Another Tick on Chris's List

Lasting Memories of Rome

2007-05-27T19:29:00.000+01:00

So what is my lasting memory of Rome?

I honestly don't know!

Could it be ....

Michaelangelo The Monuments

The statues The ancient passages
The Spanish Steps
(so disappointing on the first night and so atmospheric on the last)
The Vatican City

The Roof Gardens

The Colosseum

The Art

The piles of Roman Marble

(probably museums have been started with less)

The Market where we bought fresh apricots

The Scooters

The queues

The Street Vendors selling Panini and Bibete

The Spiral Staircase in the Vatican Museum

The Traffic

The Fountains

The Ceilings

The Cobbles

The Birds

The Domes

Walking beside the River under the trees

The Forum

The Plants

Or the Ice Cream - il gelato - the best I have ever tasted :-)

Before I left I was worried about pickpockets. It was important to keep our belongings safe but we did not experience any problems.

We always asked how much things were before agreeing to buy

'quanto costa' - how much is it?

I am very pleased that I had the chance to visit Rome and I hope to go again one day.

L'Italia e molto bella

Castel Sant' Angelo

2007-05-27T19:02:00.000+01:00

Although we had walked passed this castle on the way to our hotel on several occasions we saved visiting it until the last day. We flew home on an afternoon flight and this was a good place to spend a couple of hours, leaving our luggage close by at the hotel.

The Castle was originally built as a mausoleum to Hadrien and no one in the UK cannot have heard of Hadrien :-) Ponte Sant Angelo
Views of and from Castel Sant Angelo

This castle is very close to the Vatican and well worth a visit. Entrance - you pay but it was free when we went due to the Festival of Culture. The castle had loos, a cafe and a bookshop. We entered via a spiral corridor that lead us round inside the main castle wall but there were many steps to the top. There was an exhibition of art while we were there.

Website - Castel Sant' Angelo

Monument to Vittorio Emmanuele II

2007-05-27T18:19:00.000+01:00

This monument is spectacular and its sheer size is awesome. It contains the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. You can climb to the top and the views are fantastic.
Entrance free but take notice of the signs at the gates. Definitely no sitting on the steps, eating or drinking, shouting etc. They ask you to be respectful and this is enforced, it is not just a suggestion! Definitely worth a visit.

Website - Vittorio Emmanuele II

Pantheon

2007-05-27T17:55:00.000+01:00

As a child I had learnt about the Pantheon at schoolI knew it had been a Roman temple
I did not know that it is now a Christian Church

Website - Pantheon

Fontana di Trevi - Trevi's Fountain

2007-05-27T17:14:00.000+01:00

No visit to Rome would be complete without seeing Fontana Trevi. We visited twice - once in the daytime and again the next evening.

The fountain is a magnet for tourists of all nationalities :-)

Completely free :-) You are welcome to sit on the steps and the seats (if you can find a vacant one :-) but don't climb or put your feet in the water! Some did and they were quickly spotted by the guards :-)
There were many traders selling roses and children's toys and they can be persistent. If you have no intention of buying be clear that you are not interested. They are, after all, trying to make a living!

We found a brilliant pizzeria just down the street. They made huge rectangular pizzas and sold them by the slice, all you had to do was indicate whether you preferred small (piccolo(a)) or large (grande). Welcoming, very reasonably priced and the best pizza we found in Rome.

Website Remeguide - Treiv Fountain

St Peter's Rome

2007-05-27T15:50:00.000+01:00

After spending most of the day at the Museums we felt we shouldn't leave the Vatican City without visiting St Peter's Basilica. We had seen St Peter's Square on the TV, filled with people. It seemed a little smaller in real life and we realised how tightly packed it must be sometimes.
The colonnades are very impressive with drinking fountains at intervals
A view of the obelisk in the square from the cool of the colonnade

Looking down from the steps of St Peters

One of the fountains in the square (the square is really a circle! I wonder if this is a blip in translation or maybe the popes did not like the connection with the word circus)

The entrance to St Peters

The first view inside, the light is natural sunshine!

It did look spectacular.

Petre

In the 20th century, builders discovered the bones of St Peter

There is no doubt that St Peters is truly spectacular. It was after all designed by some of the greatest artists who ever lived and is described as one of the holiest site in Christendom.

Clothing was regulated so no bare shoulders, no shorts, etc and our bags were scanned. I was surprised that cameras were allowed and so many people were wondering about takings photos. It was quieter by the time we arrived and many people, of course, were they to pray.

