Snaps & Stories: Interesting Italy! (Rome/Roma) Day 1

Rome: Pantheon Mini-Planet, originally uploaded by jovijovijovi.

Interesting Italy! (Rome/Roma) Day 1
November 2009

Rome. Oh did my wife mock me the whole time we were there. I was telling her that Rome would be the best city in our European tour, and in many aspects I was wrong. Rome was crowded. Very crowded as in worst than Manila! Traffic was crazy and a car parked on the road with the hazard on means “be right back” (our tour guide tells us jokingly). Our bus had the hardest time maneuvering the streets and even our Italian driver say that he hates driving in Italy and that Italians are the worst drivers.

Smart Cars: Travelling Smart in the Crowded Streets of Rome

Even the pedestrian areas were crowded and filled with locals, immigrants (both legal and illegal) and tourists. I felt very unsafe on the streets of Rome and very tense walking around. Trash and pigeon poo was all over the place; I saw cars and sidewalks that were 95% covered in pigeon poo! I passed that particular area underneath the trees (where you could hear hundreds of birds chirping) for just 3 minutes and I was already hit on the shoulder with some poo!

But in some aspects I was definitely right! Rome was beautiful and it just takes some time to adjust/appreciate. Many of the points of interest are thousands of years old and imagination and some history is required to fully appreciate the eroded and ancient structures. Rome is filled to the brim with history and history (as mentioned in my previous posts) matters much.

Upon arriving in the afternoon in Rome, we immediately started on our walking tour. We were passing the streets and the landmarks at a very fast pace set by our Italian tour guide. We later found out that she was rushing us so that we would not miss the chance to enter the Pantheon which was closed to the public at particular times. Some of the places we passed by were (those I was able to take photos of and I remember at least):

1) Spanish Steps

We went down the Spanish Steps from the Trinita dei Monti/Holy Trinity on the Pincio Hill down to the Piazza di Spagna. A meeting place for many people they say. “Let’s meet at the steps” they would probably say to each other.

Spanish Steps

2) Obelisk of Montecitorio/Solare Obelisk in the Piazza del Popolo

Passed by the Solare Obelisk, as in no time to even take a decent photo. This was one rushed walking tour.

3) Trajan's Column/Colonna Traiana

Carved artistically in a spiral design all the way up the 30 meter high Tajan’s Column is the story of the epic wars of the Romans and the Dacians.

Trajan's Column

4) Unknown Roman Building

I couldn’t find information about this building on the internet. I remember our tour guide telling us how way back during the Roman time the pillars would be covered in marble. She also showed us the original Roman streets (looking down through some railings at the side of the building) and how it was at least one floor down from the current roads. The old building was still being used (offices I think) and some modern walls and structures were melded into it to make it usable.

Original Roman Streets 1 floor down from current roads

5) Pantheon

The Pantheon was formerly a temple to all the Roman gods and currently used as a church since the 7^th century. The Pantheon still is the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome. When I first saw the Pantheon from the outside I told my wife “what’s the fuss about this?” I was getting a bit irritated with all the rushing our tour guide was making us do. But when I entered the Pantheon… “wow” was the only word in my mind. I wasn’t even listening to our tour guide anymore; I just kept firing my camera. This is an example of the acquired taste you need to appreciate Rome. The outside of the Pantheon now is not anything special but centuries ago it was covered in marble! Imagine what it was like way back then; it must have been amazingly beautiful both inside and outside.

Inside the Pantheon was the Tomb of Raphael, included in the movie Angels and Demons!

I now thank our tour guide for rushing us through most of the other parts of the walking tour since it gave us the chance to enter and dwell a bit in the Pantheon before it closed to the public that night.

Pantheon Panorama

An elderly Mexican named Jose in our tour broke down crying in the Piazza di Spagna after coming down the Spanish Steps. The tour was already into its 10^th day or so (walking, riding the bus, packing, unpacking again and again) and the fatigue and frustration (not being able to cope with the pace) finally hit him. We just came from a very long bus trip (one of the longest we had) and then all the rushing from the walking tour probably triggered the whole thing. Poor Jose, I think he felt very much his age at that time and his wife’s situation (Alzheimer’s; the reason they joined the tour actually) added to the frustration. He went through a lot in the tour: He left his glasses in the hotel in UK, his medicine on our second day, he had colds the whole time and finally he fell ill that first night in Rome. The whole tour group was very supportive whether helping him walk around, lending him medicine or watching out for him (in case he gets lost). A good man Jose and a very nice sweet couple him and his wife. I wish for him the very best.

Piazza Navona

We eventually ended up for early dinner on our own at the Piazza Navona where the Church of Sant'Agnese in Agone and the Fountain of Four Rivers can be found. We walked around and tried to look for an asian restaurant for some boiled rice but after finding none settled for Italian pizza type baked products just to fill our stomachs. We didn’t eat a full meal as we remembered a Japanese restaurant near the hotel which we went to for dinner when we got back.

For Day 2 of Interesting Italy! (Rome) click here

For other photos of Rome/Roma, Italy click here

For other blog entries of Italy: