Trip to Rome, Italy - July 2005
A short
summary
This trip report will focus on the trip that my wife Nikki and I took to
Rome in the period from July 2nd - 7th 2005. We targeted out places that we
wanted to see during our trip. On our list was the usual stuff such as the
Vatican, Pantheon, Piazza di Spagna, Colosseum, Forum, Capitol etc. With all
of this on the list there was no rest for the wicked :-) The trip report is
split into sections. This first part has a focus on our stay in Rome, the
second part will focus on eating and
drinking in Rome, third page will have
more pictures and the last page contains a
short review of the hotel we used. Please get in touch
if you have any questions or comments. All pictures are taken by Nikki and
Gard with our Canon Powershot S1 IS camera. Click here to check out my
Rome Google map.
Prelude
A couple of years back we went to
Milan and Venice and we
had a great time there. I guess we decided that we had to return one day to
check out some other Italian cities and especially Rome. After all Rome is
one of the classical destinations along with places like
Paris,
New York City,
London etc. Our chance came when we
were invited to a wedding in London. From London it is pretty easy to
organize trips to other world destinations and for once we started planning
early :-)
Planning the
trip
Our initial plan was to fly from Stavanger to London to take part in a
wedding and then use Ryanair to get to Rome and just book a hotel on the
web. But after our trip to Japan we checked out Expedia options again. We
ended up with a package deal from
www.expedia.co.uk. As
always it is tricky to know which area of the city to stay in when you don’t
know the place. We posted in different forums and also read the Eyewitness
guide book that we bought from www.amazon.co.uk
The trip
begins
After a short stop in London we had to get up at the crack of dawn to catch
our flight at 07.45 am from Heathrow. We stayed at Sheraton Skyline Heathrow
(should not be confused with Sheraton Heathrow) and they had one of the best
beds I have ever experienced in a hotel. But it doesn’t help much when you
have to get up before 5 am. The Sheraton Skyline hotel is not far from the
airport but you still have to pay 3 £ per person for the
Hoppa service. Most Heathrow hotels do not have a shuttle bus service,
so the Hoppa, which stops at Heathrow’s terminals, can be used to get to an
airport hotel. After this trip we have come to the conclusion that Heathrow
is a lousy international airport. The airport seems like a labyrinth at
times, finding the bus service can be tricky, information services people
that we asked for help were less than friendly, the traffic outside some of
the terminals were ridiculous etc. But enough complaining about the Heathrow
airport. We did eventually get on board our
Alitalia flight and
we got a nice breakfast after take off together with some of the best coffee
(airline and otherwise) we have ever tasted - and this is not based purely
on the fact that we were half asleep and in need of a jolt.
Arriving in
Rome
After a couple of hour’s flight we landed at
Leonardo da Vinci airport
also known as Fiumicino (FCO). It was only about 10 am but the
temperature was already about 30 degrees Celsius (about 85 degrees
Fahrenheit). Getting through immigration and customs was quick and painless
and we dragged our suitcases towards the trains. According to our guidebook
it should be possible to take the metro into Rome but we didn’t see much of
this option at the airport. We decided to go for the Leonardo Express
which takes you from the airport to Termini for 9.50 € per person. The trip
only takes about 30 minutes but after riding the Shinkansen in
Japan I’m not sure that I want
to call the Leonardo Express an express train…it didn’t go that fast :-)
Since the hotel is located near the Termini train station we decided to just walk to the hotel. We arrived on track 28 which is located at the back end of the main station entrance, and followed the exit signs until we ended up in the street. The Termini station turned out to be huge and walking to our hotel took a bit of time…especially when the navigator gets his bearings wrong (yes, I was carrying the map). But instead of sweating outside of the Termini I would advise you to follow the Metro signs instead of the Exit signs when getting of the Leonard Express. This will take you towards the front of the Termini station and there is even a conveyer belt on a lower level. I normally don’t mind dragging my Samsonite along but in Rome it got a bit long and it was already quite warm.
How to get
around
The hotel we stayed at was near the Termini station which makes it a part of
the Quirinal area…it is actually one of the original 7 hills of Rome.
