….constantly fight through crowds and find it all very frustrating. At least that’s what I did.
I was so excited to go to Rome. In fact this was my third attempt to get there. I was signed up to go on two tours previously and I always had to cancel for a variety of reasons. But, finally everything worked out and I was on my way. I wasn’t on the exact tour I wanted, but hey, it’s Rome. It has to all be good.
In truth, I’m glad I got to see what I did. I think I will attempt to go there without a group next time so I can navigate easier. Rome definitely has the tourist hot spots- the places that are billed as “Must See.” It actually has a lot of “must see”s. It also has a lot of tourists. A LOT of tourists. And that was frustrating to me. It’s hard to take a good picture with people bumping into you and walking through your shot. It’s hard to walk in a straight line with people stopping in front of you taking pictures. It’s hard to see the sights and not run into people, just like it’s hard to watch out for people and actually be able to see the sights. In fact I’ve found this to be true of much of my port time recently- I head out in the morning to see everything I can and have a great adventure. And yet, by the end of the day I find that most of my energy is being spent on ensuring that I don’t get hit by a car!
Anyway, back to Rome…
We started our tour at the Spanish Steps. There was a church built on a hill, but lots of people lived below it and couldn’t get there because the hill was so steep. So they built some steps across from the Spanish Embassy and they are now known as the Spanish Steps. This is also the neighborhood of ritzy stores like Prada and Gucci and home to million dollar apartments.
From here we walked to the Trevi Fountain. It is beautiful. More beautiful than the replica I have seen at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. It is said that if you throw 1 coin in the fountain you are guaranteed a return trip to Rome. 2 coins means you will come back to Rome married. And 3 coins mean you will return divorced. What does it mean if you throw 1 coin and hit another tourist like I saw happen?
After Trevi we walked to the Pantheon. Once a place for the worship of gods (Pan = many) it was later converted to a Christian church. The dome on the Pantheon is as tall as it is wide and is regarded as a bit of an engineering marvel. There is a large hole in the top of the dome and this is the only light source of the Pantheon. This also acts similar to a sundial for those inside. Of course it also acts as a shower on rainy days. The painter Raphael is buried in the Pantheon.
Our next stop was Navona Square. The square is built on the site of an ancient arena and follows the curved lines of it’s former tenant. The main building in this square was built as a home for the family of Pope Innocent X. The square also demonstrates the public feud of two prominent artists of their day. The square houses a famous fountain known as “The Four Rivers” in English- sculpted by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Bernini did not get along with his colleague Francesco Borromini who designed and built many buildings in the square. In fact, Bernini did not have faith in Borromini’s design of the church opposite his fountain and he believed that the church was unstable and would fall. Because of this fear, he sculpted one of his figures on the fountain cowering with a raised arm to shield himself from the inevitable crumble of the church. In return Borromini placed a statue near the top of his church turing her face away from the fountain as if to say, “It is so ugly I cannot look at.” This public feud made me laugh. These guys must have been quite the enemies to have immortalized their tiff in pieces of art and history.
After Navona, we had about an hour on our own for lunch. I really, really wanted to see the Coliseum, but it was too far to walk. Instead, I wandered the side streets and enjoyed the non-tourist areas of the city. I eventually found a street cafe and stopped for some bruschetta. Best bruschetta ever! It also happens to be the simplest- it was only tomatoes and oil and vinegar on bread- no cheese, no basil, just delicious!
Once I met up with my group again, it was time to walk to Vatican City. On our way, we walked past San Angelo’s castle. This castle is a fortress for the Pope. The President of the United States has secret bunkers for times of danger. The Pope has a castle.
After a short walk I entered the world’s tiniest state- Vatican City. After waiting in line for 45 minutes, I got to go in St Peter’s Basilica- built on the spot where St. Peter was crucified. St. Peter and nearly all popes since him are buried here. Again, the amount of people here was astonishing. I only had 15 minutes to look around inside and I spent most of it fighting my way through crowds.
It was now time to get back on the bus for our 1.5 hour drive back to the ship. I don’t remember how long it took me to fall asleep, but I was out. Tours are exhausting, but hey, When in Rome. Right?
