July 16th: My second trip to Rome
Whew. What a day! The morning began with some scurrying about the villa, and Jenn, Ai, and I headed down to catch the 8am train to Rome. This time we were catching that dammed train. We hopped aboard and got into Rome around 10, where we took a metro line to the stop near the Piazzo di Popolo, or “The People’s Square.” As we walked around the plaza, which was gorgeous, I read in my guidebook that the Piazza di Popolo was home to several public executions during the 15th century. Creepy. The piazza consisted of twin domed churches, a giant fountain with sculptures, two other fountains on the side, and a beautiful archway from which we entered. Amazing stuff. We then headed back towards the Spanish steps, and took our time as to see the shops and stop for some coffee. We arrived back at the Spanish steps from a different angle today, which gave me more of a perspective of the layout of buildings and plazas in the area. At the top of the steps we headed left to the French Academy of Rome/Villa di Medici, home of not only one of the wealthiest families, but where several famous composers studied and established themselves (Berlioz, Debussy, Boulanger). We paid out 8-Euro and we given an English tour of the gardens, complete with a mini-museum of replicas of statues and an amazing view of Rome. After the hour-long tour we headed back towards the Piazza di Popolo because we just HAD to stop in a dress shop that we had passed on the way. Jenn and I both ended up buying dresses, and mine was only 35-Euro! Score!
We turned around, yet again, and headed for the Café Greco, a tea room/café famous for entertaining many well-known artists, including many composers (Liszt, Chopin, Wagner, maybe?). It was too expensive for our lunch budget, so we meandered towards our next destination, the Pantheon, with our eyes peeled for a nice-looking pizzeria. Our pizzeria was discovered, and we all had the lunch special which consisted of proscuitto, pizza, and a drink for 9-Euro. By this time we were all especially famished and dehydrated (it had to have been well over 100-degrees out there), and this is when I realized that I missed unlimited refills of diet coke. I rationed my coke light throughout my meal, and supplemented my insatiable thirst with water from my water bottle. We continued on our way to the Pantheon, which was another of those sights you just turn the corner to out of nowhere. Its momentous dome just appeared after streets and streets of shops and restaurants. Rome is fun that way. The whole thing was just amazing. I read that it was originally built around 27 B.C., and was turned into its building today around 120 A.D., or something like that. No wonder I felt so miniscule inside. It was truly breathtaking.
We then headed towards Vatican City to see about getting museum tickets for our next visit. On the way we passed the Piazza di Navona, which was a HUGE building with three or so large fountains in a row. Musicians were playing, entertainers were entertaining, and 20 or so tents were set up to entertain the tourists. The fountains in this piazza were particularly beautiful and gigantic, and more time could’ve definitely been spent there. Still on our way to the Vatican, we crossed over the Ponte Umberto Prima bridge which provided a stunning view of the Tiber River and various domes. The bridge led right up to the Piazza di Tribuni, another beautiful building. We walked along the river and various tents of venders and reached another beautiful bridge, the Ponte San Angelo, complete with 8 or so beautiful statues lining the bridge. Finally we ended up in St. Peter’s Square. I’ll say it again…breathtaking. There was something so powerful about standing in this square with all of its history and traditions. We didn’t spend much time there, as we’ll be devoting all of Saturday to Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel, and its museum. The ticket people were closed, so no questions were to be answered. Such is life. We found the nearest train station to Viterbo, and at 7:02 we headed home. To make our day even longer, the train (with NO AIR CONDITIONING) broke down about halfway there, so we sat for a good 30 minutes before being transferred to another Viterbo-bound train. We arrived in Viterbo around 9:30, headed downtown to catch some of a concert that one of our roommates was playing in, and then finally retired to the villa. The evening ended merrily with a surprise waiting for us from our roommates who stayed home today…soup, cookies, and cake! I devoured all of the above with a half a bottle of wine, thanked my friends immensely, and hopped into bed 18 hours after I had awaken. Tomorrow we do it all again at the Vatican! Arrivederci!
We turned around, yet again, and headed for the Café Greco, a tea room/café famous for entertaining many well-known artists, including many composers (Liszt, Chopin, Wagner, maybe?). It was too expensive for our lunch budget, so we meandered towards our next destination, the Pantheon, with our eyes peeled for a nice-looking pizzeria. Our pizzeria was discovered, and we all had the lunch special which consisted of proscuitto, pizza, and a drink for 9-Euro. By this time we were all especially famished and dehydrated (it had to have been well over 100-degrees out there), and this is when I realized that I missed unlimited refills of diet coke. I rationed my coke light throughout my meal, and supplemented my insatiable thirst with water from my water bottle. We continued on our way to the Pantheon, which was another of those sights you just turn the corner to out of nowhere. Its momentous dome just appeared after streets and streets of shops and restaurants. Rome is fun that way. The whole thing was just amazing. I read that it was originally built around 27 B.C., and was turned into its building today around 120 A.D., or something like that. No wonder I felt so miniscule inside. It was truly breathtaking.
We then headed towards Vatican City to see about getting museum tickets for our next visit. On the way we passed the Piazza di Navona, which was a HUGE building with three or so large fountains in a row. Musicians were playing, entertainers were entertaining, and 20 or so tents were set up to entertain the tourists. The fountains in this piazza were particularly beautiful and gigantic, and more time could’ve definitely been spent there. Still on our way to the Vatican, we crossed over the Ponte Umberto Prima bridge which provided a stunning view of the Tiber River and various domes. The bridge led right up to the Piazza di Tribuni, another beautiful building. We walked along the river and various tents of venders and reached another beautiful bridge, the Ponte San Angelo, complete with 8 or so beautiful statues lining the bridge. Finally we ended up in St. Peter’s Square. I’ll say it again…breathtaking. There was something so powerful about standing in this square with all of its history and traditions. We didn’t spend much time there, as we’ll be devoting all of Saturday to Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel, and its museum. The ticket people were closed, so no questions were to be answered. Such is life. We found the nearest train station to Viterbo, and at 7:02 we headed home. To make our day even longer, the train (with NO AIR CONDITIONING) broke down about halfway there, so we sat for a good 30 minutes before being transferred to another Viterbo-bound train. We arrived in Viterbo around 9:30, headed downtown to catch some of a concert that one of our roommates was playing in, and then finally retired to the villa. The evening ended merrily with a surprise waiting for us from our roommates who stayed home today…soup, cookies, and cake! I devoured all of the above with a half a bottle of wine, thanked my friends immensely, and hopped into bed 18 hours after I had awaken. Tomorrow we do it all again at the Vatican! Arrivederci!