Getting around in Rome was not that difficult. The inner city of Rome is not
that big so it is possible to cover a lot of the city on foot. It was quite
easy to take the bus around and if you live in the Termini area you should
remember that there is an open air bus station in front of the main Termini
entrance. There’s an information booth which even has a sign listing all the
different sights and which bus to catch. Tickets can be bought for 1 € at a
machine or newspaper stand,which is then fed into a stamping machine when
you board the bus. Note that you can’t buy the tickets on board the bus
itself! I guess we should have bought a bus pass or something like that but
we didn’t ask and no signs mentioned it. Trying to take the bus back to
Termini was also easy but the only trouble was finding a ticket machine or
open newsstand. So I hate to admit it…but a few nights we did catch the bus
back without a valid ticket - and we were certainly not alone in this :-)
Our main bus routes were 64 and 40 as they leave from Termini to Piazza
Venezia, past stops where you can jump off to reach Piazza Navona and
Pantheon and then across the Tiber to the Vatican. There are lots of
warnings about pickpockets on these buses but we never experienced anything
while riding the bus. There was a day when we took the bus and Nikki tried
to save me a seat while I was going to the machine to get the tickets
stamped. Some ‘lady’ came over and indicated that she was going to sit down.
Nikki tried to tell her that she was saving the seat for me and she was
pointing at me standing just a couple of meters away. But the ‘lady’ didn’t
want to listen to that at all and she just grabbed the seat. That would be
considered a bit rude here at home but I guess the rules are different in
Italy :-) It was not a big problem for me because it was a short bus ride.
Rome also has a Metro system (here is a subway map) but we didn’t really take it that much since it didn’t include stops nearby the places of interest. Our guide book didn’t really have a good Metro map (shame on you Eyewitness guides) so we were not really aware of how extensive it was. But taking the metro is just as easy as metros in NYC, Tokyo, Paris etc. The tickets were 1 € and just be sure to catch the train in the right direction. It is easy to get from Termini to places like Piazza di Spagna (Spanish Steps) and Colosseum. We felt a bit uneasy when we got off at the Termini station and the police were there with big German Shepards that were sniffing people up for drugs and whatnot.
There is a lot
of talk about Roman (and Italian) drivers being a bit…eh..agressive :-) But
we didn’t have that much trouble when walking around in Rome. In bigger
intersections there are traffic lights …but remember the green man doesn’t
last very long…and it was the first time I experienced that there was not
only a green and a red man…but also an orange man. I guess that indicates
“You better hurry up” :-) I found it quite amusing to read the guidebook’s
guide to crossing the street in Rome “Step purposefully into the road,
facing approaching motorists with a determined glare”. Trust me…it was not
that bad but you better keep and eye on the traffic because the pedestrians
are not the boss around the streets of Rome.
Sightseeing
in Rome
We didn’t stay long at the hotel before we got into the streets and under
the blazing sun. Sightseeing in Rome is hard, man! It is hard to come to
terms with the fact (even when reading a guidebook) that there is so much to
see and do in the ‘Eternal City’. I think I now understand why it is called
the eternal city…the history stretched so far back that it puts everything
else into perspective. E.g. when the Roman Empire starts to “collapse” in
the third century we had only come to the Iron Age here in Norway. In
Stavanger there is a reconstruction of an
Iron Age farm
and it is not nearly as impressive as Rome…and it would still be another 400
hundred years before the Vikings had their glory days. If you want to read
more about the Roman Empire check out this page:
http://www.roman-empire.net.
But
let’s get back to sightseeing in Rome. The hotel is located only a few
minutes walk away from the church Santa Maria Maggiore. Parts of the
church date back to the 5th century and I guess in most other cities it
would have been a main attraction. But in Rome it has to “compete” with so
many other amazing building so there were hardly any tourists there.
According to one source the church has been decorated with some of the first
gold Christopher Columbus brought back from America. We only walked around
and we found a tourist information stand where we picked up a free map made
in connection with TrambusOpen. This company runs double-decker buses around
Rome and the map shows the routes but it also shows the points of interest
in an excellent way. We were thinking of taking this on the first day to get
an overview of the city. But the bus routes had been changed due to the
Live8 concert so we never got around to taking it. I think the price for a
day is about 15 € but the buses seemed quite crowded (at least on the open
air upper deck).
We walked down
Via Cavour (a bit more quiet compared to the parallel Via Nazionale)
as it seemed to lead down towards the centre of town. It didn’t take long
before we started seeing some ruins when looking into the side streets on
our left hand side. Nikki and I were both like “Is that….??”….and yes, we
were starting to get the first few glimpses of the Colosseum. But I
think we were even more stunned when we came to Via dei fori Imperiali. This
street was laid out by Benito Mussolini in the 1930’s and it connects Piazza
del Colosseo with Piazza Venezia. Here you also get a great lookout point
over the Forum (Forum Romanum) and Palatine areas. Most of the Forum is in
ruins today but this was the heart of ancient Rome. I’m not sure why but it
is quite breathtaking to look out over this area and realize that this is
one of the places where our modern civilization started.
