On a cold and gray Chicago mornin', another little baby child is born in the ghetto. But on a cold and gray Vicenza mornin', Cyn and I packed our bags and headed for ROME! It’s said that all roads lead to Rome, but those guys drive like total maniacs, so we decided to take the train. (Ironically while we were driving around the base looking for a spot to park our car, Cyn got a ticket for reckless driving. Go Figure.) Once we were safely parked on base, we grabbed a cab to the Vicenza Stazione and hopped on board a coach headed south.
Once we got off in Roma station, the next task was to find a taxi that could get us to our hotel without ripping us off. We had reservations at the hotel Parlamento, a little two star dive that was recommended to us by a friend. Although short on amenities, the location was perfect; right in the heart of town. When Cyn booked the place the clerk told her that a cab ride shouldn’t cost more than 10-15 euros. However once we had reached the front of the Taxi Stand queue, we were getting estimates of 25-30 euros. There seemed to be a lot of cabs, so we shopped around and finally found a guy who would take us there for 15. He didn’t bother to turn on the meter, and I didn’t bother to give him a tip. Welcome to Rome!
Along with a fine tradition for fleecing tourists on taxi fares, there’s also the tradition of hitting on your wife while you watch, which the hotel guy faithfully executed during our check-in. Oh well, at least he didn’t try to cop a feel…
After we had refreshed ourselves, we whiled away the afternoon walking to the Fontana di Trevi and the Piazza di Spagna, both of which were just a few blocks away from our hotel. The sculpture of the Trevi fountain was so grand and so intricate. We squeezed off a few snaps, and I tossed in a coin.
We then wound our way through the labyrinth of Roman streets that crisscross the city without regard for any sort of urban planning. Everywhere we went we dodged traffic as our ears were filled with the distinctive buzz of automobile tires on cobblestone streets. At every other corner was a slew mopeds and Vespas like some Sturgis for wannabes. Our eventual destination: the Spanish Steps.
Although we found it overrun with tourists, both foreign and Italian, instead of the expected bouquets and flowerbeds, the Piazza was still quite wonderful. And in spite of our fat, lazy American butts, we still managed to climb all of the steps to the top and enjoyed the amazing view that could be found there.
Whew! After all that climbing I need a drink!
That night we walked past the Italian Parliament building and got lost looking for a little trattoria called Gino’s that was recommended by our hotel. We got lost a couple of times trying to navigate the narrow streets and alleyways that branch off at weird angles throughout the city. Yet somehow we managed to keep our 8pm reservation. And a good thing too, because shortly after we were seated in the tiny establishment the rest of the empty tables quickly filled with locals and tourists alike. From where I sat I could see several couples and groups peering longingly in to see if they might be able to get a table any time soon. The trattoria had an antique, Italian charm with its walls and ceilings painted with interesting and colorful murals. But the food was so-so, and frankly I couldn’t quite escape the feeling that despite the authentic feel, it was still a tourist trap.
After our meal we lingered along the streets and found ourselves at Piazza Navona. Blissfully unfettered by our camera, we didn’t bother to take any pictures… Not that it mattered much because the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Fountain of the four Rivers) with its amazing Bernini sculpture and towering Egyptian obelisk was currently under restoration and completely surrounded by an eight foot tall wooden barrier; the down side of visiting Rome in the off season.
The next day provided us with the best weather and we took the opportunity to cruise Via Del Corso to the monument of Victor Emmanuel. Along the way I grabbed a few snaps of the column of Marcus Aurelius in the Piazza Colonna. The 100 ft tall column of Carrara Marble was originally erected around 180. The statue at the top of the column, originally of emperor Marcus Aurelius, was later replaced with a statue of St. Paul.
For you brutish Americans with no sense of history, you may remember Marcus Aurelius as played by Richard Harris in the movie Gladiator…At the end of Via Del Corso is Piazza Venezia, a huge round-about type intersection dominated by the National Monument of Victor Emmanuel II. Well overlooked by the monument of Victor Emmanuel and dominated by a mass of cars and traffic… Finished in 1935 the monument has sparked some controversy in the city for its immense size and boxy shape. American soldiers liberating Rome in 1944 nicknamed it the typewriter, a moniker that has been adopted by the locals.
We swung around the back of the monument up Capitoline Hill, one of the “seven hills” of Rome. At the top is a beautiful piazza surround by palazzi.
