Salerno, Saturday 31 May, Day 38

We managed to be extremely efficient getting out of the Hotel early, and catching a bus just as we got to the stop, which meant that we got to Rome railway station more than an hour before our train departed. On a Saturday morning the station was packed both with people heading off somewhere, and a steady stream of other people whose role in life seemed to be to ask as many people as possible if they had a spare Euro. Some of them weren’t particularly polite about receiving a negative answer, and it was a relief to get on the train and be hurtled away from Rome at around 289 kilometres per hour. 

Under 2 hours later we were pulling onto Naples, then rolling past Vesuvius, then through a mighty long tunnel to emerge at Salerno. We headed off to walk to our hotel, which took us a bit longer than the GPS’s optimistic estimate of 28 minutes, due to us taking a few wrong choices at forks in the road, the steepness of the terrain, and the GPS’s inaccuracy. We missed our destination by about 200 metres today which caused us a bit of walking backwards and forwards.

After we checked in, we were feeling in serious need of lunch, and we set off to search for a restaurant recommended by the lady in our B & B.  Finding it however proved too hard for us in our enfeebled condition, so we stumbled into the first open restaurant we come across, and had one of the nicest meals of the trip so far. The food was great, and the Signora was lovely.

After what seems like weeks of blue skies and sunshine it started raining as we hit Naples, and as the day proceeded there were some mighty thunder storms over the mountains which ring the coast. Which gave us a perfect excuse to do not very much for the rest of the day.

The place we are staying has a magnificent view of the town, the port and the bay, and we spent the afternoon watching the lightning, listening to the rain pour down and the thunder reverberate off the mountains, enjoying the incredibly fragrant lemon blossom scented air, and, eventually, admiring the double rainbow over the nay which appeared near sunset.  Here is part of the view from our little terrace.

There is a lift we discovered, quite close to the B & B, so we caught that down to near sea level. (The lift, as is only right, has a siesta each day from 2.30 to 4.00pm)

After dinner we went for a walk along the sea front, admiring the crescent moon appearing over the mountains in one direction, and the huge electrical storm lighting up the sky far out to sea in the other. Found our way back to the lift through tiny winding streets, and managed to negotiate the rather bewildering series of locks to get back inside. So all good so far. We are very glad to be somewhere a bit quieter for a while. Lots to explore tomorrow.

Rome, Friday 30 May, Day 37

Today we wanted to slow the pace down a bit, as we were both noting a decrease in our genial spirits yesterday. It gets a bit tiring to have people trying to sell you things all the time, and it feels like the whole place has got busier in the time we've been here. Anyway, we slept in a whole 15 minutes and had luke warm showers as a result.

We planned an outing to mix culture with practicality, and caught a bus over to the area near the Piazza Della Republican, dropped our washing off at a sort of laundry service, then after an invigorating espresso - we've become hooked on them - walked to the church of St Maria del Vittoria, which is home to Bernini's famous sculpture, the Ecstasy_of_Saint_Teresa.  Appreciating the sculpture was made difficult by the crass commentary which a tour guide was delivering sotto voce to his client. I guess people have to make a living, but especially in a church where there is little other sound, it really detracts from the experience of other people.

We collected our washing then went to wait at the bus stop, which we shared with an older Italian gentleman with a shopping jeep, who had both no English and something amiss with his voice box, so we communicated with elaborate mime. After an interminable wait, our bus came along packed solid. It drove off leaving us all still waiting, to be followed by an empty bus with a sign saying the equivalent of 'not in service'. Our Italian friend taught us some new and very expressive gestures as the bus sailed past. After another interminable wait he gave up and trudged off into the crowd, so we decided to walk it as well.

It was actually an interesting walk though, over the Quirinal Hill of ancient Rome, past Trajan's_Column and the ruins of the Basilica_Ulpia.

Back at the hotel, Anne wanted to finish a book she borrowed from the hotel's collection. I walked through lots of little winding streets over to Castel_Sant'Angelo over the little bridge that has been carrying people since 134 AD, and was for centuries the only bridge across the river in Rome.

There's an internet meme put-bird-on-it which has come to cover 'any design trend which as reached its peak, and is bordering on saturation'. Today as I walked through the Castel, having crossed the Pont's Angel lined balustrades, past the space which was once called the "Courtyard of Executions" for obvious reasons but which now has a statue of an angel and so is called "Courtyard of the Angel", to the very Castle itself, with its massive statue of the Archangel Michael, I wondered if "put an angel on it" might not be equally appropriate.