Collosseum
(Flavian Amphitheater)
I
think most people have heard about the Collosseum (also known as Colosseo)
through history lessons or movies (like Gladiator). It was commissioned by
Emperor Vespasian and when it opened in about 80 AD it could hold about
55.000 to 85.000 people (the numbers vary a lot). The “real” name is
actually Flavian Amphitheater (due to the Flavian emperors at the time) but
it was later called Colosseo due to a colossal statue of Nero which was
located at the amphitheater in ancient times. Well, the rest is history I
guess. As most of you know the Collosseum became home to gladiator fights,
exotic animals fighting etc. But over the years this beautiful building
declined due to earthquakes, pillaging (the Vatican was supposedly also
built with parts of the Colloseum’s marble)etc. But even today it is
possible to imagine how amazing it must have been when it was
complete…standing 188 x 156 meters and 50 meters high.
We
came to Piazza del Colosseo early in the morning on bus 75 and we
were not sure if we were going for a tour or not. But then a woman came up
to us and asked us and it was due to start it only 5 minutes and it also
included a tour in the Forum and Palatine area. So we agreed and we paid
about 18 € per person (where 10 € is the entry fee to the Colosseo itself).
We started by listening to our guide on the outside and she told us the
history of the building…I’m not sure if I found here narrating amusing or
very annoying…but we did get quite a lot of information. You may want to
consider a guided tour where the guide has a microphone and you can hear
them through headphones - makes it easier to hear over the commentary of
other tourists. In the end we were taken into the Collosseum and we didn’t
have to line up to get in. Some say that it is a bit of an anti-climax to
come inside the Collosseum. Sure, if you expect to see interior like in
“Gladiator” :-) But we knew that there were more ruins waiting for us inside
but I still found it spectacular. Remember to find the stairs and get to the
higher lever, enjoy the view and try to imagine what it must have been like
with 50.000 spectators :-)
There
are stalls selling cold drinks right on the outside of the entrance to the
Collosseum but it is of course more expensive compared to crossing the road
to the Spar. Near tourist attractions you end up paying about 1 € for a
small bottle of water while you can get a 2 litre bottle for about 0.5 € at
the grocery store. There were also quite a few beggars around. One lady was
walking with a stick and she was bent so far forward that she looked like
she was about to fall over. This position also hid her face. There is
nothing funny about people begging but this became a bit comical because
kids started getting curious so they were bending over too to get a glimpse
of the beggar’s face.
The
Roman
Forum (Forum Romanum)
After
we had been to the Collosseum we had a self made snack with ingredients
bought at the Spar. The guided tour of the
Forum
and Palatine, which was included in the Colloseum tour we bought, started
shortly thereafter. We started our tour with the Arch of Constantine
which is located right next to the Collosseum. From there we moved up Via
Sacre (the sacred way) where it is still possible to see the marks made by
chariots. This road used to be the route taken for religious and triumphal
processions towards the capitol.
The
tour didn’t last that long but we were taken to the Arch of Titus and we
moved up to the Palatine hill. This hill is where legend has it that Romulus
and Remus were brought up by a wolf and it later became the location of
palaces to the Flavian emperors. At the edge of the Faranese Gardens you get
a great view of the Forum. After the tour we walked around the Palatine area
on our own. Today most of the area is in ruins but it is possible to see
that this must have been spectacular when it was complete. From Domus
Augustana - where the Roman emperors used to live - to Domus Flavia that
were used for public functions. From the south side (from Domus Augustana)
you get a great view towards Circo Massimo (Circus Maximus). This used to be
the largest stadium in Rome but today it is just a grass field…and when we
were there - home of the Live8 concert in Rome.
After
we had walked on the Palatine hill we returned to the Forum area to check it
out further. I will not go into details about the ruins that you find in the
Forum. Take a few hours and walk through the area with a good guidebook or
get a guide to show you around. In the area you will find ruins like
basilica of Constantine and Maxentius, Rostra, Temple of Saturn, Temple of
Castor and Pollux, House of the Vestal Virgins, temple of Vespasian, temple
of Julius Caesar etc. The list goes on and on actually and it seems like
they are still working on excavations on different locations.