Sneaking through a narrow alley we emerged on an overlook with a breathtaking view of the Roman Forum. The crystal clear morning air afforded us the perfect conditions for capturing some amazing shots of the ruins below. It wasn’t until the next day when we actually bought a ticket to get inside. I was blown away to be able to see so many amazing, ancient structures that I just strolled around and soaked it all in…
Remember that we went to Rome over the long Thanksgiving day weekend, and being far from home on the holiday reminded me again of how much I miss my family. However we managed to get a little taste of home by joining the USO for their Thanksgiving dinner at the Hard Rock Café. The chefs at the Hard Rock managed to put together a lovely turkey dinner with mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, and even pumpkin pie for desert. We made some nice friends and had a great time although it wasn’t as good as Mom makes…
The next day we hooked up with a guided tour of the Vatican that was recommended to us by Diane at the USO. The Vatican was packed with throngs of tourists who were all looking for an escape from the horribly rainy weather that had moved in over the city. After a only a cursory glance at the Vatican Museum (which is so vast that it could easily take a week to fully enjoy) we were guided through the various halls displaying the centuries of art collected by the Church. There were paintings, sculptures, tapestries, maps, even carpets; all very old and wonderfully preserved. Although strangely enough the best part of the tour was the “whisper system”; a little radio with an earpiece that allowed the tour guide to communicate with us without having to yell over the din of the other tourists. The tour lasted for a couple of hours as we wound our way through room after amazing room soaking in the history. I was especially looking forward to the Sistine Chapel, but I must admit it was a little bit of a disappointment for a couple of reasons. First off, the ceiling was so high you just can’t appreciate the details of Michangelo’s stunning work. And secondly, the Vatican asks for silence and absolutely no pictures, but disrespectful tourists talk, giggle, and blatantly shoot photos and video. Now I’m not a religious person by any stretch of the imagination (much to my father’s chagrin), but the Sistine Chapel is a chapel (they still have mass there every Sunday), and frankly the artwork itself would be better viewed in a solemn silence that just wasn’t possible with the nagging distractions of security guards shushing and admonishing the chattering, camera-wielding spectators…
After just 15 minutes in the Sistine Chapel we moved on to St. Peter’s Basilica. I had heard that it was big, but really had no idea. It was a half-hour tour in itself that started with Michelangelo’s La Pieta, an incredibly detailed and lifelike sculpture that the artist created before he was 30 years old (30 years old!? What have I done with my life?) The tour continued around the perimeter of the Basilica where every few feet there was another lavishly decorated tomb of another dead pope. After firing off a few postcards from Vatican city (an entirely separate country from Italy; Pay attention there will be a quiz later) we headed back to the hotel.
The next day we headed out to see the Colosseum stopping to take a few snaps along the way. The colosseum was built in the year 80 by the emperor Vespasian. I marveled at the fact that it only took 8 years to build. We were lucky enough to be able to use our “Archeology Card”, a pass that grants access to nine different historical sites around Rome, that we had bought to see the forum. However we didn’t have a book about the site and we wanted to have a tour guide. Luckily we were approached by a college-aged girl asking us if we speak English, and if we wanted to be taken on a guided tour. Since it was only 10 euros each (and after that Vatican tour that had set us back 65 euros each) we thought, “Why not?” She took us over to Paolo, an Italian hippy that was the business man behind this little operation, and he took our 20 euros and placed a couple of handwritten stickers on our jackets designating us as part of the group. It was a really rainy morning in Roma, so Paolo took us to a little arch on the edge of the colosseum where we would wait “5 minutes” for our tour guide, Aldo. We waited patiently observing how the pretty girls would snag more tourists for Paolo to sticker and escort to our waiting area. However after 15 minutes we started to get a little anxious about the soundness of our investment. Some of the other tourists in our group shared our concerns, and Cynthia commented that she expected a van to pull up at any moment and all of them, Paolo and his crew of beauties, to pile in and abscond with our money. I was optimistic either way. We’d be out 20 bucks, but what a story! Our worries of being hoodwinked by a bunch of enterprising but immoral young adults were unfounded however when Aldo, a gray-haired gentleman with a microphone and cheesy plastic speaker attached to his belt buckle, arrived to begin our tour.
Although the cheesy, plastic speaker was a first, Cynthia and I have been on many other tours hosted by gray-haired gentlemen who drone on and on in tedious fashion about how many years it took to build this, and which king did that, and frankly the experience can be quite tortuous. And as I stood there in the rain protected only by my flimsy umbrella that I had bought from some pushy street vendor the day before (Oombrella! Oombrella! Oombrella!), I shook my head and prepared for the worst… And I couldn’t have been more wrong.
Aldo began his “30 minute” tour on the outside of the colosseum by explaining when it was built and by whom and how it was damaged and partially destroyed over the centuries; your usual humdrum stuff. But then he brought us about a hundred yards away from our little protective arch so that we could take in the entire structure and he started to describe the Rome of ancient times. He even had a handy book where he could overlay the colosseum then and now (a book that was sold by a vendor near the entrance, and if you mention this tour, you can get a discount). It was fascinating as he described the subtle details of history regarding this structure, it’s place in Rome, and the people that came here.
After 10 minutes on the outside he took us to the inside where even our rinky-dink fly-by-night tour got head of the line privileges over the visitors without tour guides. And once inside, Aldo really got rolling. He described the structure explaining what it looked like, and sounded like, and even what it smelled like! He described how the bodies of beasts and martyrs and gladiators soaked the sands of the Arena with blood. He talked about how there were giant billows at the top of the structure filled with perfumes to ward off the foul smells of the carnage below. He regaled us with tales of the fighting and the roaring crowds and the excitement and the savagery and everything rolled into an unrivalled spectacle that could never be seen again. At times he would just close his eyes as the story would flow out of him like a fountain as he tried to evoke every nuance and every detail into our imaginations using a plethora of adjectives that almost brought a tear of joy to my eye.
