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Published: April 26th 2008
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Mid-town ruins, and if you look closely... cats It’s another of our sightseeing jaunts back into Rome in the afternoon after the conference session, and Tim and I make our way from the shuttle drop-off at Piazza Venezia to the Pantheon. On the way, we come to a cordoned off half of a city block known as the "Area Sacra" - it is an ancient ruin right in the middle of a bustling block of bus traffic, taxis, scooters... all the city noise a metropolis could muster. Unlike the historic center over by the Colosseum and the Forum which is vast and isolated to foot traffic, this is a small ruin, no less impressive, that held its ground while modern Rome went up around it. It is about a story lower then steet level, and has been fenced off with railing and plexiglass so people can fully view it. And... it happens to be inhabited by probably a hundred or more stray cats. I guess there are organizations who provide these cats food and veterinary care, but it pulled a little on the heart strings to see these cats, some with obvious physical problems (several with only 3 legs, a few with one eye, etc.) making a home out
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Resident felines of this place in the middle of a bustling city. Cats in Rome, in fact, are pretty revered. Everywhere we went there was a “Gatti de Roma” calendar or poster or postcard. Cute photos of cats perched on massive monuments or with the Colosseum or Pantheon on the background. But these are not those cats. They are in the homeless cat settlement in the middle of the city because they have no cozy spot to go home to. The reality was sort of sobering, but as you can see by the photos, these felines are making the most of a tough situation.
As we walked toward the Pantheon, we came up on its back side and got an immediate clue as to the sheer enormity of this structure. What an amazing feat of architecture and engineering! The literal translation of the word is "Temple of all the Gods", and is it ever. The Piazza Rotunda, where it is situated, has trattoria upon ristorante of options to just sit in the presence of the Pantheon and enjoy a cappuccino or glass of wine, and many people were doing just that. But... as you can see from the video clip, you
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This guy reminded us of our own Umlaut just can't get far enough away from the home to escape the golden arches. Of course we would never dream of patronizing Mickey D's in Italy of all places, BUT I have to say if you are in Italy and need a clean public restroom, make a note that it is one of your best bets. Little Italian shops and restaurants do not tolerate non-customers popping in to use their facilities, so one has to take opportunity where opportunity presents itself.
Back to one the greatest pieces of engineering in the world... the Pantheon is stunning from the outside, and until you get on the inside you forget it's actually a temple where religious services are held. There is an altar set up with seating that is roped off from the flow of sightseeing foot traffic, and many religious murals and sculptures grace the walls and niches. The dome ceiling with its oculus is indescribable. All you can say to yourself is... "how did they DO that?!" Check out Tim's video clip that pans the interior and the ceiling, and tell me you don't get dizzy. ;o)
From the Pantheon we made our way to the famous Piazza
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A study of Gatto di Roma... with ancient column base Navona, which is a well known and well frequented piazza offering a multitude of eateries and bars, not to mention great people watching. We walked from Piazza Navona to the Campo de Fiori, which loosely translates to "Field of Flowers"... and there was indeed a beautiful display within the square, along with lots of steet vendors and an even more colorful blend of people to watch. On one end of the piazza we came upon this little high end grocery with beautiful display windows showing off its offerings. We cracked up on the Duncan Hines cake mix, though. Exactly how does that fit? But the store was delightful, and inside you could see the butchers scurrying behind the meat and cheese counter and it made you want to go in and say "I'll have one slice of each," because everything looked so tasty and fresh.
Just off Campo de Fiori, I snapped this little side street with a tiny ristorante with outdoor seating on the cobbled street and a darling backdrop. This is the charm of Italy that you just can't find where we live! It just makes you want to sit down and have a cappuccino or panini
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Walking up to the back of the Pantheon... unsuspecting of the magnitude of its front at every one of these you pass by because the environment is so delightful and it's yet another opportunity to sit and soak up the ambience of Italy.
It was evening by this time, and we found ourselves at the Ponte Sisto, which is one of the bridges that crosses the Tiber over to the part of Rome known as "Trastevere"... directly translated - "across the river". This area is enough off the beaten path that you find the real Roman neighborhoods, trattorias and ristorantes with authentic Roman cuisine, and you overhear more Italian conversations than English. This is our kind of Roma. We walked through a maze of cobbled streets and enjoyed looking at probably 50 menus before deciding on "Il Duca" for our supper. It was diminutive and unassuming with cozy seating, and the chef working right behind a partition, throwing pizzas into a woodfire oven you could see from your seat. The dinner was great (and reasonable - no tourist prices here), but the walk back to Piazza Venezia along the Tiber was even more beautiful because the streetscape and bridges were all lit casting a golden glow on the water, with the trees leaning over
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The tourists are dwarfed by this amazing structure toward the Tiber as if they are trying to touch the river. The photos don't do it justice, and our night photo setting didn't work the way we wanted it to. But you get the gist. It was a lovely evening to be in Trastevere.
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