What year in Italy would be complete without a visit to Rome? As the last leg of our recent trip, our stop in the capital allowed us to see some of the most famous sites Italy has to offer. We had actually been to Rome once before about 4 years ago as a one-day, cruise port-of-call, 8-hour tour. While that was nice, it really didn't give us a chance to take much in. This time around we got to spend 2 full days so we were much better able to appreciate more of what this unique place has to offer.
Day 1 was dedicated to the Vatican. Our former babysitter and good friend Nicole is doing a semester abroad in Rome and was able to meet us the morning we went to St. Peter's and it's a good thing she did! As a local, she was able to let us know the ins and outs of visiting the home of the pope, including where we needed to be for our museum visit. Without her advice, we probably would've missed our assigned time. Plus she gave us gelato and restaurant recommendations that turned out to be some of the best food we've had in Italy. Thanks Nicole!
I really didn't know a lot about the museum before we visited. It is an amazing collection of historic artifacts and art from around the world. There was European art, Egyptian artifacts, ancient Greek and Roman artifacts, maps, and a lot more. Ashley and Arya got a family tour guide that helped them notice interesting things in what could have, for them, been a pretty dry tour.
Of course the most famous part of the museum visit comes at the end when you get to see the Sistine Chapel, famous for the ceiling painted by Michelangelo including The Creation with Adam reaching to touch the finger of God (and as the nice men remind you every 30 seconds on a booming microphone, there were "NO PHOTOS. NO VIDEOS." allowed). I did not know before, but Michelangelo actually did his work here (which was not exclusively his, he had many people helping) kind of as a dare. Other artists in Italy thought he was only a sculptor and told him that while he may be able to design St. Peter's, there was no way he could paint something like the chapel. It would seem he proved them wrong. In fact, he even mocked one of his more vocal antagonizers by immortalizing him in the depiction of the final judgement by giving him donkey ears and sending him on his way down to hell. I guess we know now where Michelangelo the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle gets his sense of humor!
After the museum (and a brief one hour wait in the security line) we headed over to St. Peter's basilica.
The last time we visited, we got to walk in for about 15 minutes and then were on our way. This time we did it right and began our visit with a climb up to the top of the cupola, the central dome of the church. It's quite a hike up there, but with as much walking as we've done this year and as many church towers and domes we've ascended, the girls hung in there just fine and were a support for their uncle who has not been conditioned by a year's worth of walking everywhere.
The view from the top is as nice as you would expect. You can see all of Rome and the surrounding area. It really gives you an appreciation for how massive the cathedral is. Plus you get to see the rooftop of the basilica and see many of the statues up close (if from behind).
If you find yourself visiting the Vatican some day, definitely take the time. The roof climb entrance is not hidden, but many people seem to not notice (or aren't brave enough?). It's only a few Euros, no reservation necessary and when you come down it sends you right into the basilica.
Speaking of, St. Peter's is big. Massive. There is no proper way to explain how large of a building it is. Upon a quick web search, we discovered that it is indeed the largest religious building of any type (I thought it was only the largest Christian church) in the world in all dimensions other than height. There are markings on the floor inside that show where every other church in the world would fit inside. There are minor side areas off the nave that are bigger than many cathedrals. And the overwhelming amount of art is...well...overwhelming. Oh, and everything is stone. The sculptures of course, but what also appears to be hundreds of paintings are in fact mosaics. In a year filled with lots of churches, it's hard to find one that sticks out as being impressive. St. Peter's definitely does not fail to impress.
At the beginning of the day when we met Nicole, she told us that when her family visited and they did the Vatican, it took them seven hours to see it all. We thought that was impossible, especially given the fact that we had two younger children in tow. As we left St. Peter's on our way to a well earned gelato, we noticed it had in fact been just over seven hours. There is simply that much to see and it's all amazing.
Our second day was filled mostly with ancient things. Starting with the Roman Forum. When the Romans ruled...well, everything basically...the Forum was the center of it all. It was New York City and Washington DC in one place. Now there is not much remaining sadly, but it was interesting to see what is still there. It was especially nice that this came at the end of our trip that began with Athens. We all learn that the ancient Greeks and Romans have a lot in common (mostly because when the Romans conquered the Greeks they liked so much of what the Greeks did that they just stole their ideas). Getting to compare Athens to Rome within a few days of each other really allowed us to see similarities between the two cultures.
Across the street (literally) form the Forum is the Flavium Amphitheatre, or as most of us call it now, The Colosseum.
It is indeed a colossal place. Built 2000 years ago, it is larger than some of today's sporting stadiums, but made entirely of stone. Being there in person definitely makes one wonder what it would have been like to be there in its heyday.
Nearby is the Altare della Patria. This monument to Vittorio Emanuele II (who, for those of you who don't know your Italian history, was the unifier of Italy, bringing together the various regions into one country in 1861) is similar in function to our Lincoln or Washington monuments. However, the designers went a little crazy and made it insanely big. Even (especially?) the Italians find it to be an eye-sore it's so large. It dominates the area and looms over the Forum. It's style is inconsistent with other architecture in the area. However, all that aside, it's a site to behold. It has an eternal flame, tomb of the unknown soldier, a huge statue of VE II, a museum, and lots of tributes to lots of Italian things...sorry, I didn't get the whole story, but trust me, it's big and impressive.
After a little midday break, we set off again for a stop at the Pantheon and the Spanish Steps. The Pantheon is the best preserved ancient Roman structure around. It has been in continuous use since the 7th century AD (originally built about 2000 years ago and nicknamed the Pan-(meaning "all") theon (meaning "gods") as temple to many gods). It is most famous for its oculus in the ceiling, a triumph of ancient engineering. Very cool to see for more than the 30 seconds (literally) we got to visit a few years ago.
Last stop, the Spanish Steps. Most famous for their appearance in the Audrey Hepburn film Roman Holiday, the steps are really not much more than a nice stair way from a piazza up to a church...but pretty. Nearby is the upscale shopping area of Rome with the flagship stores of many high-end Italian brands like Gucci, Versace, and Prada. Not the most inspiring stop of our trip, but one to check off the list. (If you look really carefully you can play Where's Waldo with this picture and find Ashley alone and Arya & I together up there).
Having visited so many special places this year, I was wondering it Rome was going to feel like "just another old city". Sure enough, the City of the Seven Hills did not disappoint...and here's a funny picture of a horse statue that didn't seem to like this bird perched on it's nose. :-)
1 comment:
NO PHOTOOOOOOOO!
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