ciao from roma, italia! Greetings from the fourth stop of my tour
through europe. I am approaching the fifth and, I must say,
most anticipated stop of my adventure, greece and the island
of ios. but not before wandering the
streets of one of civilizations most
expansive and powerful empires, the ancient capital city, rome.
 |
| this is a view from vittoriale in the city center. looking northwest over the city, you can see the tips of some vatican buildings in the very back |
catching another early flight out
of barcelona, I arrived in italy at
9:00am giving myself a full first day to
explore this unique and wonderfully historic city. I arrived at my hostel just a few
blocks from the main train station, and thank god for this! after ten days of two different language
emersions, french and spanish catalan, my brain was
fried and I had no motivation to attempt yet another crash course with
italian. I dropped my bag and headed out
the door. remembering the recent mistake of
not having a map in barcelona, I made this my first priority when arriving
in rome. similar to paris, but even more
so, rome is certainly walkable and it was
the first city where I felt no need to purchase a prepaid metro pass.
 |
| also a view from vittoriale, this time looking southeast. you can see the colosseum in the back right while the roman forum fills the foreground |
once again chasing down the sight
of one of histories most famous landmarks, I walked in the straightest line
possible to, where else...the colosseum
 |
| my heart raced at the sight! |
I caught a glimpse of it, peeking
through a side street, but instead of turning towards it, I continued down the
main road...I wanted to walk into this view head on and experience the
magnificance of antiquities most fascinating structure in its full glory...
soon the roman forum, a place now
visible thanks to massive excavations, was staring me in the face! I said, 'woaaaah now, wait your turn you
beautiful piece of history, you, you birthplace
of rome! im on my way to the colosseum,
didnt you know?!' I looked to my left, and there she was...
I walked in disbelief, struggling
to comprehend that I was actually here...the battles, the crowds, the
emperors...they too had once been in this very place, roaring and cheering to the glory
of rome. I circled the structure, and
despite the boiling heat, despite the
exhaustion I felt from fifteen days of continuous adventure and exploration, I took
solace in once again realizing that I was ready. I was ready to start anew in another
city. I was ready for more language emersion, I was ready to tack on
another twenty or so miles on my pf flyers, and I was ready to make new
friends. in short, I was ready to dive
head first into roma, knowing I would come out on the
other side having fallen inlove with yet another piece of europe...
 |
| ruins excavated from the roman forum, the birthplace of roma |
 |
| the pantheon seen here was originally a temple dedicated to all gods, and was later converted into a christian church. the dome on top (see video below) is the worlds largest piece of un-reinforced concrete, showing no signs of weakness after 2,000+ years |
 |
| trevi fountain, completed in 1762 and designed by italian architect, nicola salvi. this is a a famous fountain to toss coins in and it's said that those who do, will one day return to rome... |
 |
| the spanish steps |
I had walked close to eight miles that first day. in addition to waking up at 3:00am in barcelona to catch my flight for rome, I was in need of some sleep. as I passed the reception desk of the hostel, I decided to book the first paid tour of my trip...a journey inside the belly of the colosseum...
My plan for the following day was
all based around this tour inside the colosseum, which started at
3:00pm. my goal was to first walk about
4 miles to vatican city, see the main plaza
and st. peters basilica then make my way back to the colosseum for the guided
tour within. I made it about halfway to
vatican city and stopped to rest and
write a few post cards back home...
...as I wrote I sort of lost
track of time...long story short, I walked the four miles and made it all the way to the
great giant walls of vatican city. right
there, just past these enormous piles of
brick was the home of christianity, the pope, and some seriously beautiful pieces
of history and architecture, including
the sistine chapel...I looked down at my
watch...2:00pm...I looked up at the brick walls of the vatican once more and was
slowly hit with the reality that I would not have time to make it inside. my heart was four miles across town and after
waiting a lifetime to enter the grounds
of the colosseum, the decision had already been made...with one final look at the
vatican walls, I brushed them gently with my hands, turned, and began my trek
back to the colosseum.
 |
| the roman 'colesseo' |
 |
|
sculpture
of a she-wolf suckling twin infants, inspired by the
legend of the founding of
Rome. According to the legend, when
overthrown by his brother Amulius, the usurper ordered
the
twins to be cast into the Tiber River.
They were rescued by a she-wolf who
cared for them until a herdsman, Faustulus,
found and raised them
|
 |
| best tour group in rome! |
the tour was unbelivably moving,
and the experience was magnified when I was befriended by a very sweet
french girl. we were the only two on the
tour solo, and we made a quick bond
like peas and carrots! when we had
finished the three hour tour, our thirst
to explore more of roma remained heavy.
me and my new companion decided on
dinner, so yes, check off having dinner in roma, italia with a beautiful
french girl from the list. our night had
brought good conversation, delicious food, and
tasty wine, but there was more to come... we both wanted to see the colosseum
and trevi fountain lit up at night...so we made our way down the quiet roman
streets, enjoying the pleasure of good company and the beauty of rome by
night...
 |
| the colosseum light up at night. there was also a full moon filling the sky, seen here in the top center |
 |
| lucky us, we arrived just as some city workers came to clean the streets surrounding the fountain...they shuffled all the tourists out, and we had the best seats in the house to view the fountain unobstructed by people |
----------------------------- day trip -----------------------------
my day trip in rome was lido di
ostia, a small coastal town just west of the city. it was €3 on the metro roundtrip
and was by far my cheapest day trip yet!
the beach was nothing special, but it
doesnt take much to satisfy me when it comes to the mediterranean. I was happy to again be near the sea, and to
have time to relax and reflect on my trip thus
far...also a fantastic spot for people watching! italians are known to speak a few
decibels louder than others, and also to make good use of the hands while conversing. these two things make for
damn fine people watching episodes.
my time and experiences in roma
were nothing short of spectacular. I remember the worry I had upon
leaving barcelona that perhaps I had made a mistake...perhaps I had put too
many cities on my itinerary...perhaps I wouldnt have the energy to explore this
next city...but once again, the mind and body pulled a few tricks from
within! the drive to explore, and the
passion for adventure have led the way each
and every day of my trip.
on my final night in rome there
was a pub crawl thrown by the hostel I stayed in. it was the perfect way to say goodbye
to this enchanting city, and to the many new friends I had made
there. the vatican slipped through my
fingers, but it makes for a good excuse to one
day return to this wonderful city, the shinning light of the ancient world,
rome...
join me as I make way across the
mediterranean once more, due east to the home of democracy, greece! I will spend two full days in athens, and
from there take a ferry to the final
destination of my tour, the island of ios...
so until I see you again,
arrivederci roma! geia sou athena!
thanks for reading!
- j
No comments:
Post a Comment