July 19 - 22, 2013
It only took a change of trains at Pisa to get
back to Rome from Lucca and fortunately we’d found some budget accommodation just
a block from the big Termini station but by the time we got settled in our room
the best part of the day was well and truly gone. We settled for a simple meal
at one of the nearby cafes and an early night so as to be fighting fit for some
serious exploring of this ancient hub of civilisation. Karen had her trusty map
marked out with a long list of must see locations and Rick Steve’s excellent free
audio guides downloaded onto her I-Pad so we were all set.
The first church we visited took up a whole, very large city block |
It's interesting how so many of the Pope's commissioned larger than life sculptures of themselves being pious. No ego involved at all of course. |
Strangely enough our second stop was, wait for it, a church. The Church of San Pietro is relatively small but was certainly worth the walk up a very steep set of stairs to reach. Inside was a magnificent sculpture of Moses by none other than Michelangelo himself. Remarkably the work is actually unfinished as it was commissioned to be a two story high funeral monument for Pope Julius the Second complete with twenty larger than life sculptures. It was never completed because Michelangelo was otherwise engaged on a little job at the Sistine Chapel.
Any time Karen gets up close and personal with a work by Michelangelo you can be sure there's a big smile on her face. |
So enough of churches for a while. It
was now time for head to the biggest structure of ancient Rome, the Colosseum.
Standing in a long, slow moving line, we had plenty of time to research the
history of the place while we waited to enter. Constructed from 70 to 80AD, the huge amphitheatre
was without doubt one of the great works of architecture in history. It could
hold up to 80,000 spectators who could all get in and exit very quickly via
eighty entrances circling the oval shaped venue. Patrons received a small piece
of pottery with their entrance, section and seat number marked on it to
facilitate efficient movement. The fact
it was built in just ten years long before mechanisation is a marvel in itself.
The Colosseum was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock
sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and
dramas based on Classical mythology. With the Emperor’s conversion to
Christianity many of these uses fell from favour and by the early medieval period
the building had ceased being used for entertainment. It gradually fell into
disrepair and later suffered damage in an earthquake. Unfortunately it became
seen as an easy source of building materials and all of its marble and large
amounts stone was removed as the once mighty building became an above ground
quarry. A fair portion of the stone used to build St Peter’s Basilica in the
Vatican originated here.
When we
finally made our way inside and looked around the interior of the Colosseum from
just below the Emperor’s private area, we were a little underwhelmed by what is
actually left of the once grand building. The Rick Steve’s audio tour we were
using on Karen’s I-Pad did its best to bring the place to life but only
reinforced that what’s no longer there far outweighs what’s left. There is
quite a good museum area on the top level which includes a number of artifacts,
sculptures etc and an artist’s rendition of the building in all its glory
complete with retractable shade awnings that covered the entire seating areas
of the amphitheatre. We could only imagine how spectacular it must have looked
reaching to its full height and grandeur completed coated in gleaming white
marble. Oh for a time machine, what wonders could we see.
After the
morning’s walking and climbing the rough, stone steps to the top of the
Colosseum and back down, we were
certainly well into our exercise quota for the day but there was so much more
Rome and so little time. Lunch was a sandwich on the go as we left the
Colosseum at our backs, passed by the hill dominated by the Temple of Venus, a
popular wedding photo location apparently, and made our way to the heart of the
ancient Roman Empire, the Forum.
Initially looking down into the valley the Forum is situated in produced yet more thoughts of ‘Is that all that’s left?’. Fortunately over the next couple of hours our friend Rick Steves demonstrated in his audio tour that in the stones that still stand there are incredible human stories to be found.
For example, in ancient
Roman religion, Vestal Virgins were priestesses of Vesta, goddess of the hearth
and regarded as fundamental to the continuance and security of Rome. They
cultivated the sacred fire that was not allowed to go out. The Vestals were
freed of the usual social obligations to marry and bear children, and took a
vow of chastity in order to devote themselves to the study and correct
observance of state rituals that were off-limits to the male colleges of
priests. The Vestals were committed to the priesthood before puberty (when 6–10
years old) and sworn to celibacy for a period of 30 years. These 30 years were
divided in turn into decade-long periods during which Vestals were respectively
students, servants, and teachers.
Afterwards, they were retired and replaced by
a new inductee. Once retired, a former Vestal was given a pension and allowed
to marry. A marriage to a former Vestal was highly honoured, and, more
importantly in ancient Rome, thought to bring good luck, as well as a
comfortable pension. Ancient tradition required that a Vestal Virgin found to
be unchaste be buried alive within the city, that being the only way to kill
her without spilling her blood, which was forbidden. However, this practice
contradicted the Roman law that no person might be buried within the city. To
solve this problem, the Romans sealed the offending priestess in a small
underground chamber with a nominal quantity of food and other provisions so
that the Vestal would not technically be buried in the city, but instead
descend into a 'habitable room' where she would then die. It would have to
have been a lawyer that came up with that loophole.
