The remaining pilgrims left Rome this morning, Jan, on the early flght left at 6:30. The rain sounded like a tsunami was on the way! The last three of us left right after breakfast. We were checked through security and sitting at our gate. There was a mini spa right next to us so Joanie had a massage while I had a manicure and Sandy read her much neglected book.
When we deplaned we said goodbye, I was heading for London end Joanie and Sandy for their connecting flight to Vancouver.
After a ridiculously long wait at passport control!!!!! Really, there were 2 agents and hundreds of people waiting for clearance. I was not impressed, particularly as there appears to be many agents standing around not working. Grrrr!
What a lovely surprise when I finally got through the door on the other side......not just Penny, but Lena and Isabella were also meeting me and little Isabella came running to welcome me!!!! What a little doll she is, and she continued to charm me in her sweet little English voice .
We drove to Susie's house and had a cup of tea (lovely English tea) and a chocolate biscuit while Isabella performed for us. Penny and I then left for Claygate where we spent the rest of the afternoon yakking. We were just sitting down to a delicious fish pie when Clive arrived home and joined us in a glass of wine.
It was great to catch up with them both for a couple of hours. Tomorrow will be a fun day.
I love England and often say........I could live here!
Thursday, February 5, 2015
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Audience with the Pope!!!!!
Today is our last day in Rome. We found out last night that Pope Francis would be giving an audience At 10:30 Wednesday morning. Tickets were free but you had to previously order them on the Internet. Of course we had not done this. We were told by another guest in the hotel, who had the ticket, that in order to get a seat she was leaving for the Vatican at 7:30am. Hmmmm, what to do?!
We decided we would have breakfast and leave the hotel at 9ish in a taxi. On arrival at the Vatican we Breezed around, through the airport style security machine and to our surprise we were soon inside. Not a soul asked for the blue paper that was the ticket. The audience had already started by this time and there was standing room only at the very back. The room held about 6,500 people.
Various cardinals spoke and then the Pope stood from his white chair and spoke in Italian. Afterwards several of the cardinals repeated the Pope's message in English, French, German and Spanish. It was incredibly hot in the room and we did not stay for the full audience.
We walked to the Castel St Angelo which is beside the Tiber River down the way from the Vatican. There is said to be a secret passage between the two where the Popes could go from one to the other, depending on the danger.
We then walked to a shopping district where Local Romans shop......Armani, Versace, Coin and others. Romans must be rich! The Via Cola di Rienzo!
Feet were weary from tramping the cobbled streets and we took a taxi to the villa Farnesina which was merely a stones throw from our hotel. This villa had large paintings by Raphael and others of the 1500's, and a small formal garden.
We went Grazies and Grazillas for lunch, we had been there a few days previous and liked it. We shared some pastas, grilled vegetables and tiramisu and a bottle of white wine. The rain was on again and we made our way back to the hotel , a bit of a rest before dinner. None of us were very hungry but after some packing and such we once again went out in the rain to Dar Poeta a delicious and popular pizza restaurant.. We shared a couple of pizzas, beer and a Nutella calzone!!!!! Yum! On returning to the hotel after dinner I went to the hotel reception to ask for another map, a girl we had talked to yesterday about the Audience with the Pope was there. I told her that we had actually been able to get into it as well and asked her how she and her mum and mother in law had enjoyed it. They had gone at 7:30 to get a good seat and were seated about the middle of the floor area, so not too far from the staging area. She told me that when the audience was over the Pope was walking down the aisle and as he was even with their seats a man jumped out of his seat, screamed "For Gods sake" and threw himself on the floor at the Popes feet. Immediately several security persons grabbed the man, but the Pope held them off and spoke with the man for several minutes and he calmed down. She said it was an unreal experience, scary at first and then not. Her mum and mum in law then got to shake hands with the Pope.
We have had such an amazing time exploring Rome and the two towns we visited outside of the city. Our time in Florence and Paris were memorable, we had so many adventures and laughs with all
seven of the Painters!!!! Prosecco and Pearls rule!!!!
Lastly we have to say our Hotel Santa Maria was such a great choice, central, friendly, reasonably priced, we would highly recommend it on your visit to Rome!
Arrivederci and Ciao !!!!
We decided we would have breakfast and leave the hotel at 9ish in a taxi. On arrival at the Vatican we Breezed around, through the airport style security machine and to our surprise we were soon inside. Not a soul asked for the blue paper that was the ticket. The audience had already started by this time and there was standing room only at the very back. The room held about 6,500 people.
Various cardinals spoke and then the Pope stood from his white chair and spoke in Italian. Afterwards several of the cardinals repeated the Pope's message in English, French, German and Spanish. It was incredibly hot in the room and we did not stay for the full audience.