He was incredible.
And after over an hour, our 30 minute tour came to a poignant conclusion and many of the group shook Aldo’s hand and thanked him for a most wonderful tour. It was by far, the best 20 euros we spent in Rome. Eager to share this treasure with everyone, we asked for contact information about the tour company and were handed a green flyer. However the green flyer had no company name, no phone number, no email address, nor website. Perhaps it was all just a dream… But maybe if you are in Rome, and go to the colosseum, a fair maiden will approach you and ask if you want a tour of the Arena. It’s only 10 euros. And maybe, if you’re lucky, just maybe, you can hear the words of the gray old man with the cheesy plastic speaker on his belt as he spins the yarn of the majesty that once was Rome.
After that unique experience at the colosseum, we knew that nothing else would measure up, but we decided to plod on and see what else the city had to offer. Down on the south end of the city we stopped at the church of Santa Maria di Cosmedin to check out a little sculpture made famous by the movie Roman Holiday. La Bocca della Verita, the mouth of truth, sits in the foyer of the church and unlike the movie where Peck and Hepburn have the whole place to themselves, we had to stand in line for 15 minutes just take our photo. Only one photo per person please! Move along!
Cyn would kill me if she knew I put this "butt" shot on the blog! :)
On the last day before check out, we made it to the Pantheon. A beautiful temple dedicated to all of the ancient roman gods it was built by Hadrian in 126 CE, although Hadrian, in an uncharacteristically modest display for a roman emperor, left the name of another emperor, Agrippa, on the façade. The building is the best preserved roman building in the city and has been in continuous use since it was constructed.
Outside the Pantheon we paid 5 bucks to this guy for a picture, although I don’t think he’s a really roman centurion because he had a really strong eastern European accent. Like I said these guys just love to fleece tourists…
The interior of the building was a little dark because the only light comes from an oculus at the top of the dome, and since it was another cold and rainy day in the city, the only thing come through that oculus was rain drops. I marveled again at the sheer audacity of the roman architects that could build this type of structure with its enormous dome hovering 142 feet from the marble floor below. How could they build these lasting monuments 2,000 years ago?
After several minutes inside, we stopped for a cappuccino at a bar nearby, headed back to the hotel for check-out, and made our way back to the train station for our return trip home. As the length of this blog attests we were smitten by the majesty and prestige that was, and is, Rome!
Shot from our front door down to my car
Our personal olive tree
Our driveway
Shot from our front lanai
Shot from our back lanai
That night we walked past the Italian Parliament building and got lost looking for a little trattoria called Gino’s that was recommended by our hotel. We got lost a couple of times trying to navigate the narrow streets and alleyways that branch off at weird angles throughout the city. Yet somehow we managed to keep our 8pm reservation. And a good thing too, because shortly after we were seated in the tiny establishment the rest of the empty tables quickly filled with locals and tourists alike. From where I sat I could see several couples and groups peering longingly in to see if they might be able to get a table any time soon. The trattoria had an antique, Italian charm with its walls and ceilings painted with interesting and colorful murals. But the food was so-so, and frankly I couldn’t quite escape the feeling that despite the authentic feel, it was still a tourist trap.
For you brutish Americans with no sense of history, you may remember Marcus Aurelius as played by Richard Harris in the movie Gladiator…
The next day we headed out to see the Colosseum stopping to take a few snaps along the way. The colosseum was built in the year 80 by the emperor Vespasian. I marveled at the fact that it only took 8 years to build. We were lucky enough to be able to use our “Archeology Card”, a pass that grants access to nine different historical sites around Rome, that we had bought to see the forum. However we didn’t have a book about the site and we wanted to have a tour guide. Luckily we were approached by a college-aged girl asking us if we speak English, and if we wanted to be taken on a guided tour. Since it was only 10 euros each (and after that Vatican tour that had set us back 65 euros each) we thought, “Why not?” She took us over to Paolo, an Italian hippy that was the business man behind this little operation, and he took our 20 euros and placed a couple of handwritten stickers on our jackets designating us as part of the group. It was a really rainy morning in Roma, so Paolo took us to a little arch on the edge of the colosseum where we would wait “5 minutes” for our tour guide, Aldo. We waited patiently observing how the pretty girls would snag more tourists for Paolo to sticker and escort to our waiting area. However after 15 minutes we started to get a little anxious about the soundness of our investment. Some of the other tourists in our group shared our concerns, and Cynthia commented that she expected a van to pull up at any moment and all of them, Paolo and his crew of beauties, to pile in and abscond with our money. I was optimistic either way. We’d be out 20 bucks, but what a story! Our worries of being hoodwinked by a bunch of enterprising but immoral young adults were unfounded however when Aldo, a gray-haired gentleman with a microphone and cheesy plastic speaker attached to his belt buckle, arrived to begin our tour.
Cyn would kill me if she knew I put this "butt" shot on the blog! :)
