Rome, Italy - Day 2

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Today was our first full day in Rome, Italy and the weather was not in our favor. The forecast called for precipitation today, and the reports weren’t kidding — it didn’t just rain, but it poured outside all day long. Unfortunately, the weather forecast didn’t look much better for the rest of the week either, so Andi and I decided we’d better make the most of our time in the city and get out to explore rain or shine..

Andi read about a golf cart city tour that had good reviews, and suggested we see Rome’s most popular sights this way vs. walking around with a guide. I wasn’t sure riding around in a golf cart would be that great in the rain, but then again — walking around in the rain didn’t sound that much fun either.

The traffic in Rome is nuts; driving for just a few miles takes 30 minutes or longer. The subway is what everyone recommends for getting around, but Andi and I weren’t too keen on that idea. We don’t love traveling by train (especially dirty, cramped trains), and we’ve been given lots of warnings about pick-pockets on the subways in Rome. This morning, we decided to take a taxi, even if it was a little more expensive, to our tour meeting spot at Piazzale Delle Canestre. 

Cars and taxis drive crazy on the streets of Rome! The taxi driver was grunting and shaking his fists as he weaved through lanes of traffic. The rain only seemed to aggravate him more. Andi attempted to pay for the taxi through the taxi app he used called itTaxi, and it took a few minutes to process our payment. The taxi driver was getting antsy waiting, like he needed to hurry up and drop us off so he could race to his next pickup. Eventually, the electronic payment worked and we made our way to the piazza meeting point.

We arrived about 15 minutes before the tour began at 10am, and since it was pouring rain outside, decided to buy a coffee so we could stand underneath the cafe umbrellas. There was nowhere else to take cover in the green park filled with trees and walking paths. Locals passing through the park seemed completely caught off guard that it was going to rain this morning; either that, or they didn’t care to change the way they dressed. Most wore dress shoes, long trench coats, and some weren’t even carrying umbrellas. I’m not sure if rain is an unusual thing in Rome, or if people just can’t be bothered by it. Interesting, too, that no one but us wore rain coats; everyone carries umbrellas.  

Poor Aden was not feeling well this morning and I questioned whether he’d make it through this city tour. It’s so strange how he feels fine one minute, and has an upset stomach the next. This has been going on for four days now. He was fine this morning, but feeling nauseous now after sitting in the backseat of that aggressive taxi ride. I forgot to bring a ziploc bag with me this morning, so Andi asked for a plastic sack at the cafe when he ordered his coffee.

The four of us stood under a patio umbrella and waited for our tour guide to arrive. When he finally did at 10:08am, he introduced himself as Gabriele and said in a jovial, nonchalant way, “Mind if I grab a coffee first? I haven’t had one yet this morning.” He had a big, warm smile and relaxed demeanor about himself. Gabriele didn’t seem bothered at all that he was 10 minutes late to his own tour. Maybe that’s the Italian culture?

We waited for Gabriele to drink his coffee, and then followed him to a white 8-passenger golf cart. I was pleased to see the golf cart had plastic sides to keep out the rain.

Gabriele told us he was born and raised in Rome, and would do his best to show us the highlights of the city this morning. He was a wealth of knowledge about Roman history, and the layout of the city. Once he realized we were interested in learning and not just taking a picture of the famous sights, he opened up like a book sharing all kinds of facts and information. I loved the way he explained detailed, complicated aspects of history in summarized, easy-to-understand ways. One example is when he compared Italy’s famous artists like Michelangelo, Raphael, and Bernini as YouTube influencers of their time. He said the Roman Catholic church paid these famous artists to paint beautiful murals in the churches as a way of attracting people to the church — similar to how a social media influencer of our time might be paid to promote a product or service. The minute he mentioned the word ‘YouTube’ Aden went from half-listening to completely interested.

As we were getting ready to leave for the tour this morning, Tory asked why the Roman Empire wasn’t in power anymore. They dominated Europe at one point — what happened? Very simply, Gabriele summarized for her the history of Roman leadership, and said it’s impossible for one empire to stay in power forever. Success and power eventually corrupts a leader(s). One thing the Roman Empire did successfully during their time of reign, though, was work as a united organization, and were able to conquer stronger organizations like French and Greeks because of it. Romans were also skilled inventors and engineers, building roads, bridges, tunnels, and impressive aqueducts to bring water to their city.

Gabriele was direct (in a good way!) about the fabulous and not-so-fabulous parts of Rome. His love for his city was evident. “You’re going to get a good glimpse of what it’s like to live in Rome today,” he said. “The rain will show Rome’s true colors.” As he waited in a congested line of cars, a man got out of his vehicle and started screaming something in Italian at the cars stalled ahead of him. “See what I mean,” Gabriele said with a big smile. “True colors.”

I was a little worried about driving around in an electric golf cart, given the crazy traffic of the city, but Gabriele navigated the streets and roads with ease. Half the time he drove, he was turned around talking to us behind him. He knew exactly where to go, and didn’t seem phased at all by the honking and aggressive driving around us.

When there wasn’t a parking spot for him to leave his golf cart, he double-parked and made his own. “There’s a rule in Rome,” he said, “if it doesn’t hurt anyone else, it’s OK to leave my golf cart here.” And, it was. Nobody got upset with him. Our ride was waiting where he left it (double-parked or tucked into an alley) every time.

