I think the record number of showers I took in one day was three. So, to say the least Rome was HOT. In fact, I think there were times that my ANKLES were sweating...and the worst place to sweat is behind the knees....but my sweat glands are not what I want to talk about.
My thoughts of Rome ( as I wrote in a letter to my brother-in-law) the things in italics are added notes that I thought of today:
Rome=terribly, horribly hot. Apparently it was "record breaking heat, which was conforting to find out since my body was sweating ALL OVER most days. One day ( the day of the fated Vatican tour) the girls and I had a record breaking three showers a piece. So, not only was rome hot, but crowded-it is probably the only place I've visited ( in my limited experiences) that I would NEVER want to lived and couldnt see myself there for a long period of time. But, in saying that...it is fascinating to see the ruins of the Roman empire-the fountains, the statures. They all give off an air of "glory" even now. The colleseum was impressive. At first I didnt think it was as that big. but with a little imagination ( in which I added on a top layer) I was blown away with it. esp. to see how well it was designed. When our guide was discribing how people could easily flow in and out through 8 major gates I was reminded of my sisters hellish horror story when she felt trapped at the NFL game that she went to...I guess society hasnt advanced that much.
A side note here, to tell the, funny now/tramatic then, story of getting into the collesuem-there were seemingly hundreds of tour groups and when we tried to get passed them as they milled around outside, about FOUR tour group leaders pushed at us and yelled "GROUP-A!!!" "GROUP-A!!!" Really loud...I seriously thought they were going to kill Emma's poor eighty-something yearold grandfather who was with us. For the rest of the trip when ever we came across a tour group ( which was about every minute and a half) we just HAD to yell "GROUPA" really loudly...
I was a bit disappointed that our guide did not speak very much at all about the "games" that went on. In fact, interestingly enought, she spent most of her time downplaying the brutality and dispelling certain "myths" as in "the glatiators were not slaves forced to fight...no, they were treated with great honor and were PROUD and HAPPY to fight"...the funny thing was during the Q&A it came out that this wasnt "entirely true"....ummm...OOOOKKKKKK...she didnt even mention the thousands of people that were thrown to animals etc.
It is sad/disconcerning that after all this time we've either forgotten...or even scarier....dont want to remember.
Speaking of forgetting-we visited musollini's Olympic statium that he built in the 30s and was, then, not used until ( I think) the sixties. The statium unlike everywhere else we had been, was totally deserted. No one was anywhere around. Here were these giant statues and huge facilites and they were completely overgrown with weeds seemlingly forgotten minus a lot of graffiti. At the time of our visit, my only thought was that the fascist rein was too soon in their past for the italians to point out this fascinating piece of their history-this theory was proven later on in our trip....
I know I've already mentioned the HORDES of people in Rome. But they didnt truly bother me until our trip to the Vatican. We stood in line for an hour and a half with thousands of people. and when I say "we" I actually mean, Emma's DAD stood in line while Emma, Lydia and I went and browsed a really cheap market that was "conveniently situated" right beside the huge line. My mind naturally drifted to when the pope died and Rome was "packed"-in my estimation it WAS packed NOW....I can only imagine how horrible it would have been to be in Rome a month or so ago!
Funny side note about tour groups, all tour groups...all tour guides hold up something high in the air so that they can be easily found amoung the HORDES. Mostly scarfs on a stick, umbrellas, flowers on a stick....so what did OUR tour guide of the Vatican hold??? the Metro section of the newspaper rolled up!! The newspaper thing was a clear indication of what type of guide this guy really was...he was HORRIBLE....one of the worst/most embarrassing things that happened to me on the trip started because of this annoying little man: Once we got inside to vatican and were preparing to begin our tour...our faithful guide stopped us all and counted us off to make sure everyone was there....he counted....he counted again...and then he said, "there was 47, now there is 47! I count again!" Several more minutes pass and once again he says we have one more person...it was annoying. I was hot. And OUT of my mouth popped this comment, "Did you count yourself??" I meant it seriously and to be helpful but everyone laughed. meeeeh. Finally we were on our way and we were given our tickets and told to go through the ticket line where you put your ticket into the machine and it pops on the other side unlocking the gate and letting you pass in where a person on the other side hands you your punched ticket. As I walked toward the gate I brushed my hand holding my ticket through my hair and at that moment my bracelet got soundly stuck in my hair. There were people coming up behind me, and both Lydia and Emma were ahead of me...I had to take the ticket out of the hand stuck on top of my head and then walk through the gate with my hand on my head...I TRIED to look natural but I think the ticket guy may have thought it was odd that when he tried to hand me my ticket back I had to turn and take it with the other hand....then I called for the help of Emma and Lydia...luckily Lydia was able to un-tangle me, but Emma got "shhhed" but the Vatican people because she was laughing so hard. Loud Americans.
I thought I was going to DIE in the Vatican, which if I was catholic would probably be some sort of a blessing...but since I am NOT...it was just horrible. I will quote Lydia as we descended down a tiny tunnel with a short ceiling and walls that closed around you, being pushed by the hundreds of people behind you and slowed down by the hundreds of people infront of you.." Do you have to descend into HELL to get to the Sistine Chapel?!" I was really glad Lydia was the one to say it...afterall, it would have been typical for Emma or I to say something rude like that-but sweet little Lydia? not so much...It was a rather timely comment because if something hadnt been said to break the ice right then, I think I would have a break down. But enought about my emotional state. My thoughts on the vatican and the sistine chapel: Excessive wealth. It really blew my mind how insanely wealthy the vatican must be. Hey, here's a thought...why dont they sell off a few statues and gold crowns and fee some kids in Africa-or heck, closer to home-the munchkins who beg in the streats of Rome! *sigh* it WAS amazing though. And the Sistine chapel was incredible to say the least. I dont think I fully appreciated it until after I saw a few hundred more cathedral ceilings ( which after Florence I can safely say I have seen that many) the difference I saw was in most of the murals of that scale, there are lots of "filler" space, you know, borders and such so that the actual painting isnt THAT much. The only way, I think, to fully appreciate the Sistine chapel-with so much there to see and take in-would be to clear out the other 250 people out of the room-then lie down on the floor and stare for a few hours.
After that mind blowing experience we had a driver take us out of the city to Hadrian's Villa. It is one of the largest ruins site of its magnitude in the world, in its hayday it covered a greater magnitude than the centre of the Empereal Rome! Once you go through the main gates you are free to wander the grounds which really DID feel like a small town.. We stuck mostly to the main house-many of the main walls are still intact and in places you can still see the intricate designs that coevered the walls. even just this basic skeleton of the buildings created a sense of awe-it was so spectacular as RUINS, seeing it in its orginal glory doesnt fit in my mind...
We were SO HOT and so thirsty after walking in ruins for two hours, I stand firmly behind the opinion that the water I had to drink after was the best I've EVER HAD. We then drove a short distance to the town of Trivoli were Villa d' Este is located. I think this particular villa was my favorite....the girls and I didnt know we were even going there until we drove up. I had seen pictures of the villa's terraced gardens in the past...It had been the home of a particular archbisop who like gardening and created a garden full of fountains and water gardens and streams as an "artistic" watering system. There were three major fountains and then over a hundred smaller fountains on the terraces. The water was provided by an underground stream which was bitingly cold even in the midday heat ( I stuck my feet in for a few sounds and they went NUMB!) Each fountain was different and entricate in design. I kept thinking of my Papa and the pictures he would have taken here....
Thus endeth my brief account of Rome...
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