Rome - The Eternal City

When we arrived in Rome it was early evening. We made our way to Saint Peter's Square and found it almost deserted. I was able to get this terrific night shot of Audrey, Barb, Graham, and myself in front of Saint Peter's.

Here is a night shot of Audrey on a bridge in front of the fortress that the Pope would flee to whenever he felt under threat - which was apparently rather often in the old days!

There are seven Basilica's in Rome. This is one of them. And yes, those tiny specks at the bottom of the door are people. There is a good reason that this type of architecture is called "monumental"!

Something that is a little hard for a North American Tourist, such as myself, to really understand is how routine and integrated into daily life the great artwork of Rome is to the people who live there. For example, could you imagine the outrage that there would be here if anyone painted graphiti onto an important public statue like this? We saw many examples of rather casual treatment of public statues and artwork that would be unthinkable to most Canadians...

While Graham and I were visiting the basilica above, a medical helicopter landed in the courtyard and was met by this firetruck (which soaked the grass to keep the dust down - to little obvious effect) and an ambulance. The whole thing seemed rather odd, and we never did find out exactly what was happening.

We visited the Pantheon, which was constructed as a pre-Christian place of worship and was then converted to the Christian faith. Here Audrey is enjoying walking among the forest of columns in front of the entrance to the Pantheon.

One of the basilicas that we visited had mosaics of all of the Popes. After Pope Benedict it looks like there is room for about a dozen more before all the spaces that have been set aside are used. Tradition says that when the spaces are all occupied that will be the end of the world. While that seems doubtful to me, it may provide a good excuse to expand the building!

When we toured the Vatican museums and Saint Peters we saw many pieces of outstanding artwork. A highlight was the Pieta.

Here is a picture of Audrey and me with the famous dove window over the main alter of Saint Peters in the background. The scale of Saint Peter's is overwhelming, the artwork is overwhelming, the human and financial resources necessary for its construction and decoration must have been overwhelming, and - at least on the day we were there - the crowds are overwhelming. All in all, that about sums up how we felt about visiting the historical center of Christianity and the Catholic Church - overwhelmed!

Both Audrey and I enjoy archeology, so visiting the ruins of Ancient Rome was something that was on both of our "must do" lists.

There was certainly a lot to look at.


And I was able to get quite a few nice pictures of us posing in front of the ruins. Here is one of them.

This is the excavation of the "Sacred Area". Notice how the excavation is dug down about 3-4 meters below the current ground level, to reveal foundations and structures that would have been at ground level 2-3 thousand years ago.

Here I am posing in front of one of the many arches found in the ruins.

And here I am enjoying a rather large beer with the famous Roman Colliseum in the background. I did not have time to actually go into the Colliseum, but Audrey and Barb did and thought it was one of the highlights of the visit to Rome.

Of course, we had to visit the Trevoli Fountain.

Tradition has it that if you toss a coin into the fountain in the correct way (one coin from the right hand over the left shoulder) that you are sure to return to Rome.

Naturally, we had to have our picture taken in front of such a romantic fountain! (Pun intended.)

Here Audrey is enjoying the view from the top of the "Spanish Steps".

The Monument to Victor Immanuel II (aka "the Wedding Cake") is one monument that is impossible to miss, (even if you might want too) due to its prominant location and elaborate decoration. It was obscured by scaffolding when we visited, since it is apparently undergoing some maintenance or renovations.

There are of course the usual continent of artists working the plazas. Audrey and I decided to ask this artist to do a portrait of us together, as a memento of our trip. We were more than happy with the result (I don't think either of us ever actually looked so good before - well, maybe Audrey!) and you can see the framed result hanging prominantly in our home if you come to visit.

Here is a nice picture of Audrey with one of the bridges of Rome (and its reflection in the water) as a backdrop.

I was able to get this nice picture of Graham with a lovely sunset over the Roman skyline from the rooftop garden bar of our hotel. Our two days (and three nights) in Rome went by so quickly! Tomorrow: Orvietto and Florence!