Roma

The journey to Rome from Newcastle was pretty uneventful. We checked into our hotel which is in the very cool area of Travestere. Travestere is a charming suburb of Roma, the area oozes character, we roamed the narrow and colourful cobbled streets. Full of Roman trattorias, markets, small shops and artisans' workshop, here we found the essence of the most authentic and genuine Rome.

It was about 34ºc and humid, so there were lots of stops required, however, coffee shops were not that easy to find. The cafe life clearly starts after siesta. We stumbled upon a locals coffee shop - where my very best italian was required to order. Of course Pat likes Nescafe instant coffee with cold milk - not so easy in Italy. "Uno caffe sensa lattossio por favore" (Coffee with skim milk please) - "no" was the reply. "Awkay - Uno cafe latte" "Si - was the reply" Phew that is the easy one done! "Uno cafe nero con un piccolo latte freddo por favore", The terse reply came "Nero or Latte", now there are disgruntled locals behind me shouting their coffee orders and waving their hands. I reply "Nero con uno piccollo freddo latte" and I am gesturing with my hands "Little". "si si" comes the reply. But then the coffees come and Pat's is black - so I ask "Por favore piccolo freddo latte" and he huffs and sticks some warm milk in. Anyway my attempts resulted in a coffee that was too strong and not enjoyable for Patty. John liked his though! I stuck with Coke Zero.

Off we go for another stroll, popping down alleys, looking at the mosaics, the old brickwork and a real working suburb with people hanging out their washing using pulley lines. I loved it, it was one of those days where you strolled, discovered and stumbled upon.

We came across the Basilica of Santa Maria which was enormous, light and very very beautiful. then there was the Church of Santa Maria della Scala, but not before stopping for a coffee. By this time I am busting for a pee! Being the resident Italian speaker, I order the coffee - thank goodness they speak fluent english. I go to the loo, which is down a spiral staircase and there is a toilet bowl - no sitting area. I am busting and the older ladies reading this will appreciate that the closer you get to the loo the harder it is to control your bladder - well this wee is just busting to get out. So I position myself straddling the bowl and drop my knickers and shorts (not too far, don't want them to get dirty), lean forward to angle myself away from my shorts. WELL - not being an experienced wee-er whilst standing up my pee was going everywhere, and I was so busting it wasn't pausing for anything. I skulked out of the loo, damp shorts and all feeling humiliated.

We sit for a while and then off again - luckily I have white shorts on and the wet shorts are not very noticeable. More churches and little shops with leather handcrafted purses, pottery and the like. More ambling and then a stop for lunch. Just a delightful morning, we go back to the hotel for a siesta.

OUR HOTEL

John has excelled himself in the choice of our hotel, The Donna Camilla Savelli, housed in a former Baroque Monastery, and is situated at the foot of the Gianicolo Hills in an intimate and quiet corner of Trastevere, well within walking distances of the main piazzas. The building itself is amazing and the views from the terrace are gorgeous. We have apperitivo in the courtyard - this is Patty's favourite spot with the Jazz music in the background, nibbles on the table and drinks in a beautiful leafy surrounds. In her words "this is bliss".

Pat's sense of direction is not that great, so it is a victory when she finds her way back from the breakfast bar.

She did come back with honey, yes she cannot stand honey.

In the evening we had drinks in the courtyard and then went into Travestere to discover the night life. We had dinner at this trattoria and sat next to a couple from Canada and had a lovely 3 hour dinner, hearing about their family and travels and sharing ours - ending with one or two too many drinks.

and the morning after.....

We come back to Roma in a few weeks, where we will stay at the Spanish steps and explore some more.

Return to Roma

After Pompeii, we had a short car ride to Naples Central train station and then the train to Roma. It is an hour and 5 mins on the train and a truly first class service. Then a long queue at the station for a taxi ride to our hotel which is the Inn on the Spanish steps. John had especially requested a lift to our apartment (for his mum), he did this a year ago and when we were shown to our apartment we had not one but two flights of stairs to walk up. We were less than impressed and poor Pat felt so dejected as she looked up at the stairs she had to climb. John checked his booking email and sure enough, they had promised a room with a lift to her floor. So off back to reception to sort out. Long story short we stayed one night in the incorrect room and then 2 nights in another room which had easier access for Patty.

