Mediterranean Cruise: Rome-Day Five

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Wednesday, September 26, 2012



Today’s excursion will take us to Rome. The ship docked in Civitavecchia so a 1 ½-2 hour bus ride is the first order of the day.



Once in Rome, our first stop is the Trevi Fountain, the largest fountain in Rome. But before we throw our coins over our left shoulders and make a wish, we took a 15-20 minute walk through narrow streets from where our bus dropped us off to Piazza di Trevi, the location of the fountain. While the original fountain was built in the 15^th century, the one we saw was built between 1732-1751. You can see it in the 1953 film “Roman Holiday.” It is quite impressive.



From there it was a short walk to the Pantheon, a temple built to honor all gods. It has had extensive repair and reconstruction over the years, and is today used as a church and museum. Inside you can see the tomb of Raphael and numerous works of art.



We were given 1 ½ hours for lunch on our own. We chose pizza. It was sold by weight. Not being a connoisseur of pizza, it was okay.



A walk back to the bus through more narrow by-ways, and we were on our way to the Colosseum. Nothing typifies ancient Rome more than the Colosseum. Construction began in AD 70 and was completed in AD 80. It could hold over 55,000 spectators. Without either being on a tour, or purchasing tickets in advance, you’d never see both the Colosseum and the Vatican Museum, which is our next stop, in one day. The lines at both are unbelievably long.



Our guide, Maximov, did a good job of explaining how the Colosseum was built, used, and its appearance when in use. Tours like we were on today overloads one’s senses. I don’t think even 1% of what I was told today sank into my short term memory let alone long term.



Back on the bus to Vatican City where we’ll see a miniscule portion of the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Cathedral.



If there were a lot of people at the Colosseum, there were 1,000 times more creeping through the exhibit hall of the Vatican Museum on their way to the Sistine Chapel. This has to be the most visited place in the world.



We had been here 4 years ago, but today’s crowd was unbelievable. Even with the advantage of fast tracking at points along the way the claustrophobic feeling at times diminished the experience.



While some around the world consider American’s to be rude. Let me tell you, we would win the Emily Post award compared to the many non-Americans we encountered while exiting the Sistine Chapel. So rude! And in a chapel no less! But I digress.



So many tourists are disrespectful of other’s religions. You are asked to take no photographs and to be quiet while viewing Michelangelo’s masterpieces, which took him 4 years to complete between 1508 and 1512. A vast majority of the visitors were far from quiet, and filled their memory cards with digital images.



When you leave the Sistine Chapel you will be at St. Peter’s Cathedral, the world’s largest, it does not disappoint. Michelangelo’s Pieta is on display here. It is magnificent, even seen from a distance.



A quick walk through St. Peter’s Square brought us back to the bus for our return trip to the ship. We saw many more ruins, arches, fountains, and sculptures than I could ever list in my journal. It would take a life-time of visits to uncover and see all that the Eternal City has to offer.

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Photos

Pizza for Lunch
She placed her spatula about 6 inches into the pizza. Then we told her more or less, depending on how large a slice we wanted.