Italy by Rail - North to South (Part 6): A Rainy Roman Holiday!!

- Dec. 26-27, 2017, Tuesday-Wednesday.

- Move aside Audrey Hepburn, it's Itchy Toes Adventures' turn to have a "Roman Holiday"!! After years and years of wishful thinking, I was finally in Rome - the birthplace of Roman mythology (with much thanks to Greek mythology,) the heart of the Roman Empire, and....where Lizzie McGuire had her first (and only) movie!!!! The moment our train from Florence arrived in Rome, I took no time looking for our hotel, Hotel Aphrodite, which was literally beside Roma Termini Station; Roma Termini is Rome's main train hub. We checked in, and took one of the cabs to start exploring. This was probably when I felt most excited during my entire trip in France and Italy. By the way, I also noticed that Rome was a lot warmer than any other place that we had been to during the trip, with temperatures rising to around 10-12 degrees Celsius during the day (but will fall significantly to almost zero at night.)

- Our first stop was the Pantheon in Old Rome. One thing about going around in Rome is that unlike most touristy cities, not all tourist spots are accessible via metro (the Pantheon, for example.) This is because whenever Rome would dig up a site for a potential metro station, they will always unearth something of historical importance. Of course, instead of building the metro station, the site will be further excavated, studied, and/or turned into another historical tourist site. If one will look at the map of Rome's metro system, the metro stops go around the historic center (where most of the nice stuff is). Although most travel websites or blogs will NOT suggest going around Rome with a cab or car due to heavy traffic, it may be necessary at some point. Well, going to the Pantheon via cab was a scenic drive, and thankfully the rush hour traffic had died down around mid-morning. The Pantheon, by the way, is an ancient Roman temple for all Roman gods from the 2nd century AD, and was later turned into a church in the 7th century. Today, it is still used as a church; entrance is free.

The piazza in front of the Pantheon.

Inside the pantheon. This is the open dome (so yes in case it rains, rain will enter that hole.)

The main altar.

Interior.

The king himself, King Vittorio Emanuele II, is buried here.

Guard of the tomb.

- From the Pantheon we had a slightly off-way walk along the narrow streets of Rome to Piazza Navona. The piazza, initially a 1st-century stadium, became a piazza or square in the 15th century. The centerpiece of this piazza is the Fountain of Four Rivers, with an Egyptian obelisk in the middle; another important fountain at the northern end is the Fountain of Neptune. Although not much else can be seen in the piazza, I just went there for the Christmas market, which was quite jolly, but it just looked like all the other Christmas markets we saw in the trip; the sold the same kinds of regular toys, candies, and Christmas-related handicrafts and decor.

The piazza (withe the Fountain of Four Rivers.)

Fountain of Neptune.

- We had lunch at one of the restaurants near the piazza before walking our way to Largo di Torre Argentina. The name does not have anything to do with the country Argentina, but rather takes its name from a 16th-century high priest called Johannes Buckhardt who was also known as "Argentinus." However, the legacy of this place goes far back as the 4th-century BC. This was supposed to be some kind of piazza as well in the early days, and had temples and theaters too. The most notable thing about Largo di Torre Argentina, perhaps, is that this was where Julius Caesar was supposed to have been assassinated. Today, apart from being a tourist spot, the ancient square also functions as a cat shelter for stray Roman cats. (Boy, the cats in Rome are FAT.)

Largo di Torre Argentina; notice how the ground during ancient times was very low.

A fat cat plays by the ruins.

Close up of fat cat.

Another fat cat.

Ancient temple.

- Close to Largo di Torre Argentina is Chiesa del Gesu, a 16th-century church that functions as the mother church of Jesuits everywhere. Too bad I wasn't able to go inside as they were closing for the afternoon; I was able to catch a glimpse though! Also, I do feel somehow that I am following Saint Ignatius of Loyola - the founder of the Society of Jesus - in my recent trips to Europe. Last year I got to visit the church on top of the mountain in Montserrat where Saint Ignatius supposedly had his calling to serve God (click here); now in Italy, the mother church, and where Saint Ignatius was buried.

- A few steps away from the Chiesu del Gesu is Piazza de Venezia and the palace-like Altare della Patria. This is one of the backdrops of Audrey Hepburn's "Roman Holiday." Although this piazza is obviously in Rome, it was named after Venice since the square's Piazza Venezia used to be the Venetian Embassy in the 16th century, when Venice was still a separate republic.

Altare della Patria.

One "issue" about this structure is that despite its beauty, people found this monument rather extravagant and unnecessary. A significant amount of the Capitoline Hill had to be destroyed to make way for this monument. 

OH FINALLY THE SUN.

- Palazzo Venezia today is a museum that houses art and other things from the Christian era to the Renaissance (so that's until around the 17th century.) Although it doesn't look much from the outside - I actually think it looks like a big red brick - it's a maze inside with spacious rooms. Its winding halls made the palace/museum way larger than it seemed.

Russian hats!!

Musical exhibit.

I have a thing for antique keyboards.

By now I've gotten used to ornate ceilings, but still they amaze me.

See those pillars? They're just painted!!

Golden "car."

At the second floor balconies facing the courtyard. 

Palazzo Venezia.