There was however a very interesting exhibition which documented the Catholic Church's interest around the 16th century in the early Christian period and the surge of archaeological activity that went with it, in an attempt to demonstrate to erring Protestants that there was indeed continuity between the first Christians and the church of the day. Also had a 16th century guide book to the major sites of Rome, open at the page showing a plate of Trahan's Column.

For dinner we headed back to the little restaurant in the square near Santa Barbara di Librari, and, supporting my theory that the invasion has really begun, where last time we ate there we seemed to be the only non Romans, tonight the tourists were around 80% of the clientele.

We've really enjoyed our time in Rome, and right up to our last walk round tonight we are still discovering new areas we'd like to explore further. Next time, I think come earlier or later in the year though.

Tomorrow were are off to Salerno and the Amalfi Coast for a spot of R and R.

Rome, Thursday 29 May, Day 36

Got up half an hour earlier and it was a different world down in the breakfast room with no students. We were out the door by 8.30 and wandered without a very fixed plan over towards the forum. Heading the shortest path in a straight line took us over the Capitoline Hill, and past the Capitoline_Museums.

It is claimed that these were the first museums in the world, and I wanted to show Anne the giant head and feet from the colossal statue of Constantine that is located in the courtyard there which I saw last time I was in Rome. It was free then, but now you pay 12 Euros, I guess that is progress. We paid up the entry fee, and it turned out to be way the best thing we have seen so far in Rome. The collection is phenomenal, from the bronze she wolf from 500 BC (a relative of the Chimera of Assezo I suspect) to the amazing 2nd century BC roman statue of the many breasted fertility goddess Diana Efesina (or the Efesian Artemis ), to the magnificent 4th Century BC bronze horse, to the views of Rome and the Forum from the terrace, to the super sized equestrian bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius, plus so much else besides, this one gets our 'museum of the journey' sticker by quite a margin. Lost some points for being almost deliberately confusing in layout and signage, but the collection and location more than made up for that, and it was all the nicer because we got in early before the rush. As an added bonus, there was a special exhibition of Michelangelo's work, which had drawings and sculptures which I had never seen before, including a marble bass relief which he completed at the age of 15.

Had pizza in the roof garden, then a bit of down time, then I headed back to visit the Forum. It really is extraordinary to walk down the same streets, and stand outside the buildings that have been the scene of so much history. The Curia, for example,  where the Roman Senate would meet, is pretty much intact, though the doors were purloined for a nearby church.

Before dinner we decided to revisit the Pantheon and to check out the Trevi Fountain, which turned out to be not such a great idea as the streets were choked with crowds of tourists and people trying to sell things to tourists. The Pantheon was filled with people chattering away excitedly and futilely taking photos with their flash on, all those little flashes getting lost in the vast dome. Despite the annoying fellow humans, the building itself is just wonderful. I realised tonight that it functions something like a sun dial as the light from the sun shines down through the open disk at the apex of the dome.

After the Pantheon we battled our way to the Trevi Fountain, which was an extraordinary scene - probably breaks some world record for the greatest number of people taking selfies in one place. My estimate is that less than 10% of the people there were actually looking at the Fountain.

It was good to get back to this side of town. Dinner in a restaurant with average food and nice wine. On the way home, we saw that the little church of Santa_Barbara_dei_Librai, which we have walked past many times and which has always been locked up, was open. It is a lovely little church, and provided just the antidote that we needed  to the tacky crowd scenes from earlier in the evening.

Rome, Wednesday 28 May, Day 35

A bit late down to breakfast, and had to navigate through the tribe of American students who are staying in the hotel as part of some graduate program. They are nice but they do seem to take up more space per person than most people.

After breakfast we headed off our separate ways. I walked down by the Tiber, past Circus Maximus, and on to the Palatine_Hill, where I spent a very pleasant morning pottering around through the different bits of buildings. A happy hunting ground for archaeologists, with so many layers upon layers of human habitation, with the added bonus of a written record that potentially illuminates parts of what they find. There are a number of active digs in progress, with people in hard hats with shovels and trowels earnestly burrowing away. 

