables, and meats. The students could then choose their desired toppings and add them to the pizza.
Finally, the pizza was baked in a wood-fired oven. The instructor explained the importance of using a high temperature and a short cooking time to create a crispy crust and melted cheese.
Overall, the pizza making class in Rome was a hands-on and interactive experience that taught us the art of making authentic Italian pizza.
PHOTOS FROM DAY 3
PHOTOS (L to R): Ingredients to make the pizza dough: flour, salt, olive oil, water, and yeast; Pizza making process (photos 2-5); Finished product!; Group photo
SUNDAY, MARCH 5
Field hockey's Sydney Borneman and volleyball's Kayla Spells blog about Day 2 in Italy.
Sunday morning we took a walking tour around the Centro area. Our guide Myriam showed us the Piazza Navona and we got a chance to see the Fontana di Quattro Fiumi and the Sant’Agnese in Agone church. It was awesome to learn about all of the little details that Gian Lorenzo Bernini inserted into the Fontani di Quattro Fiumi to show the people of Rome the wonders of their world. We visited the Pantheon, which unfortunately we couldn't enter because of an ongoing Mass but even the outside of it is absolutely amazing. Then we had some free time to explore the shops and restaurants near the Pantheon. Most of us picked up some gelato or souvenirs but there was also an interesting museum called the Hadrianeum that a few of us explored. It was originally a temple dedicated to the deified emperor Hadrian and was filled with a lot of statues and artifacts. There was even a place where you could see the original building’s exit through a glass panel in the floor! Then we had lunch at this restaurant Ai Balestrari. We got to try some traditional Roman foods and some authentic carbonara pasta.
On Sunday evening we went to the Roma vs Juventus soccer game! This was a huge rivalry game here in Rome and we were all super excited to see the Olympic Stadium accommodate 90,000 fans. We drove the bus over to the stadium and immediately we were able to see tons of fans walking, driving, or scootering to the stadium. Once we got to the stadium it was insane how huge it was and how loud the fans were being an hour out from the game starting. It was so much to take in because the fans from both teams were waving flags and chanting in unison. Once the game started there was never a dull moment, and the stadium was electric. We even got to see Roma score the goal that ended up giving them the win over Juventus!! The final score was 1-0 Roma, and everyone was super excited that we got to see them win! It was a great experience, and it was a really cool opportunity to be able to see professional fútbol in a different country and be able to experience the fan base.
PHOTOS FROM DAY 2
PHOTOS (L to R): Detail photo of the Ganges River figure of the Fontana di Quattro Fiumi; The original entrance of the Hadrianeum below the modern museum; Temple Field Hockey players enjoying the game; Temple Volleyball and Football players having fun at the game
SATURDAY, MARCH 4
Field Hockey's Molly Frey, football's Price Camden, and Prolic Jelena of volleyball give a recap of the first day in Rome!
After a very long flight with not a lot of sleep we hopped on a bus and headed to Rome! When we landed it was 9am Italy time, but 3am our time. After an hour at the hotel, we began our VERY packed day! The first stop was at TU Rome so we could see what our university has to offer outside of main campus. Then we started our first Rome tour and went to piazza del Popolo, which was a beautiful open plaza! Because the weather was so nice it was absolutely packed!! We then walked the busy streets filled with a variety of shops until we reached the Spanish Steps at the Piazza di Spagna. After a quick pit stop we went to the main attraction of the day, the Trevi fountain. Obviously I had to throw a coin in and make a wish so I pushed my way to the front. All of us then got incredible gelato and had some free time to walk around. Sadly, we had to leave the heart of Rome and head back to our hotel in Pivoli for dinner. Dinner was delicious and we intermixed seating so we got to talk to new people! All in all it was a fantastic first day and I'm excited to see what all the week brings!
PHOTOS FROM DAY 1
