Ancient Rome

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November 12, 2006

When we woke up this morning it was raining lightly. I could not find my yoga clothes (later discovered that the maid had put them into a hotel bag as dirty laundry, can’t really blame her) so I did my yoga routine in my PJs, substituting balance poses for the more strenuous sun salutations (so that I can wear the PJs again); I later blamed the lack of Surya Namaskar for the prodigious amount of rain.

The Coliseum
We took a cab to the Coliseum, and it was striking as we crossed from central Rome into the area of ancient Rome. Even in the pouring rain, the sudden appearance of the regal Pine trees (Alex calls them “Umbrella trees”) and the structures of the Forum and the Coliseum. . . Amazing!

Our self-guided tour of the Coliseum was dominated by rain. It is an amazing structure and the preservation of it is admirable. But the purpose of the place is clearly abominable. So as a modern day spectator I had a mix of emotions - from an engineering standpoint, what a fabulous structure. But looking at it from an sort of humanitarian or human rights standpoint, what an abomination; and how sad that 50,000 people actually wanted to come and watch. From a sports-fan standpoint, one cannot help but recognize that this is the precursor of the modern sports stadium. The shape of the building, the number of seats, the arrangement of the seats (not a bad seat in the house; no obstructed view; box seats for the monied classes), refreshment stands, they even had toilets! When we went from the seating area back inside to the ticket/bookstore area, full of tourists, wet raincoats, and umbrellas . . . it felt more like a rain delay at Camden Yards than like ancient Rome. It was all I could do not to look for a Teddy’s pretzel stand. However, we do pay our Gladiators, and there isn’t usually (much) bloodshed, so I think we have improved upon things . . .













The Forum
We didn’t mind the rain at the Coliseum, but it was a bummer that it rained even harder as we walked up Via de Sacre into the Forum area. There are so many centuries of history here, separated from us by so many hundreds more. The first arch (Titus’s arch) documents the theft of Jewish antiquities in 71 AD and the final arch of our walk (Septemius Severus’ arch) documents the conquests of 203 AD. Between the two are structures in varying stages of decimation, restoration, and historical reuse. Of course we stopped at the Curia (the Roman Senate building) which is a complete structure (as opposed to the ruins that surround it) because it was rebuilt in the 300s.

At this point, although we had not exhausted the wealth of history within the Forum, we had exhausted the durability of our respective raingear, footgear, and camera batteries, plus we were all a bit peckish . . .

Drying out for Lunch
Since Linda and I had such a good dining experience when we walked a bit away form the touristy area, we did that again. We found a wine bar and restaurant in a small piazza tucked away down an alley. We were the first ones seated for lunch (at 1pm) but the restaurant was soon crowded with local families out for an (upscale) Sunday meal at “Vinando.” I had sautéed radicchio and gnocchi with sun-dried tomatoes. The food was all fabulous!

By now the rain had stopped, but we were all still feeling rather soggy, as the rain had been hard enough to soak through coats and shoes.

Stupid Tourist Tricks
After lunch we were unsuccessful in our quest to locate La Bocca de Verite (the mouth of truth.) We were, however, successful at looking like stupid American tourists. At one point we stood at the corner of Via del Corso and Via dell’Umilta, each one of us looking at a separate map . . . and after 10 minutes of walking we managed to find our way back to the same exact street corner!

So we abandoned the quest and instead headed for the Pantheon. As we approached the piazza, Leslie and I were deep in conversation, following Linda and Carrie’s lead. We walked to the front of a basilica without looking at the exterior. I read the top of the sign aloud: “Basilica de Sant Maria e Martryes” As we walked up to the doorway, the odd lighting struck me as darkly beautiful and I said, “Wow, this wasn’t even on our list and it’s really something!” Leslie’s response was, “I get churched out real quickly.” We walked through the doors, looked up at the legendary hole in the ceiling (part of the miracle of engineering that makes this an awe-inspiring structure) and said “Doh!” We were, of course, in the Pantheon! Modern engineers still do not know how Emperor Hadrian managed this architectural masterpiece in 25 BC. We were fooled by the sign, forgetting that in 609 AD the Catholic Church saved the building from destruction by turning it into a church; and we also apparently forgot how to read; as the sign clearly said “Pantheon” beneath the church’s name . . .

Coins in the Fountain
Next stop was Trevi fountain, where I bought goofy flour in a balloon toys for the girls, at their request (the ones from Alex’s summer trip to Italy have broken. Against my better judgement, I spent 2 euros for the privilege of once again cleaning flour off of my floor.) The fountain is beautiful and of course there were lots of tourists there, tossing in coins. It had a carnival atmosphere, lots of “shlockhockers” (Linda gets credit for coining that word) and much photo taking. After three tries we all managed to get the superstition done right - with your back to the fountain, toss a coin over your left shoulder. Legend has it that this ensures you will return to Rome!

The Price of a Beer
Next stop was Piazza Novono, where I bought two small watercolors from an artist; one that reminded me of the beautiful balcony gardens and the lovely ocher color of many of the houses; the other reminded me of the restaurant where Linda and I had that marvelous dinner. We drank some beer and wine (the most expensive of the trip to date,) enjoyed some nice conversation and a bit of people watching. Linda and Carrie had had enough walking in their soggy clothes and hailed a taxi. Leslie and I had a lovely walk home. We bought 2 beers for 5 euros from a street vendor (after paying 8 euros for one beer at Piazza Navono.) We walked down the stairs to the cobblestone Piazza Tavere, the walkway along the river. I snapped a few great photos of the bridges and Castel San’Angelo.

The four of us had a great, and reasonably priced dinner at l’Abruzzese, at the suggestion of the hotel’s bartender. After dinner we went back to Antroppometrico, but they weren’t all that excited to see us, as they were starting to close. We were the only ones there for a while, had two drinks, and Leslie and I played a round of challenge yoga (I can do this, can you?) which surely amused the waiter.

A fun ending to yet another wonderful day!

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Photos

The four of us in front of the Coliseum
The Literary Drinking and Travel Club in the rain at the Coliseum.

Interior of the Colliseum
This is the exposed area that was hidden by the floor back in 80 AD. The animals were kept in the maze of hallways and came up into the arena through ramps and trap doors.

The Forum
Septemius Severus' arch, with the remains of the Temple of Saturn in the background, and a wealth of colorful umbrellas in the foreground.

Pontificating
The great orator, Leslie Crair, speaking outside of the Curia. (Wouldn't this have made a nice video?)

Piazza Novono
Site of the 8 Euro beers.