Roman(a) Holiday

Monday 28th July 2014 Rome day 1.5
Today was all about old Roma &  the history of the development of the city. I locked in 3 tours over the coming days with ‘The Rouge Historians’.
Before the tour started, I snuck in a peak through the keyhole at Aventine Hill. The view is worthwhile although my camera couldn't capture it. You’ll just have to go there & see it for yourself. 

Hugo was absolutely amazing with today’s ‘The All Over’ tour. You may have worked out by now that I’m a sucker for witty commentaries. 

We began with establishing how circus Maximus functioned in it’s heyday & the beginnings of the Roman colony. 

 We passed the ‘Mouth of Truth’ which was overloaded with tourist. For 50 cents you can put your hand into the recycled sewerage drain cover. While I love Hepburn movies, I think I can manage missing this opportunity. Opposite, we found the temple of Hercules & the Temple of the god of cows. The area use to be a market place for cows.

The Theatre of Marcellus has an apartment for sale if anyone’s is in the market? I think he said for 29 million (that’s in euros).

We cut through the Jewish Ghetto & heard the successes & the terrors of their local history.  The tour continued past the house of the disgraced media/politician who is currently under house arrest for his parties including underage girls. Next stop was the cat piazza where they believe Caesar was murdered (near the tree).

The Pantheon is extraordinary when you consider how ordinary it appears from the exterior! The Roman’s architecture shall never disappoint. The Pantheon is also the resting place of the artist Raphael!

The Fountana del Pantheon

The guide suggested a lunch stop at the nearby ‘Super Pizza’ or ‘Sande Crispino’ gelato in the next square…we went with Gelato. Well worth the visit! 

I can’t recall the name of this church? The darker dome is an optical illusion…it’s painted onto a flat surface.

The tour passed the Piazza Venezia towards the Roman Forum to continue our lesson on Roman history. 

Pagan Trajan’s column converted to the catholic saint Peter?

Hugo completed his session opposite the Colosseum. Thanks to Hugo’s advice, several of us made our way to Palatino to skip the Colosseum queue. We were able to purchase a 2 day ticket that covers Palatino, the Roman Forum & the Colosseum. We took on the Colosseum together. Every perspective had something to challenge the mind! Our conversations flowed from attempting to visualise the former Colosseum to music festivals (yes, we were all Aussies).

Note to self
-book ahead for the underground Colosseum tour

Tuesday 29th July 2014 - Rome Day 2

I returned to the Palatino Hill & Forum today. The location is a mixture of historic ruins & ongoing restoration projects. The signs have a reputation for not being overly informative so I was recommended to get the handset to assist in creating the setting. Some areas were closed off which was rather disappointing but the view at the top compensates. 

In keeping in the under construction theme, I tracked down the Trevi fountain & the Spanish Steps. The Trevi scaffolding will be up for 2 years but don't fret! You can throw money in the micro fake fountain or be rebellious & throw it in the real dried up fountain as the security repeatedly yells "no money, keep walking, photos for seconds, can't stop!!! The Spanish Steps fall into the overrated category but perhaps the mediocre aesthetics are just due to the scaffolding?

The evening ‘Rome in the Dark’ tour continued the standard set today. Sophia was extremely nice but not as charismatic as the other tour guides & her voice was too quiet for the surrounding noise. The tour did have it’s historical highlights as it address the modern Roma (going back several centuries). The main disappointment was the tour ended in a location with limited transport options at 11pm as the storm arrived (metro finishes at 1130pm). In the end I had to fork out for a taxi. The drive home did prove more entertaining than the tour as the city came alive with lightening, heavy rain changing the textures, people scampering & the landmarks lit up for the evening.

Triton fountain by Bernini, Piazza Barberini

Fontana delle Api (Fountain of the Bees) aka Slut fountain sculpted by Bernini, Piazza Barberini 

Obelisk at the top of the Spanish Steps

View from the top of the Spanish Steps

Piazza Colonna Pagen column

Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi or Fountain of the Four Rivers (1651) by Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Can't recall the name of this spooky church

Fiume Tevere

Hercules Temple from the Taxi

Wednesday 30th July - Rome Day 3

Tour started with the Beatissimae Virgini et omnium Angelorum et Martyrum. What a mouth full! The location was chosen as the beginning lesson of the progression of Christianity & the art influences. The former bathhouse, now church is also the location of the meridian line. The day was too dull to see the light stream in operation.

Our guide gave a vivid summary of the dream that inspired the sculpture Ecstasy of St. Teresa by Gian Lorenzo Bernini located at the Santa Maria della Vittoria.

Potato pizza (Forno Campo De’ Fiori) followed by a pear at the Campo Markets. The bakery is apparently centuries old & highly recommended. There are two shops, catering in sandwiches & pizza but have other baked goods on offer.

We visited the Dome at San Carlo by Borromini as a storm set in. The dome was another example of optical illusion as the shapes shrink & change to create the appearance of a larger dome. There was also some amazing handcrafted details throughout the church layouts. After experiencing so many extravagant churches, it is easy to appreciate Borromini’s use of space & design.

The storm passed which created a fresh landscape for us to admired the view near the Presidential Palace.

We passed the Pope’s tailor & listened to the history of the university where Galileo was tried for claiming the earth is round & where the calendar was perfected to what we use now.

Risen Christ is a sculpture made by Michelangelo in 1519- 1521 A.D. found in the Santa Maria sopra Minerva near the Pantheon. Outside the church, Bernini’s elephant is also located.

We crossed the Ponte Vitterorio Emanuele II which looked across to the Ponte Sant’Angelo (Angel bridge) & the Castel Sant’Angelo. Later after the tour was over, I considered touring the Castel Sant’Angelo but decided to leave it for another time. I did however see Bernini’s angels at the Sant'Andrea delle Fratte. The photos aren’t great quality as I may have taken them on the sly. The texture & details on the wings was amazing. The replicas on the bridge were made by one of his students.

St. Peter getting a foot rub

The Pietà (1498–1499) by Michelangelo

Sistine Chapel

Pope's balcony

 

After a detailed summary, our fantastic guide left us in St. Peter’s Square with instructions on the best way to access the Sistine Chapel without the queues. Our group remained together as we followed his directions with a detour at the highly recommended ‘old bridge’ gelatismo.  We continued on through the museum & shared the experience of the Sistine Chapel before losing each other in the oversized Basilica. 

I really felt privileged to be able to experience so many inspiring masterpieces today. The Romans may overindulge but their arrogance allowed these amazing constructions & artworks to take form. 

Note to self

-Must climb St.Peter’s

-return to the Castel Sant’Angelo

-tour the catacombs of San Clemente