Entrance was free but you pay to visit the dome and treasury.

Definitely worth a visit!

Website - St Peter's Rome

Vatican Museums

2007-05-23T22:02:00.000+01:00

We couldn't visit Rome and not see the Sistine Chapel. I had read it is one of the wonders of the world. I hadn't realised though that there are so many museums and so much to see.

We were warned that we would need to give a day for this visit. And they were right!

We queued for two and a half hours :-)

And still the queue grew behind us

One long stream of people of every nationality waited patiently.

There was no trouble, no arguments.

One beggar sat under a tree so that the queue divided around her.

But we made it :-)

Inside we found the elusive azaleas :-)

And felt for the people still queuing outside

There are too many treasures for me even to begin to describe.

We were impressed that cameras were allowed in most of the galleries.

But not the Sistine Chapel :-)

(this is a pic of a print we purchased!)

It was a shame that despite guards asking people not to take photos in the chapel so many continued to do so! I would have liked to sit silently and just look. It wasn't possible. The chapel was packed with limited seating around the edge and there was a continuous buzz of conversation and requests from the guards.

It was a wonder to see though and if at all possible you should try to visit!

It really is incredible! I am very glad I had the chance :-)

It did feel strange to be so close to so many treasures and so much art when old women are begging on the streets. I wondered if it was right for the church to own so much but as HG said, who should own it? At least it is available for public viewing and not in some private collection.

For more pics and info on the Vatican Museums click here for the official website.

From a practical point of view there are loos and snack bars inside!

Check opening/closing times carefully as they vary throughout the year.

We paid 13 euros each and it was worth every one!

No credit cards were taken!

The Palatino & Foro Romano

2007-05-23T17:54:00.000+01:00

From the Colosseum you can see the Arch of Constantine and The Palatino.

The Arch of Constantine

Just a short walk across these huge cobbles takes you to the palace ruins.

These Acanthus flowers grew wild in The Palatino A view of Rome and the Foro Romano
We ate a snack lunch near to the temple
My feet achedSo much to see and so little time

What does this say?

Ancient paths

Ancient temples

Ancient gardens

(from above we saw these were ponds and not flower beds)

A natural spring fed this shock of green

Olive Trees

Wisteria

And orange Trees - well I have never seen orange trees before :-)

This area should not be missed. After climbing to the top the views are fantastic and there are shady areas where you can rest and cool down! Loos were hard to find again, once missed, as it is a bit of a labyrinth so make the most of them when you come across them :-)

Admission was included in the ticket for the Colosseum.

We purchased panini, pastries and drinks from a street vendor just outside, the cost was not extortionate considering where we were but we always asked how much things are first! Bottled water is quite expensive (3.5 euros) when you can fill your empty bottles from the many taps/springs inside! We did see some enterprising young men selling bottled water for 1 euro but were too suspicious to buy it :-)

Click here for more info on Monuments of Rome

Trajan's Market

2007-05-22T18:26:00.000+01:00

You can walk by the Market and look down from above.The poppies find somewhere to grow.
The stones lie scattered around
We stood and wondered.How many feet have climbed these steps?

How many senators, magistrates, merchants meet here?

Who designed the first arch?

How many secrets were kept and told?

Before we left home for Rome I had read about beggars and gangs of children who pick pockets. I read they cause a commotion and are expert at helping themselves. This was the one place we believe we saw them. A group stood on the pavement, holding a doll wrapped like a baby, and watched us. It was unsettling as we looked the other way and walked on by (my bag was across my body with the flap facing inwards!) They didn't come near us. Even harder was walking by the beggars who hold their cups out for loose change, mumbling in a language we didn't understand. How can a city with so many treasures have so many beggars and pickpockets?

Trajan's Market

Colosseo (Colosseum)

2007-05-21T23:29:00.000+01:00

Our first history lessons at school were about the Roman invasion of England :-) and this was our first view of the Colosseum we had heard so many stories about.

Quite by chance we had read in a Sunday paper that last week was a special festival of culture in Rome and all the National Museums were free. This didn't stop the ticket touts trying to sell us a guided tour for 20 euro each! We joined the queue :-).

