Time Difference: -8 hours (from Brisbane)
Soundtrack: Barbershop, Faith No More, Kate Bush
Currently Inspired by: "Art is never finished, only abandoned" Leonardo da Vinci. Fairly relevant right now... lol.
Words written: 89,502. Way too busy to write, as the below will demonstrate! Frustrating to be so close!
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| View from Vittorio Monument |
I. Am. Exhausted.
Rome is so big, and has so much to do and see, and is currently (and
finally!) so hot, that you basically get home and collapse, limp and happy onto
the couch and put your feet up to get some blood back into the rest of your
body. I have had mum here since Monday,
which has been terrific. The whole
coming together got off to a bit of a creaky start, once the initial excitement
had worn off. I think that is to be
expected when you have one person who isn’t crazy about crowds, heat and
walking and one person who has been selfish and solo for a long time and isn’t
used to putting up with other people’s wishes and whims. At the worst point I believe the words “I
hate this place” and “feel free to go home then” were uttered (but not really
meant), however it was a mere blip and all has since settled into happy compromise
and domesticity!
I have seen and done so much this week and taken so many
photos that I decided to keep all the albums from each major area separate and
just have a couple of Rome generic albums.
I will outline each area below and provide the links – it’s the best way
I can think of to organise the sheer volume of stuff!
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| Exposed underground tunnels |
The Colosseum
Of course everyone knows what this structure is, don’t they? At around 2,000 years old, the main ampitheatre of ancient Rome saw thousands upon thousands of plays, executions, animal hunts and gladiatorial contests in its hundreds of years of use as a public arena. The wooden floor has of course disintegrated over time, exposing the creepy network of tunnels underneath in which animals, condemned prisoners and gladiators would wait for their time on the floor. A highly evocative monument, you can almost hear the shouting crowds – modest modern estimates put the numbers it held at 50,000 although older estimates were much higher – baying for blood. I have heard that the arena could be emptied in 8 minutes, which, if true, is a testament to its extraordinary design. The Romans built to last!
Of course everyone knows what this structure is, don’t they? At around 2,000 years old, the main ampitheatre of ancient Rome saw thousands upon thousands of plays, executions, animal hunts and gladiatorial contests in its hundreds of years of use as a public arena. The wooden floor has of course disintegrated over time, exposing the creepy network of tunnels underneath in which animals, condemned prisoners and gladiators would wait for their time on the floor. A highly evocative monument, you can almost hear the shouting crowds – modest modern estimates put the numbers it held at 50,000 although older estimates were much higher – baying for blood. I have heard that the arena could be emptied in 8 minutes, which, if true, is a testament to its extraordinary design. The Romans built to last!
All my life I have spelled the word “Coliseum” and began to
feel rather apprehensive when I saw the signs in English everywhere with the
alternative spelling I have used here. “Have I been wrong this whole time, and why
didn’t I notice that the first time I was here??” I panicked. Fortunately, I since discovered that both
English spellings are acceptable.
Phew! Click here to see photos
from the Coliseum.
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| Stone huts - the heart of ancient Rome |
Palatine Hill and Roman Forum
The Palatine Hill is the one of the most ancient sites of Rome. The legend has it that the brothers Romulus and Remus were born there in a hut, and decided to build themselves a city along the banks of the Tiber. Romulus then killed his brother and became the first ruler of the area, naming it after himself and thus setting up a lively tradition of fratricide, matricide and patricide that would haunt the families of all of Rome’s leaders until the fall of that great empire. There is much to see on the hill: the ruins of a great palace used by many of Rome’s emperors, gardens, a museum and perhaps most excitingly the stone foundations of the original huts from the area and a display of crockery and household items retrieved from them. Mum insisted that a small structure next to one of the stone huts was the world's first pizza oven. Hey, it's possible! These places are more than ten times older than any building you can visit in Australia, and in typical Italian fashion are just kind of haphazardly left open and unguarded for people to wander around and walk on at will. Huge, priceless chunks of ancient marble sit by the side of the paths, exposed to humans and the elements. It’s extraordinary what kind of nonchalance is cultivated by having simply too much of something in your possession.
The Palatine Hill is the one of the most ancient sites of Rome. The legend has it that the brothers Romulus and Remus were born there in a hut, and decided to build themselves a city along the banks of the Tiber. Romulus then killed his brother and became the first ruler of the area, naming it after himself and thus setting up a lively tradition of fratricide, matricide and patricide that would haunt the families of all of Rome’s leaders until the fall of that great empire. There is much to see on the hill: the ruins of a great palace used by many of Rome’s emperors, gardens, a museum and perhaps most excitingly the stone foundations of the original huts from the area and a display of crockery and household items retrieved from them. Mum insisted that a small structure next to one of the stone huts was the world's first pizza oven. Hey, it's possible! These places are more than ten times older than any building you can visit in Australia, and in typical Italian fashion are just kind of haphazardly left open and unguarded for people to wander around and walk on at will. Huge, priceless chunks of ancient marble sit by the side of the paths, exposed to humans and the elements. It’s extraordinary what kind of nonchalance is cultivated by having simply too much of something in your possession.
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| Part of the Forum |
The Forum sits in a large valley situated below the hill and
contains the remnants of the structures that once filled the area. In a time and place where it was critical to “see
and be seen” in order to be considered a patriotic citizen, the Forum provided
a public area where people could meet and trade, barter at markets, students
and average citizens could sit and learn from loquacious philosophers, the
senate could meet to discuss various matters of state and all could worship at
a variety of monuments to the gods.
Click here to see the photos from Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum.
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| On the way to Sistene. One of many |
The Vatican-ish
Soooo many tourists. Even getting up and getting to the places super early (which worked a treat at the Colosseum) we still had to wait in a huge queue which still only (thank god) took about half an hour to get us into the building. In another case of “more is just too much”, the Vatican Museums, including the Sistene Chapel, don’t so much feed your soul as stuff it til it’s nauseous. I had been to this attraction in 2003 and had no desire to go back but was strong armed into going by my darling mother who didn’t wish to go on her own, and therefore was forced into once more doing the neverending march through room after bewildering room of painting, sculptures, ornate cornices, light fittings, furniture, frescoes and so on and on and on and on.
Soooo many tourists. Even getting up and getting to the places super early (which worked a treat at the Colosseum) we still had to wait in a huge queue which still only (thank god) took about half an hour to get us into the building. In another case of “more is just too much”, the Vatican Museums, including the Sistene Chapel, don’t so much feed your soul as stuff it til it’s nauseous. I had been to this attraction in 2003 and had no desire to go back but was strong armed into going by my darling mother who didn’t wish to go on her own, and therefore was forced into once more doing the neverending march through room after bewildering room of painting, sculptures, ornate cornices, light fittings, furniture, frescoes and so on and on and on and on.
I don’t really know what they were thinking when putting
this place together, but by the time you actually make it to the Sistene Chapel
(and there is no short cut), it’s like... “Meh.
Can we go now?” I mean the
paintings are beautiful and everything but you’ve just seen about a thousand
beautiful paintings, you’re sick of the crowds and being pushed around or
herded through various areas, completely over the silly and unhelpful signage
and well aware that it will be a major trek to get back out again. It’s not a clever set up, but yes it does
contain some of the more incredible and priceless pieces of Italian art in
existence. I don’t know how you could do
it so it isn’t annoying and / or overwhelming.
Probably go in winter when there aren’t any tourists, and spend a day
there, taking your time and paying attention to everything you want to see.
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| St Peter's Basilica |
A short stroll away is the gigantic St Peter’s Square and St
Peter’s Basilica, a Catholic’s wet dream. After passing through the bag checks,
dress code checks and metal detectors (and giggling at the ridiculous uniforms
of the Swiss Guards), you pop into the world’s largest cathedral and are
immediately assailed with ten thousand things begging for your attention. We agreed it’s not beautiful in the strictest
sense of the word. It’s overblown (of
course) but also just very grand and kind of dark, serious and sedate. Regardless of the ten thousand tourists
talking and buzzing all around, I felt the need to be quiet in there. It’s impressive. You can click here to see my photos of the
Vatican Museums and St Peter’s Square and Basilica. You can’t take photos inside the Sistene
Chapel itself, and we decided against going into the Vatican proper.
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| The hot bath house |
Villa dei Quintili
A little hidden gem! A bit of a metro ride followed by a bus ride out of town gets you to this ancient Roman villa which is basically in the middle of nowhere, and has almost NO tourists. I don’t know how they maintain it, because it’s only 6 euros to get in and there was mum and I and two other tourists in the whole place for the entire couple of hours we were there. And it’s so huge that we didn’t even need to see the others, so it was like we had it to ourselves. It had belonged to a rich Roman family and then was taken over by one of the emperors to use as a personal getaway, and contained all the accoutrements of rich Roman houses. The hot bath house in particular was impressive, with massive three storey high walls still in existence, steps down into what used to be the water, heated by a series of under floor tunnels from huge cauldrons. The Romans’ use of water is really fascinating. They were just so clever! I don’t understand how this technology got either lost of disregarded for so long before coming back into existence, but it was absolutely incredible to see these rooms that were once saunas, bedrooms, entertainment areas, exercise arenas etc. Some of them still had pieces of marble walling and intact mosaic flooring that had only been uncovered in the last few years and had been sitting there, perfectly preserved, for thousands of years! I want to be an archaeologist. You can click here to see the pictures of the Villa dei Quintili.
