We're back! The past few days have been quite a whirlwind! Since we encountered rain the first two days of Rome, we had a lot see to our last without having regrets! Not only did we visit the Colosseum, Palentine Hill, the Forum, and Circus Maximus, but we also visited the Trajan baths and several other sites that were breathtaking. The Colisseum was absolutely amazing and the views at Palentine Hill were equally breath taking. At one point, you could see the Coliseum and the Alps in the far background. The Circus Maximus is now more like a rectangular park, but it was still exciting to visit. Toward the end of the day, we made our way to St. Peter in chains, where Michelangelo's "Moses" is located. The condition of all the ancient sites were incredibly impressive. We hated to leave but are so happy to be back at Wofford!! (Sorry, we thought this posted a few days ago but the email did not go through!)

Exploring Rome: Day 2

Today we visited the Vatican, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's. We began by taking a tour of the Vatican. As shown by the pictures above, there is a variety of art work-- from Egyptian sarcophagus to marble sculptures. However, the entire building itself is a masterpiece. We observed visitors taking pictures of not only the relics in it, but also the designs in the floor, walls, and ceilings (as shown in one of the pictures). Entering the Sistine Chapel was breathtaking, followed by a solid 15 minutes of staring upward at the ceiling. (There are no photos of the Sistine Chapel because photos are not permitted.) Everyone was packed like sardines, but we eventually got a coveted seat against the wall. We then made our way to St. Peter's, where we explored the church and also went into the museum. Leaving, we went to the tombs of previous popes. It was interesting to see nuns praying before Pope John Paul II's tomb. Like yesterday, we were greeted with some rain. Tomorrow we will explore the Coliseum, the Forum, Palentine hill, and the Circus Maximus.

Rome!

We're in Rome! It's just gorgeous. Everything is so old and historic yet functioning as a bustling city. Today we visited the fontana di trevi, where you throw a coin over your shoulder and make a wish. We also visited the colloseum and went into Santa Maria degli Angeli. This church had paintings by Michelangelo in it. It gave us a little taste of what to expect from the Sistine Chapel (tomorrow). One of my favorite parts of visiting the Santa Maria degli Angeli was watching the expressions on the other visitors' faces. We would go so far to say the interior of the church rivaled Notre Dame's interior. We also visited the Pantheon. Everywhere you look there is something historic! On continuing our way to the Colosseum we unfortunately encountered some rain (around 4 o'clock). We will pick up again tomorrow at the Vatican, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's.

So when in Switzerland the blog email thing decided to be weird and the post did not appear as a normal post so, here is the post.

Today was a long travel day for us. We ran into many unexpected problems, all starting before 8 30 in the morning. It was topped off when they told us that the overnight was not running tonight despite the fact that is was written in the book. So, we are staying in Switzerland and have a long train ride in the morning.
We got our first experience with the swiss alps today and they are magnificent! Tomorrow is predicted to be even better since we will be going straight through them. Also the city of Geneva, where we are staying, is very Americanized when it comes to all the shopping centers and stores, which consist of even a Claire's.

With all of our free time on the trips, we used it to develop an outline and get together our thoughts and realizations from the many Van Gogh sites we had visited. We discussed what we felt was most important and what we were most strongly attached to so that we could narrow down our paper, seeing that we saw hundreds of paintings by Van Gogh and hundreds that influenced him. We have some more work on the outline but the train ride tomorrow will be a perfect time for that and to continue our research.
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Riding through the alps!

...but the picture doesn't do the mountains justice!

Weird trees in Arles/St. Remy

On day one of our trip in the Van Gogh Museum, Kelsey and I noticed that some of the trees Van Gogh painted looked very odd, knobby, and almost as if he was trying of incorporate figures into the tree branches. Well, after coming to Arles and taking our excursion to St. Remy, where Van Gogh resided as a mental patient in an asylum, we saw that these trees are typical to the landscape of this region. What Van Gogh was portraying was in fact a realistic interpretation of the trees.