We walked to the Castel St Angelo which is beside the Tiber River down the way from the Vatican. There is said to be a secret passage between the two where the Popes could go from one to the other, depending on the danger.
We then walked to a shopping district where Local Romans shop......Armani, Versace, Coin and others. Romans must be rich! The Via Cola di Rienzo!
Feet were weary from tramping the cobbled streets and we took a taxi to the villa Farnesina which was merely a stones throw from our hotel. This villa had large paintings by Raphael and others of the 1500's, and a small formal garden.
We went Grazies and Grazillas for lunch, we had been there a few days previous and liked it. We shared some pastas, grilled vegetables and tiramisu and a bottle of white wine. The rain was on again and we made our way back to the hotel , a bit of a rest before dinner. None of us were very hungry but after some packing and such we once again went out in the rain to Dar Poeta a delicious and popular pizza restaurant.. We shared a couple of pizzas, beer and a Nutella calzone!!!!! Yum! On returning to the hotel after dinner I went to the hotel reception to ask for another map, a girl we had talked to yesterday about the Audience with the Pope was there. I told her that we had actually been able to get into it as well and asked her how she and her mum and mother in law had enjoyed it. They had gone at 7:30 to get a good seat and were seated about the middle of the floor area, so not too far from the staging area. She told me that when the audience was over the Pope was walking down the aisle and as he was even with their seats a man jumped out of his seat, screamed "For Gods sake" and threw himself on the floor at the Popes feet. Immediately several security persons grabbed the man, but the Pope held them off and spoke with the man for several minutes and he calmed down. She said it was an unreal experience, scary at first and then not. Her mum and mum in law then got to shake hands with the Pope.
We have had such an amazing time exploring Rome and the two towns we visited outside of the city. Our time in Florence and Paris were memorable, we had so many adventures and laughs with all
seven of the Painters!!!! Prosecco and Pearls rule!!!!
Lastly we have to say our Hotel Santa Maria was such a great choice, central, friendly, reasonably priced, we would highly recommend it on your visit to Rome!
Arrivederci and Ciao !!!!
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Day trip to Tivoli
We awoke this morning to a forecast of heavy rain! Not what we expected in Rome but you take what you get!
We decided to do another day trip outside of Rome. Credit must go to Sandy and Joanie as they very diligently research where to go and what will be interesting to see. It is decided we will go to Tivoli which is a 35 minute train ride away. This involves a taxi ride to the metro station near the coliseum, then a metro ride to the train station. This is a different train line then we took yesterday. Two of the trainmen were chatting to us, they knew no English and our Italian was only very slightly better. The train was direct and we arrived after a pleasant ride through agriculture, olive trees, farms, and field of horses, cows and sheep, a refreshing change from Vespas, motorbikes, smart cars and all manner of trucks and buses.
Our focus was to visit the Villa d'Este and we found some signs with arrows pointing the way. We walked toward the Centro of Tivoli and I asked a local passing by if we were heading in the right direction....she responded with her arm pointing straight up...up...up. The narrow streets took us through the town. Up as far as we could go we found another directional arrow...which led us past the finest italian leather bags! They seem to be everywhere. One more gift was purchased and a few more we said we would think about after we toured the Villa.
The Villa itself was large with many rooms, what was spectacular was the gardens. The house sits on a hill overlooking the town, and countryside for miles. The gardens are designed in a formal way, with many large planters, sculptures, and fountains everywhere. Large pools of water, many hedges, cypress trees, waterfalls, grottoes, cobbled walkways. We were told that One of the largest fountains played music in the afternoon at 2:30. We were not sure exactly where the location would be and when we heard the music start we hurried up the garden toward it.....arriving just as it ceased!
Back inside the house we discovered an art room. The artist Virginia Tomescu Scrocco's paintings covered the walls. She was inspired by the broken brushwork of Divisionism that she absorbed
during her youth in France. Her work is described as being enveloped in light. She lived in her beloved Tivoli until the war when she moved to Rome where she died in 1950.
It is hard to describe the beauty of the gardens, I recommend two things.......Google Villa D'Este and if you are visiting Rome it is definitely a day trip to remember.
We were making our way back down through the town and stopped at a cafe for a pastry and coffee in lieu of lunch. The cafe was quiet and the gregarious server was friendly, he made our lattes with chocolate coating the glass before he added the coffee....yum ! As we were leaving a couple came in and the server told him we were from Canada, this new guy went crazy.....English is my passion!!!!! His girlfriend was nodding and smiling, saying yes..it is his passion!!!! Quite funny!
