Selena Enriquez

“My name is Selena Enriquez and I just got back from Rome!” Words I hope I can live to say without describing a dream. People that have been there describe it as simply "beautiful". Why just say “beautiful” to something that I’m sure is much more beyond that? Other peoples’ opinions are just not enough to describe the genuine beauty through the walls and streets of Rome. This is my chance to prove I am capable of fulfilling this dream that I have had since before Context was introduced to me. I applied for the fellowship for many reasons, but in a nutshell, I WANT TO GO TO ROME!

It is difficult to say why I am applying. I think the real question is why wouldn't I? 3:30 PM. At this moment I walked away from the laptop, I just can't come up with a list of reasons on why I want to go. 6:45 PM. I'm still stumped on this question. I feel the main reason why I want to go is because a chance like this will never get thrown at me. There is no guarantee that I am going to have this chance ever again in my lifetime. This is the time to take full advantage of it. In my neighborhood, there is rarely someone who gets to visit Rome, or even another country or state. For those who are part of my neighborhood, and know that I went to Rome will look at me with amazement. Just being given the chance for this makes them already look at me. I want to be that person that they see down the street and give me the title as "The Girl That Went To Rome" . Nobody else will have that title but me. Other than that, I want to go to Rome because Google pictures are not enough for me to really see what it is like. The shutter of the cameras unfortunately don't capture what is really in Rome. As they say, each picture is worth one thousand words, but I am sure actually being there leaves you speechless.

If I do get the Context Fellowship,I wouldn't know where to begin on what I would look forward to. There would be so much. The art, the food, the museums, the food, the architecture, the food, the history, the food. For some reason, I think the food would be interesting to try out, definitely something completely different, but i'm up for that challenge. On a serious note, the most important thing I will be looking forward to is the art. I am currently being educated with the different types of styles of art. In my class we are being shown copies of the works of Bernini, Carvaggio, Michelangelo and many more artists, but I want to see the real thing. The art seems like it would be the most interesting part, particularly the Sistine Chapel, because I would be up front and center observing every detail of every piece. That, to me, is what is very important. Other than the art, the architecture seems to be a very important aspect of Rome, I would sit there contemplate as I stand before the Colosseum, pantheon, the Trevi fountain and others.

Walking into my first seminar, I expected to learn about the Greek Mythology, but instead we were taught more about the art and architecture. The little we discussed about it was the simple fact that Romans took the Greek mythology and made it their own. The mythology we learned the basics, for example, Zeus being in charge of all the Gods, Poseidon being in charge of the oceans and so on. But the main information that was given to us was the art and architecture. We were taught that the Greek made bronze statues and the Romans made them of marble. The Greeks made statues of men, predominantly men with chiseled bodies representing strength and youth. The Romans also made their statues of men representing the same thing. I mainly captured what was said to have came from the Greek civilization. A few things such as, trial by jury, Olympics, theater, and myths, were all from the Greek civilization. I was surprised to find out the vast contributions the Greeks made to the world.

To conclude my first blog,mind you the first blog i have EVER written, I feel confident about this, I know the best thing I can do is put in 110%, and that is exactly what I will try to do.