Once settled we went out for an explore and dinner. We were literally at the bottom of the Spanish Steps and in the heart of the glitzy shopping street. I could not believe the queues to get into Saint Laurent, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Prada and the like. I am not sure what the deal was but clearly people were keen to get designer goods from Rome. The neighbourhood is very lively with a constant stream of tourists. We went to a fab restaurant for dinner (which was repeated 2 nights later). It was fun people watching and browsing.

A comfortable night and then a tour around Rome in a golf cart. As I have said earlier we have done the Rome sights, so we went to the secrets of Rome and what a great trip it was. Very easy on Pat, very little walking - except a scary golf cart ride.

First of all, all during breakfast pat is worried about how are we going to fit on a golf cart as they only have 2 seats, even though we explain that they have more than 4 x seats. YES - BUT, will it have a roof? Questions questions. Pat sits in front so she doesn't get car sick, so she is quite exposed to the near misses, and close proximity to other bigger cars. She has a water bottle in her bag that is one of those ones that water only comes out if you squeeze it. I think in her nervousness, she was gripping her bag so tight that every time we turned a corner or had a close call she squeezed her bag and hence the water bottle flooding her bag each time. Imagine her surprise when she went to take a sip of her water and there was none left. Then she peered into her bag to find everything soaking wet and swirling around the bottom of her waterproof bag.

Back to the tour, the first stop was Trajan's forum and the Victor Emmanuel II Monument. Quite a controversial structure as Musselini used it as a backdrop to his fascist speeches. Also one of the most modern structures in Rome.

We learn that the street level of Rome in the modern day is 7 feet above what it was in Roman times, which means that every time they dig, they have to close down construction whilst they get the archaeologists in. Phase three of the underground still hasn't been completed after 35 years.

One thing that comes out loud and clear is that the Romans loved to show off their wealth with grandeur and opulence. But they invented a lot and their architecture has certainly stood the test of time.

Trajan's Forum was a meeting place for business, political and news updates (like the Facebook of modern times). In the Forum stands Trajan's column, erected in 113 AD, and is a commemorative monument decorated with reliefs illustrating Roman emperor Trajan's two military campaigns in Dacia (modern Romania). The column was the first of many such monuments and it is also an invaluable source of information on the Roman Army and a lasting testimony to the Roman love of monumental architecture constructed to celebrate military victories and Roman leaders.

The column stands 38 m tall (125 ft) and consists of 19 drums of Italian white marble. It stands on an 8-block base and is topped by a two-block pedestal. Originally, a 4.8 m (16 ft) bronze statue of Trajan stood on the top pedestal but this was replaced by a statue of St. Peter in 1588 CE.

The detail is just phenomenal as you can see from the photos above.

Next stop, we stop outside a nondescript church, which houses one of Michelangelo's statues. The bottom piece of Moses and his sidekicks was sculpted by the man himself. There happened to be a wedding going on and the church was still open, whilst they got married.

Michelangelo finished the Moses in marble, a statue of five braccia, unequaled by any modern or ancient work. Seated in a serious attitude, he rests with one arm on the tablets, and with the other holds his long glossy beard, the hairs, so difficult to render in sculpture, being so soft and downy that it seems as if the iron chisel must have become a brush. The beautiful face, like that of a saint and mighty prince, seems as one regards it to need the veil to cover it, so splendid and shining does it appear, and so well has the artist presented in the marble the divinity with which God had endowed that holy countenance. The draperies fall in graceful folds, the muscles of the arms and bones of the hands are of such beauty and perfection, as are the legs and knees, the feet were adorned with excellent shoes, that Moses may now be called the friend of God more than ever, since God has permitted his body to be prepared for the resurrection before the others by the hand of Michelangelo. Jews still go every Saturday in troops to visit and adore it as a divine, not a human thing.

Then we drove up into one of the Seven hills of Rome, past the Colosseum and ruins, which sounded very interesting at the time but I cannot recall the details. There are so many ruins and everything is so old. Most ruins are ruins because marble and goods were taken to build the Vatican or other churches (ironic), also several families took some of the statues and marble for their homes. We looked at the Roman Baths, this is a massive structure and then the Orangerie which offered fab views over the city.

The Baths of Caracalla in Rome, Italy, were the city's second largest Roman public baths, or thermae, after the Baths of Diocletian. The baths were likely built between AD 212 and 216/217, during the reigns of emperors Septimius Severus and Caracalla. In front of the baths is a Mall where they used to do Chariot Races and other events. It is now a public park and often used for concerts.