Back to the train station, this time we were on the 4oclock which stopped everywhere on the way to Rome.
It was dark when we arrived and on the way home we walked the length of Circo Massimo, which is the area where in ancient times chariot races and other social events took place. We are certainly taking in all historic sites in Rome.
We were glad to escape the rain for a little while, then it was back out to a nearby restaurant, the Frachetti. Joanie pronounced it her best meal in Italy.
Tomorrow the sun may make an appearance for a short period. We are planning to revisit the Vatican, as the Pope is in residence and speaks to the people on Wednesdays at 10:30 am. We expect there will be big crowds and although tickets are free to hear him speak you must apply for a ticket in advance......we will try our luck.
Going to sleep to the sound of rain. .....ciao!
We decided to do another day trip outside of Rome. Credit must go to Sandy and Joanie as they very diligently research where to go and what will be interesting to see. It is decided we will go to Tivoli which is a 35 minute train ride away. This involves a taxi ride to the metro station near the coliseum, then a metro ride to the train station. This is a different train line then we took yesterday. Two of the trainmen were chatting to us, they knew no English and our Italian was only very slightly better. The train was direct and we arrived after a pleasant ride through agriculture, olive trees, farms, and field of horses, cows and sheep, a refreshing change from Vespas, motorbikes, smart cars and all manner of trucks and buses.
Our focus was to visit the Villa d'Este and we found some signs with arrows pointing the way. We walked toward the Centro of Tivoli and I asked a local passing by if we were heading in the right direction....she responded with her arm pointing straight up...up...up. The narrow streets took us through the town. Up as far as we could go we found another directional arrow...which led us past the finest italian leather bags! They seem to be everywhere. One more gift was purchased and a few more we said we would think about after we toured the Villa.
The Villa itself was large with many rooms, what was spectacular was the gardens. The house sits on a hill overlooking the town, and countryside for miles. The gardens are designed in a formal way, with many large planters, sculptures, and fountains everywhere. Large pools of water, many hedges, cypress trees, waterfalls, grottoes, cobbled walkways. We were told that One of the largest fountains played music in the afternoon at 2:30. We were not sure exactly where the location would be and when we heard the music start we hurried up the garden toward it.....arriving just as it ceased!
Back inside the house we discovered an art room. The artist Virginia Tomescu Scrocco's paintings covered the walls. She was inspired by the broken brushwork of Divisionism that she absorbed
during her youth in France. Her work is described as being enveloped in light. She lived in her beloved Tivoli until the war when she moved to Rome where she died in 1950.
It is hard to describe the beauty of the gardens, I recommend two things.......Google Villa D'Este and if you are visiting Rome it is definitely a day trip to remember.
We were making our way back down through the town and stopped at a cafe for a pastry and coffee in lieu of lunch. The cafe was quiet and the gregarious server was friendly, he made our lattes with chocolate coating the glass before he added the coffee....yum ! As we were leaving a couple came in and the server told him we were from Canada, this new guy went crazy.....English is my passion!!!!! His girlfriend was nodding and smiling, saying yes..it is his passion!!!! Quite funny!
Back to the train station, this time we were on the 4oclock which stopped everywhere on the way to Rome.
It was dark when we arrived and on the way home we walked the length of Circo Massimo, which is the area where in ancient times chariot races and other social events took place. We are certainly taking in all historic sites in Rome.
We were glad to escape the rain for a little while, then it was back out to a nearby restaurant, the Frachetti. Joanie pronounced it her best meal in Italy.
Tomorrow the sun may make an appearance for a short period. We are planning to revisit the Vatican, as the Pope is in residence and speaks to the people on Wednesdays at 10:30 am. We expect there will be big crowds and although tickets are free to hear him speak you must apply for a ticket in advance......we will try our luck.
Going to sleep to the sound of rain. .....ciao!
Monday, February 2, 2015
What to Do, What to do!!!
Today the forecast was for rain, plus it was/is Monday and a lot of venues are closed on Mondays. We set out after breakfast, after finding out how and where to buy tickets. We walked to a tobacco shop, bought bus tickets....1.50 euros to ride the bus for 100 minutes. You validate your ticket once boarding the bus and your 100 minutes begins. Seemed simple.
The bus was very crowded and standing room only. The ride was quite rough as many streets are cobbled. One nice young couple offered me a seat that became empty.....yes, I am and look like, a senior citizen! We rode the bus to the end of the line which was at the train (trenitalia) station. Train tickets are very easy to buy from the ticket machines and we purchase four returns from Rome to Frascati. Franscati is about 35 minutes by train from Rome. It is in white white country and has a large villa, Aldobrandini, no longer used as a home, with large gardens, that were in a formal design They sold wine and olive oil there. The wine of the area, which is one that we used to buy quite often is Colli Albani. We hiked up the cobbled street to see the view from the gardens.