We ignored the touts and entered the monument 'gratis'. Bookshops are open inside and we bought our own guide to keep. There are also display boards with info in English.
It is amazing to see despite its horrific past! Maybe I'm not the most sensitive of people but I didn't feel any fear, anger or pain whilst there. We had learnt about Christians being thrown to the lions and how the gladiators fought for the entertainment of the emperors. We discovered here that spectators were separated according to their rank. Senators had their own seats with their names engraved in the stone. We discovered that animals had also been put together to fight and how they had been hoisted in to the arena from cages under the arena. The floor would probably have been made of wood and covered in sand. The word 'sand' is 'arena' in Latin.
Some of the Colosseum's stonework has been taken for other purposes in Rome but so much remains. I wonder how many men it took to build this. I wonder how many might have been slaves from our own country!
There are so many arches and staircases leading in different directions.

It is like a sports stadium, but how many of our present day stadiums will be standing in 2000 years!

And from the top you can see The Palatino - the first residential area and later the site of the emperors' palaces. Neither HG or I remembered learning about this area at school :-)

(There were toilets on the ground floor inside the Colosseum - the portable block kind but can you really expect them to dig up part of the Colosseum for 21st Century drainage :-) Some people chose not to queue but hey, there were better than trying to find public loos on the outside :-))

I want to say here that HG and I always try to speak a few phases of the native language when we visit another country. Even if it is only:-

please - per favore
excuse me - scusi
hello - buon giorno

good evening - buona sera

thank you - grazie
ice cream - gelato

coffee - caffe
a coffee please - un caffe per favore

It can be fun! And it really does seem to be appreciated! Give it a try!

We witnessed someone of an age who should have known better shout at a young girl who asked to see her ticket at the barrier. She had thought that because it was free she didn't need to queue for one. But instead of quietly accepting the fact she told the young girl off for being rude and offensive. The young Italian girl had spoken calmly in English, not her native language. I know who I think was rude and offensive. No wonder a lot of Italians don't like tourists!

Click here for more info

Day One - Arriving in Rome

2007-05-21T17:49:00.001+01:00

HG and I had the chance to visit Rome last week and as it is somewhere we had both wanted to go we took it :-) It was only after the booking was confirmed that I began to look through other people's websites and blogs that I began to feel apprehensive. There are many tales of pickpockets. We flew with Easyjet and took the Terravista coach from the airport to the city centre (both were booked in advance!) It was an easy journey with no fuss (although I hadn't realised that mascara counts as a liquid and cannot be taken in your hand luggage).
Before we left home we had discussed in detail whether to take the underground, bus, taxi or walk to our hotel from the Terminii. In the end we took the underground. The taxi would undoubtedly have been the easier option but HG said we should try to experience something of the real Rome. Could it be any worse than London Underground? Also we were on a tight budget and taxis are undoubtedly more expensive. So with due care and respect for our surroundings (and me hanging on to my bag for dear life) we made the journey without any serious problem. The underground was really busy, the first train to arrive was so full we couldn't get on it! But that did leave us at the front ready for the next which came very quickly. Tickets for the underground were purchased from a tobacconist at the Terminii for one euro each. This gave us 75 minutes from the first stamp in the machine! It was plenty of time. The hotel was about 5 minutes walk from the underground station and at first not so easy to find. We were conscious of not wanting to stand out in the crowd by spreading maps about in every direction but after checking discretely we found the right road and a hotel sign pointing in the right direction! Although we did try to speak basic Italian we were pleased to find an English speaking desk clerk :-)

This grand staircase to the hotel is deceptive :-) It had mixed reviews on the various websites, but all we wanted was somewhere safe, clean and comfortable. We were not disappointed. Although our room was small that is often the way, it was bright (but with window shutters), a high ceiling and plenty of hot water! Just what we needed after a day of travelling.
Our hotel was close to the Spanish Steps and unable to wait until the next day we dashed out on the first evening. It probably was a mistake. We were tired, it was already getting dark and there were no flowers in the Piazza di Spagna as the guide books showed. I was very disappointed!

Spanish Steps

We ate at a nearby restaurant (pizza), slept soundly, and looked forward to visiting the Colosseum on day two!

Arriving in Rome was easy. A Terravista rep was available at the airport to direct us to the coach. It was not so easy to find the coach for the return journey coming home, it did not pick up in the same place that it dropped us at! It would be useful to check when they are dropping you off, we certainly will another time! Also the driver kept our email confirmation and gave us a small ticket in its place, on checking we found it was a return ticket but it wasn't explained until we asked! We walked through the Terminii Station to find the underground! Direction signs for destinations were clear but remember to buy your ticket from the tobacconist before you reach the barrier. Ticket barriers did not all work and we had to try our ticket several times before the machines accepted them. The underground was extremely busy - keep a close eye on all your belongings! Screens on the underground trains explained what to do and gave phone numbers if you do have trouble. Trains were however very frequent.