Days 21 and 22 - Roma

I decided that while living in Italy certain cities and sights would not escape my visit. One of these cities was Rome. Naturally, I planned my trip a few days before I decided to leave.

Upon what I have heard through others who had been to Rome, it really can't be done in one day. After I made a list of all the places I wanted to visit, I determined one day would not be enough. This had to be an overnight excursion.

So, I booked myself a room in a small hotel and also tickets for a guided tour of Vatican City. Outside of Tuscany, I hadn't done any guided tours so I splurged and prepared myself for a three hour tour of the Vatican Museums, St. Peter's Basilica and St. Peter's Square.

But there is much to tell before my journey to Vatican City.

The morning I was scheduled to leave, I arrived at the train station only to find that my train to Rome was delayed 10 minutes. Ok, no biggie. Well, 10 minutes turned into 15, which turned into 20, which turned into 30. By the time I knew it, the train to Roma Termini was 45 minutes late and I had been sitting in the cold Santa Maria Novella Station for over an hour. Not off to a good start Rome!

Anywho, I arrived in Rome around noon and dropped my things off at the hotel. And I started to trek. Rome is not a small city. The downtown area is beaming with shops, ruins, hurried Italians and lost tourists. Also, much like Florence, the street names change after intersections and most of the time aren't even labeled. I found that the best thing to do was head towards a major attraction, museum, or ancient ruin and determine my position from there.

My first stop was the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. The Colosseum is an obvious site to see in Rome, however I was curious about the other two sites around it. According to my guide book, 'Italy for Dummies' I learned that the Roman Forum was the happening place during the days of the Romans. It was the location of administrative, religious and commercial venues. Some of the ruins there date back to 203 A.D.

Palatine Hill was the location of imperial palaces meant to be grandiose enough for each emperor. This is also the site where Romulus created the first square in which the city of Rome was established. It's origins date back to the eight century B.C. and also housed one of the most famous names of ancient Rome: Caesar.

Colosseum

 

Inside Colosseum 

Inside Colosseum - Notice the large panel to the left where the people are standing. This is a simulation of the arena floor. Underneath were animals and gladiators preparing for their battle. 

Me inside Colosseum

Roman Forum

 

Roman Forum - Arch of Titus

Palatine Hill 

Palatine Hill - Remains of the Stadium Front 

Palatine Hill - Remains of the Stadium Back

Center of Stadium 

Back of Stadium

Colosseum and Arch of Constantine - View from Palatine Hill

My next stop was The Pantheon. Not much to view from the outside, but a marvel of art and architecture inside. It's been said that a perfect sphere could fit inside The Pantheon because the dimensions are so acurate. Also, the ceiling of the dome does not have a cap. So when it rains, water comes into the center of the church. The floor was constructed to slant slightly inward with four small slits in the middle where the water drains out. Note: The Pantheon was built in 27 B.C. and rebuilt in 125 A.D. Architects today still marvel at the genius of The Pantheon. No one really knows how exactly it was created.

The Romans were recognized for, among MANY other things, creating a sewer system that worked so well in it's day that the people who live in the city still use it today.

The Pantheon 

Alter of The Pantheon

Ceiling of The Pantheon - This design is repeated all over Rome. The ceiling of St. Peter's Basilica is based off the patterned square design of The Pantheon. 

Part of the fountain in front of The Pantheon 

My next destination was my very most favorite part of Rome. The Trevi Fountain. It was worth taking the time to pull up a little bit of railing to sit on and study this fountain. It was absolutely beautiful and well worth the stop. The guy in the middle is Neptune and he's commanding two tritons, or mythical sea men, to guide his chariot pulled by sea horses.

Trevi Fountain

Neptune

Sea Triton

Sea Triton

The Trevi Fountain, due to Roman superstition, requires you throw in a coin a certain way. You must place it in your right hand, turn your back to the fountain and toss it over your left shoulder. By doing so, it is said that the spirit of the fountain will then see it, and you will return to Rome one day.

Side Note: This is not just ANY fountain. It's famous! Not just because it looks really nice, or because it's an amazing piece of sculpture. Please play below clip for further explanation.

Yep, this is the fountain that Three Coins in a Fountain was based off. God, I love that movie. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. Not Three Coins in a Fountain. I've never seen that one.

Moving on, I had one more stop for the day. The Spanish Steps. The history behind the Spanish Steps is as follows; Way back when, 16th Century-ish, this area was where the Spanish ambassador made his home and the piazza and surrounding area was much less enjoyable than it is today. Apparently, to walk these grounds in the middle of the night was very dangerous. People were know to just disappear. Technically, this was Spanish territory and those who disappeared were apparently forced into the Spanish Army. Today, this area and piazza displays a large beautiful scenic view of Rome. It's also a great place to people watch because the citizens of Rome use it as a fairly decipherable meeting ground.

View from The Spanish Steps - Streets of Rome 

After this VERY, VERY, VERY long day, I headed back to the room. By this time, after walking almost all over the city of Rome, I knew it would take me at least an hour's walk from my hotel to Vatican City for my tour at 9:30 the next morning. I headed back, had dinner at a local restaurant and returned to my room for some much needed rest.