At first we had a difficult time finding a restaurant that was open for lunch....but we were successful at the Cantina Bucciarelli. The owners, who also were the waiters, did not speak much English but we managed to muddle through together. They were very nice! We ordered some dishes to share and a litre of white wine from the region which they dispensed from a large wooden keg.
After lunch we wandered through the town and poked into a few shops. We almost got out of there purchase free......but ducked into a shop selling purses and shoes. 40% discount was on offer and we all are the owners of new bags!
We returned to the train station and caught the 4:30 back to Rome. The train passed through an airport and an area that is part of the Appian Way, with the ruins of an aquaduct partially standing.
Arriving at the train station we exited and found our way to the bus terminus outside. Once again we were back in the familiar Trastevere area and in the security of our walled hotel.
The other half of our painting group, who left us yesterday, will be happy to know we finally made it to the Der Poet Pizza!!!!!! And it was as fantastic as we had been told! So sorry, Judy, Joan and Marion that we ran out of time to get there with you! We are hoping we can go again before it is our turn to leave Italy!
And so ends another wonderful day in Italia.
Ciao. ️️xo
The bus was very crowded and standing room only. The ride was quite rough as many streets are cobbled. One nice young couple offered me a seat that became empty.....yes, I am and look like, a senior citizen! We rode the bus to the end of the line which was at the train (trenitalia) station. Train tickets are very easy to buy from the ticket machines and we purchase four returns from Rome to Frascati. Franscati is about 35 minutes by train from Rome. It is in white white country and has a large villa, Aldobrandini, no longer used as a home, with large gardens, that were in a formal design They sold wine and olive oil there. The wine of the area, which is one that we used to buy quite often is Colli Albani. We hiked up the cobbled street to see the view from the gardens.
At first we had a difficult time finding a restaurant that was open for lunch....but we were successful at the Cantina Bucciarelli. The owners, who also were the waiters, did not speak much English but we managed to muddle through together. They were very nice! We ordered some dishes to share and a litre of white wine from the region which they dispensed from a large wooden keg.
After lunch we wandered through the town and poked into a few shops. We almost got out of there purchase free......but ducked into a shop selling purses and shoes. 40% discount was on offer and we all are the owners of new bags!
We returned to the train station and caught the 4:30 back to Rome. The train passed through an airport and an area that is part of the Appian Way, with the ruins of an aquaduct partially standing.
Arriving at the train station we exited and found our way to the bus terminus outside. Once again we were back in the familiar Trastevere area and in the security of our walled hotel.
The other half of our painting group, who left us yesterday, will be happy to know we finally made it to the Der Poet Pizza!!!!!! And it was as fantastic as we had been told! So sorry, Judy, Joan and Marion that we ran out of time to get there with you! We are hoping we can go again before it is our turn to leave Italy!
And so ends another wonderful day in Italia.
Ciao. ️️xo
Sunday, February 1, 2015
Sunday in Rome
This morning we were awakened by rolling Thunder and torrential rain! We were not meeting a guide so we were having a bit of a sleep in! Heaven!
Marion had left at 6:30 as she had an early flight to London and we were to meet Judy and Joan for a last breakfast a bit later as they had a flight home at noon.
By the time we were ready to go out the rain had stopped and there was blue sky and sunshine! We did not have a "plan" so we were strolling in the Trastevere area, which is an made up of narrow streets, little shops, churches, bars, restaurants and markets. We hadn't gone too far when we popped into a shop where a purchase was made by Sandy.
We were heading for the church of saint Cecilia, who is the patron saint of music. It was recommended by Joan that we should visit it. Cecile's tomb was opened about 250 years after her death and her body was surprisingly intact. There was a beautiful white marble statue of her in repose that was done by Bernini. The church was built on Roman ruins that house the crypt under the floor of the church, a nun was present and would unlock the doorway so you could go down and have a look.....we did not as she didn't look very welcoming.
We decided to cross the river to the little island and when we went down the steps to the riverbank, which has a wide pedestrian walkway we had some fun taking pictures with the selfie stick. Selfie sticks are great fun and there are so many people hawking them that you see them in use everywhere you go. So now instead of asking a stranger to take a photo of your group you just pull out your selfie stick!
