Roma

As the old saying goes, Rome wasn’t visited in a day. For a place with so much history and so many artefacts from the ancient Roman through the Renaissance to the modern era, it is impossible to do it justice in just a day. But we tried. Had to, as we have spent the last two weeks just 1 hour north by train. We started with a combined train/metro/bus ticket for the day for just 9 euros, about half what the equivalent ticket costs for London. But what to do? There is so much to potentially cover we decided on a wander past some of the Roman ruins, taking in a sprinkling of churches, fountains, statues and public buildings, and a meander around some alleyways. Not to mention check out a few shops and an essential revival at a gelateria. No time to add in the Vatican or queue up to tour around any of the main sites. We just accepted that we’ll have to go back one day and see it in more depth.

Our particular visit started with the Colosseum and it is a big impact introduction indeed! It is no longer at the centre of a roundabout, so quieter and more accessible. And enormous. It is also the centre of all things Roman, with the ruins of the Forum, Palatine Hill, Circus Maximus, various triumphal arches and other buildings all nearby. It is also the centre of tour groups and getting your picture taken in a wedding dress. Very crowded, it must be horrendous in the peak of the summer tourist season. At least the Colosseum is so large it towers over everything and everyone else.

We chose to walk up and back along the Via Corso as many of the well-known sites lie a few blocks either side of it. A few of those sites easily visited (and free!) were:

San Pietro in Vincoli – a church that contained a glass box with the “original” chains that St Peter was locked up with in Roman times, plus a wonderful sculpture of Moses by someone called Michelangelo.

The Pantheon – the most complete Roman building, both massive and awe-inspiring. Thank you Marcus Agrippa. Check out the inside here.

Piazza Navona – containing three separate fountains of glorious statues.

Numerous churches – as long as you dress appropriately you can just wander in – at least they were mainly open – and see wonderful paintings and sculptures and religious artefacts.

The Trevi Fountain – absolutely enormous, but it really is a waterfall, not a fountain.

The Spanish Steps – not sure what the attraction is here as they seem to be just a place to sit.

Gelato shop – Essential. Pistachio and Coffee is my favourite.

All the buildings! – beautiful, colourful, textures ….

So, a great day out for us and one with so many beautiful things on display the 33C temperature was rarely noticed. Did it live up to expectations? Beyond. And we only saw a fraction of what is on offer and none of them in-depth. Yes, we have to work out how we can stay there to spend days wandering around …