I'll admit it, in cold January, approaching even colder February, I constantly think about sunny Rome. But as I've gotten to know Boston, I've discovered why I have the eternal city eternally on my mind: this place looks like Rome! Below is incontrovertible proof (more or less) that our Puritan metropolis actually has its roots in Mediterranean soil.....
Roman sunlight streaming through stained glass at St. Peter's.....
New England blue sky and art deco splendor in a supermarket (?!) along Commonwealth Avenue.
Fidelity and Security adorning a doorway in the financial district....
....and their predecessors in Pompeii.
The Pantheon!
And the church on Tremont street that wants to be the Pantheon.
Me looking like a goofball in front of Bernini's columns at St. Peter's....
....and more Corinthian columns at Downtown Crossing.
Mom, do you mind having this pic broadcast to the world?
But just compare those column capitals to this one, with winged horses.
And why go around the world for the Appian Way.....
....when there's one right here in Cambridge? (Check out that fall foliage in the background!)
I'll let you guess on this one: is it downtown Boston or Rome? (Well, maybe the answer is fairly obvious...)
The opera house facade in Boston's piccolo theater district...
.....bears some resemblance to San Isidoro, near the Spanish Steps. (While we're here, let me tell you the story of my visit to this church, surely the creepiest I had in Rome! This 1620's beauty is set back from the street by a walled-in garden, to enter you must ring the bell and be buzzed in by a porter. The drunken, seemingly mentally impaired porter took me through the side entrance of the church and past the enclosed Spanish Cloister and into the darkened sanctuary. I was clearly the only person in the entire complex, alone with this guy, and far removed from the street. He turned on the lights and knelt as we entered. He let me look at the ceiling and took me around to each chapel, describing the artwork and artists, all the while resolutely staring at my chest. His breath was heavy and strong with alcohol. I remember virtually nothing of the art I saw. I hastened to get out of there. "Do you want to say a prayer?" He asked as we walked out.
Roman sunlight streaming through stained glass at St. Peter's.....
New England blue sky and art deco splendor in a supermarket (?!) along Commonwealth Avenue.
Fidelity and Security adorning a doorway in the financial district....
....and their predecessors in Pompeii.
The Pantheon!
And the church on Tremont street that wants to be the Pantheon.
Me looking like a goofball in front of Bernini's columns at St. Peter's....
....and more Corinthian columns at Downtown Crossing.
Mom, do you mind having this pic broadcast to the world?
But just compare those column capitals to this one, with winged horses.
And why go around the world for the Appian Way.....
....when there's one right here in Cambridge? (Check out that fall foliage in the background!)
I'll let you guess on this one: is it downtown Boston or Rome? (Well, maybe the answer is fairly obvious...)
The opera house facade in Boston's piccolo theater district...
.....bears some resemblance to San Isidoro, near the Spanish Steps. (While we're here, let me tell you the story of my visit to this church, surely the creepiest I had in Rome! This 1620's beauty is set back from the street by a walled-in garden, to enter you must ring the bell and be buzzed in by a porter. The drunken, seemingly mentally impaired porter took me through the side entrance of the church and past the enclosed Spanish Cloister and into the darkened sanctuary. I was clearly the only person in the entire complex, alone with this guy, and far removed from the street. He turned on the lights and knelt as we entered. He let me look at the ceiling and took me around to each chapel, describing the artwork and artists, all the while resolutely staring at my chest. His breath was heavy and strong with alcohol. I remember virtually nothing of the art I saw. I hastened to get out of there. "Do you want to say a prayer?" He asked as we walked out.
Just one look at the Porta San Sebastiano (leading to the Via Appia, along the Aurelian walls) makes you think that at one point...
it must have looked just like the entrance to an office building in Boston's financial district.
(No? Maybe? Sorta?)
So here's the best proof I have: only the people who built the Colosseum.....
... could possibly have built the Harvard Stadium. (Right?)
And here's Boston's Government Center, which I like to call a mushroom cloud rendered in cement....
And the splendid Italian Parliament.
You know what, I'm way off. What am thinking? Bag this entire idea!
1 comment:
Great photos - and I think you're right about the architecture - hope all is well where you are. Is Boston as balmy as NY this January?
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