Back up from the river we left the island and walked through the Jewish section, there were some ruins in the process of restoration and we walked through the area. As we walked we were looking for a Jewish restaurant, hoping for some matzo ball soup or Flafels, after awhile having no success we decided on a busy little Italian place called Benito Osteria. Well, Sunday lunch is a big deal of which I'm convinced ALL Italians partake, and most,of them seemed to be at Benito's!!!! Sandy and I crowded into the small doorway while Joanie and Jan waited outside......how long for a table we Inquired......oh ...hand signals indicated 5-10minutes.......not so. More people arrived who seemed in some cases to be regulars and they miraculously found seats. I hate to report that we waited about 45! Minutes for a table......yes, Jeff, Mike, Chris and Graeme would have been out of there! The problem was we knew the situation would be similar all over and we decided to wait. Just before we were seated we were given a small glass of Prosecco, late but better than not.
We enjoyed most of the lunch, a couple of pasta dishes, a couple of appetizers and a wild boar dish, we shared it all, along with a bottle of red., and two delicious desserts. By the time we finished there was just us and one other table in the restaurant...Sunday lunch was over!
We resumed our walk and arrived at a gigantic white building the Vicctori Emmanuel the first king of United Italy completed in 1935, it houses the National Museum and there are awesome views from a walkway that can be reached after climbing many many many heart pounding steps! Once up the steps you can look down on the coliseum, the Forum, St Peters Basilica. We were there just before sunset and Rome looked beautiful as the sun went down and lights came on in the buildings. As we left the viewing area we entered a doorway and we were in the Basilica of Santa Maria, a very beautiful church with a gorgeous patchwork of marble floors and many hanging Chrystal chandeliers.
This building has huge pillars supporting a many curlicues on the roof and magnificent white statues of men on horses flanking each side......the word is that Romans do not like this building as they feel it is too ostentatious. We descended the many steps, which was much easier than the ascending had been.
We then made our way back to our hotel, retracing our steps back through the Trastevere area where the shops were still open and people were out and about.
Our plan was to rest a little and visit a restaurant for a small snack.....truth is we were all still full from lunch and tired from our day, the rain was again teeming, thunder was booming and we stayed in! Weather report is fine.
Tomorrow will be another day!
Marion had left at 6:30 as she had an early flight to London and we were to meet Judy and Joan for a last breakfast a bit later as they had a flight home at noon.
By the time we were ready to go out the rain had stopped and there was blue sky and sunshine! We did not have a "plan" so we were strolling in the Trastevere area, which is an made up of narrow streets, little shops, churches, bars, restaurants and markets. We hadn't gone too far when we popped into a shop where a purchase was made by Sandy.
We were heading for the church of saint Cecilia, who is the patron saint of music. It was recommended by Joan that we should visit it. Cecile's tomb was opened about 250 years after her death and her body was surprisingly intact. There was a beautiful white marble statue of her in repose that was done by Bernini. The church was built on Roman ruins that house the crypt under the floor of the church, a nun was present and would unlock the doorway so you could go down and have a look.....we did not as she didn't look very welcoming.
We decided to cross the river to the little island and when we went down the steps to the riverbank, which has a wide pedestrian walkway we had some fun taking pictures with the selfie stick. Selfie sticks are great fun and there are so many people hawking them that you see them in use everywhere you go. So now instead of asking a stranger to take a photo of your group you just pull out your selfie stick!
Back up from the river we left the island and walked through the Jewish section, there were some ruins in the process of restoration and we walked through the area. As we walked we were looking for a Jewish restaurant, hoping for some matzo ball soup or Flafels, after awhile having no success we decided on a busy little Italian place called Benito Osteria. Well, Sunday lunch is a big deal of which I'm convinced ALL Italians partake, and most,of them seemed to be at Benito's!!!! Sandy and I crowded into the small doorway while Joanie and Jan waited outside......how long for a table we Inquired......oh ...hand signals indicated 5-10minutes.......not so. More people arrived who seemed in some cases to be regulars and they miraculously found seats. I hate to report that we waited about 45! Minutes for a table......yes, Jeff, Mike, Chris and Graeme would have been out of there! The problem was we knew the situation would be similar all over and we decided to wait. Just before we were seated we were given a small glass of Prosecco, late but better than not.
We enjoyed most of the lunch, a couple of pasta dishes, a couple of appetizers and a wild boar dish, we shared it all, along with a bottle of red., and two delicious desserts. By the time we finished there was just us and one other table in the restaurant...Sunday lunch was over!
We resumed our walk and arrived at a gigantic white building the Vicctori Emmanuel the first king of United Italy completed in 1935, it houses the National Museum and there are awesome views from a walkway that can be reached after climbing many many many heart pounding steps! Once up the steps you can look down on the coliseum, the Forum, St Peters Basilica. We were there just before sunset and Rome looked beautiful as the sun went down and lights came on in the buildings. As we left the viewing area we entered a doorway and we were in the Basilica of Santa Maria, a very beautiful church with a gorgeous patchwork of marble floors and many hanging Chrystal chandeliers.
