I decided to get up and take one of my classic runs through Roma at about 7:30 or so. My first desire was to check out the aftermath of the Massimo so I headed down past the cats, through the Jewish section and along the Tiber until I found it. Part of the stage was still up but there were hundreds of workers clearing every up. Genesis concert at the Circus Maximus. The main image I will remember were the thousands of crushed water bottles and their caps all lying everywhere. Then I looped around the Colloseum and tried to get into the Forum but it did not op[en until 8:30. I actually was stopped at a gate trying to go in. I had to back track and decided to try to find San Pietro in Vincoli which I remembered opened at 7:30. Luckily had had brought a map and finally found the right roads to get there. Up in the right corner was Michelangelo’s Moses, originally made to be a part of Pope Julius II. It depicts an angry Moses just returning from receiving the Ten Commandments only to get a glimpse of his people worshipping the golden calf. It was finished in 1515 and four meters tall. If Moses stood, he would nearly be the height of David. I ran back up through the corner of the forum on the stars where we had rested on Friday, past the Capitolino Museum on the Campodiglio Hill. I was able to find my second favorite view of the forum. I had run there last time were here. Then down a hill and I found a set of stairs right across fro the first church we had visited on Friday that would have taken me exactly where I wanted to go then. I then headed back to the pantheon and had been gone about an hour and ten minutes. A great run.
We met for breakfast at 9:30 and then headed out for the day. We found out that you could even get more than one cappuccino if you wanted it. But today we didn’t want another because Gary had found a couple of great caffe places in the top ten book. We first tried to take Christine to see the Caravaggios at the church San Luigi dei Francesi, but a mass was going on and we didn’t go in. We went back to the square with the dueling caffe places but the one that was open was called Sant’ Eustachio il Caffe’ Piazza St Eustachio. This was a great place with a New York Times review on the wall and everything. You had to but first and then get the cappuccino at the bar and it really was amazingly good.
Santa Maria del Popolo
We walked straight up Via Ripetta to the Piazza del Popolo to see the Caravaggio’s at Santa Maria del Popolo. When we got there we didn’t go in because a mass was going on there too. Gary wandered in but I went looking for an internet point and actually found one but it was closed. We waited a bit but finally went in while the mass was going on. We wandered up to the front and unbelievably during the Eucharist the organist played all of “Memories” from Cats. It was surreal. The service did end and we went up to the chapel on the left and found the two Caravaggio’s–the Crucifixion of St. Peter (4) and the Conversion of St. Paul (5). Both apparently were completed in 1601. There was quite a seen up in front as people were gathering even before the service was over and then waiting for the lights to come on. One guy was perturbed that people had gone in and another was so excited when the lights actually went on and he acted like he was responsible. We then went down to the Chigi and tried to determine which statue’s were the Bernini’s one certainly was the Habakkuk with the angel grabbing his hair and the other was of Isaiah. There were also works there by Raphael who had apparently started the chapel but left it unfinished 150 years earlier 1519-1523. We left just as another mass was starting so it had to be pretty close to 12. We tried the internet café again but it was still locked up tight. I found a sunglasses guy but decided to wait until I thought I might get a better deal. But there was also the fear I’d never see anyone with them again and I’d have to go back around the Trevi Fountain to find guys selling them. We walked across the Piazza del Popolo with its big Egyptian obelisk in the center. From there we walked down Via del Corso and bought Robert a pair of shorts. I remembered that we had been on a street called Via Margutta when we took our evening Rome walking tour and saw it on a map so I lead everyone over too it. It turned out not to be much because most of the cool antique shops were all closed because it was Sunday. But we blew Gary and Peggy’s mind when we actually drank out of one of the public water fountains. We then were looking for an internet point in that area but it seemed like it would be too upscale for there to be one. I also found the place Christine and I had stayed in 2003, . At one little stand I bought a lemon granita which tasted perfect in the heat. This was by far the hottest day of the trip. I’ll bet it was in the high 80s even low 90s with a touch of humidity. I thought it would be at least this hot every day, What a great blessing to have had such perfect weather for the entire trip. We were heading back toward Corso and found this shop with live models in the window promoting Coke Zero– two girls in bathing suits and a black guy in a Speedo. They were having a great time making everybody laugh and in the store others were hading out free samples of Coke Zero. We then went into this gorgeous newer indoor mall and found a guy playing a piano and a bathroom for Christine. Here we had another cappuccino and it may have been the best. It may have been a bit too hot for caffe drinks but it was still good. We wanted to go up to get aranci (deep fried rice balls) at Spizzco and even though Gary did not want to backtrack (food snob) we still got there and tried them.