Les Alyscamps

We apologize for the lack of blog yesterday but we ended up falling asleep with our clothes on; we were so tired. Yesterday, we went to the Alyscamps and visited the site where not only Van Gogh painted but Paul Gaugin also painted the same painting. This allowed us to compare the techniques, perspective, and emotion that each artist put into the painting since we were able to see the exact site. Being able to compare and contrast the style of one of the artists that influenced Van Gogh gave great insight into his mind and his own personal style.
One difference in this small city of southern France, is dinner time. Restaurants do not even open until 7 to 730 at night. And, people do not start coming in until 8 to 830. Therefore, our schedule is a little off from our Burwell dinner time at Wofford. Also, dinners are slow paced and a more relaxing time and therefore, you will be at dinner for over an hour. It is an experience but the food is well worth it.
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Today was our day to follow in the footsteps of Van Gogh. Arles literally has a path around the city of places Van Gogh painted and admired. We were able to see literally the spot he stood as he painted various landscapes and scenery. In some cases, such as one of my favorite paintings (Night's Cafe), the cafe was under construction due to it being the off season. However, we were able to see the influence and compare and contrast but it will not be possible for the painting to be one of the ones used for our presentation. However, there was several sites that were very close to unchanged and the image is obviously the scene we were staring at. In addition, we were able to discover that Van Gogh did not create the painting as one would see in real life but created different dimensions and used more complimentary colors to enhance the painting. It is almost as if he painted part of the image from one point and moved three feet to the left and painted more of the image and so on. It is interesting to us to try and speculate the reasons behind these techniques. The more we are able to see in person, the more fascinating and obscure his artwork gets.
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Pictures from 1-20-10

Today we traveled to Arles. This consisted of a 2 1/2 hour train ride and a very shaky bus ride from the train station to Arles. We walked to our hotel, viewing the scenic river of the Rhone, as seen in the picture. Once finally arriving in the hotel after many delays and bus stops along the way, we went to dinner. On our walk to dinner, we learned that there is not a shortage of bars but definitely a shortage of operating restaurants on the off-season. We ended up finding a Vietnamese restaurant open off of the traveled path. We're now back in our spacious ( for a european room ) for the night, and can't wait to walk the city ad Van Gogh did in the morning.

Van Gogh and his brother Theo's graves

Today, we traveled to Auver-sur-oise. This is a small city about 45 minutes outside Paris. Van Gogh lived there for the last years of his life and many of his masterpieces were painted from the scenery around the city. His painting of the church is one of his most famous and we were able to stand and look at the church from the same angle that Van Gogh painted from. From actually looking at the painting at the Musee D'Orsay and standing along the walkway in front of the church, the influence is obvious. However, we were able to discover that some of the dimensions, such as how much of the side of the church you can actually see, is different from the painting. Also, the textures he created in the painting gives much more of a feeling of life that is obviously taking place at the church. The brush stroke direction along the path, which is not evident along the actual path, causes the focus of the painting to be solely the church and allow for your eyes to follow up and admire the church, as if you were walking the actual rock path.
Also, we visited the grave site of Vincent and his brother Theo. It was in a small cemetery on the outskirts of town surrounded by the fields and scenery that more than one of Van Gogh's paintings depicted. Tomorrow, we travel to Arles where many more such sites are located.
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Because of our time management and sheer luck on timing, we were able to fit in a trip to the historical site of Versailles. This morning we took a few trains to the palace of Versailles. After just a few minutes walk, there it was. Not only is gold prominent among features of the palace, but it is also featured amongst the vast gardens. The phrase "gardens" does not quite accurately describe the landscape, as there were miles of paths along ponds and cultivated landscapes with multiples statues. Amidst all of the beautiful scenery in the palace's gardens, we were able to view some of Marie Antoinette's additions to the palace. We took a break from our long walk in the gardens and looked into the horizon, where we viewed scenery similar to some of the painters that influenced van Gogh. The shadows, fog, and clouds caused the scenery to blur and become less defined than expected. We found this fascinating since we originally assumed the artist blurred the image. However, actually being here demonstrated that the weather can create illusions that those unexposed to them may be unable to grasp or imagine as realism.

Louis XV's crown

Addendum: Dr. Revels, we attached a picture of Louis XV's crown for you, taken at the Louvre.