This building has huge pillars supporting a many curlicues on the roof and magnificent white statues of men on horses flanking each side......the word is that Romans do not like this building as they feel it is too ostentatious. We descended the many steps, which was much easier than the ascending had been.
We then made our way back to our hotel, retracing our steps back through the Trastevere area where the shops were still open and people were out and about.
Our plan was to rest a little and visit a restaurant for a small snack.....truth is we were all still full from lunch and tired from our day, the rain was again teeming, thunder was booming and we stayed in! Weather report is fine.
Tomorrow will be another day!
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Roman coliseum and the Forum
What an incredible day!!!
We were off on our usual modus operandi, after our usual breakfast, into two taxi cabs. We were meeting our guide Christina at the metro station entrance outside the coliseum.
Christina has a PHD in archeology, in case I didn't mention it previously, and she is very patient and thoughtful with all our questions. The weather was chilly and raining a bit but not as bad as was forecast. She gave us a short description of how she planned to go forward with our tour and we were off! Since the recent problems in Paris with Je suis Charlie the security has been ramped up at the entrance, we must put our purses through an airport type security machine. Our guide is well known to the various workers at all the sites we have been visiting so we are treated with less scrutiny, which is nice! All the arches that make up the lower floor are numbered there are 80 of them. The numbers signify where each person must enter. A person has a shard of pottery with their number on it and that doorway is the only one they are allowed to use for their lifetime and they are seated according to rank or position in society. The second tiers are also arches and originally a statue stood in each one, it was built in AD 72 and took 8years to construct. It was built on the site of Nero's palace on top of the artificial lake that was destroyed. Emperor Nero was a hated tyrant who had someone kill him (bizarre!) because he was so hated by the people. He had built an immense golden statue to himself, whose height rivalled the height of the coliseum. The gold was repurposed in the new building and in its place 3 pine trees were planted. These trees today stand outside the coliseum .....they are not pine trees as we know them, but they are pine trees nevertheless.
It is difficult to describe the coliseum, you can walk around on the upper levels and look down onto the arena where all manner of events took place, gladiators fighting each other, gladiators fighting wild lions and tigers, also prisoners were thrown in the arena and they met their execution in that way. There would even be women fighting each other. There were also markets and theatre events. There was always some event taking place. After an hour and a half we made our way to the Forum , we were able to walk among the ruins where the Romans had worked and lived. Julius Ceaser was cremated at this site and people still leave flowers and coins here especially at the ides of March , there isn't a grave as such. The forum site was the most important meeting place located in the Center of Rome and where all manner of life took place.
Our guide was the principal director of part of the site excavation in 2010 and her and her students made some important discoveries.
Our time with Christina came to an end.....our "3 hour tour" 🎶🎶🎶. We said our goodbyes and promised to share pictures. All of us were heading for the metro and lunch, which was highly recommended by friends of Sandy's , the Osteria Barberini. It was our most expensive lunch and parts of it were delicious........nothing ventured nothing gained and we are happy we had made the choice, black truffles a speciality were in season, and they were divine over pasta.
We then walked by the Trevi fountain on our way back to our hotel. The Trevi is under a massive restoration and is barely visible under the scaffolding but people are still lining up to walk past it, and we were no exception! It is the largest and most spectacular of Roman fountains, most well known and famous in the world. It stands 85 feet high and 65 feet wide.
We arrived at our hotel in time for Judy, Sandy, Marion, Joanie and Joan to attend 5:30 mass.
Jan and I took a rest! We were all still quite full from our big lunch and decided to forgo going out for dinner.
Tomorrow Judy, Marion and Joan are saying arrivederci to Rome and traveling homeward.
The pilgrims will be here for few more days.
We were off on our usual modus operandi, after our usual breakfast, into two taxi cabs. We were meeting our guide Christina at the metro station entrance outside the coliseum.