We kept walking down Corso and many more shops were open than Lucca had said there would be. We just weren’t in much of a shopping mood, really on the whole trip for that matter.
Galleria Doria Pamphilj
We overshot the entrance to the Galleria Doria Pamphilj which was to be our next stop and finally found it in an inner road off Corso. The fee was €8 each but we got a free audio guide which was a must. My first rule of being in any gallery or museum, get the guide. The amazing thing about this place is that is still a private gallery own by the Pamphilj family. Our favorite and most famous paintings were the two Caravaggios, Rest on the flight to Egypt (6) and Mary Magdalene (7) and the Velasquez of the Pope. Also the Bernini bust of Pope Innocent X that you could touch in the same room as the Velasquez. (I didn’t). Being privately owned there was a charm and sense of age the most public galleries do not have. The collections also are set up in a specific order that the family wanted. Many were commissioned or purchased to fit exactly where they still hang. Amazingly we didn’t get “gallery fatigue” as early as I thought we would. We probably were there until about 3 when we headed over to see the Moses.
San Pietro in Vincoli
The great thing that I had never seen was that they had completely shut down the main street Via Dei Fori Imperiali from the Victor Emmanuel II Monument down to the Colosseum What a great idea-no traffic. Peggy and Gary bough some fruit on the street first a nectarine and then a cup of watermelon. We walked up Via Cavour looking at shops along the way and a car with a father and daughter on the way to a wedding who were obviously lost sopped at one corner as we waited to cross a street. We found the set of stairs that led up to the Piazza where San Pietro in Vincoli was. Much easier to find this time. The Moses is up in the chapel to the right. Two visits in one day is pretty amazing. We also got a closer look at the chains of St. Peter which were actually two sets, one from when Peter was in the Mamertine and the other was a set from Acts 12. As the legend goes when they were put together they miraculously intertwined to become a single set.
As we walked back Gary nearly took a cab as he was pretty well chafed from the heat. Major pain. On the way back we all got separated as I stopped and wheeled-and-dealed with a sunglasses street seller. I think they are barely worth €5 but I got three for €24 with the little bags I almost walked twice but the guy wanted to sell something. We walked back and found the internet place near the Largo Argentina. It was open but were weren’t able to get any seat assignments. We went back to the place, our wonderfully cooled place, and relaxed after a long hot day.
We also had an incredible time watching all the street theatre from our room. There was an incredible amount of action. We hooked back up with Gary and Peggy and Gary and I went down to the street level and took pictures of the ladies looking down from their bedroom windows. The rooms and the views were really amazing not sure I can ever stay anywhere else in Rome. We then went up and all met back on the roof top bar. The action was great. They had the umbrellas up but they didn’t actually much good to shade the sun at that time of day. The best part of watching the drama below was seeing what happened with the African salesmen of purses and belts and sunglasses. Every once in a while they would all leave the square, completely gone and then slowly return. Obviously they were being tipped when the police were coming as once when they all started going we soon saw a police car enter from the left and two undercover women carbinieri got out started walking across the piazza. We could see every bit of it, how they retreated, stopped and then finally disappeared as the police got closer. We also enjoyed looking at the Pantheon dome, watching the birds, listening to the bells–just in general enjoying the glory of the view.
Our dinner reservation was at a more reasonable eight. I was very surprised that Gary agreed to go back to Sostegno for a second night. I just wanted to be sure we had a reasonable and good final meal in Rome. Gary thought the strategy matched what we had done at Capricci–have a great last night’s meal that would be a guaranteed winner close to home. We got our exact same table and had another great meal. Christine and I each had an an antipasti and a primi. Christine had the proscuitto and melon when they said the melon was good today. I had the proscuitto and buffalo mozzarella which was a huge ball more tender than what we had yesterday. Gary had carpaccio with garden rockets and Peggy had the Capresi. For our primi I had an incredible fusilli with shaved zucchini that was very light ad delicious. Christine had the pasta with porcini Peggy had the pasta with carbonara and Gary had the Roman classic Veal Saltambocca. For dessert we ha a large and wild strawberry mix with vanilla ice cream. Again some of the sweetest berries I have ever eaten.
We wandered over to Della Palma while Gary stayed on the steps at the corner as he was still stinging pretty badly. Christine and I got pesca and limone and it was great. We walked around the piazza a bit and then went up to finish off the limoncello on the roof. We caught some more of the opera guy and saw the birds fly over–the end of a very special final evening in Rome. I stayed up and tried to catch up on my journal and finally went to sleep at about midnight.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment