Day 99 (Rome)

Ah, where to even start… 212 pictures, 9 hours of walking… one tired Eric. Brent was taking off this morning to go back to Istanbul, at 7 in the morning, to be precise. I already didn’t sleep too well last night, so the early wakeup didn’t really matter too much, we said our goodbyes and then I headed back to bed for another hour or so. I ended up leaving the house around 830, and went to the grocery store down the street. I picked up an orange, banana, bottle of water, and what I think was the base of a pizza. That was my breakfast. I jumped on the next bus to the train station, and then the next train to Rome. There were hundreds of people in such a rush to get onto these modes of transportation; I knew I was going to the big city now…

I got off at the stop flamninio, which is basically in between the Vatican and the coliseum. When I began my walking I wasn’t really sure what direction to go in, but I saw these twin church tops peak over a building, I recalled Chris saying something about twin churches, so I headed that way. In the first square I came to there was a tall Egyptian Obelisk, the twin churches I mentioned, as well as two similar fountains on either side of the square. It was already a great sight - I meandered along and took a few pictures before heading down the street to the Spanish Steps.

I didn’t know what to expect and then I arrived at the Piazza di Spagna, it was about 100m worth of steps, covered in blooming purple flowers with another Egyptian Obelisk + Church perched at the top of them. I took a few pictures, climbed the steps, and then relaxed on them for a bit while I ate my orange! From here, I walked further down the street and ran into the Lorenzo in Lucina, and the Montecitorio. A few of the seemingly endless impressive buildings I would encounter today.

After that, it was off to the Fontana Di Trevi, the most famous fountain in Rome. But not before I stopped by my friendly neighborhood souvenir shop to pick up a map of Rome for my wall. When I arrived at the fountain, I was in awe, it is HUGE with breathtaking sculptures and just an overwhelming presence – I stood and gawked for a while, and then proceeded to turn around and flip a coin into it – granting my good luck and a return trip to Rome!

And if that wasn’t enough, I went to the Pantheon next. It is the only pagan church/temple deal to still be in running condition and actually still in use. To get in, you have to walk through giant bronze doors, I believe I read something that said they were the biggest still in use as well? They were easily 20+ feet tall… the next thing you see is a stream of white light coming from an oculus in the ceiling. All around this circular building are ornate paintings and monuments. The function of the Pantheon now, is a tourist attraction and house of some famous peoples tombs, including Rafael and King Humphrey the 1st. The pope has a quote over Rafael’s tomb, something to the tune of “nature was scared to be outdone when he was alive, and she was scared she would also go when he died.” Very impressive.

From here I attempted to make it to St. Agustino, I still am not sure if I actually saw this or not, but I did come across another cool thing, St. Maria’s basilica was the name I believe. It was a church, very high ceilings and paintings throughout coupled with multiple sculptures, including one by Michelangelo.

Next on the list was Piazza Venezia, which is a monument to Victor Emmanuel II, this building is enormous, it has equestrian statures all over it – and a museum dedicated to Italy’s involvement in the World Wars. From the balcony I could see the coliseum, as well as some of ancient Rome (the Forum, where I am heading next).

The Forum consists of all of Rome’s old city, 2BC to 5AD. It was great being able to see this, most of it being remnants, but nonetheless. I walked around here for an hour or two, and then found my way up to the old imperial palace of the 2nd century… it had a view of a good portion of Rome, including the coliseum of course.

I think I actually made my way to the coliseum itself now… I decided to get an audioguide for this. How amazing to be standing somewhere where gladiators use to battle, where giant hunts went on, and even ship battles when the main stage was flooded. So much history has gone on in this coliseum, you can tell by the walls and structures, even the very atmosphere of the place. I spent a good time here, taking it all in and going to each of the levels. What a place!

Afterwards I went into the Palatino, another old area of Rome, also having the house of Augustus here. I was pretty tired, and after I walked up a hill, I realized I had already gone through this part! So, I hopped on a metro and went to another place that I saw had a pyramid! A pyramid in Rome? Yes. It wasn’t too crazy or anything, but out of the ordinary for sure. I had a sandwich here and just relaxed.

From here I headed back to the main station, walked around a little more, seeing a few more buildings and monuments. I ended up going into a museum, it was all about Roman history, art and sculpture. I saw the progression of it throughout the ages, as well as some portraits of very famous Romans in marble. There were frescos that lit up the rooms, and statues that struck me as real people. It was a great exhibit and a good place to just relax and stroll around.

Gianfranco told me about the “best gelato in the world” place, I was on a mission to find it. Which I did, it was near the Trevi Fountain, so I happily ate some gelato while looking at the fountain once more. I had a scoop of caramel, and a scoop of liquorish root. Very interesting flavors indeed, you can really taste the flavors in them! I was kind of worried because they didn’t have any normal flavors… it was all kinds such as vanilla and bourbon, cocoa and rum… lemon meringue and so on. But, it was very good and I was satisfied!

After all that adventuring around, it was time to go home, my shoe is demolishing my left Achilles tendon, and I was exhausted. I jumped on a few metros, a train and then a bus… and made my way back home. When I got back the home neighborhood, I went into the grocery to pick up some breakfast food for the next two days… I beat Gianfranco home by a few minutes. I started on my picture transfers and blog writing, while he cooked some dinner! Not a bad deal at all… Pasta + Zucchini! It was great. Along with some sausage, which I found out in Italy, is raw! But it was pretty good, not going to lie! A very packed day is finally over, and I will be out like a light shortly!