Great care is needed to keep your footing as you make your way down the well worn, now uneven stone roadway that runs through the centre of the forum but realising that you are literally walking in the footsteps of Julius Caesar and other of the biggest names in human history certainly touches the soul. This was the path conquering generals paraded triumphantly on their return from great victories bearing new riches for Rome. Standing by the spot Mark Anthony delivered his speech at Caesar's funeral made famous for eternity in Shakespeare's play and seeing flowers still being laid on the actual rock that the slain Emperor's body was cremated atop converts this place from a pile of stones to a truly surreal experience.
A simple corrugated iron roof now covers the rock upon which Julius Caesar's body was turned to ashes following his murder by conspirators. |
From the Forum we made our way to the very impressive War Memorial and tomb of the unknown soldier. It is a huge, white marble building, ornately decorated with sculptures and a very fitting monument to those that served.
We then wondered through a number of very old, narrow streets to reach a bridge over the Tiber River and entered the old Jewish sector to embark on another of Rick Steve's magical mystery audio tours. This proved well worth the additional kilometres walked even if by now our feet may have disagreed. The area is charming and the tour took us to two sites that had originally been homes in which early Christians had gathered to pray in the time of the persecutions. Now two beautifully decorated churches stand in their place.
By now our feet needed a rest so a sit down and bottle of wine in a café by the square was in order. |
We headed back towards our hostel but didn't get far before this restaurant called us inside for a nice dinner and another bottle of wine. |
We did eventually make it back to our hostel for a few hours sleep before we were up and at it again for day two. This was our 28th Anniversary so Rob had a couple of special things arranged to celebrate the day in appropriate style.
Our first stop on day two was the Vatican. Yep, St Peter's is a very impressive piece of architecture and certainly attracts the crowds. |
Just one of the rooms we got to peak in but unfortunately couldn't enter. The marble sculptures were spectacular |
Just part of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel ceiling. No photos allowed of course so this was the best Rob could do being sneaky. |
After about an hour and a half we finally made it into the Sistine Chapel itself. What an amazing experience. The scope and detail of Michelangelo's work is truly breathtaking. While the chapel was extremely crowded we were lucky enough to score a couple of bench seats by the wall after standing for a while. We then sat for almost an hour just trying to soak it all in. It really is hard to know just where to look. Karen was so moved she literally had tears in her eyes. It will certainly be an anniversary we'll remember for a long, long time.
If the Sistine Chapel didn't have our heads in a spin, the stairs to get out of the Vatican Museum certainly did. |
While the big major sites of Rome are fantastic, wandering down character filled back streets finding our way from place to place was also one of the real highlights of our days. |
It was late in the day when we reached the Pantheon and we just got inside before the closed the entrance and started to herd people out. So glad we made it. Very impressive. |
The Pantheon building
is circular with a portico of large granite Corinthian columns. A rectangular vestibule
links the porch to the rotunda, which is under a coffered concrete dome with a
central opening to the sky. Almost two thousand years after it was built, the
Pantheon's dome is still the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. The
height to the opening and the diameter of the interior circle are the same, 43.3
metres. It is one of the best-preserved of all Roman buildings. It has been in
continuous use throughout its history.
Early evening and time to relax and celebrate our anniversary at one of the world's most romantic spots, the Trevi Fountain. |
A
traditional legend holds that if visitors throw a coin into the fountain, they
are ensured a return to Rome. If it’s true we’ll be going back to Rome someday.
Coins are purportedly meant to be thrown using the right hand over the left
shoulder. An estimated 3,000 Euros are thrown into the fountain each day. The
money has been used to subsidize a supermarket for Rome's needy, however, there
are regular attempts to steal coins from the fountain.
While
we checked out of our room early the next day we were fortunate to be able to
leave our backpacks there while we spent a bit more time crossing another couple of
'must do' items of our Rome list. We had booked tickets online to see the Galleria Borghese which houses a substantial part of the
Borghese collection of paintings, sculpture and antiquities, begun by Cardinal
Scipione Borghese, the nephew of Pope Paul V (reign 1605–1621).
On the way we just had to check out the Spanish Steps, which we found out were, well, a set of steps. What's the big deal? |
The Villa was built by the architect Flaminio Ponzio, developing sketches by Cardinale Borghese himself, who used it as a villa suburbana, a party villa at the edge of Rome. Must have been a tough life being a Cardinal in those days.
A very limited number of people are admitted to the gallery each day in two hour sessions. It is essential to pre book as no tickets are available on the day. We found the wealth of artworks on display were simply mind blowing and while Rob was enjoying himself, Karen was literally in raptures again. Here's a small sample of some of the pieces on exhibit. For a better idea of what's to be viewed in the gallery check out the website. http://www.galleriaborghese.it/borghese/en/edefault.htm
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After leaving the museum we came across this wonderful establish and just had to stop in for a drink in honour of our new grandson 'Harry' of course. |
Sometimes
we’re so busy out doing things we don’t have enough time to write about doing
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