I don't think my friends that went with me to Italica the other day have ever seen me so happy. I was like a kid in a candy shop that gave out free samples, and the free samples were little bits of pottery.
Italica was THE Roman city to be in if you were in Spain way back when. Like, it was the place to be. Emperors were born there. The third largest arena in the Roman empire is there. The place was legit back in the day.
and it just so happens to be 7 km outside of Seville.
This past Friday was an Andalucian holiday, so we didn't have any classes. In order to avoid sitting in my room all day, I figured I would see what I could get out and do. Bus tickets to Italica weren't even 2 Euros, so I thought it would be a good little day-trip. I was right.
Holy. Stinkin. Moly.
When I went to Israel in December 2011 I fell in love with archaeology, especially of the Roman kind. Friday, February 28th 2014 I fell in love again. Seeing the craftsmanship and engineering prowess of the Romans left me speechless on numerous occasions. As we came to the crest of a hill, I couldn't help but yell out "Oh! The cardo!! and there's the decumanis!!!", and proceed to explain to my friends what those things were whether they wanted to hear it or not. (The cardo is the main street of a Roman city, and the decumanis is the street running perpendicular to it). As I walked down the cardo with my friends, I pointed out how the sides of the streets were lined with broken pieces of pottery, and with enough patience, you could find a nice piece to take home. I found a nice piece that had a decent sized curve to it so that you can dell it was definitely crafted and not just some broken rock. I would've spent more time searching, but my group wanted to keep looking around the site. What took the cake was that 3rd largest arena in the Roman empire I mentioned. That was a sight to behold. As I walked into the arena, my inner Maximus from Gladiator came out. I felt powerful. I saw the stadium not in ruins, but filled with people. The cool air hitting my face as the sun shone unimpeded by any clouds. The only thing I was missing was a sword. This strange sensation of extreme manliness was only increased when I went into the room where the gladiators would wait before entering the arena. I stood in the room and looked around. I then turned around and faced the doorway. I slowly walked out from the room into the dark hallway encircling the stadium and straight out into the brilliant light shining on the floor of the arena. Now that was invigorating. I had to go back and take a video just so I wouldn't forget what it felt like.
For the beginning of the trip, I was Indiana Jones. Seeing the value of the culture and history of the ancients. Towards the end, I was the ancients. I was the armor-clad man's man who fought valiantly in the blood and dirt.
Was I really any of these things? no. I'm not a violent person. I don't even like killing bugs. I don't know how to fight, or at least fight well. But there's something about that place that made me feel very much alive. and it wasn't just in the arena, where I remarked about how many people had died there as I stood facing the water pits. It was also at the top of the hill where the Necropolis would have been, where the cool wind hit my face and the sun shone bright all around. I could see Sevilla off in the distance, but I could also see grassy hills and cypress trees all around me.
I've started re-reading Wild at Heart by John Eldridge, and regrettably I haven't had time to get very far. I did however get through the first few chapters, where he talks about men getting back out into the wilderness and finding the essence of God, His creation, and themselves. I've been stuck in a city for months. Beaver Falls. Kingston. Seville. All cities. Maybe that's a reason I resented moving so much this summer. Yes, Johnson City was a city. but there was space. The roads weren't lined house-to-house. You went through patches where there was nothing but cow fields. The trees for the most part weren't planted around the houses, but the houses around the trees. Even the forests felt like there was room to move around. I've been stuck in a city since July. Yesterday I finally got to leave. Yesterday I felt like I could breathe again. I will never be a "city boy". I will always want my big back yard and forests all around.
Thank you Italica for giving me a breath of fresh air that I've needed for a long time.
"The beating heart of Rome is not the marble of the Senate; it's the sand of the Colosseum." - Gracchus, Gladiator
Photos ->https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152316810757578.1073741830.647277577&type=1&l=0d0f6fe5b3
Arena Video -> https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10152316804847578&l=1450733131093659119
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