WELCOME TO ROMA

We are happy to report that our flight to Rome was uneventful, just the way we like it. There was one moment of panic when the pilot on the Cleveland to Newark leg of our journey announced a possible delay and disimbarkment, Fortunately we only experienced a 15 minute delay. Whew

Due to the Italian government we were instructed to keep on our N95 masks the entire journey, except when eating. Apparently Italy is the only European country that extended mask wearing through June 16th, all others dropped that requirement. We actually received a dinner that consisted of some pretty tasty Indian butter chicken (you also had the choice of pasta). There was even a very flavorful lemon sorbet included. Breakfast, however, was just yogurt and a small pastry. Of course there was also beverage service, and it looked like red and white wine might have been free with dinner. All the snacks we took with us were really unnecessary.

Once we landed, a driver from JayWay picked us up right on cue. It took him some time to traverse Rome’s very busy highways and streets. They reallly do drive bumper car style here, but his brand new Mercedes remained unscathed.

We arrived safely at the Charme Spagna Boutique Hotel at Via dalia Mercede 37. Tucked into a narrow side street it had a small elevator sparing us from carrying our bags up a swirling staircase. The room is small, but newly renovated and very comfortable. They even gave us a bottle of Prosecco and snacks. The staff is also extremely helpful.

Our JayWay contact, Simone Ranalli met us at our hotel to review our itinerary. Turns out Simone is a he. A tall handsome young man bred and born in Rome. He provided us with more information than we know what to do with, but much of it will be very helpful to have.

Since we arrived at the hotel by about 9:30 AM, we had a day of sightseeing planned. After getting settled we hit the streets kind of following Rick Steve’s Heart of Rome walk and headed for the Spanish steps. Located in the. Piazza di Spagna. At the bottom of the steps is the Sinking Boat Fountain built by Gian Bernini or his father, Pietro. Like most of Rome’s fountains (perhaps all of them) it is aqueduct powered.

Then of course we hiked up the 138 steps to the baroque church at the top of the hill. The steps are named for the Spanish Embassy to the Vatican that has been located there for about 300 years. It was actually less crowded than when I visited 50 years ago, Then the steps were full of “hippies” congregating and strumming their guitars. It was also full of vendors. There were no vendors this time, only a handful of people trying to sell roses, or kids toys.

Next stop was the iconic Trevi Fountain. It was designed by Nicola Salvi and was completed in 1762. I believe the fountain represents the waters of the earth in the figure of a massive statue “Ocean”. Water flows out of twenty-four spouts and tumbles everywhere. It truly is an amazing spectacle, and if you add in the throngs of tourists taking photos and flinging coins it is even more impressive.

After crossing the Via del Corso, Rome’s main North-South boulevard that had once been used for horse races, we arrived at The Piazza Colonnade came next. The Piazza features a huge 2nd century column. The figures represented the victories of Emperor Marcus Aurelius over the barbarians.

There are colonnades and obelisks all over Rome, many of which have Christian symbols sitting up on the top which essentially made them kosher. That includes an Egyptian obelisk taken as a trophy by Augustus aver his victory over Mark Anthony and Cleopatra. The obelisk now sits in front of Italy’s parliament building. We saw lots of soldiers with machine guns all over the city, but particularly near government buildings. It also seemed that police were positioned at all tourist areas and museums.

One of the most incredible sights for the day was next, the Pantheon. You cannot understand how mammoth and impressive this structure is unless you see it for yourself. Massive forty foot single-piece granite columns greet you at the entrance. Built by Emperor Hadrian (A.D. 120), the domed room with its portico open to the sky is breathtaking. No wonder Michelangelo and Brunelleschi were influenced by its grandeur.

Sitting in Piazza Navona is another Gian Lorenzo Bernini fountain wonder, The Four Rivers Fountain. Four massive river gods represent the four continents known back in 1650. Powerful gushes of water represented the Ganges, Nile, Danube, and Uruguay’s Rio de la Plata. Piazza Navona is full of tourists enjoying the fountain along with restaurants and gelato. Another fountain is found in PIazza Navona, the Fountain of Neptune.

We followed the crowd and stopped for our first Aperol Spritz at 4 Fiurno. It was incredibly refreshing, and contrary to what we heard, included glasses full of ice. There must be more restaurants in Italy than any other country in the world. On most piazzas and down many side streets you’ll find restaurants after restaurant, and remarkably at night most are filled with patrons.

By this point our jet lag was really kicking in. I think we wandered through the Campo de’Fiori at this point, but frankly I don’t remember. Exhausted we headed back to our hotel. On the way we tried our first gelato of the trip. I hate to say it, but while it was refreshing, it wasn’t the “fantastic” we both had expected. I looked to see if the gelato was packed in a large mounds vs flat, with flat being better per our good friend Eileen. Perhaps it wasn’t flat enough.

Back at our hotel we collapsed. No harm in taking a siesta is there? At about 6 PM we forced ourselves up and out again to hunt for our supper. We picked one of the first places we saw based on the fact they had a table for two, and there were enough customers to make us feel it would be ok. Our pizza was good, but not much could be said for the caprese salad. After dinner, you guessed it, we went right to bed. Our Vatican tour starts at 7 AM, UGH!