Aug 31 2010

Roma!

Published by at 8:15 am under Italy,Rome

We looked back to see what we posted about Rome in 2008.  We barely posted anything.  We packed a lot into a few days, and essentially didn’t have time to post anything.  Well, fast forward to 2010 – we spent even less time than in 2008, but we’ll do a little better job blogging, if only because we’ve included pictures this time.

We spent our two and a half days walking all around town.  We stayed in Trastevere, so all the major sights were within walking distance.  On Saturday afternoon/evening, we got our bearings, sticking close to the center of town (Campo dei Fiori, Piazza Navona, Pantheon).  On Sunday, we covered a lot of ground – probably too much, because on Monday, my tootsies were a wee bit sore.  We set out at about 8:30 am for the Colosseum and Forum.  Then we walked over to Piazza Navona to do some people watching and eat a ridiculously overpriced but decent lunch with crap service (expected).  Then we walked up to the Spanish Steps, climbed them and strolled around in the Borghese Gardens for a couple hours (this was wonderful – we didn’t go here last time, and it was beautiful and shady and had a lot of fountains with drinking water so we could cool off from the 90+ degree heat).  We walked back across town via the Trevi Fountain and got home around 6:00 pm to rest a little bit before dinner in Trastevere.  On Monday, we went to see St. Peter’s Basilica.  We didn’t go to the Vatican Museum and see the Sistine Chapel, but if you go to Rome, you should definitely do that (we did it last time).  Then we strolled around some more, ate lunch at a wonderful and cheap tavern near Piazza Navona, walked around some more, went home, rested, then went out to dinner at the Peroni Birreria (like an Italian-German beer hall, complete with sausage and sauerkraut!), and then walked to the Trevi Fountain to see it by night.  Pictures below:

 

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One of the statues in the Piazza Navona

 

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Another statue in the Piazza Navona

 

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Detail of one of the statues in the Piazza Navona

 

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The crowds move through the entrance of The Pantheon.

 

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The interior of The Colosseum

 

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A view over a part of the Roman Forum. The garish, white building in the background is the Victor Emmanuel Monument.

 

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Meredith leads the way through the Forum with guidebook in hand.

 

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Detail of the Arch of Septimius Severus in a corner of the Forum.

 

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Drinking from Il Nasone, one of Rome’s many public fountains.

 

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Meredith loved the many dragons around Rome. This one is another public fountain.

 

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Domes of buildings in the Piazza Venezia in front of the Victor Emmanuel Monument.

 

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The view down the Spanish Steps.

 

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A view from the Villa Borghese Gardens out onto Rome, with the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica in the background.

 

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Boating in the Villa Borghese Gardens.

 

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The Trevi Fountain during the day. Actually, not the fountain but the perpetual crowds around it.

 

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Here we are at the Trevi Fountain at night when it is lit up and looks very nice.

 

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At the Vatican, the Swiss Guard stands ready at one of the entrances.

 

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A Bernini altar in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.

 

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Detail from the ceiling in St. Peter’s Basilica.

 

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Outside L’Antica Birreria Peroni where we had dinner.

 

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A typical night scene in Trastevere.

 

– Meredith & Dave

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