Before even heading out to Paris this morning, Lauren was in for a surprise. The previous morning we had noticed that the shower sprayed into the floor because the shower curtain was missing and one must hold the shower head bc the dock was missing. However, this morning was worse. While showering and trying to avoid soaking the floor, the shower head came off the hose and she was forced to finish showering as if she was using a garden hose. Needless to say, we moved rooms and have none of the previous problems. Once stepping outside, we were blessed with the infamous Paris rain, which has continued throughout the day. However, our trip was not put on hold. We started with the Arc de Triomphe and a walk to the Eiffel Tower, which continued to the Place de la Concorde and Grand Palais. We finished off with the Louvre. Now, I know we said the Musee d'Orsay was huge but nothing compared to this museum. There are 3 sections, each of these sections has 4 floors. And these sections are enormous! It is mentally impossible to look and take in all that they have to offer. The Mona Lisa wasn't quite what we expected, but the strict security was. Don't get us wrong; the painting is beautiful but is a normal sized painting of a normal, everyday women. The painting is alone on a wall, but the side walls are filled with other paintings of the same time period. Comparing the Mona Lisa to these paintings shows why it is famous. Also, Van Gogh was inspired and actually visited the Louvre and many of the same paintings as we did. Delacroix is one of the painters Van Gogh mentioned often in his early letters. Being in a room filled with mostly his paintings casts a gloomy and dark feel onto the observer, such as seen through Van Gogh's paintings. In addition, many of the painters painted blurred figures with minor details. This sheds some light onto the difficult time Van Gogh had trying to draw sketches and paintings of still-lifes and models.
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Images from the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre

What a day it was! Our first quest was Notre Dame. Along the way, we saw many other historical and amazing buildings and churches, as well as way too many eye-catching shops. The inside of Notre Dame is beautiful and the stained glass is intricate and fascinating. However, nothing quite compares to the view at the top. After almost 400 steps, you are able to see all sections of Paris, as you can see from some of the pictures. (He definitely allowed us to see the inspiration and optimism that Van Gogh had and expressed in his paintings once he moved to Paris with his brother.
The Musee d'Orsay was HUGE and the section on Impressionism and post-impressionism was extensive. Not only were we able to view some of Van Gogh's most famous works but we were also able to compare those who inspired and taught him, almost side by side. It was also evident that not only Van Gogh but also many other artists such as Monet went to trials and periods of trying new techniques with brush strokes and color choices. This museum may be my new favorite and already was Lauren's. More Paris tomorrow!!
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Images from Notre Dame and the Musee d'Orsay

Van Gogh at the Musee d'Orsay

We're finally in Paris! We arrived around 6 and made our way to our hotel. We passed many small cafes on the way. After checking in, we decided to grab some dinner. I had a hard time believing that a bottle of wine costs less than my 2 tablespoons of maple syrup as a topping for a Belgium waffle in Brussels (really?!). We find it difficult to grasp that no matter what you drink...even if it is water...is going to cost you at least 2 euros. Tomorrow we are planning on exploring Paris. In the next few days we will be visiting museums and sites that Van Gogh explored and admired, such as the Louvre and Montemarte.

Brussels!

Windmill behind wheat field in Holland

We're currently on a waterbus on our way back from Kinderdijk, which is a section of Holland known for windmills. Kinderdijk is accessible by boat from Rotterdam. Van Gogh painted both windmills and wheat fields, the latter being much more common motif in his work. Not only did we visit the windmills that were built around 1738, but we also gave " ice skating" on the nearby frozen river a go. We decided that the 25-75 kilometer ice skating competition held when weather permits in Kinderdijk may not quite be for us!

Van Gogh lived and painted throughout Den Haag for a large section of his adult life. No actual specific sites are mentions but the influence is definitely noticeable as well as the influence the culture had on his life. We find the culture to be a lot like Amsterdam, but less touristy and fewer english speakers(well good english speakers)
Today, we had a few surprises in store for us. After checking into our hotel, we asked where a coffeeshop is located thinking that a cup might help warm our freezing bodies from the cold sea breeze. The quickly directed us down the street and decided to mention on the way out that smoking was not allowed in the room. We immediately responded that we didn't smoke. The confusion on their faces made us remember back to Amsterdam that a coffeeshop is not a cafe but a smoking establishment for which is not legal in the US. We decided to go to McDonald's for coffee instead. Our second encounter was dinner. No english menus were available and our waiter knew very little to have an English accent. When we ask for him to translate a dish for us, it went something as follows: it's uhhh... the vegetable that ummm... Underground... Like a carrot... But not a carrot... Uhhhh... And fish... I think uhh.. How do you say... Red bone... After eating the dinner, we think we had catfish with beets. It was the best dish we have had so far, despite the fact that we don't really know what we were eating. Windmills are tomorrow and neither of us can wait!! Stay tuned for some lovely pictures.
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"Beach" in Den Haag
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On our way to Den Haag! Should be there in around 2 hours! Can't wait to be by the sea!!
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Today was our day to explore Amsterdam and visit the Rijksmuseum. The Rijksmuseum has a huge building but once inside, it was smaller than the previous two museums. We did not enjoy this museum as much as the other two but the sheer size of some of the paintings were impressive, namely some of Rembrandt's masterpieces! We were also able to experience several of the artists who inspire Van Gogh.
After our museum, we decided to explore some of the cities highlights. These include the Anne Frank house and a large market full of flowers and bulbs. We are now off to dinner for a typical dutch meal and plan on being back early to prepare for the train ride to Den Haag tomorrow.
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So the pictures did not attach in the same order and one was accidentally not attached. The top picture is the Seurat picture and the third is a close up so that one may better see the dots or dabs of paint. And the Picasso is attached above this post. Sorry about the confusion but posting from a phone is harder than it may appear!

