Classic Rome, con gelato

Today's pre-breakfast touring for me included the Chiesa Nuova (Santa Maria in Vallecella) and the oratorio/cloister complex next door that was designed in part by Borromini.  The church is richly decorated.  As I entered, mass was just ending and the organist was playing Pachabel's Canon.  I wandered around and found that the frescoes in the dome were painted by Pietro da Cortona, and the altar paintings by Rubens, and works by many other artists.  In one chapel there is a copy of Caravaggio's "Entombment" with a note that the original, which was painted for this site, is now in the Vatican Museums.  On my way back to the apartment, I stopped at the local Carrefour and picked up breakfast supplies.

Our official touring today began with the Pantheon.  It is a massively impressive marvel of Roman architecture and engineering.  Much of the interior decoration, including the marble flooring, is intact, although other decorative elements have been plundered and re-cycled over the centuries (e.g., some of the bronze in Bernini's baldachino in St. Peter's is said to have come from the Pantheon).  Our weather was perfect today, and the sunlight was streaming in dramatically through the oculus, which perhaps more than anything provides a sense of a link to the Pantheon's original splendour.

From the Pantheon, we made our way to Piazza Venezia, with a brief stop to admire Bernini's elephant holding the obelisk in front of Santa Maria sopra Minerva.  Our destination was the elevator at the back of the Victor Emanuel monument.  We climbed Michelangelo's staircase up to the Campidoglio and the (copy of the) equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius.  We found the elevator and rode it to the top of the monument, from where we had fabulous views of Rome in every direction.  We had heard that this is a favorite spot for local Romans and we can see why.  We surreptitiously consumed the sandwiches that we'd brought so that we didn't have to take time to find a place to stop for lunch.

Our main activity of the day, however, was still ahead.  At 3:00, we met Sabrina, the guide we had made arrangements with, at the Arch of Constantine.  Sabrina is Roman and an art historian.  She gave us a general orientation to ancient Rome and we then set off for the Colosseum.  We toured the Colosseum and, with Sabrina's help, learned a lot about how it was constructed and the variety of entertainments it provided.

From the Colosseum we crossed over and climbed the Palatine, the hill that was popular with the Roman emperors for building their grandiose palaces.  Today, there are no intact structures, but with Sabrina as our guide, we were able to piece together the walls, broken columns and other remains in our imaginations.

We descended from the Palatine along the Via Sacra, past the Arch of Titus and into the Forum.  There we saw and learned about the Basilica of Maxentius (so huge!  What an engineering marvel!), the Temple of Vesta and house of the Vestal Virgins, the Curia, the Basilica Giulia, Basilica Emilia, Temple of Jupiter, Arch of Septimius Severus, and more.  It is remarkable that so much is still there and great to gain some understanding of the times in which the Forum was the center of Roman life.

When our tour ended, Sabrina was still energetic, but we were tired and hungry.  She recommended a restaurant (Vinando) in Piazza Margana on the other side of the Victor Emanuel monument, where we had a lovely, peaceful dinner.  It restored us sufficiently that we decided to make a couple detours on our way home.  We first went to see Trajan's column.  However, as by now it was dark and the column is not floodlit, we weren't able to see much of the detail.  From there, we walked on to the Trevi Fountain.  We could hear the rushing water (and the throngs of tourists!) as we approached on the little narrow streets leading to the fountain.  We tossed in our hope-to-return-to-Rome coins and took pictures.

We made one more stop on our way back to the apartment, this time at Giolitti, an old and well-known ice cream shop.  We all got cones - two flavors!  I chose Amaretto and Bacio.  Unbelievably delicious!   

Back at the apartment, the girls and I finished our long day watching "Roman Holiday" with Audrey Hepburn. 



Chiesa Nuova

Obelisk in front of the Pantheon

Pantheon portico

Pantheon occulus           

Touristi


Elephant / obelisk/ family



View of Forum and Colosseum from top of Vittorio Emanuel monument

Inside the Colosseum        

Our guide, Sabrina  


Colosseum graffitti      

A chunk of aqueduct on the Palatine        

Palace ruins on the Palatine        

Arch of  Titus        

House of the Vestal Virgins        

Temple of Antoninus, Pius and Faustina        

Temple of Vesta        

Arch of Septimius Severus        
                 

Dinner in Piazza Margana        

Trevi Fountain

Gelato di Giolitti!        

Gelato di Giolitti!