Christina has a PHD in archeology, in case I didn't mention it previously, and she is very patient and thoughtful with all our questions. The weather was chilly and raining a bit but not as bad as was forecast. She gave us a short description of how she planned to go forward with our tour and we were off! Since the recent problems in Paris with Je suis Charlie the security has been ramped up at the entrance, we must put our purses through an airport type security machine. Our guide is well known to the various workers at all the sites we have been visiting so we are treated with less scrutiny, which is nice! All the arches that make up the lower floor are numbered there are 80 of them. The numbers signify where each person must enter. A person has a shard of pottery with their number on it and that doorway is the only one they are allowed to use for their lifetime and they are seated according to rank or position in society. The second tiers are also arches and originally a statue stood in each one, it was built in AD 72 and took 8years to construct. It was built on the site of Nero's palace on top of the artificial lake that was destroyed. Emperor Nero was a hated tyrant who had someone kill him (bizarre!) because he was so hated by the people. He had built an immense golden statue to himself, whose height rivalled the height of the coliseum. The gold was repurposed in the new building and in its place 3 pine trees were planted. These trees today stand outside the coliseum .....they are not pine trees as we know them, but they are pine trees nevertheless.
It is difficult to describe the coliseum, you can walk around on the upper levels and look down onto the arena where all manner of events took place, gladiators fighting each other, gladiators fighting wild lions and tigers, also prisoners were thrown in the arena and they met their execution in that way. There would even be women fighting each other. There were also markets and theatre events. There was always some event taking place. After an hour and a half we made our way to the Forum , we were able to walk among the ruins where the Romans had worked and lived. Julius Ceaser was cremated at this site and people still leave flowers and coins here especially at the ides of March , there isn't a grave as such. The forum site was the most important meeting place located in the Center of Rome and where all manner of life took place.
Our guide was the principal director of part of the site excavation in 2010 and her and her students made some important discoveries.
Our time with Christina came to an end.....our "3 hour tour" 🎶🎶🎶. We said our goodbyes and promised to share pictures. All of us were heading for the metro and lunch, which was highly recommended by friends of Sandy's , the Osteria Barberini. It was our most expensive lunch and parts of it were delicious........nothing ventured nothing gained and we are happy we had made the choice, black truffles a speciality were in season, and they were divine over pasta.
We then walked by the Trevi fountain on our way back to our hotel. The Trevi is under a massive restoration and is barely visible under the scaffolding but people are still lining up to walk past it, and we were no exception! It is the largest and most spectacular of Roman fountains, most well known and famous in the world. It stands 85 feet high and 65 feet wide.
We arrived at our hotel in time for Judy, Sandy, Marion, Joanie and Joan to attend 5:30 mass.
Jan and I took a rest! We were all still quite full from our big lunch and decided to forgo going out for dinner.
Tomorrow Judy, Marion and Joan are saying arrivederci to Rome and traveling homeward.
The pilgrims will be here for few more days.
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Vatican, Sistine Chapel and RAIN
This morning the weather report was, shall we say.....unfavourable. We started off in the breakfast room with a nice breakfast but horrid coffee...I guess we have to learn how to Order it. It can't be the Italians !!!! Aren't they famous for their coffee?
We ordered two taxi's to meet us at the gate ( our hotel is completely gated) and learned that as soon as you order a cab the meter starts ticking. Anyway the cab from our hotel, which is in the Trastevere area, to the Vatican is 15 euros.
We had booked a tour and a guide from home, which was fortunate as the lineup to purchase a ticket wound around the block and was about 10 people wide! The temperature was frigid as well.
Our guide had not yet arrived and Sandy went to pick up the tickets, Oops, once we were given the tickets we HAD to move along inside. We had now moved from Italy into the country that is the Vatican! Security is strict and no leniency is shown, rules are rules. Inside we went and waited for our guide, women's intuition kicked in and we found each other quickly.
She explained the rules to us, where we could talk, and where we could not! Where we could take photos etc. Christine (guide) has a phd in art history and was so knowledgeable, there was not a question she could not answer.
She was pleased to be guiding seven women as she knew when the group was made up of both men and women, the men did not want to stay so long! We would be with her for over 3 hours.
The truth is the Vatican is so impressive you end up being in awe and have a case of information overload. Even though it is January there are still a good amount of people, not, of course what the crowds would be in the summer. The average number of visitors per day is 26,000! The Vatican city is divided into different principal areas, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peters Basilica, the Vatican museum.
The many paintings that align the walls and ceilings are minus the artist signatures. It is forbidden to sign the frescos as well, because of the jealousy it would cause between artists. An artist would paint themselves into the painting and you could tell who he was in the painting as he would be looking directly out of the scene like a portrait.
When we entered the Sistine chapel our guide told us she would not be able to talk to us as talking was forbidden. The floor of the chapel was quite busy with tourists, as we entered several guards were at the entrance and every few minutes would yell out "silence! No photos, no videos, silence!" Respect for this reverent area. All the important christian scenes were depicted on the walls, ceiling and floors. The Sistine Chapel is used for some special ceremonies or whenever the Pope desires to close it for his use. Once a year, usually around the date of epiphany, Jan 6th, a christening of 40 persons (babies) is held, 20 females and 20 males. These children are from employees of the Vatican or anyone can make a written request to ask for a place.
