Rome Might Not Have Been Built in a Day, But We Roamed in Two!

When Sarah asked me last winter where I would really like to go if cost were not an issue, I didn’t even hesitate before blurting out, “Italy”!  Rome was a big reason for this; after all there was so much to see–well, we saw it!

Our plan of attack was to do all of Ancient Rome on Wednesday (8/3–my 33 3/4 birthday for those keeping track) and the Vatican on Thursday (8/4–the day after my 33 3/4 birthday for those not quite caught up).  Coupled with the fact that we had just left the whirlwind tour of London, this was a very ambitious plan; our feet wanted to divorce our bodies by the end of these two days, but we had a wonderful experience in Roma, Italia!

Our arrival was sort of hectic, as we tried to figure out the train system at the airport, ride the 20 minutes to the city, make a foolish attempt to make a phone call from pay phones that are notorious for being broken, and try to find our B&B (where we hoped we had a reservation that had not been confirmed) with a cruddy train station map.  We made it approximately 30 seconds before finding the one scary alley that we saw the entire trip and quickly turned back onto a main road.  Several minutes later, we were at the bed and breakfast, where owner Penny (pen-nay) spent the next 10 minutes educating us on where to go in Rome (this a here), where to find gelato (this a here), where to keep our money (this a here–pointing to waist), and how to flush the toilet (this a here for ca-ca), all with the accent of a Chinese Italian woman speaking English.  She was really nice, but I was a little dizzy by the time she left!  We walked a few blocks for some great pasta, wine, and gelato.

Our main focus for Wednesday morning would be the Colosseum; thanks to Rick Steves, we had a great plan of attack:  skip the colossal (sorry, had to do it once) lines and buy a pass that would get us into multiple places, including the Colosseum) at the Pallatine Hill Monument across the street!  We waited in line for only 5 minutes, got a few good views of ruins where Rome’s rulers once built palaces, and headed back to the Colosseum.

It is difficult to believe that this towering circle of brick, concrete, and marble could have been built over 2,000 years ago.  Without modern technology, the Romans finished this in less than a decade! The best views were from above the ground level, where you could see the circular passageways that remain from under where the floor once was.  Basically, they combined two ampitheatres into one giant circle.  It was interesting to learn about how they used to raise gladiators and animals from trap doors onto the floor using pulley and a lot of man-power, and it was surprising to see how close the rulers were to the action.  It was a great place to start on our tour.

We wanted to go to the Forum next, but I had managed to lose my ticket stub in the Colosseum, so we instead hiked over to the Capital Hill area, where Sarah and I actually got some really good views of the Forum’s main attractions; Sarah said that it was probably as good as actually being down in it, where not much is explained in the monument anyway.

Capital Hill, my introduction to Michalangelo was really beautiful, and it was interesting that he built the steps on the side opposite from Ancient Rome–hello, Renaissance! 

After some mediocre pizza, we moved on to one of our favorites–the Pantheon.  Highlights were the ginormous door, the thick columns holding up the portico–“Rome’s Umbrella”, and of course, the skylight from the top of the dome.  Very beautiful!

We spent the rest of the day going from one piaza to another, taking in the many obelisks and fountains.  We both really liked the Fountain of Trevi and the Fountain of Four Rivers–neither of which are anywhere near Voodoo Doughnuts for those of you Portlanders who have accused of making all of this up and staying in an attic in North P-Town. After a 45 minute walk back to our neighborhood (in Rome!), we got more good pasta and wine before going back to drink another bottle of wine in our room.

The theme for Thursday was “no rest for the wicked”!  We jumped onto the ultra-packed subway–Rome barely has a subway because so much of the ancient city still is buried underground–with the typical solid organization masked in utter chaos that Italians seem to enjoy–and made our way to the Vatican.

Unlike yesterday, we had no secret plan, so we stayed in line with everyone else!  At least it was shaded by the giant wall outside the city, and we got there early, so we only waited about an hour.  In the meantime, it was interesting to see the hack guides operate:  some lied about wait times or museum hours, others blew cigarette smoke in potential customers’ faces while offering tours, and my favorite guide–a woman with a badge that read Information–simply began giving us the tour as if we had no choice but to hire her–Arrivaderci, Lady!  We just pretended not to understand English, Dutch, or German, and they moved on quickly, although I really wished that I could speak something in Tagalog just to see what would happen…

After getting into the Vatican Museum, we immediately went into the part that most people do last, the Pinacotea, a gallery of paintings, so that we could take a short cut later in the day.  My favorites were Raphael’s Transfiguration and Da Vinci’s unfinished St. Jerome–where Da Vinci’s fine lines and the lack of color seem perfect to portray a suffering saint.

From the Pinacotea, we entered the main hallway, a crowded, one-way tour that took us from sensory-overloading motley collections to some of the most beautiful art I have ever seen.  Sarah and I were very similar in our opinions of each section–the medieval tapestries were cool, the wall-to-wall map hall was overwhelming and a bit junky, and the modern art was just plain weird.  We did our best to stay ahead of the guided groups, which helped with the crowd factor, although I did listen in on some of the guides in the more interesting parts of the museum.

Finally, we made it to the best parts:  the Raphael rooms and the Sistine Chapel.  It is crazy to think that both of these guys spent several years painting for the pope!  I really liked all of the Raphael stuff here, but I especially liked School of Athens, which celebrated the achievements of some of the world’s greatest thinkers–interestingly, Raphael gave Plato the face of Da Vinci, and he included his big rival, Michalangelo in the painting as well.

While Raphael’s work was breathtaking, the Sistine Chapel, which took Michelangelo only four years and was finished by the time he was my age (remember, we reviewed how old I am earlier in this blog).  Wall-to-wall figures of saints and angels watching God create the world fill the room and the ceiling!  No detail seemed too small for him to leave out.  Sarah and I just stood their for a long time, looking up and marveling at what one man could design!  Towards the back, we saw the section he did later; it was done after some struggles for the Vatican, and it portrayed Christ’s return, and the consequences for humans that would ensue…both good and bad.

We ducked out of the group exit instead of taking the normal route out towards the Pinocotea, thus bypassing a lot of turns and people to get directly to St. Peter’s Basilica.  We spent a good hour taking in the Jubilee Door, the High Altar, St. Peter’s statue, Michelangelo’s Pieta, and the sheer size and grandeur of the church!  We also spent a good deal more time with our heads in the air–sore necks that night–gazing at Michelangelo’s paintings that rise up the dome.  Spectacular!

Of course, the highlight of the Basilica is going up to the dome; which we accomplished after waiting another hour.  After climbing over 500 steps in increasingly narrow stairwells, we got spectacular views of the church.  From up here, you could see a lot more detail and fully appreciate just how beautiful a place we were in.  Outside, you could also get a panoramic view of Rome, which was worth the wait in itself.

By this time, we were really exhausted, hot, and hungry.  We paid way too much for a crappy lunch–new rule:  no more buying meals near big-ticket attractions–before riding the train back to our neighborhood.  Our feet hurt, our brains were tired, but we had made the most of our time in Rome!