Our first full day in Rome we slept in…a little. There was a tour of St. Peter’s Basilica that left at 7:00 AM. As Mom had already seen it, and I was still a little scarred from yesterday’s Sistine Chapel event, we opted to hang back at the hotel. Took our showers in the micro shower stall. I’m 90% convinced the fan didn’t work in our bathroom so it was steamy after two showers. The only great thing about the bathroom was a little magnifying mirror.
Because of what we had seen so far in the lack of amenities, we were a bit concerned about breakfast. Sara had told us to lower our expectations. I was prepared for a stale croissant and cereal. We were pleasantly surprised there was a decent offering of food. I asked for a cup of cappuccino and it was delivered with a little heart in the foam. Awwwwww….
We dallied over breakfast and then went back to the room. I washed out a pair of pants and my socks for the plane ride home. Then I worked on the previous day’s blog and Mom worked on her crossword puzzles. We met our group outside for a trip the Forum, the Coliseum, and the Pantheon. Because the Metro line wasn’t running there, Sara hired us taxis to reach our destination. I took video of most of the trip. I’m not sure how to attach it to this blog but I will try.
Our taxis arrived one by one. We hopped out after paying the driver. People in another taxi got out and were mad because their driver wouldn’t give them change. The charge for the trip was about 12 euro. They paid with a $20 euro bill and the driver refused to give them change. As Sara would say to us: Ai Ai Ai! But that wasn’t the worst of it. One of our other tour mates had his wallet lifted right after he got out of his taxi. He went right back to the hotel to start reporting his missing items. Thank goodness his passport was in the safe back in the room.
We gather with this dubious start to our tour. Our guide Maria Laura was back. Our first stop was at the Forum. There were several arches about which she explained the history. We saw the place where Julius Caesar was cremated after his death. It’s a pile of stone now where people throw coins and flowers in his memory.
There was an area built for the Four Virgins to keep the flame of light alive. There service was for 30 years. First ten years was to learn what to do. The next ten years was keeping the flame lit. And the last ten years was training replacements. They were also the only women who could sit near the throne of Caesar. Once their service was complete, they could marry whomever they wanted. They were very rich women in their own right.
We did take a stroll down the oldest road I’ve ever been on. This was the road Caesar walked when going to announce a war was over. It does blow the mind a bit to think of how old those stones are and who has walked over them.
After we left the area of the Forum, we walked to the Coliseum. We started on the ground level where MariaLaura showed us the cleaning that had been done. A lot of the stone was blackened with pollution. What was amazing to me was the damage from looting that was reflected on the columns. As time passed, rulers would have their builders take iron from the Coliseum. Inside the columns were rods of iron. Those would be removed and melted down for whatever was needed. So, there are small divots in the columns now as a result.
Sara grabbed a few of us with bum knees or ankles. There’s an elevator up to the next level and she made sure she got us on it. The stairs going up there were steep, and she wanted to keep us “uninjured”. Not sure how many times I can say how fantastic she is. We take the elevator up and meet our group at the top of the stairs, some of them groaning or gasping for air.
There were lots of displays showing how things worked in the Coliseum. There was quite an intricate system of pulleys and hoists for the underground elevators. These were hidden from the spectators so the men and animals would emerge unexpectedly from the floor of the arena through a trap door.
Around the exterior of the Coliseum there had been statues of various persons of importance. The bodies of the statues were based on their position in life, be it statesman, gladiator, etc. Then the head was carved separately based on that person’s face and attached to the carved body. This statue was then installed within an arch around the outside of the Coliseum.
We finally got our first glimpse of the interior of the Coliseum. It took your breath away to think about the spectators there thousands of years ago. The fact the building is still standing is amazing considering how much pillaging took place, and the earthquakes it withstood. We couldn’t tour the underground portion, but we could view it from above. It looks like there was some restoration work going on. We eventually made our way down to the arena level to get a better view of the arena floor. There was a bunch of scaffolding dropping down into the lower levels.