The new Pope Francis is truly a pope for the common people. He does not live in the Vatican apartments as all popes before him have done, instead he has elected to live in a hotel within the Vatican, a two bedroom more simple apartment in the santa Maria hotel. It is believed he will make more changes to simplify the existence of the cardinals and bishops that serve the Vatican.
The Basilica of St Peter is the largest basilica in the world, in the main entrance hall on the floor depicted to scale is a design of every major cathedral in the world, with their measurements noted, and they would all fit inside the area of St Peters Basilica!
We spent about 3 1/2 hours viewing all the masterpieces today and the information is quite impossible to retain it all, which is available in the many books and on line.
We left the Vatican and were met with the predicted rain, we found a little place for lunch and afterwards walked back to our hotel to dry out! Stopping at a little bakery on the way.
Relaxing and recharging for awhile, enjoying tea in our rooms. We met up in the hotel lounge for a few games of charades then braved the torrential rain and a three minute walk to a cosy local restaurant recommended by our hotel......for a mere 10 euros each we enjoyed a light meal and small glass of wine with complimentary Prosecco and limoncello ! Just a small shot of each!
Then it was bed and blogging!
Ciao!!!!
We ordered two taxi's to meet us at the gate ( our hotel is completely gated) and learned that as soon as you order a cab the meter starts ticking. Anyway the cab from our hotel, which is in the Trastevere area, to the Vatican is 15 euros.
We had booked a tour and a guide from home, which was fortunate as the lineup to purchase a ticket wound around the block and was about 10 people wide! The temperature was frigid as well.
Our guide had not yet arrived and Sandy went to pick up the tickets, Oops, once we were given the tickets we HAD to move along inside. We had now moved from Italy into the country that is the Vatican! Security is strict and no leniency is shown, rules are rules. Inside we went and waited for our guide, women's intuition kicked in and we found each other quickly.
She explained the rules to us, where we could talk, and where we could not! Where we could take photos etc. Christine (guide) has a phd in art history and was so knowledgeable, there was not a question she could not answer.
She was pleased to be guiding seven women as she knew when the group was made up of both men and women, the men did not want to stay so long! We would be with her for over 3 hours.
The truth is the Vatican is so impressive you end up being in awe and have a case of information overload. Even though it is January there are still a good amount of people, not, of course what the crowds would be in the summer. The average number of visitors per day is 26,000! The Vatican city is divided into different principal areas, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peters Basilica, the Vatican museum.
The many paintings that align the walls and ceilings are minus the artist signatures. It is forbidden to sign the frescos as well, because of the jealousy it would cause between artists. An artist would paint themselves into the painting and you could tell who he was in the painting as he would be looking directly out of the scene like a portrait.
When we entered the Sistine chapel our guide told us she would not be able to talk to us as talking was forbidden. The floor of the chapel was quite busy with tourists, as we entered several guards were at the entrance and every few minutes would yell out "silence! No photos, no videos, silence!" Respect for this reverent area. All the important christian scenes were depicted on the walls, ceiling and floors. The Sistine Chapel is used for some special ceremonies or whenever the Pope desires to close it for his use. Once a year, usually around the date of epiphany, Jan 6th, a christening of 40 persons (babies) is held, 20 females and 20 males. These children are from employees of the Vatican or anyone can make a written request to ask for a place.
The new Pope Francis is truly a pope for the common people. He does not live in the Vatican apartments as all popes before him have done, instead he has elected to live in a hotel within the Vatican, a two bedroom more simple apartment in the santa Maria hotel. It is believed he will make more changes to simplify the existence of the cardinals and bishops that serve the Vatican.
The Basilica of St Peter is the largest basilica in the world, in the main entrance hall on the floor depicted to scale is a design of every major cathedral in the world, with their measurements noted, and they would all fit inside the area of St Peters Basilica!
We spent about 3 1/2 hours viewing all the masterpieces today and the information is quite impossible to retain it all, which is available in the many books and on line.
We left the Vatican and were met with the predicted rain, we found a little place for lunch and afterwards walked back to our hotel to dry out! Stopping at a little bakery on the way.
Relaxing and recharging for awhile, enjoying tea in our rooms. We met up in the hotel lounge for a few games of charades then braved the torrential rain and a three minute walk to a cosy local restaurant recommended by our hotel......for a mere 10 euros each we enjoyed a light meal and small glass of wine with complimentary Prosecco and limoncello ! Just a small shot of each!
Then it was bed and blogging!
Ciao!!!!
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