However, I treated myself at dinner. When in Rome, right?!

Day 2 - Vatican City

Today was already a long day by the time I got out of bed. My body ached from yesterday, walking all around Rome and wearing a backpack with an extra 20 pounds in it had taken its tole. My feet were sore and my shoulders tender. But, alas, I strapped on my bag, grabbed an apple and hit the road. After a good hour-long walk, I arrived at the main road Vatican City faces. And there it was, in all it's glory. Vatican City and St. Peter's Basilica.

 I knew I had about a half hour before my tour started and I used that half hour to walk around looking for just WHERE my tour started. Apparently, the map I had did not have enough space to include the area where I was supposed to meet up with my group. So, I walked and I walked and I walked. Eventually, I located a few other people who were also walking around with blank looks on their faces. I stumbled off the main road to the set of stairs and decided to post up until someone raised a sign with the tour group I was a part of. Sooner or later, all the drama ended and I was in the right place at the right time. Our tour guide Sara took to me immediately (After all I was the only solo person taking the tour. Everyone else was with their family or friends). She began asking me where I was from and what I was doing in Rome. Long story short, her and I were buds right from the get-go.

We entered through the Vatican Museums entrance on the far side of the city. It is in fact it's own city. They have their own post offices, currency, radio stations, limit to the population (Only around 1,000 people live inside the city limits, Sara told us. These are the people who belong under the Pope, cardinals and such. Each time one dies, a new one is brought in to fill his/her spot so the population never really changes.), an army (The Swiss Guard is an entity in itself. Men volunteer to dedicate 5 years of their lives to the Pope. They cannot have families, girlfriends, or social lives.), a curfew (11 p.m.) and ruler, the Pope.

The walk through the Vatican Museums was of course spectacular. We saw some of the most amazing ancient art as well as modern art. Below are some of the areas where you were allowed to take pictures.

Emperor Nero's bath tub

Mosaic beneath the tub. Very expensive and intricate. 

Tour Guide Sara and a piece of modern art representing how religion encircles the Earth

The Map Room

An incredibly accurate map of Italy from the 16th century. It's around 80% accurate. How DO they do it? 

This particular wall was created by Raphael. It's called The School of Athens. It a representation of the different views on 'truth.'

 

Sistine Chapel. Unfortunately, well... and fortunately, a television channel sponsored the cleaning of the Sistine Chapel in the 90s. Because they were responsible for current condition and look of the ceiling and walls, they have all rights to photography. What does this mean to me? Means I couldn't take any pictures. So these pictures will have to do. 

The images Michelangelo painted were scenes from the New and Old Testament. He was NOT a painter. Michelangelo first and foremost was a sculptor. When this particular Pope commissioned him to paint the Sistine Chapel, he was very resistant. He was careful to put signs his of discontent for painting the ceiling through certain disrespectful gestures of the time. 

The Last Judgment   By: Michelangelo

The Torso. No one knows who created The Torso, but many famous sculptors from that time, Michelangelo included, took inspiration from this work.

After we toured and learned all kinds of new facts about the art in the museums, it was time to move onto St. Peter's Basilica.

St. Peter's Basilica

Doorway into St. Peter's Basilica

Bottom right corner of front door has a depiction of St. Peter being crucified upside down.

This is the Holy Door. It is only opened every 25 years by the Pope. Behind this door is a wall that is broken down. Once the door is opened, it remains open for the whole year.

The Man. St. Peter. Notice his right foot. It has been worn down from visitors who rub it for spiritual reasons. 

 Michelangelo's very famous Pieta. He completed this when he was only 20 years old.

Alter of St. Peter's Basilica

St. Peter's Throne

Canopy over St. Peter's Tomb

Capula, dome, of St. Peter's Basilica

After we were given the tour of the basilica, our three hours has just about come to an end. Sara wished us all well and walked with me a bit while we talked about how I should spend my remaining hours in Rome. She was very helpful and knowledgeable and definitely made the day more interesting and fun. Thanks Sara!!!

But I wasn't done with Vatican City yet! Only a 510 step-climb to the top of St. Peter's Basilica? Count me in! The below pictures were taken at the top of the Capula.

 

Going up! 

 St. Peter's Square

And with that, I will end this blog with a few pictures of St. Peter's Square and my last comments about Rome. 

Rome is a large metropolitan city. It reminded me of New York or even Chicago, except the history dates much, much further back. I find that when you ask people how they feel about Rome, generally you get two answers, "I love Rome!" or "Eh, Rome..." Rome was definitely a must-see on my journey throughout this country, but do I need to return? Probably not. I came, I saw, I kicked it's ass. And it kicked mine, as well. I spent the next day recovering from very swollen feet and extremely stiff shoulders. I'm glad to have to opportunity to have visited Rome. But when I got back to Florence, I felt so good. Rome's Rome. And Florence will always, in my opinion, be more of an iconic city.You can take Rome, if I can have Florence.

Citation: 

Murphy, Bruce and Alessandra de Rosa. Italy For Dummies. Wiley Publishing Company, Indianapolis, Indiana. 2009.