Touring Roma

22-Settembre-2011

Fillipo, our guide, picked us up at the Hotel Artemide at 9 a.m.  "You want to walk or get a cab?  It is not far."  We chose to walk.

Camera white balance problem...one of us is blonde.

We spent three hours with with the unassuming young man.  Though I am generally not pleased with tours, this one was a great experience.  Fillipo dispelled many of the misconceptions I’ve had for many years regarding the demise of much of the Colosseo (It was an earthquake) and the ill feelings toward the monument to Vittorio Emanuele II.  The Romans are not enamored with "The Wedding Cake" because they find the edifice memorializing unified Italy's first King to be garish and out of proportion to the grandeur of Imperial Rome. 

Very impressive, even if the Romans don't like it.

Mussolini roused the rabble from the balcony.

He told us many other stories including how Mussolini had pushed a roadway through the forum so that he could see the Coliseum from his office window.  Though not inexpensive, walking around Rome with a well-informed and proud native was well worth our time and money.  

While in the forum, another passing tour guide spoke to him in Italian, and he burst out laughing.

“What was that about, Fillipo?”

“She asked how you people were enjoying being given a tour of Rome by Jesus Christ.”  His long hair and beard could easily have made him the model for many of the paintings in local Basilicas.

The photo just does not do the Forum justice.

Looking back toward the Forum from the Colosseum.

Incredible detail on the underside of an arch in the Forum.

Counterweights for the canopy

We walked directly from the Forum to the Colosseum.  Fillipo's tour guide status allowed us to walk right in past hundreds of people. Another good reason for paying for his services.  As always, it was impressive, particularly if one has any imagination whatsoever.  Enjoy the simulated naval battles under the silk canopy, or watch the bloody spectacle as lions appear magically from below.  Just remember that had you resided in Rome in those days, you were as likely to have been a slave as a citizen. 

Colosseum interior

Though the seating is a bit rustic, what a great place for a concert.

After the tour, we took Fillipo’s recommendation for a Da Giggetto in the Jewish ghetto next to the Portico di Ottavia, where columns from two millenium ago still stand, and fish were sold in Medevil times.

View from the restaurant.

View in the restaurant.

We were not disappointed.  Our fish was much fresher.  As we left, the children streamed out of the middle school just up the street.  I particularly liked the yarmulke one tall boy wore with the skyline of Rome embroidered around the bottom.  

We worked our way back to Monti.  It is a nice neighborhood where the real people, or at least a smattering of the real people of Rome live.  Slightly off the tourist routes and more than a little bit more relaxed, Monti was an enjoyable place to be, even if Mary and Becky were shopping.  

After a drink back at the rooftop bar atop our hotel, we returned to Monti for gelato and people watching on a bench provided just for Mary and me.  Strolling back, we saw Becky and Dave at a café across Via Nazionale.  We timed our run to the other side so as not to be stuck by the heavy traffic.  A night cap and a bit of focaccia finished our evening.