- Back outdoors, I walked towards Altare della Patria and turned right until I found the Capitoline Museums (Musei Capitolini.) The museums were quite hard to find because I was not informed that I had to go up an uphill path - although it had steps that look like stairs for easier walking. The Capitoline Museums, opened in the mid 1700s, might be the world's first museums. They have exhibits on art, mostly artifacts from different parts of Italy. Take note that these museums are mainly connected at the basement level, so expect lots of going-ups-and-downs in the museum. The path can get confusing as well, since the galleries eventually turn into some kind of maze. I did like this museum a lot, since the exhibits really do bring me back in time. Probably because the museum had lower ceilings, which gave it a more "inclusive" feel.

Capitoline Museums.

Who's your leader now.

I like the fact that there is a "VIP" view of the Roman Forum from the museums!!

More ornate ceilings and chandeliers!!

The "She-wolf" of Rome.

Would love to have a room like this.

Artemis of Ephesus.

Socrates.

Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius.

Constantine.

Hercules.

Precious stones!!

Rome from above.

More of the Roman Forum.

Egyptian sphynx.

A child wrestling a goose.

Room of the Philosophers.

Room of the Emperors.

Capitoline Venus.

The cursed inclined path.

- Instead of riding a cab back to the hotel, I decided to make the family walk towards the Colosseum, just so we'd have an idea where to enter and how things will look like when we'd go on our actual visit the following morning. It was too crowded as it was in the late afternoon, which made me feel good about always starting the day early - prioritizing the most important places of course - even if it means waking up before sunrise. We also saw that the Colosseo metro stop was literally in front of the Colosseum, and was just 3 stops away from our hotel. Convenient!!

- The next morning, I woke up hoping that what I had dreaded wouldn't become a reality: rain. Weather forecasts stated that the 27th of December would be rainy, and perhaps, the rainiest day of the week. It was the day of our visit to the Colosseum (Colosseo), the most well-known structure in Italy. I couldn't move my visit to the Colosseum since I had pre-booked tickets to other places on the other days, so I had no choice but to to go the Colosseum that day. (I had also pre-booked tickets to the Colosseum, including entrances to the Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum, but the ticket was open, so I could go there any day as long as it's before the "expiration" date stated on the ticket.) I was particularly worried about the rain because as with most iconic landmarks, I had planned to do my cultural photoshoot with the Colosseum as the backdrop.

- The Colosseum, also known as the Flavian Ampitheater, was built in the 1st century AD, and as one can tell, was made as a theater for gladiator competitions, and other public and recreational spectacles. Throughout the millennia, with damages here and there, it remains sturdy and standing in the midst of modernity. Today, apart from the structure itself, it has exhibits on all things related to the Colosseum.

The Colosseum from across the road.

The Colosseum was also linked to religion, as most big/main structures in ancient Rome were.

Inside!!

There is an outer and inner ring.

From the second level.

Imagine this being filled with almost a million people!! (And yes, the Colosseum can fit that much people, more or less.)

Hadrian's Arch, as seen from the Colosseum.

- Across the Colosseum is the Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills of Rome, and the Roman Forum, which was the main center of ancient downtown Rome. By this time the rain had started to fall and I prayed and prayed to the heavens to let me do my photoshoot first without interruptions, and then the sky can do whatever it wanted (though I would've preferred that it didn't rain the whole day.) Miraculously, the rain stopped immediately, and I went on to have my little photoshoot at a largely ignored spot at the hill directly facing the Colosseum!! (And after the photoshoot, the sky rained again!!)

The Colosseum from the Palatine Hill.

Entrance arch.

This is (more or less) what Romans wore during the winter. Yes, they have some kind of dark colored socks inside their sandals.

Remnants of an old church.

Columns.

- It was rather difficult to make it through the winding and uneven paths of the hill and the Roman Forum, but seeing the ruins up close made me feel like I was in the middle of a video game - and in extra hard mode because of the slippery steps!! I could just imagine how much I'd enjoy myself more if I were dry on a bright sunny day.

Church.

I love the door!!

Temple of Vesta.

Treasures in the ruins.

Temple of Castor and Pollux.

Arch of Septimus Severus.

Like a set of a video game.

Plants and concrete.

- Finally, we decided to have lunch and pass by the nearby Vespa Museum. Since the rain did not want to stop, we just decided to stay in our hotel room for the rest of the day. I know it is not customary for me/my family to be like that when traveling, but based on weather conditions that day, it would've be incredibly difficult for us to walk around had we decided to push through.

At the Vespa Museum. It is a popular and long-running scooter brand in Italy. They started in 1946, and today is still one of the most beloved scooter brands. Audrey Hepburn used a Vespa in her film, "Roman Holiday."

The Vespa Museum is really small.

Vespa rider in full gear.

The Vespa Museum is at the basement level of this scooter-rental store.

- For once in my life I did not feel bad for taking the afternoon off, since our planned itinerary for the afternoon was already taken care of the day prior. Although it would've been a great opportunity to see more of Rome, I guess our safety had to be put first. However, the rain eventually became light in the mid-afternoon, and so I took the time to stroll along the street outside our hotel. (Because it's me, and you cannot keep me in a room for so long.) At the very least, the rest of the day gave us time to rest for our day trip out of Rome the next day - to the ancient city of Pompeii and the birthplace of pizza, Naples!!

- Please don't forget to ready about my other Eurotrip adventures during the holidays here:

France: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here Part 4 here!!

Italy: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here, Part 5 here, Part 7 here, Part 8 here, and Part 9 here!!