A Carpe Diem Snapshot: My favorite churches in Rome are the ones where you can still experience a sense of mystery, history, and antiquity, the ones off the beaten track that feel like a personal discovery when you walk through the doors. This is certainly the case with the church of Santa Prassede , in the shadow of the enormous Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. Here some color-coordinated students knelt before the tombs of the sisters Prassede and Pudentiana. The sisters, d

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Vitam Integram! Seize a full life! Every now and then I have to feature Hannah's humorous whiteboard artwork, which highlights not only her skill but also how very full life is here at Villa Magnolia. We aim to provide our 42 students present this semester with an integrated community life, balancing intellectual work with fun, athletic challenges, spiritual practices, and plenty of good food and culture. This semester the plank challenge has

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: "Old and new make the warp and woof of every moment. There is no thread that is not a twist of these two strands." --Ralph Waldo Emerson The Via Francigena passes through the medieval town of Sermoneta, I discovered the other day. When in San Gimignano last week, I was delighted to see that it also runs through that most picturesque of towns. Everything that is old is new again, and pilgrimage is no exception to that rule. Every year these caminos be

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: In the hilltop town of Sermoneta is the castle of the Caetani family, the creators of the garden featured in yesterday's snapshot. Below the castle, tucked away in a corner along the winding streets, is a world of tiny people from the past, preserved for posterity by the woman who created it all, who sits day in and day out at the doorway to welcome any passerby. Every sort of pre-industrial craft is represented here by figurines who move, akin to the i

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Horti Ninfae! To celebrate a very special milestone today, my half century on earth (Deo gratias!), we traveled to the magical world of Ninfa. An abandoned medieval town transformed into a botanical garden by the last of the line of the noble family Caetani, Ninfa first came to my attention through my Dad's own memories of the place as recounted in his autobiography. "Ninfa seemed outside time," Dad wrote (in the third person narrative). "Ther

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Trastevere! The class and I, joined by Alan and Traci Cornett, had a whirlwind tour of the popular medieval quarter yesterday morning. We began at the hub of the whole neighborhood, the Church of Santa Maria in Trastevere, the ancient place of prophecy on account of the Fons Olei. From there we walked to Santa Maria della Scala, with the tomb of Venerable Van Thuan (there was a large pilgrim group from Vietnam celebrating Mass there), as well a

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Cochlea! This was not an escargot experiment gone wrong, it was a demonstration of the Fibonacci sequence in nature, in this case in the spirals of Roman broccoli and snails' shells. One of the students this semester, Maria, happens to be an expert in math and physics. This afternoon at the villa we heard her speak on this incredible phenomenon in nature as we meditated on the beauty of snails and broccoli. No snails were harmed in the process,

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Alba! My new friend Megan caught her first sunrise in Rome this morning before catching a flight back home after a ten day sojourn in Italy with Cultural Debris Excursions. Mother Nature cooperated with our plan and held back the rain so that she could at least catch a brief glimpse of the Eternal City spread out beneath a glowing sky at dawn. Buon viaggio, Megan, and see you back here again someday, as anyone who glimpses Rome is bound to do. As

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe San Gimignano! Now I know what the fuss is all about. Our Cultural Debris Excursion today was to this medieval hilltop hamlet of thirteen towers and world famous gelato. I tried cioccolato-pinoli and crema di Santa Fina. I also visited the home of Santa Fina just down the lane from the gelateria, where she was born in 1238 and died in 1253. I remember her story well from the saint of the day book I read aloud to the girls in the mornings but w

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Florentia! Cultural Debris Excursions took us to Florence today, and on a hike up to the top of the Duomo, where I got an up-close view of the incredible "Last Judgment" frescoes begun by Giorgio Vasari, and completed by Federico Zuccari (1579). They were remarkably similar in style and theme to Michelangelo's "Last Judgment " in the Sistine Chapel (1541) and Signorelli's "Last Judgment" in the San Brizio chapel in the Orvieto Duomo (1502). A

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Siena! Today we find ourselves in this jewel of a city with Cultural Debris Excursions, led by our friends Tom and Alan (check out the Etc. category below to learn more about their trips, and lots about why Siena is so fascinating). The Duomo and its stunning tribute to Christian humanism in the marble floor mosaics is the main attraction, and worth a visit to Siena alone. Liturgical : Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Pope Leo's canonizat

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Here in the tiny church of Santa Maria Cappella in Trastevere, our friend Rebecca introduced the group of pilgrim ladies I was fortunate enough to accompany to one of Rome's most distinguished citizens--- Santa Francesca Romana. Mystic, wife, mother, peace-maker, foundress, and patron saint of Rome, she is also the patron saint of our Rome program. The morning's walk around Rome to learn about the inspiring women who walked these cobblestones before

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Joseph! I caught this hilarious photo at grill night at Villa Magnolia yesterday, on the eve of Joseph's birthday. It's just asking for a funny caption. " Niente paparazzi, per favore, e tenete le fan dietro la barriera ." Happy 18th birthday, Joe! Liturgical: Friday of the 28th Week of Ordinary Time Luke 12:1-7 Meanwhile, when the crowd had gathered by the thousands, so that they trampled on one another, he began to speak first to his disciples:

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Today we had a stunning Carpe Diem surprise during our Art and Architecture class on the Aventine hill when we were given a spontaneous tour of the Knights of Malta property, the Villa del Priorato di Malta, by our friend, Michael Grace , a member of the Sovereign Council of the Order here in Rome. We not only saw the famous view of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica that is sought out by tourists through the keyhole, but we were also able to explor

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Roma Aeterna! The ladies of the Fall 2025 Art and Architecture class began at the top of the Caput Mundi yesterday, the Capitoline hill. The incredible sweep of history this view provides is worth the trip to Rome alone. Now we will spend the next few months deciphering its significance. Liturgical: Memorial of St. Teresa of Jesus , Virgin and Doctor of the Church Do you imagine, whoever you are, that when you judge those who do such things and ye

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Solis! Witnessing a sunrise over Rome is always a Carpe Diem moment and sets the whole day off on a brighter note, thanks to the euphoric effect of fresh morning air, empty streets, and the excitement of catching the sixty seconds of the sun's emergence over the cityscape. This morning the sun didn't reveal itself until 7:21, very late indeed, as we are still in "summer time" until October 26, when we will "fall back" an hour thanks to the end of

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Octobris! October is in full swing here in Rome, with harvest festivals happening all throughout the surrounding region. This week I decided to try something new and provide a preview of the week ahead on Sunday, highlighting any connections to Rome. As we well know that all roads lead to Rome, that wasn't a difficult task. Buona settimana! Liturgical: Monday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time "...Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have receive

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Curious children have the capacity to notice all the interesting details that most of us might briefly observe...

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: There is nothing like hearing and watching the ebb and flow of the ocean tide to soothe the mind, body, and soul....

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Just as every stone holds a story in Rome, even more so does every great villa, as well as the ghosts of...