The Teatro di Marcello (Theatre of Marcellus) is an ancient open-air theatre in Rome, Italy, built in the closing years of the Roman Republic. At the theatre, locals and visitors alike were able to watch performances of drama and song. Space for the theatre was cleared by Julius Caesar, who was murdered before its construction could begin; the theatre was advanced enough by 17 BC that part of the celebration of the ludi saeculares took place within the theatre; it was completed in 13 BC and formally inaugurated in 12 BC by Augustus, named after his nephew Marcus Claudius Marcellus who had died in 23 BC.

The theatre was 111 m in diameter and was the largest and most important theatre in Ancient Rome; it could originally hold between 11,000 and 20,000 spectators. A catalogue compiled at the end of the 4th century recorded that the theatre's seating capacity was 17,580 persons. It was an impressive example of what was to become one of the most pervasive urban architectural forms of the Roman world. The theatre was built mainly of tuff, and concrete faced with stones in the pattern known as opus reticulatum, completely sheathed in white travertine. However, it is also the earliest datable building in Rome to make use of fired Roman brick, then a new introduction from the Greek world.

Today it is still used as a theatre and also houses some very expensive apartments.

The Fontana delle Tartarughe (The Turtle Fountain) is a fountain of the late Italian Renaissance, located in Piazza Mattei, in the Sant'Angelo district of Rome, Italy. It was built between 1580 and 1588 by the architect Giacomo della Porta and the sculptor Taddeo Landini. The bronze turtles around the upper basin, usually attributed either to Gian Lorenzo Bernini or Andrea Sacchi, were added in either 1658 or 1659 when the fountain was restored. Della Porta was a student of Michelangelo and continued two of his greatest architectural projects, the Piazza del Campidoglio and St. Peter’s in the Vatican at Rome.

Again I cannot remember who this painter was(John thinks it was Bernini), he was also a student of Michelangelo and was famed for his ability to bring a 3 dimensional perspective to his work. There are a lot of pictures to illustrate this. See how the legs appear to be falling out of the ceiling. The ceiling at the end of this church is flat and not a dome as it appears. We also lit a candle for Dad and Fatha.

Back to the hotel, lunch and a stroll around the neighbourhood exploring.

That evening whilst we were having a drink on the Hotel Terrace, we heard this clapping. When everyone starts clapping it normally means a proposal. When we heard the clapping we thought another proposal, more clapping - gee a lot of proposals. Then the waiter informed us that the Roma night marathon was going by the hotel. What a clever idea in a hot city.

Less crowded photo of the Spanish Steps.

Next morning John and I visited Villa d'este in Tivoli. John had seen a programme about the great gardens of the world and this was featured so it has been on his bucket list. We figured it was terraced and too hard a slog for Pat, so she stayed local. We got a car to Tivoli, E90 which took 40 minutes at that time of day. Rome was deserted which was nice for a change. No queue at the gardens, and it was a chilly morning when in the shade. First you go through the Villa.

Then out into the gardens, which were mind blowingly beautiful when you combine the fact that there is not a single water pump in the joint and all fountains are gravity fed. There is an organ fountain that plays at certain times of the day - and when it plays you would swear you were in an Abbey listening to it. There is nothing mechanical and the organ pipes are played using the water pressure of the fountain. The Villa d'Este, with its palace and garden, is one of the most remarkable and comprehensive illustrations of Renaissance culture at its most refined. Its innovative design along with the architectural components in the garden (fountains, ornamental basins, etc.) make this a unique example of an Italian 16th-century garden. The Villa d'Este, one of the first giardini delle meraviglie , was an early model for the development of European gardens.

Just incredible that this was all done so long ago. John in particular thought the organ fountain was mind-blowing. To think that almost 600 years ago, someone figured out how to make music via organ pies & gravity-powered water, & the 600 years later it still works perfectly is truly astonishing. Hearing the organ play is to hear directly from someone in 1570!

The Villa d’Este gardens stretch over two steep slopes, descending from the palace down to a flat terrace in the manner of an amphitheatre. The loggia of the palace marks the longitudinal and central axis of the gardens. Five main transversal axes become the central axis from the fixed point of view created by the villa, as each of these axes terminates in one of the gardens’ fountains. This arrangement of axes and modules was adopted to disguise the irregular outline of the gardens, to rectify by means of an optical illusion the relationship between the transversal and longitudinal dimensions, and to give the palace a central position, even though it is in fact out of alignment in relation to the whole.

