Roman Birthday

We arrived into Rome late on Thursday night, January 1, 2009, nearly midnight. Our trip officially started on Friday, January 2, 2009....Greg's birthday.

What a better way to start a birthday than at the Colosseum. It was amazing, one of those places that you always dream about but never really know if you will be able to go to. It was everything you would imagine it was, as was the rest of Rome. The Colosseum was mostly intact, but you could definitely tell where the age has made it's mark. The actual floor of the Colosseum is completely gone, but they have replaced some of it, just so you can see what it did look like. Underneath the floor of the Colosseum was very neat as well, all of the walls to the rooms that once were. This is where the animals and equipment for the fighting used to be stored. Everything came up through a hole in the ground to appear. We arrived at the Colosseum super early, which was a great thing. It was nice and empty for us most of the time, and you could tell that the crowds were really arriving when we were ready to leave. It was great to get out of there before all of the mobs arrived. After nearly 2 hours walking around the Colosseum we decided to head on, good thing we did as there were now hundreds of people in line to try to get through security and come in.

Colosseum exterior:


Tami & Greg inside the Colosseum:


Looking across the Colosseum, including the below ground area:



When we left the Colosseum we walked by the Arch of Constantine and then up toward Palatine Hill. We didn't actually pay to go inside, but we did walk around the fences and took pictures of some of the ruins inside, more columns, arches, steps, and all. The most amazing thing about Rome is that you will be walking down the street and then all of a sudden there will be part of a column or some other remnant of a building just standing there next to.....could even be right next to a hotel or restaurant or something still in operation. When we walked back down Palatine Hill we were accosted by two of the men who portray Gladiators, for tourists of course. We took some pictures with them.

Afterwards we walked up to Domus Aurea to see Nero's Golden House. We walked around the park and saw a lot of ruins, but weren't sure exactly which ones were Nero's Golden House, or if we were even in the right area. Oh well. We decided to just head on instead of continuing to search that area. We then walked to a church that was recommended by my mom, Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli (Saint Peter in Chains). The outside of the church was very unimpressive but the inside was amazing. The ceiling and back altar walls had beautiful paintings on them, there was an enormous statue area that included Michelangelo's Moses, along with a glass box with Saint Peter's supposed chains inside. The entire church was very nice inside. We spent nearly 30 minutes inside before continuing on.

The Arch of Constantine:

Michelangelo's Moses inside San Pietro in Vincoli:


Our next stop took us to the area of the Roman Forums. This included the Forum of Nerva, The Forum of Julius Caesar, the Forum of Augustus, the House of the Knights of Rhodes, the Trajan Forum and column, and Mamertime Prison. This was such a vast area with lots of columns, steps, doors, and more just lying around. It is so hard to explain but very interesting to see. The Trajan Column was the only one completely intact still. There is also carvings all the way around and up it, it was so detailed. Another building that was in the area that was impressive was Il Vittorio (monument erected for Emmanuel II, it is also known as the "Wedding Cake"by the Romans since they don't like it, it's too modern for them).

Looking around at the Forums of Nerva, Augustus, Julius Caesar and the House of the Knights of Rhodes:


Detail on the Trajan Column:


Remaining columns at the Trajan Forum:


Il Vittorio:


We continued on our way we walked by Gesu (a very nice church but we did not go inside), then down to Area Sacra which had more ruins that also included a cat sanctuary. It was very odd seeing these ruins that were overrun by many cats, I think we saw more than 20. We then decided to stop by Fontana delle Tartarughe (Fountain of the Tortoises) then to Bernasconi so Greg could get a cappuccino. This was our first coffee shop where it was basically a walk up counter that you grab your drink and a pastry and eat quickly. These places are all like this and are constantly bustling with people. We had some amazing pastries, but can't remember what they were called, think they started with a "k". I did try a hot chocolate, but it was way too thick so decided at that point that I would not be drinking any more in Rome.

Ruins with the cat sanctuary:


Fountain of the Tortoises:


It was now time for lunch......we were ready to eat after all of that walking. We went to a pizzeria near the Pantheon called Zio Ciro where we had bruschetta and margherita pizza (this would be a reoccurring lunch), but it was delicious. After lunch and some wine we decided it was time to go into the Pantheon. The Pantheon was nothing like we had expected, honestly we didn't know what to expect, but it was breathtaking. It is completely round inside, with marble floors and walls, and the Oculus in the dome center. It is completely open and when it rains it actually rains inside. Along with the statues inside there is also Raphael's tomb. We then decided to go to the Cremeria for some gelato (supposed to be the best in Rome), but they were closed.

The Oculus inside the Pantheon:


Greg with a column outside of the Pantheon:


So, we went around the Pantheon and saw the ruins of the Basilica of Neptune and then to the Elephant Obelisk, which was sculpted by Bernini (a very famous artist in Rome). Behind the Elephant Obelisk lies the Santa Maria Sopra Minerva (another amazing church). Inside here, along with the amazing paintings, was Michelangelo's Risen Christ statue. Across the way was a cute shop that had all kinds of Italian foods and drinks and other souvenirs, mainly geared towards the kitchen. We bought some past and tea towels before heading out. Our next stop took us to Tazza d'Oro, another coffee place for Greg so he could get another cappuccino. I got a tea as well. By then it had started to rain so we went back into the Pantheon to see the rain fall through the Oculus, it was so pretty.

Bernini's Elephant Obelisk (1 of 14 obelisks in Rome):


Michelangelo's Risen Christ inside Santa Maria Sopra Minerva:


We then walked to the Trevi Fountain where we partook in the tradition of throwing the coin over your shoulder backwards into the fountain. The Trevi Fountain was even larger and more impressive than I had imagined it could be. Next we walked to the Spanish Steps. We saw the Sinking Ship fountain (La Barcaccia) and then headed up the steps. I do have to say, the Spanish Steps were smaller and more narrow than I had imagined them to be. It was actually kind of funny, it was raining pretty good so when you looked out from the steps there was just a massive sea of colored umbrellas. At the top we went into Trinita Dei Monti, another very nice church. We walked around a bit before heading to Piazza Barberini to see the Triton Fountain and then up to the Capuchin Crypt. The crypt was amazing, but we couldn't take pictures inside. Inside the church crypt were a bunch of rooms that were completely decorated in human bones, including the ceilings. There were completed mummies in monk robes and walls of skulls placed on top of each other, along with many other bones placed in patterns.

Tami at the Trevi Fountain:

Tami on the Spanish Steps:

Nearby was the Scallop Fountain and then we headed to Piazza Repubblica and then back to our hotel. It had been a long, tiring day so we took a short nap before taking a shower and then a cab to dinner. We had found a restaurant in our book that was supposed to be very romantic so we went there, it was called Arnaldo ai Satiri and it was amazing. We had Rigatoni al carbonara and Tagliatelli cacio e pepe (with parmesan and black pepper) along with caprese and a trio of bruschetta. We also had a nice white house wine. It was raining pretty hard when we got done eating so we took a taxi back to the hotel to get some rest for the next day.