A little hidden gem! A bit of a metro ride followed by a bus ride out of town gets you to this ancient Roman villa which is basically in the middle of nowhere, and has almost NO tourists. I don’t know how they maintain it, because it’s only 6 euros to get in and there was mum and I and two other tourists in the whole place for the entire couple of hours we were there. And it’s so huge that we didn’t even need to see the others, so it was like we had it to ourselves. It had belonged to a rich Roman family and then was taken over by one of the emperors to use as a personal getaway, and contained all the accoutrements of rich Roman houses. The hot bath house in particular was impressive, with massive three storey high walls still in existence, steps down into what used to be the water, heated by a series of under floor tunnels from huge cauldrons. The Romans’ use of water is really fascinating. They were just so clever! I don’t understand how this technology got either lost of disregarded for so long before coming back into existence, but it was absolutely incredible to see these rooms that were once saunas, bedrooms, entertainment areas, exercise arenas etc. Some of them still had pieces of marble walling and intact mosaic flooring that had only been uncovered in the last few years and had been sitting there, perfectly preserved, for thousands of years! I want to be an archaeologist. You can click here to see the pictures of the Villa dei Quintili.
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| Exterior of the Castle |
Castle Sant’Angelo
This is also known as Hadrian’s Mausoleum, and was used as a tomb for emperor’s ashes starting with Hadrian and on again for the next 150 years or so, when it was then used as a castle, a fortress and finally, a museum. One of the most complete and intact ancient Roman structures, it can be accessed on all four levels by means of staircases and you can visit old courtyards, dungeons, prison rooms, bedrooms and look at some of the paintings and furniture that had decorated it in the past. Obviously it has been well cared for and added to over the centuries, so it is not wholly original, but it is still incredibly impressive. From the top is a terrific view over all the domes of Rome including St Peter’s Basilica and the Tiber River. The top also contains a ‘death bell’ that was rung when prisoners were executed. There were some genuinely spine chilling moments inside this one. To see the pictures from inside and on top of the Castle Sant’Angelo, click here.
This is also known as Hadrian’s Mausoleum, and was used as a tomb for emperor’s ashes starting with Hadrian and on again for the next 150 years or so, when it was then used as a castle, a fortress and finally, a museum. One of the most complete and intact ancient Roman structures, it can be accessed on all four levels by means of staircases and you can visit old courtyards, dungeons, prison rooms, bedrooms and look at some of the paintings and furniture that had decorated it in the past. Obviously it has been well cared for and added to over the centuries, so it is not wholly original, but it is still incredibly impressive. From the top is a terrific view over all the domes of Rome including St Peter’s Basilica and the Tiber River. The top also contains a ‘death bell’ that was rung when prisoners were executed. There were some genuinely spine chilling moments inside this one. To see the pictures from inside and on top of the Castle Sant’Angelo, click here.
Tivoli and Hadrian’s Villa
About an hour outside of Rome is a little village called Tivoli, which supposedly had a “Garden of Water Fountains” which I was quite excited to see, and is also home to Hadrian’s Villa, the huge emperor’s palace and grounds that were his home outside of Rome. Well the Garden of Water Fountains was really just a tiny little bare sort of playground with a couple of non functioning stone tubs and a statue, but what really made the spot was an incredible view over the lower part of the town and a couple of nearby mountains. Breathtaking.
About an hour outside of Rome is a little village called Tivoli, which supposedly had a “Garden of Water Fountains” which I was quite excited to see, and is also home to Hadrian’s Villa, the huge emperor’s palace and grounds that were his home outside of Rome. Well the Garden of Water Fountains was really just a tiny little bare sort of playground with a couple of non functioning stone tubs and a statue, but what really made the spot was an incredible view over the lower part of the town and a couple of nearby mountains. Breathtaking.
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| Hadrian's Swimming Pool |
Hadrian’s villa was a strange little bus ride
and then a walk up a tree lined avenue
and through an arched gate into another world.
A world of incalculable wealth and decadence. Two massive and inevitable swimming pools decorated
the extensive grounds, one with statues under arches, a look I intend to create
in my mansion when I win the lotto. Many
walls remained standing of the original structures, and enabled visitors to
achieve some kind of sense of the glamour and scale of it all. No wonder modern day Italians are such good
builders. It’s been in their bloodline
for millennia! You can see Hadrian’s
Villa by clicking here.
Now, these were the places where we have spent a major
amount of time, but there have been many other bits and pieces visited over the last
week, and I have taken many more photos.
To see the photos of some bridges over the Tiber, various views of the
city, the massive and stunning Vittorio Momument and War Museum (also known as
the tomb of the Unknown Soldiers) and the Palace of Justice, click here to
visit my first General Rome album.
I felt like a second general Rome album was needed to
encompass other famous spots like the Spanish Steps, Pantheon, Piazza del
Popoli, the Trevi Fountain and the Leonardo da Vinci Museum where they have actually constructed machines from his drawings (my go that man
was freaking genius!!!) so to see all of
those, click here.
There are a million little stories I could tell about things
we’ve done and places we’ve seen, annoying tourist encounters (almost all
American) the sleazy Italian men and how everything here is either broken or
never worked in the first place (we say TII – This Is Italy – every time
something is late or broken, or info is wrong or contradictory) but this blog
is long enough, so I’ll save them for another time. For now – Andiamo, arrivederci!
Til Next We Speak
*AMORE*
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