From the Coliseum we walk to the Pantheon. It was about a 20-minute walk. Of course, along the way we encountered numerous beggars. A common ruse was for a hunched over little “old” women dressed in black walking with a cane and holding a plastic cup, begging for coins. Once they distracted you getting coins, their associate would lift your wallet or whatever other valuables you might have in your pockets. I managed to get a photo of one of them along the way.
Along the walk to the Pantheon we passed the ruins where Julius Caesar was murdered, the Largo di Torre Argentina in the center of Rome. MariaLaura spent a little time with a brief history, and then we moved on. Apparently, it is a large cat sanctuary now; although we could not spot one cat. The area is still being excavated and researched.
We reached the Pantheon but could not enter due to an evening mass. The Pantheon was constructed first in 27BC. It was built as a temple to all gods or as a “pagan” temple. It wasn’t until 609AD was it consecrated and became a church thereby avoiding destruction during the Middle Ages. The 16 massive columns supporting the portico weigh 60 tons each. They are 39 feet, five feet in diameter and brought all the way from Egypt. These columns were dragged more than 100 km from the quarry to the Nile river on wooden sledges. They were floated by barge down the Nile River when the water level was high during the spring floods, and then transferred to vessels to cross the Mediterranean Sea to the Roman port of Ostia. There, they were transferred back onto barges and pulled up the Tiber River to Rome. You can see scarring on the columns where incoming conquerors would try to tear them down to remove remnants of the previous regime.
After the visit to the Pantheon, we walked to Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Fountain of the Four Rivers). It was designed in 1651 by Gian Lorenzo Bernini for Pope Innocent X whose family palace, the Palazzo Pamphili, faced onto the piazza. The four rivers represented are the Ganges, the Nile, the Rio de la Plata, and the Danube.
From here we walked to the nearest bus stop to ride the bus back to our hotel. Because it is now mid-rush hour, the bus is standing room only. All 27 of us squeeze on the bus. There were several stops and people kept squeezing onto the bus. At one point there no one could get on the bus; people were almost falling out every time the doors opened. At one point we stopped and picked up a few people the back door couldn’t close because a woman was in the doorway and the door couldn’t close. After several minutes she either squeezed in or got out and the bus proceeded on its way. Finally reaching our stop we all pile out like clowns coming out of a clown car. Not sure anyone had time to get on the bus.
Went back to our rooms and freshened up for dinner. We met downstairs and walked around the corner to have our last dinner together on the tour. The name of the restaurant was “Target”. We were led to the basement where tables had been formed into an “L” shape to fit us all in. Our first course was a salad. The unique item on this salad was Guanciale (pig cheek). It was julienned and cooked until crispy. It looked like shredded beets. But not even close. Very tasty!
The second course was very simple pasta in ragu sauce. A little parmesan on top and it was perfection.
Third course was two veal cutlets and cooked spinach. I was a little uncertain on the veal. I’ve never had veal before. It never has been on my radar. And not for animal rights reasons; just not that interested in beef as a whole. The cooked spinach was gross. I did take a bite and washed it down with a whole lot of water.
Dessert was tiramisu. My favorite by far. Still not the best one by far, but it was still delicious.
The dinner was spent visiting with group members. Lots of photos taken and hugs given. Our last big meal together. It was full of laughter and information exchanging. Lots of wine was consumed, both reds and whites. It was a great time for all involved.
We walked back to the hotel and met in the internet room. We were in there less than 2 minutes when a hotel resident opened their door and said: “we’re trying to sleep here”. So, we moved out into the courtyard to say our final goodbyes. The neighboring hotel desk clerk came out and told us we were too loud. We then moved into a small area outside the courtyard which I believe led to private apartments. Apparently, we were too loud there as well. So, we tried to quietly say our goodbyes. More hugging, some tears. I was truly surprised how much I have come to like these people. We all cared about each other; would look out for each other. It’s really what helped make the trip. I will remember them forever.
