Arrivederci Roma!

Our last day in the eternal city.  Leaving with mixed emotions.  Love the art, don't like walking there, love the oldness, don't like the seediness, love the people, don't like the people.  Rome is such a dichotomy that transcends all emotions.  You can't see this stuff without being here, but being here is difficult.  The streets are dirty, but the museums are pristine.  All in all, an ancient city that will always be with me, but as I sit here listening to the men yell in the streets to each other, another world.

We began late again this morning, ignoring the rule that in order to overcome jet lag you must reset your body clocks.  Our body clocks have won and their answer was, "NO!"  We had two agendas today.  Get cash, and book tickets on the train for Florence tomorrow.  We have a Eurail pass good for France and Italy on 7 travel days.  We can, presumably, jump on any train, at any time in those 2 countries without fare (except what we have paid for already for the pass).  Not so.  The Florence train requires a reservation, which requires going to the train station and paying more money for a ticket.  We did that without incident and will jump on the 12:55 fast train (really fast) for Florence, Italy tomorrow.  We hung around the station so Jerry could get accilamated for tomorrow, and had a gourmet meal of 2 hot dogs and a diet coke.

After the station our other task was money.  As I said yesterday, our cash card was not always working at the hundreds of Bancomats in Rome.  I am sure that it is the fault of the Italian Banking System not our local bank, but until we got a reserve store of cash, (and enough to pay for our next apartment in Florence) Jerry was not resting.  Our first try was a success!  Hooray.  Onward and upward!

So now it is 2:00 and we havent done anything. Since our meto/bus passes have been used up (3 dys for E16.50 each) we decide to walk to anything we want to see today.  We went to the Rome National Museum which was a little gem right close to our hotel.  Rick Steves said it was the best collection of ancient Roman artifacts in the world.  So this was an easy walk, and E10 each we were in.  this was the least crowded, and cleanest place we have been.  Nice place.  Here are some of the photos we took.

Rome National Museum --  Minerva

Roman guys....hey, one looks like Jerry!

Mosaic rescued from an ancient home.

Partial Roman Calendar that was displayed in the marketplace

Hey, it's spring here.  These are oranges.

Jerry consulting with Caesar

Dying woman after being shot in the back.

beautiful man

back of beautiful man

Diana

Venus

Jerry giving the discus thrower some track tips

Digionese-- old face

Digionese-- young face, always questioned everything.  They are on the same statue

The hermaphrodite.  We didn't show the other side.

Sarcophagus.  Look at the carvings

Close up of one figure on the Sarcophagus

Beautiful frescos rescued from a Roman Villa c. 200 BC.
Just like wallpaper, but 2000 years old

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Also, the largest and most extensive coin collecion in Europe.
Ancient Rome to modern times

Vault protecting the coins.  Fort Knox

Scales to weigh the coins

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Following this we went to Santa Maria della Vittoria Cathedral

Bernini's statue of the swooning St. Teresa in Ecstacy.  Amazing!

Santa Maria della Vittoria Cathedral

Santa Maria della Vittoria Cathedral

Right next door was the Santa Maria degli  Angeli which is built on the ancient Roman Baths and designed by Michelangeo.

Santa Maria degli  Angeli which is built on the ancient Roman Baths
and designed by Michelangeo.

Santa Maria degli  Angeli designed by Michelangeo.

The interior Roman sundial and calendar

Oh yeah, and I fell again on the sidewalk but didn't have any injury.  The curse of Roman sidewalks and old eyes and feet.

Today was 64 degrees, so we were enjoying the warm Roman weather.  Jerry had a short sleeved shirt on and I a light jacket.  There were locals in EARMUFFS!  Boy what would they do in Iowa.

Ate a Donner, came back and drank wine in the hotel.  Leave tomorrow for sunny (I hope) Tuscanny. If we don't post tomorrow we will on Monday.  Ciao!

Vatican City - Like the Emerald City?

Friday in Rome.  Cool today with no sun, so it seemed more like an Early November day in Iowa.  Jerry slept poorly last night so we were both dragging.  I think the 3rd day of International travel is always the worst, because your body is still saying "hey, I should be asleep now and you're making me walk around" and your mind no longer says "shut up, and function".  So on that happy beginning let's go to the Vatican.

The Vatican is completely on the other side of Rome from where we are.  We knew there was a bus #40 that we had taken from the station yesterday that got us close.  Close meaning within about 10 blocks (which apparently is close in Jerry's mind).  The Vatican Museum is on the complete opposite side from St. Peters Cathedral and another 10 - 15 blocks.....what I am trying to say is....we took a cab to the entrance.  Even though we could ride the bus there for free we took a cab.  And I am ashamed of it, but we did it anyway.

The Vatican Museum is the largest art collection in the world.  It goes for miles and miles, and at the end of it is the Sistine Chapel.  Here are some (few) of the priceless art treasures there.

This is a beautiful Greek sculpture that some ninny in the 17th century thought needed "fig leaves" covering private areas.  Only in the Vatican do you see these, but I think they are funny.

The vatican - The entire place is like this -- excess on excess!

Inside the Vatican - View of Rome

Rock garden

Jean in front of Locoon

These beautiful mosaic floors are everywhere!

Tiles are about 1/2 inch square

mosaic

The Belevedere Torso that inspired Michaelango

The discus thrower

the whole place is like this

 After the Sistine Chapel, which you cannot photograph (I don't know why) there are two doors to exit.  We found out on our last trip that if you go to the one on the right it is a shortcut to St. Peter's Basicilla. 

 As this picture shows, some other people have discovered the "shortcut".
Damn you, Rick Steves!

We went into St. Peters.  Largest Church in the world.  Unbelievably over the top.   Lots and lots of people here now because of the Pope, Spring break, and ...it's Rome! We will go back again just to St. Peters tomorrow because we ran out of bullets but here are a few of our pictures.

Home of the Pieta (Mary and dead Jesus) that was carved
 by Michelango when he was in his 20's.

Then back on bus #40 and a stop off at the Colosseum and Constantine Arch.  We were so tired, we just sat there and looked at it.  We were inside last year, and truthfully, the outside is as cool as the inside.

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We came back to the hotel and rested.  I mean, slept.  Tomorrow, is another day.  Our last full one in Rome.  We have some logistics to iron out, like our cash card only works in 1 out of 5 bancomats, which sends Jerry into a tizzy.  We were walking this afternoon looking for one and saw the street we were going to go down was blocked off by police.  Turns out 3 former old radical group guys tried to rob an armored car in front of a bank.  The security guard killed the leader!!!  We ain't in Kansas anymore, Toto.

Jerry filling the water bottle.  This guy was cute and we talked.  We said "Iowa" and he said "Corn!"

It is 8:46 and we will leave shortly for our 10 PM dinner reservations. Last night it was a pizza and NO WINE!!!  That is not happening tonight!   Fun to be here.  Fun to hear from you!!!   Ciao!