Tip! I think that the ticket you buy at the Collosseum is also valid to enter Palatine. You can also buy a ticket to enter Palatine and use this at the Collosseum. This is probably the smartest as the line is always longer at the Collosseum ticket counter.
Capitol
If
you are up for more after covering Colloseum, Palatine and Forum you can
walk to Capitol which is located right next to the Forum area. According to
the guidebook this was the centre of the Roman world (hence then name
capital, I guess :-) and even today this is the home for the people in
power…today it is the home of the city council. We walked up to Capitol from
the Forum side and we walked past the remains of the temple of Juipiter,
past Tarpeian rock where traitors where thrown of the cliff to their death
in ancient times and we ended up in the famous Piazza del Campidoglio.
The
square was designed by Michelangelo and in the middle of the geometric lines
there is a big statue of Marcus Aurelius on a horse. The piazza faces west
and as you go down the great staircase you can see towards the Vatican and
St. Peter’s. The piazza itself was pretty crowded when we were there but the
Capitoline museums were not. The museums are called Palazzo Nuovo
and Palazzo dei Conservatori and are amongst the top tourist
attractions in Rome. To enter you have to pay 7.80 € per person - you need
to have the exact change. We started out looking for the rest room and that
was tricky to find. We kept asking guards and they pointed up and down
stairs….in the end it got pretty frustrating but we found it in the end.
The
museum contains statues, frescos, paintings etc and it is easy to get
overwhelmed by all the stuff on display. I have a hard time getting over the
fact that there are that many ancient pieces that are so well made. Like the
bronze sculpture called Spinario. This sculpture is a piece that dates back
to the 1st century BC! And there are also the remains of a huge statue of
Constantine in the courtyard that dates back to the 4th century. The statue
of Marcus Aurelius in the Piazza del Campidoglio is actually a copy. The
original 2nd century statue can be found in Palazzo Nuovo.
Across
the road (Via dei fori Imperiali) from Forum you can see the remains of the
Trajan’s market. Built in the early 2nd century AD by emperor Trajan
this complex contained 150 shops and offices and I guess you can call it the
shopping mall of that time. I’m not sure if it is possible to get a tour of
this place…I can’t remember seeing any people there the times we walked
passed but according to the guidebook it should be possible to enter this
site.
Vittorio Emanuele II monument
When
you stand on Piazza Venezia there is one thing that dominates the
view…the Vittorio Emanuele II monument. In fact it doesn’t only dominate
the view but it also blocks the view to the Forum and Capitol area. And due
to its white marble it sticks out, to say the least :-) This monument has
gotten many insulting nicknames, according to our guidebook, but I think it
looks kinda nice even if it seems to be misplaced amongst all the ruins in
the area. You can relax on the edge of the big fountains on each side or you
can climb the stairs (not sit on them) and go up to enjoy the views of the
surrounding areas. Hey, at least it is free :-)
Pantheon
Already
on the first day we walked from our hotel, past Forum, past Piazza Venezia
and it didn’t take us long to get on the track of the Pantheon. We
did have a map in the guidebook that we used but there are also a few street
signs around Rome pointing towards the main attractions such as the Trevi
fountain, Pantheon etc.
We
walked through some less crowded streets and passed a funny looking obelisk.
It turned out to be obelisk of Santa Maria sopra Minerva by Bernini. When we
came to the Pantheon it didn’t look like much from the outside.
We approached from the back and on
one of the walls a homeless guy was taking a very restful siesta. But in
front of the church there were a lot more people. The Piazza della
Rotonda was filled with tourists taking pictures and people resting on
the steps of the fountain.
The
entrance to the church is free and it looks better inside.
The main light comes from a hole in
the dome itself (known as the oculus) and it provides a nice atmosphere
inside. There is not much inside the dome…apart from tombs along the edges
of the wall. You will find the tomb of Raphael amongst others. When we were
there they were doing some sort of refurbishing to the interior of the dome,
so parts of it were covered up. But it was still nice to have a look inside
and it is hard to imagine that the walls that are supporting the dome are 6
meter thick. It must have been quite an engineering achievement as this was
built in 118 AD!
