This weekend was full of events!! On Friday, we all went to Rome for our monthly day trip. Divided into three groups, we went to the Vatican Museums, the Colosseum, and the MAXXI (Museum of Art from the 21st century). As the title hints, I was in the last group :)
My experience at the MAXXI was interesting. There were two exhibitions, one called "Transformers" and another called "Istanbul: Passion, Joy, Fury." Although the tour we received was rather boring, the museum itself did a great job. The Transformers exhibition was not about robots (unfortunately). The four artists all from different countries turned everyday, overlooked objects into something that sends a political or philosophical message. My favorite has to be "Disarm," an electronic orchestra whose instruments are made of old guns previously used in battle. These once-violent weapons came together to create a unique piece of music, and I could not stop watching this orchestra.
The Istanbul exhibition, through videos, photos, and sculptures, tried to raise awareness of not only the local anti-government protests that have been going on for the past couple of years, but also various global topics, such as migration, globalization, and freedom of speech and religion. A particular piece that struck me was "Citiscapes," panaromas of Istanbul, but without any mosques. Although the idea of not having any religions at all is really not that striking anymore, especially in this growingly secular world, seeing that idea come to real life was quite thought-provoking. Another piece I enjoyed was these rainbow neon lights shown below. When you walk into this room, you see this as well as the photos of the pretty rainbow staircase in Istanbul. Once you turn, however, you see photos of that same place, but without the staircase; it seems to have been destroyed by the government.
Saturday (January 19th) was Bagnaia's famous "sacred fire" of Saint Antonio. My host family did not want to go, so I went with my friends. There were so many people surrounding the pyre! It was the first time I have ever seen more than 15 people in that piazza. With such a crowd, the town was lively for the first time. When the pyre was first lit, there was so much smoke that I could not breathe. But it eventually went away, and we enjoyed the live music as well as cheap, amazing food. Attending local events like this makes me not regret that I came to Italy this year. I cannot relive through these experiences anywhere else; they can only be found here in Viterbo, Bagnaia, etc. So I hope that I get to go to events like this more often!
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