One of the sights we stopped to see was the Pantheon. The Pantheon was built between 25 - 27 BC by the Romans as a pagan temple. It is the only ancient Roman building that has remained practically intact through the centuries, and is a remarkable engineering feat as almost two thousand years after it was built, the Pantheon's dome is still the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. It is said that when Michelangelo visited the Pantheon’s dome, he said it could only have been created by angels as there is structural way the done has held under its weight. Gabriele told us that each column on the exterior portico were imported from Egypt in a solid piece and weighs 60 tons each. Imagine those logistics?!

The line formed outside the Pantheon to get inside were so long, made even more chaotic by people carrying umbrellas. We only admired the outside of the building and then continued on our city tour, but Gabriele encouraged us to come back to this building to see the inside before leaving Rome. “If you spent more time anywhere in Rome, this is a good place to go,” he said.

We also visited the Piazza del Popolo, which is the “People’s Square” in Rome where lots of social events and concerts take place. On a sunny day, this would be a good place to grab a coffee and people watch. We didn’t spend much time there this morning, obviously, since it was still raining. We also visited Piazza Navona, Piazza Farnese, and Piazza della Minerva, and Gabrielle shared history about each one.

Gabriele talked a lot about the city of Rome being built on top of itself like a lasagna. When roads washed away or areas of the city were expanded, it was common for the Romans to build new buildings on top of whatever was there before. For this reason, almost 90% of ancient Roman ruins are still buried under the city. He pointed out examples of this as we passed by various spots in the city.

A beautiful church Gabriele stopped and encouraged us to go inside was Chiesa Sant' Ignazia. This church built in the 17th century showcases the innovative painting techniques perfected by Baroque artist Andrea Pozzo. During the Renaissance Period, artists began using perception tools to create the appearance of a three-dimensional image on flat surfaces. This technique, known as illusionistic painting, and it was remarkable to see in person. It looked as if the cherubs and angelic figures on the ceiling of the church were coming to life. The skill that it would take, as well as the difficulty in painting this artwork on the ceiling of a church is incredible.

The Colosseum is a sight not to be missed in Rome, and our golf cart city tour also stopped there. Gabriele brought us to a great vantage point overlooking the ancient amphitheatre. We were able to take lots of pictures there without fighting for space with other tourists. After visiting the Colosseum, Andi and I made a mental note to watch Gladiator again to remember what the gladiator fighting and bloodshed was like during this time in history.

One of our final stops on our Rome city tour was the Trevi Fountain. This fountain is one of the most famous in the world, and is a beautiful example of Baroque design. Oh my gosh, was it busy here though! As we turned the corner around a building to reach the fountain, we were taken back by the crowd gathered to have their turn throwing a coin into the fountain. Legend says, if you toss a coin into fountain over your left shoulder, you’ll be promised a return trip to Rome one day. I read that the city collects €1.5 million euros of coins from the fountain every year.

Of course, we had to test out the legend for ourselves. We made our way through the crowd, and Tory and Aden each threw a coin into the fountain. Then, we made our way out as quickly as we came.

Gabriele recommended a cozy lunch spot, so that’s where he left us at the conclusion of our tour. We thanked him for his time, and encouraged him to look us up if he’s ever traveling in the USA. What a nice guy he was! We really enjoyed touring the city of Rome with him. Touring the massive city of Rome by golf cart was absolutely the way to go! Aden said as we left, “Why don’t we always do city tours that way?”

This restaurant had traditional Italian pizza and pasta made fresh. Tory ordered gnocchi, of course, and split a baked potato with Andi who also ordered the soup. Aden and I split a margherita pizza, though he still didn’t each much. We also shared a cannoli for dessert which was one of the most delicious desserts we’ve had in all of European travels.

Gabriele recommended a gelato place right across the street from the restaurant for dessert. We walked there after lunch, and Tory and Aden each ordered a scoop of vanilla and chocolate. Aden seemed to be feeling better now, which was good, though he still hadn’t ate much of anything the past few days.

“This might not be a popular idea, but what do you think about going to Patagonia and buying some new clothes?” Andi said after gelato. We are all so sick of wearing the same three things on this trip! It didn’t make any sense to buy new clothes since we’ll be back home in the USA in a few weeks, but I couldn’t resist the opportunity to look and actually buy something of good quality. The fit of European clothing just isn’t the same as USA clothing.

We cabbed about 10 minutes away to the Patagonia store, and spent the next hour trying on clothes. Andi and I both bought new sweatshirts and vests. It might’ve been excessive to buy something new, but at least we know we’ll wear these pieces of clothing when we get home, too.

The kids were feeling left out that they didn’t get any new clothes, so Andi took them each to a department store called Coin in the neighborhood of our airbnb when we returned home. Aden picked out a couple new t-shirts and a sweatshirt, and Tory picked out two new t-shirts and a pair of leggings. After so many wearings and washings of the original t-shirts they brought along on this trip, their old clothes are faded and starting to come apart at the seams. It felt nice for all of our to have something fresh and new to wear.

After shopping, the kids and I spent some time doing school work and Andi worked on his computer as well. Then, we made dinner for ourselves at our airbnb. It was a busy, full day in Rome! We didn’t let the weather stop us from seeing the sights.

We have two more days in the city, and one of those days we’d like to see the Vatican. It’s extra busy here being Holy Week, so we’re not sure how exactly that will go. Our Rome adventure continues tomorrow.