The
area around the Pantheon is buzzing with life. The fountain in the piazza in
front of the Pantheon has freaky looking creatures squirting water :-) And
along the edges of the piazza there are restaurants and coffee shops. One of
the most famous coffee shops is
Tazza d’Oro. The first time we went in there I wanted to try out an
espresso so I said “caffe” as you are supposed to. But then he asked me back
“freddo?”. He caught me of guard and I couldn’t remember what freddo meant
so I said “Sure, why not” :-) Well, for all of you that don’t know Italian
freddo means cold and when I got to the counter that is what I got…a shot
glass of ice cold coffee :-) We tried the (hot) espresso later on and it was
good. I also recommend trying the ice coffee (no, not the caffe freddo). The
ice coffee seemed to be crushed ice mixed with coffee and then topped with
whipped cream. Sounds a bit strange but it was very tasty and very rich.
The
Trevi
fountain
Rome
has an amazing amount of fountains and one of the most famous one is the
Trevi fountain. According to what I have heard it was made famous by
Fellini's movie "La Dolce Vita". I haven’t seen the movie but I think most
people will understand why it is so popular when they get there because it
is huge and beautiful. The only problem is of course that every other
tourist in Rome seems to be there too and it was crowded each time we passed
it (day and night).
The
legend has it that if you throw a coin into this fountain it guarantees your
return to Rome…hmmm, I have to admit that we never got around to that but I
do hope that I will return to Rome one day anyway. But there are lots of
people that do throw in coins and a few years back there was a homeless guy
that made a (good) living out of collecting the coins at night. And in the
end there was a trial about whether he should be allowed to do this or not
:-) The Trevi fountain is well worth a visit but remember that it will
probably be quite crowded so it is hard to take good pictures of the place.
Piazza
Navona
We
walked past Piazza Navona a few times during our stay in Rome. We had most
of our dinners in this area (read about it the
Eating and drinking section) and it was quite easy to get there. We took bus no. 64 or 40 and jumped
of at Largo Argentina. This place is also the site of Area Sacra where you
will find some of the oldest ruins in Rome and where Julius Caesar was
murdered in 44 BC. Today there is a cat sanctuary in one of the corners so
there are cats all over the ruins :-)
Back
to the Piazza Navona…the shape of the piazza is long and thin and
this is due to the fact that it is built on the ground of an old
circus…Circus Domitianus). The piazza is today very lively as it has lots of
restaurants along the edges and there are lots of people trying to sell
everything from blinking flying saucers to fake brand name hand bags. In the
middle of the piazza you will find the most spectacular of the fountains in
the piazza: Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (fountain of the 4 rivers)
designed by Bernini. According to the guidebook the 4 giants represents the
great rivers of the time (Ganges, Danube, Nile and River Plate).
Spanish
Steps
Not
far from Piazza Navona we found another famous landmark in Rome: the Spanish
steps. It took us a few days before we prioritized going there but after we
had been to the Vatican one day we just walked over past Piazza Navona and
we continued walking towards Piazza di Spagna. It was not that hard
to tell when we approached the piazza as it was getting quite crowded. After
walking through some of Rome it was nice to sit down on the steps (even if
the stone was quite warm from the blazing sun) and relax and look at all the
people.
I’m
not sure if I would call the Spanish steps a disappointment but if you are
only in Rome for a short period of time then it shouldn’t be at the top of
the list. As with the other main attractions in Rome it was of course quite
crowded and it was even hard to see the fountain at the bottom of the steps
as there were so many people resting on it. If you want to get some shopping
done you can try the area around the Spanish steps…but I guess you have to
be prepared to cough up a bit of money as the shops along the streets
include the likes of Gucci, Max Mara, Salvatore Ferragamo, Giorgio Armani
and Louis Vuitton :-) We didn’t stay that long in the area…for us it was
quite easy to get back to the hotel as there is a metro station right by the
piazza and it is only a couple of stops away from Termini.