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Below you will found some of the many fascinating masterpieces featured in the museum. It was much larger than expected but well worth every cent!
The first picture is a Picasso. One of the most eye-catching features in the painting is that the brown (woodlooking) section is actually filled in with sand and creates an image that is nowhere near accurately expressed in the picture.
The second picture is a Van Gogh and is one of Lauren's favorite. The museum contained an extensive collecting of Van Gogh's oil paintings including his second painting of the Potato eaters.
The third picture depicts probably one of my new favorite styles which is Pointillism. This is where mere dots or dabs of paint are used to create the entire picture. Hard to tell from the painting, but it is true! This is a portion of a Seurat, one of the more influential painters to Van Gogh.
We have tried to give a glimpse into this amazing museum but we learned the meaning of the saying, you must be here to fully experience the complexity and emotion of the art.

Kroller - Muller Museum 01-10-10

Today, we had our excursion to Otterlo. A train and two buses allowed us to arrive at the museum, two hours away from amsterdam. When we arrived, it was snowing mildly but allowed for a beautiful garden and countryside. (Our first windmill was seen in this beautiful white country.) The museum not only had paintings but several sculptures, many of which were outside and covered in snow. There are also several beautiful, native birds playing in the snow, all of which Lauren was extremely fascinated with.
The culture is also a little different than we had expected. The sexual freedom and publicity is strong and is prided by all that live here. We also learned that the word blonde or blondie is the same in dutch as in english seeing that we hear it every 10 minutes. (Lauren finds little humor in this seeing that they notice her slipping on the frozen snow covered brick road instead of me!) All the locals are more than willing to help out and the plans and transits are going smoothly, as we hope they will continue tomorrow. Our question for tomorrow is why they are obsessed with monkeys? (They have stuffed animals and several posters and signs in all the local places.)

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We made it to Amsterdam! It's quite cold and windy. Not to mention the snow flurries. After landing in AMS we checked into our hotel and headed to the Van Gogh Museum. Heading there, all the canals were frozen over and the ducks walked on top of the ice. The museum not only showcase over 200 of Van Gogh's masterpieces but also allowed us to view and compare some of the paintings that inspired him. We also were able to witness just how textured his paintings are; the raised paint really does cast shadows! The museum took us through his life as a painter, and beautiful landscapes especially in his later years have us excited for our adventure to those sites in the next several days. And now we are exploring the city briefly before a much needed crash. The absence of sleep on the plane ride is starting to set in.

Sorry for the absence of pictures from the actual museum but we weren't allowed a camera :-(! Just imagine the internet/print images and multiply times a thousand!

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Icy flights!

Bon Voyage!

So the day is finally here! We will depart at 12:30 from GSP with a connection in Detroit. Barring everything goes smoothly in Detroit with no inclement weather delays, we'll be in Amsterdam tomorrow morning! Because we will arrive in Amsterdam around 5:30 AM (their time), we've decided to be quite ambitious and visit the Van Gogh Museum on our first day! Some of the museums we will be visiting are closed on odd days (Monday, Wednesday), so in order to make everything work we're going to dive into the largest collection of Van Gogh in the world! Not only does the Van Gogh museum have the largest collection of Van Gogh in the world, but it also has other 19th century works to compare it to.

Top 3 things we're looking forward to in Amsterdam:

1- Van Gogh Museum--to a certain extent, it seems like actually seeing a Van Gogh piece is like light at the end of the tunnel. Even though this is just the beginning of the trip, it will be so rewarding to finally see the pieces of what we have spent all our time until this point researching!

2- White bikes-- If not actually taking part in the bike culture of Amsterdam, at least observing. (Kemper Wray's scar stories of biking in Amsterdam definitely puts a cautionary tone on the prospect of it!)

3-Cafe culture -- Kelsey may have to endure my chemical addiction, but perhaps this way it will be more enjoyable than a mcDonald's drive thru.