Italy, Rome – Part 1

All roads lead to Rome. This is where we found ourselves. You know you’re in Rome when …

Parking habits in Rome make sense to Romans.

I found endless amusement in the wee smart cars that were parked perpendicularly. It makes perfect sense to save space. I mean, they are as long as other cars are wide, it just looks a little odd until you get used to it!

We spent our first afternoon in Rome doing what we did on all of our travel days; taking it easy and just wandering around.

Quite wonderfully, as we left the hotel and headed in a “downhill” direction, we turned a corner and were met by the Colosseum and ruins. Then it was just a matter of finding somewhere willing to sell us espresso and possibly an Aperol Spritz.

When was the last time you saw a building where the plaque giving the year of construction read “ANNO VII”?

This magnificent structure is affectionately known as the wedding cake, or not so affectionately known as Rome’s Dentures. What it actually is, is the Alter of the Fatherland, or National Monument to Victor Emmanuel II (Altre della Patria), and it’s a monument to the first King of a unified Italy.

Of course like all cities, there were monuments everywhere and to all sorts of things. Though of course, around here they tend to be slightly older than some other countries. This one is the Marcus Aurelius Column.

How the tourist groups choose to get about and see these monuments though, is a sign of the times. Ahh progress.

Given that it is such an old city, I found it quite enthralling to go to the oldest, still in use building. Even if it is no longer being used for its original purpose.

The Pantheon.

Built by Marcus Agrippa 14AD, burned in the great fire, and re-built by Hadrian in 126AD It was a house of worship for all the gods, until the Catholics claimed it in the 7th Century. It has the distinction of having, still to this day, the worlds largest unreinforced concrete dome. But to get a good view of that we needed to come back in daylight!

Hope you’re enjoying our trip re-enactment so far! I look forward to showing off the rest of our adventures in Rome over the next few days.