Tivoli

I had the chance to see several famous statues that are in the Capitoline Museum. The first was the giant statue of the Emperor Constantine. The second was a great statue of Marcus Aurelius. Only pieces are left of it though. The last was a bronze statue of Romulus and Remus as children being fed by the she-wolf. As Roman legend goes, Romulus and Remus were twins, the sons of the God Mars and a Latin princess, Rhea. Rhea's uncle tried to have the twins killed, so he could rule the kingdom. The boys were taken to the Tiber to be drown, but a wolf found them near the river and fed them. A shepherd came and saw this event and took the children and raised them. Romulus eventually founded the city of Rome.

I traveled to the city of Tivoli to see two great Villas. The first was the Villa D'Este, which was built in the 1500's. It had beautiful gardens and fountains. Water from an aqueduct was used, and through gravity was taken to water gardens on the side of the mountain. The water even was used to power a musical organ -- so every half hour, music starts playing because water and air are pushed through pipes. It was intriguing.

The other was Hadrian's Villa. The Emperor Hadrian was a great scholar and a writer. He loved to learn about other countries- their architecture, art and philosophy. He traveled the Roman Empire and brought back the forms of architecture that he saw throughout the different regions. Many parts of his Villa were built in foreign stlyes. There is garden just for philosophy (for reflection and meditation), the palace, the baths, and several fountains. The palace was not built like the Roman houses, but had several floors and wings. The baths were large, and you could see how the water was brought in, and the underground rooms that heated the water. Overall it was peaceful - not as many tourists - and beautiful as well.