Walking
around – Campo di Fiori and Trastevere
Even
though we didn’t have that much time in Rome we did take a walk to cover
bits of the city that we hadn’t been to. We started out in the Campo di
Fiori area and we walked Via Giulia which was laid out by Bramante. We
walked by some very nice civilian police cars and we thought it was strange
that the police drive around in big BMW’s. But it turned out to be the
station for fighting against organized crime - that was our cue to pick up
the pace a bit :-)
There
must have been some wealthy people living in this area because some of the
houses (or Palazzos) had frescoed facades. Like Palazzo Ricci where the
façade is nice but very faded. But we also passed Palazzo Farnese built for
the guy who became Pope Paul III in 1534. Today it is the home of the French
embassy and it has been this since 1635! We also stopped by piazza Campo di
Fiori where we had an excellent lunch at Forno Campo di Fiori (check out
more details in the Eating and drinking in Rome
section). In the piazza there
is a market so we even had some strawberries for dessert. The Norwegian ones
are better but the Italian fragola was a nice substitute :-)
We continued to walk until we came to the Tiber again and we crossed it
using Ponte Sisto to get into the area Trastevere. The bridge was
commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV …the same guy who had the Sistine chapel
built. According to the guidebook he was behind a lot of building and
restoration around Rome and it got him into financial trouble and in the end
he had to levy a tax on the prostitutes to raise more money :-) We found the
area around the bridge to be a bit dodgy. When we crossed it there were a
couple of people begging for money and a strange looking guy walking around
with a dog that didn’t look too pleasant. The Trastevere area has a
reputation of being the home of the most authentic Romans - whatever that
is. We didn’t walk around that much in the area but it looked very nice with
narrow streets laid down with cobble stone and it was also very quiet since
there wasn’t that much traffic around.
The Vatican
One of the things I was looking forward to was the visit to the Vatican. No,
I’m not very religious but who has not heard about the Sistine Chapel, St.
Peter’s Church, the Pope etc :-) I guess it has all become much more “famous”
after Dan Brown’s book “Angels & Demons” (yes, I have read it but that was
long before I knew I was going to Rome). After we had finished the
tour at the Palatine we saw another tour group and we asked for a brochure.
The company was called “Discover Rome” and one of their selling points is
guides that are native English speaking.
We got up really early to get to the assembly point near the Vatican at 8.15
am. We took bus no. 40 as usual and we got there just in time. And no, you
don’t have to bring your passport to enter the Vatican :-) The line outside
the Vatican museum was already starting to grow so we all got into the line
and we were told by the guides to keep a tight formation to avoid people
cutting into the line. The museum entrance is located on the right hand side
of St. Peter’s …follow Via di porta Angelica from St. Peter’s square to get
there. We paid 30 € for the tour and 12 € for the entrance itself. There
also seemed to be the possibility of hiring the museum’s own guided tour
headsets. Even though we got there early it took about an hour before we got
in and the security is about as tight as most airports.
Tip! The sun is strong even in the morning and it gets hot really fast. Remember to bring some water as water at nearby kiosks costs 1 € for a small bottle. And remember that there is a dress code when going into churches…no shorts or sleeveless tops allowed. So I love my convertible pants on days like that :-) Our tour lasted quite long (until about 2 pm) so remember to bring along something to nibble on and something to drink so that you don’t loose interest in the tour. After the tour there are places to eat around the tour assembly point (Piazza Risorgimento).
Our
guide Tony was pretty good and he was also quite amusing and we got lots of
details that I don’t think we would have found in the guidebook. But he was
also a bit full of it. When one kid outside our group started questioning
some facts, Tony got into a discussion with him and in the end Tony said “I
have a PhD on this subject”…end of discussion in other words :-)
Our guided tour of the
Vatican Museum started out in a court yard where we
took a look at posters that showed what to expect once we got to the Sistine
Chapel. Then we started the tour itself and we got to see statues, painting,
frescos etc. As in the Louvre it is easy to get totally overwhelmed so
Tony focused on some pieces in each hall.
One of the pieces that I remember
the best is probably
Laocöon. This 1st century AD statue shows the Trojan
priest Laocöon fighting with sea serpents to protect his sons. The details
on the statue are just stunning. Just look at the muscles, the veins and the
rib cage.
All of this makes the statue look alive. Along the route there are
lots of rooms that impressed us.
Breathtaking paintings in the ceiling,
floor mosaics etc. Another room that impressed me was the Gallery of maps.
Not only is it amazing with a 120 meter long room with an amazing ceiling.
But the walls also contain maps that show Italian cities and places in the
1500s and it is so detailed. You can see aqueducts, buildings, trees etc.
And then you have the Raphael rooms of course which contains beautiful
frescos. I guess most people have their favourite but I enjoyed the “Room of
the Segnatura” and the piece “School of Athens”. Not only is it beautiful
and in amazing colours (remember that it was done around 1510…only a few
years after Columbus sailed to America) but in this piece Raphael has also
included portraits of fellow artists at the time such as Michelangelo,
Leonardo da Vinci and Bramante. Check out
this
page for more information about the Vatican museum.
