This trip to Rome was great! I arrived Wednesday night late and just went to sleep. Thursday I got up and explored the north part of the city including Piazza della Repubblica (and Basilica Santa Maria degli Angeli which was beautiful), San Carlo Quattro Fontane - an intersection with a fountain on each of the corners, Fontana del Tritone (which was being restored so no view there..), Trinita dei Monti (the Spanish steps which were... well... steps), Villa Borghese (a beautiful park that I wondered around in), and Fontana di Trevi (crowded but beautiful), visited an art museum - the Palazzo Barberini Museum (and talked with an SMU mustang grad), and lastly and definitely not least, the Pantheon. Next time I go to Rome, I will visit the Pantheon again during the day and be able to see the sky through the center opening. Because I gave into my hunger, I spent the remaining minutes of daylight eating dinner before getting to the Pantheon. Whew! That was a long day for sure. I crashed when I got back.
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| Look! Spanish steps. Or is it Spanish pasos? |
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| Trevi Fountain |
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| Streets of Rome at night |
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| Pantheon. I loved this building |
Friday was my day for the Catacombs. After picking up race bib and shirt for Sunday's 10K, I headed to the Catacombs. See '
All for ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ sake' blog for that adventure as it was special enough to warrant it's own blog. Something I didn't mention in the Catacomb blog was that the Holy crypt had 9 popes and 8 other members of the church in that single space. After I got back from the catacombs, I found a concert to attend of soloists performing choice arias. (A small chamber group to accompany them - my favorite of which was the oboist who mouthed the words along with the singers). The baritone's voice was so smooth, you could image his vocal chords were lined with butter. It was lovely and fun to hear in a beautiful church venue on a side street. I love how many lovely churches there are all over.
Saturday was Vatican day! After stopping at the Piazza del Popolo for a couple of photos, it was Vatican time. They were closing the Sistine Chapel early that day, so I rushed through the museum and glanced at a few things, and hurried to be amazed by the chapel. Unfortunately, I was actually not as impressed as expected. I loved the paintings that included architecture as it really looked 3d. Somehow I had a different expectation of Michelangelo's ceiling work though. I suppose the impressive thing are the stories that are told, and the vastness of the paintings themselves. It was definitely worth going to see. After the Sistine Chapel and museum, I walked into St. Peter's Basilica and really was amazed. I have seen quite a few churches in Italy already but I liked this one :) I also had a different expectation of the Pieta - I thought it was a larger sculpture, but wasn't disappointed by this. It was beautiful and I stood and looked at it for a while.
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| In the Vatican Museum |
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| Pieta - my 2nd fav statue in Italy thus far |
Sunday was race day! As unprepared as I was, I ran a decent pace the whole way. I'd like to mention that running "k's" are more fun than "miles" because they go by much faster. Haha! The route was neat because it looped around the colosseum. 6 miles / 10 K later, I was done and ready for lunch. After eating (and taking a nap), I headed to the colosseum to see it as a tourist and not a runner. It was amazing. I loved it. Next time I go to Rome, I'll take a tour in order to see the underground part as well. I took alot of pictures and the sun was at a perfect point for the colors to be radiant.
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| Me and the colosseum |
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| Such beautiful architecture. Old and new |
I felt like I saw a lot and yet there is so much more to see. I wasn't able to see all of the ruins near the Colosseum so that is still on the list. As well as the Pantheon during the day, Santa Maria in Aracoeli Basilica, Castel Sant' Angelo, the park on the west side of Fiume Tevere, etc. I think those are good enough excuses to go back a 2nd time :)
When in Rome, do as the Roman [tourists] do.
~Elizabeth
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