Rome, Tuesday, 27 May, Day 34

We woke up super early so we could take advantage of the hotel's 7 am breakfast and set off to Saint Peters through the relatively quiet streets. There were streams of persons in all manner of clerical garb out and about. A chap in a fetching bluish robe whizzes past on a bicycle, another with white robe and impressive facial hair, a group of purple clad nuns, lots of chaps in basic black and dog collar, nuns with white dresses and black cardigans, others with black dresses and white cardigans. There is obviously a language in the garments, which must be apparent to the cognoscenti. I wonder if there is an equivalent to my Field Guide to Australian Birds available for cleric spotting.  The other thing which became apparent to me is that my dinner outfit last night - dark pants and a black shirt - is very similar to off duty clerical wear. I thought I was getting a few extra hard stares last night when Anne and I were strolling along hand in hand. Jeans and light shirts from now on in Rome.

After St Peters we walked over the foot bridge at Castle San' Angelo, and down some lovely quiet streets to visit a couple of churches which contain Caravaggio paintings. The Basilica of St Augustine had the beautiful Madonna of the Pilgrims. The second church had three Caravaggios - perhaps lesser works - but had hit on a novel fund raising tactic. The paintings were located in a particularly gloomy corner, and to get sufficient light to view the paintings one needed to insert a steady stream of Euro coins.

Next on the walking tour was the nearby Pantheon. After the churches we had just visited, the
Pantheon with its open circle at the apex of its great dome revealing the sky was really impressive, a breath of fresh air.

Last stop for the morning was Piazza_Navona with its marvellously elaborate fountains. It has been a social space since Roman times, a lovely place to spend some time on a sunny spring morning. Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers has a kind of mythic grandeur. The river gods are more or less twisted around the base of an Egyptian obelisk, probably 2,000 years older than the figures.  The photo below is the Fountain of Neptune, at the northern end, a fountain more easily photographed.

We had lunch on the Campo_de'_Fiori watching the market vendors pack up for the day. Anne retired to the hotel while I visited the cats who live in the Largo di torre Argentine ruins around the corner. Most of them are very cautious of humans, and some look pretty sick and sorry. But a couple came up for a pat, poor things, their fur is really matted.

We watched the end of the Giro, feeling sympathetic lactic acid in the leg pain as we watched the riders struggle up some of those gradients. For dinner we tried a place in a little square nearby that seemed to always have a crowd of local people obviously enjoying themselves. Simple menu, mainly battered cod, no frills, great food. After dinner we walked around, exploring some new streets and the nearby ghetto area, very atmospheric, right down to a chap walking down the narrow street playing exotic airs on his violin.

Tomorrow I plan on visit the Forum and the Palatine_Hill, and Anne is visiting Galleria Doria Pamphilj and neighbouring churches.