The highlight of the entire tour is the
Sistine Chapel (Cappella Sistina).
There are works of arts on the walls and in the ceiling but Michelangelo’s
ceiling that is the famous attraction. When we got in, the chapel was really
crowded and there was a buzzing sound caused by all the people talking to
each other about the frescos. What was really noisy was the guards (that
looked constantly peeved) going “shhhhhh” when they caught someone speaking
and from time to time there would be an announcement over the loudspeakers
informing people in different languages to be quiet and photography was not
allowed. The guards would also clap and shout when they found people taking
pictures or filming. In my opinion it is silly that it is not allowed to
take pictures because most people were trying anyway. But even if there were
a few distractions it is still safe to say that the Sistine chapel is quite
breathtaking. The ceiling is made up of many small frescos that show stories
from the bible and was made around 1510. The Last Judgment on the one wall
is also quite amazing and Michelangelo worked on this piece between 1536 and
1541. My advice is to forget about taking ‘forbidden’ pictures while you are
there…just look and be amazed :-). And then you can take a
virtual tour of the
chapel on this page.
By this point we were a bit exhausted as we had seen treasures like nowhere
else. But we were not done with the tour yet. The last building we were
going to visit was St. Peter’s basilica (Basilica di San Pietro)…the world’s
biggest church. The size of the church is just amazing. The church was built
on the site of St. Peter’s tomb and some claim that his remains are still
kept in the church but I doubt it - the body of one of the founding father’s
of the catholic church so ‘freely’ accessible?. Tony took us to some of the
unique pieces like Pietà the marble statue by Michelangelo from 1499.
But it
was very tricky to take good pictures due to the crowds, the light and the
fact that it is kept behind a glass wall. It was a bit hard to keep up with
Tony as my eyes constantly glided towards the huge dome (also by
Michelangelo) and the rays of light that came in through the windows created
an almost divine effect (holy spirit shining down on us?).
It
is hard to really understand the size of the dome until you see the people
that are walking around up there. Other pieces that are beautiful are the
throne of St. Peter in glory by Bernini and the 20 meter high baldacchino
(also by Bernini). We also stopped by something that looked like a big
painting. It turned out to be a copy of Raphael’s Altar of
Transfiguration…and if you walk really close you will see that this is fact
a mosaic! It took six people 9 years to finish this piece in 1767. We did
walk around in there for quite a while but I think this is a place you can
return to and always find something new. I have to admit that we didn’t go
up in Dome to enjoy the view and I regret that. But hey we have to save
something for a later visit as well :-) I would also like to do the Scavi
tour to see the excavations of the Necropolis (City of the Dead) beneath St.
Peter's. Please
check
out this page for more information about the church.
In the Vatican you’re a bound to notice the
Swiss guards. These are the protectors of the Vatican and the Pope
and this is a concept that dates back to the 1500s when Pope Julius invited
Helvetian soldiers to join the small Vatican army. Today there are certain
criteria that need to be fulfilled in order to join this force: you have to
be: Swiss, catholic (of course), have attended military school in
Switzerland, at least 174 cm tall, single etc. I find it fascinating that
someone volunteers to join a force where you have to dress up like a clown.
I’m sorry, but I can’t help think that their colourful outfits must make it
difficult to get respect from visitors. We saw quite a number of people
posing with the guards and some of them didn’t look that pleased with being
a side show for tourists. Dan Brown, author of Angels & Demons, claims that
it was Michelangelo that designed the uniforms but if you check out the
official page of the Swiss guard you will find out the truth :-)
We
also returned to the Vatican at a later stage to participate in the general
Papal Audience held every Wednesday from 11:00am. We didn’t get any tickets
to get seats but we just showed up on the St. Peter’s square a few minutes
before the “show”. The square was not that crowded actually but there must
have been a few thousand people there. The square itself is quite a sight
with the obelisk in the middle (brought to Rome by Emperor Caligula in 37
AD), two large fountains and the surrounding colonnade with the statue of
140 saints.
In
connection with the papal audience there were several larger TV screens that
were set up around the square. And after an introduction in different
languages Pope Benedictus XVI came into the square on his car and he was
driven around in the middle of the crowds. I hope that I don’t offend anyone
by saying this, but it was more or less like being at a concert and the Pope
was the star. The Pope ended up at the Church’s entrance and held his speech
in different languages (French, Italian, Spanish, German, and English) -
pretty impressive, I think. We didn’t stay for the whole ceremony but it was
an interesting experience. Take a look at the
Vatican page for more
information.