Getting back to Roma wasn't that easy, no taxis about and we took a while and many steps to find the train station. It is a Sunday and very quiet. We work out how to use the train ticketing system (there are english options on the screen), we worked out the first thing that we tried to buy a ticket from was a ticket validation machine and you need to stamp your ticket. Luckily we did that. Only issue was masks are mandatory on trains in Italy and we had no masks, no shops open. Luckily our make do masks were acceptable by the conductor.

Back at the hotel, we try and find Patty. I had the clever idea of getting an little disc that is linked to my phone that will tell me where Pat is. As always things are complicated with Pat. She has 2 x bags, a big one and a small one. Everything gets moved from the one to the other and she would forget what the disc was for and throw it away - so what to do. I put the disk in the big bag. On this one day when we need it to work, Pat took her small bag out with her. But we didn't know this. Yet again we have housekeeping involved in the search of Pat Thompson. She is eventually located and had popped around the corner for a very expensive fish and chips in Roma! Can't take the English out of the English....

John and I then went out to explore, even though I had seen the Trevi fountain by day and night, I wanted to see it again. We walked down the Spanish steps and this completed a very enjoyable day.

Last day in Roma. Our flight is at 8:45pm, so we have a long day of mooching around. We stay in the hotel til around 11:30am and then go out for a walk. The streets are back to being crowded, people queuing up for the designer shops and milling around. Our aim is to find the Piazza Navona. This is about a kilometre from the hotel and naturally we have to do it with a few stops, but we have 5 hours to get there and back. So we have a lovely time just people watching, finding Piazzas (squares) to sit in and have a drink or a bite of lunch.

On one of those drink stops Pat ordered a Lemon Juice and we warned her that it would be pure lemon juice, she was fine with that "I like tart things." As you can see from her face, not that tart! We had to remake her drink with pineapple juice and water. Ha ha, was funny to watch her drink it.

Rome is a wonderful city to roam! We had lunch in front of the Pantheon. The Pantheon is a former Roman temple and, since 609 AD, a Catholic church on the site of an earlier temple commissioned by Marcus Agrippa during the reign of Augustus (27 BC – 14 AD). It was rebuilt by the emperor Hadrian and probably dedicated c. 126 AD. Its date of construction is uncertain, because Hadrian chose not to inscribe the new temple but rather to retain the inscription of Agrippa's older temple, which had burned down.

The building is cylindrical with a portico of large granite Corinthian columns (eight in the first rank and two groups of four behind) under a pediment. A rectangular vestibule links the porch to the rotunda, which is under a coffered concrete dome, with a central opening (oculus) to the sky. Almost two thousand years after it was built, the Pantheon's dome is still the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome! The height to the oculus and the diameter of the interior circle are the same, 43 metres (142 ft). Just incredible to still see the structure standing in all its glory.

Now to Piazza Navona - defined as a public space in the last years of 15th century, when the city market was transferred there from the Campidoglio, Piazza Navona was transformed into a highly significant example of Baroque Roman architecture and art during the pontificate of Innocent X, who reigned from 1644 until 1655, and whose family palace, the Palazzo Pamphili, faced the piazza. It features important sculptural creations: in the centre stands the famous Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi or Fountain of the Four Rivers (1651) by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, topped by the Obelisk of Domitian, brought in pieces from the Circus of Maxentius; the church of Sant'Agnese in Agone by Francesco Borromini, Girolamo Rainaldi, Carlo Rainaldi and others; and the aforementioned Pamphili palace, also by Girolamo Rainaldi, that accommodates the long gallery designed by Borromini and frescoed by Pietro da Cortona.

Piazza Navona has two other fountains. At the southern end is the Fontana del Moro with a basin and four Tritons sculpted by Giacomo della Porta (1575) to which, in 1673, Bernini added a statue of a Moor, wrestling with a dolphin. At the northern end is the Fountain of Neptune (1574) also created by Giacomo della Porta; the statue of Neptune, by Antonio Della Bitta, was added in 1878 to create a balance with La Fontana del Moro.

During its history, the piazza has hosted theatrical events and other ephemeral activities. From 1652 until 1866, when the festival was suppressed, it was flooded on every Saturday and Sunday in August in elaborate celebrations of the Pamphilj family. The pavement level was raised in the 19th century, and in 1869 the market was moved to the nearby Campo de' Fiori. A Christmas market is held in the piazza square each year.

And that ends our trip to Rome and our Italian holiday with Patty.

Arrivederci, Ciao.