After I'd explored as much as I could find I headed over to the Coliseum, largely for the guilty pleasure of walking past the extraordinarily long queue as my Palatine Hill ticket is good for the Coliseum and the Forum as well. An impressive but depressing building, all that clever engineering to provide a venue for killing animals and humans for entertainment.

Today's picture is taken from the steps outside the Coliseum looking back along the Roman Road to the Arch of Titus, which celebrates his victory in Judea in 70 AD. The pic has the elements which seemed prominent today - the amazing vestiges of the Roman world, the touts waiting to prey on the unwary,  the crowds and crowds of tourists, and even an archaeological dig on the left.

Anne had returned from her morning excursion when I got back, and we had lunch up on the terrace of delicious artichoke pizza slice from the shop round the corner. A quiet afternoon, next stage of the Giro (a bit dull after the dramas of yesterday) then off for dinner and a walk back round the fountains in Piazza Navona.  We were worried that Rome might be as wearing as Florence but in fact it has turned out to be very relaxing. Yesterday in one of the little streets we had a fleeting encounter with a teenage girl who turned to her parents just as we passed and said, with a sort of wonder and enthusiasm,  "I love this place".  We know just what she meant.

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.

Rome, Monday 26 May, Day 33

Another glorious blue sky Tuscan morning, as we set off back down the many escalators back to Siena train station, admiring the beautifully tended terraces of vegetable gardens as we descended.  We had to catch a regional train back up to Florence, connecting with a Frecciarossa down to Rome. For a while it looked like we might miss our connection, as acrid smoke started pouring from underneath one of the three carriages of the train a couple of minutes before departure. But we all got piled into one carriage and the train departed only a few minutes late. Made for a very squeezey trip as more and more people piled in, but we got to Florence in good time, then onto our connecting train which was much more comfortable.

The trip from Florence to Rome is mighty scenic, with lovely rolling hills and lots of little hill top villages.  We got a metropolitan bus to the Largo_di_Torre_Argentina, with its ruins of some impressive Roman temples and the site of Julius Caesar's assassination.  An easy walk to our hotel, which we found first go. Maybe we are improving at hotel finding. Hotel is nice, located in a lively area with some nice looking restaurants and a gelato shop nearby. It has a nice rooftop terrace with a great view of the dome of the nearby church, whose bells play different versions of "Ave Maria" every half hour. Hope they give it a rest at night though.

We are located around the corner from the Campo de Fiore, where the mathematician, astronomer and philosopher Giordano_Bruno was burned after being found guilty of heresy by the Roman Inquisition, for, amongst other things, suggesting that there might be life in other places in the universe other than earth.

Today the square hosts a busy market, but a statue of Bruno erected by the municipality of Rome in 1889, despite opposition from the clerical party, stands to mark the spot. I walked along lots of little streets - such wonderful names, Via Penetenzia, Via Consulate, Via Pellegrino - over to St Peter's Square, to marvel at both the building and the length of the queue waiting to get in. I think we will follow the advice of a priest on our bus coming in,  and try to get there very early one morning.

I expect Rome will be good entertainment.

Siena, Sunday 25 May, Day 32

Today we decided to take it easy. And a beautiful Sunday morning in Siena to take it easy in.  Within a few hundred metres we came upon a group of children heading off for their Confirmation by the look of them, all dressed in white robes, each clutching a white lilly, symbol of Saint Catherine patron saint of Siena. After a lot of shuffling and reorganizing, they set off in procession to the church over the road.

A very nice sight to start the day.

We headed on into town to visit the Siena_Cathedral. The Baptistry is well worth it, particularly liked the Last Judgement panel, where all the dammed are being shuffled off into the jaws of a huge beast whose head follows the line of the arch of the roof. Also very interesting is the crypt, which seems to be what is left of an earlier church built on the same spot. The builders had knocked arches and run pillars through the lovely murals of the earlier church without any compunction.

The other thing striking about the Cathedral is the construction work abandoned in the mid 1300's a combination of the impact of the Black Death, management by committee, changes in Siena's fortunes, and the realisation that there were some serious structural issues with the design. The original ambition was to build the largest church in the world. The East wall stands as a sort of monument to the vanity of human wishes.

Home for a siesta, caught the end of the Giro, then out to dinner where once again we had cause to be thankful for the great kindness of the local people.

Tomorrow Rome.