Castel Sant'Angelo
This old castle and fortress is located not far from the Vatican. It is
located right by the Tiber River and it is hard to miss as you cross the
bridge Ponte Vittorio Emmanuel II when taking the bus to the Vatican. After
we had been to the Papal audience we walked over and paid 5€ per person to
enter it. The contrasts in the castle are quite remarkable.
From the lower
parts where you have dungeon like halls and rooms to the upper levels with
beautiful renaissance rooms. The castle was originally built as a mausoleum
for Emperor Hadrian in 139 AD. But over the years it has been everything
from the residence for the Pope to a prison, to fortress etc. Once we got
inside we were taken up through a spiral ramp before we got to a staircase
that seemed to run through the entire building.
The staircase (known as
staircase of Alexander VI) takes you to the upper levels where you find
court yards and we eventually came to the rooftop terrace where we got a
great view over the city. As we stood beneath the big bronze statue of
Archangel Michael we could see over to St. Peter’s church and also had a
great view towards Victor Emmanuel monument and the roof up the Pantheon
(which looks a bit strange seen from this angle). There are also a lot of
rooms that contain beautiful frescos and you can even get to see the Pope’s
bedroom on the route :-) And if you get hungry there is a small café on the
upper levels :-)
Time to go home
On the last afternoon in Rome we went to the Termini station to buy tickets
for the Leonardo Express so that we could be ready the next morning (since
we had a really early flight). We also checked when the trains started
running and which track it would leave from. So on July 7th we got up at the
crack of dawn and we walked over to track 28 to take the train where we
arrived a few days before. But when we came there it turned out that we had
been misinformed and we had to make our way back to track 24 fast to catch
the train. But we made it and as the sun rose over the ruins of Rome we
headed to the airport. If you have to make an early start and don’t have
time for a coffee I can put your mind at ease and tell you that you can get
good coffee also at the airport - Tazza d’Oro also had a branch near the
gate that we left from :-)
Conclusion
When I bought the Rome guidebook I had a hard time trying to find out how we
should approach Rome. Obviously Rome has some world known attractions that
had to be visited. We were not sure that we had picked the right area for
the hotel. But I think I can summarize Rome with one word: WOW. We had an
amazing stay in the Eternal City and there was so much to see and do. After
you have seen all the well known monuments, churches, fountain, piazzas etc
there is still a lot more to see. And if you get tired along the way there
are plenty of places where you can relax, enjoy the fantastic Italian
cuisine, the excellent Italian gelato or drink some good coffee. The centre
of Rome is not really that big so if you are in good shape and have some
good shoes you can easily walk from Termini to the Vatican.
What probably amazed me the most about Rome is the long history. When we were living in crummy little huts around Stavanger there had already been several hundred years of an advanced civilization in Rome and huge temples and the Coliseum had been constructed. A trip to Rome really puts things into perspective.
I have heard some horror stories from others that have gone to Rome. Pick-pockets, credit card fraud etc are just some of the keywords. So we were of course a bit sceptical before we went to Rome but I don’t think that Rome is any worse or better than other larger European cities when it comes to this. Keep an eye on your valuables in crowded places (like bus and metro) and you should be fine.
Before I went to Rome I always had
Paris listed as my favourite
European city. I think that I have to re-evaluate this list now :-). Now I
regret that I didn’t throw that coin into the Trevi fountain to ensure my
return to Rome one day because Rome is certainly worth a second and third
visit. The Norwegian author Henrik Ibsen wrote some of his pieces in Rome
and he said that you need at least three lifetimes to see Rome :-) The next
time we visit I hope that we will get time to take the Scavi tour
(excavations of the Necropolis (City of the Dead) beneath St. Peter's), look
at the view from the dome of St. Peter’s, maybe go to Ostia near the coast
etc. So my final recommendation: if you are going to Italy stay as long as
you can in Rome…you won’t run out of things to see and do :-)
I hope that you found this trip report useful please give me feedback if I
have made mistakes or if you just have comments or questions. I can be
reached on
gardkarlsen@hotmail.com.
If you would like to print this report you should try
this PDF file
for a better result.
If you are able to read Swedish you should check out
this
webpage made by a Swedish/Italian couple living in Rome.
Feel free to check out the next section: Eating and drinking in Rome :-)