We arrived in Rome on May 7th around 2pm. We had not checked any luggage, so after
disembarking from the plane, we found our driver and rode to the
Gea Hotel di Vulcano where we would
be staying for the next five nights.
The Colosseum is the largest amphitheater built in the Roman Empire and
was completed in approximately 80 A.D. Because of jet lag, we woke up earlier than expected. We got there
right when it opened at 8:30, and enjoyed getting to walk around it almost by ourselves.
The forum was the political, religious, and economic center of Roman towns. The forum in Rome is
next to the Colosseum, so we walked through it afterwards.
Rome was founded on seven hills. The Capitoline Hill is the tallest and is the origin of the English word 'Capitol'.
There is now a museum on the top of the hill that holds ancient Roman artifacts. Above there is
an example of a mosaic, which were often found on the floors of Roman buildings. Next is the famous
Capitoline Wolf, which depicts a she-wolf suckling a pair
of human twin infant boys, representing the legendary founders of the city of Rome, Romulus and Remus. Next are
two Roman copies of famous Greek statues: Capitoline Venus
and the Dying Gaul.
These Roman ruins were excavated in 1929. The Torre Argentina
is now a cat sanctuary in the middle of the city.
The Pantheon was built around 125 A.D. and is the best preserved of all Roman buildings because
it has been in continuous use throughout its history. The holes (upper-right) were cut by
Brunelleschi, with permession from the Papacy, in order to analyze the dome's composition
for his construction of the dome for Florence's Duomo.
The Trevi Fountain is the largest Baroque fountain in Rome.
Legend holds that if visitors throw a coin into the fountain, they are ensured a return to Rome.
On our second day in Rome, we went to the Church of Santa Maria della Immacolate Concezione to see the famous Cappuccin Crypt underneath.
When we arrived, we saw a sign stating the
crypt was closed for renovations the entire time we were in Rome. We were disappointed, but after going inside we
got into a conversation with a caretaker who showed us the back side of the church where most tourists typically could not go, including a room where the
Pope used to watch mass in private.
The Borghese were an important family in Rome in the 1600s. Today, their property
(the Villa Borghese) is a city park,
and in the center is the Galleria Borghese, an
old Borghese mansion that now holds some of the Renaissance's finest art treasures.
Augustus is reputed to have said, "I found Rome a city of bricks and left it a city of marble."
Signs of his reign are scattered throughout the city. This obelisk (left) is one he took back from
Egypt after conquering Mark Antony & Cleopatra. His mausoleum
(right) is still an impressive and dominating landmark,
consisting of several concentric rings of earth and brick, planted with cypresses.
On our second day in Rome we walked from our hotel to the Villa Borghese, then south through the Porta del Popolo, finally ending up
at the Spanish Steps where we had dinner before taking the subway back to our hotel. The Spanish Steps are at the end of a
street full of high fashion shops and are a popular place for people to hangout. They are named for
the Spanish Embassy to the Vatican which has been at the top of the steps for 300 years.
We had read that you can see the Pope at the Vatican on Wednesdays and Sundays, so we went on a Thursday.
You can see the seats out front of St. Peter's (top-left) where the faithful can sit during mass. St. Peter's dome,
Michelangelo's last work, is the largest in the world. We climbed to the top and got a stunning view of
the Vatican and Rome.
While at the top of St. Peters we saw a group of birds flying by (left). The Pieta (right)
was carved by Michelangelo when he was 24 years old.
Our last day in Rome we were starting to feel a bit tired and sick, so we took things easy and mostly
visited sites near our hotel. The remains of the Baths of Diocletian were just a few blocks away. This
hole in the wall of the Church of Saint Mary of the Angels and Martyrs (left)
allowed a spot of light to shine on a meridian line (right), a sort of sundial that allowed one to determine the Equinoxes and Solstices.
The Church of Saint Mary of the Angels and Martyrs,
which used to be the great central hall of the Baths of Diocletian, was designed by Michelangelo.
The ruins of the Baths of Diocletian cover several city blocks.
It was the largest public baths in Rome and accommodated 3,000 bathers.
The National Museum of Rome houses the greatest collection of ancient Roman art and artifacts anywhere. Some of the things we
saw included the
Discobolus (Discus Thrower) (top-left), a famous Roman marble copy of a Greek bronze original,
a hairnet made of gold (top-right), a Roman calendar (bottom-left), and a fresco (bottom-right) from the triclinium of the summer villa of
Augustus' wife, Livia.
On our last day in Rome we got up, checked out and walked to the Termini train station. From there we took a train to Naples for tbe day before continuing
on to our hotel in Salerno where we were staying while we explored the Campania region of Italy.
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