Mantova

So the big news of my weekend was my visit to Mantova. For those of you who don't know, Mantova is Vergil's birthplace. And Vergil is my most favorite Latin poet ever.

I'm in fact a little embarrassed to admit that when I saw his memorial, I got a little bit teary. I just could not believe my fortune that I was actually there, looking at the city where he was born and raised. All the lines of the Aeneid that I have ever read and studied flooded into my mind. The line that kept surfacing was "forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit." Roughly translated, this means "and perhaps indeed someday these things will be pleasing to remember." It is the finale punch line of Aeneas' speech to his war-torn men in what I consider the most inspirational speech ever written. Essentially, Aeneas is telling his men that every experience will be one that can teach you something. And most likely, even the most challenging of times will someday be a favorable memory.

Anyway, I'll get some pictures up, but by far this was the coolest thing I've done while in Italy. Yayyyy Vergil!