Med Cruise - Apr 06 - Rome - Day4
Monday- April 3rd 2006- Rome
We reached Civitavecchia, the port close to Rome (appx. 100 kms away). We were on an organized tour (the first and the last of the trip). We were in a mixed group of English speakers and Italians which obviously made our life rather…err…interesting. We set off early in the morning and after a few pit stops reached Rome. When they say, “to explore Rome, a lifetime is not enough”, they surely are not kidding. The combination of the rush of the traffic, people jetting by monuments and buildings that have been there for centuries, the contrast of the past and the modern world, it was mesmerizing. We drove by the Capitol Hill, and went around the squares which are mentioned in history so often, drove by the place where Caesar was assassinated. Finally we picked up our guide and he was a jolly old man, almost as old as Rome itself. He took us to the Vatican, where we were given whispering phones (which were then promptly stolen from us by the Italian speaking group). The Vatican is amazing. We had reached there on the first death anniversary of Pope John Paul II, and hence the place was packed with people as there was a huge congregation in the evening, which was to be presided by Pope Bennedict. We meandered through lines, past the huge statues of Peter and Paul, as they welcomed us into the Vatican. We saw the Swiss guards in their “costumes” and entered the St. Peter’s Basilica (the second basilica, made by emperor Constantine, the first Roman king not to persecute the Christians, over the “alleged” grave of St. Peter, the apostle, who was crucified on orders by Nero, and chose to be crucified upside down, so as to not emulate Christ). The Basilica is a breathtaking creation of the human endeavour, it took 120 years to build, and the dome was designed by Michelangelo. We saw the famous statue of Mary holding the dead body of Christ upon entering, saw statues of saints, with their feet worn out, by people touching their feet for good luck for ages. We saw the works of Berlini, the man did stuff with marble, which made it look like its as easy to work with as soapstone. We saw mosaics in the wall, which looked like real paintings. It was a shame that we did not have time to go and see the Sistine Chappel.
We then headed for lunch, which was very average and after that went to the Coliseum and the Roman forum. The Coliseum was of course in ruins, but it was funny to see people dressed as Romans outside and standing with tourists for pictures. All the old buildings in Rome, including the Coliseum have holes in them and this is because, in the past they would put metal between the huge stone blocks, to act as pins to prevent the blocks from slipping over as the were being laid. However, in the middle ages, as the “noble families”, feuded with each other, they stole the metal from these monuments to make weapons, leaving the holes in the walls of most monuments, making it an eye sore. The later families, even stole the stones from older monuments to make their own houses, etc. tsk..tsk…Rome was destroyed by Romans themselves and not by invaders or outsiders (with the exception of the great fire in 67 AD- when Nero played the harp as Rome burnt). There are seven famous hills in Roman, and the Capitol hill is one of them. In a valley nearby is the Roman forum, where the intellectuals would gather and discuss philosophy to politics. We also saw the place where Mark Anthony gave his famous “friends, romans and countrymen” speech. We saw the several “layers” of Rome, the old Rome which lies approximately 4-5 meters under modern Rome. The trip back to the ship was uneventful.
A pyramid in Roma!!! yeah...it was wierd
the older city of Rome a few feet under the new city...
notice the holes in the walls...originallyy they were filled with metal to hold the blocks together..then during the wars between the local families, they were plundered for the metal value to make weapons...Rome was destroyed by the Romans themselves..
We reached Civitavecchia, the port close to Rome (appx. 100 kms away). We were on an organized tour (the first and the last of the trip). We were in a mixed group of English speakers and Italians which obviously made our life rather…err…interesting. We set off early in the morning and after a few pit stops reached Rome. When they say, “to explore Rome, a lifetime is not enough”, they surely are not kidding. The combination of the rush of the traffic, people jetting by monuments and buildings that have been there for centuries, the contrast of the past and the modern world, it was mesmerizing. We drove by the Capitol Hill, and went around the squares which are mentioned in history so often, drove by the place where Caesar was assassinated. Finally we picked up our guide and he was a jolly old man, almost as old as Rome itself. He took us to the Vatican, where we were given whispering phones (which were then promptly stolen from us by the Italian speaking group). The Vatican is amazing. We had reached there on the first death anniversary of Pope John Paul II, and hence the place was packed with people as there was a huge congregation in the evening, which was to be presided by Pope Bennedict. We meandered through lines, past the huge statues of Peter and Paul, as they welcomed us into the Vatican. We saw the Swiss guards in their “costumes” and entered the St. Peter’s Basilica (the second basilica, made by emperor Constantine, the first Roman king not to persecute the Christians, over the “alleged” grave of St. Peter, the apostle, who was crucified on orders by Nero, and chose to be crucified upside down, so as to not emulate Christ). The Basilica is a breathtaking creation of the human endeavour, it took 120 years to build, and the dome was designed by Michelangelo. We saw the famous statue of Mary holding the dead body of Christ upon entering, saw statues of saints, with their feet worn out, by people touching their feet for good luck for ages. We saw the works of Berlini, the man did stuff with marble, which made it look like its as easy to work with as soapstone. We saw mosaics in the wall, which looked like real paintings. It was a shame that we did not have time to go and see the Sistine Chappel.
We then headed for lunch, which was very average and after that went to the Coliseum and the Roman forum. The Coliseum was of course in ruins, but it was funny to see people dressed as Romans outside and standing with tourists for pictures. All the old buildings in Rome, including the Coliseum have holes in them and this is because, in the past they would put metal between the huge stone blocks, to act as pins to prevent the blocks from slipping over as the were being laid. However, in the middle ages, as the “noble families”, feuded with each other, they stole the metal from these monuments to make weapons, leaving the holes in the walls of most monuments, making it an eye sore. The later families, even stole the stones from older monuments to make their own houses, etc. tsk..tsk…Rome was destroyed by Romans themselves and not by invaders or outsiders (with the exception of the great fire in 67 AD- when Nero played the harp as Rome burnt). There are seven famous hills in Roman, and the Capitol hill is one of them. In a valley nearby is the Roman forum, where the intellectuals would gather and discuss philosophy to politics. We also saw the place where Mark Anthony gave his famous “friends, romans and countrymen” speech. We saw the several “layers” of Rome, the old Rome which lies approximately 4-5 meters under modern Rome. The trip back to the ship was uneventful.
A pyramid in Roma!!! yeah...it was wierd
the older city of Rome a few feet under the new city...
notice the holes in the walls...originallyy they were filled with metal to hold the blocks together..then during the wars between the local families, they were plundered for the metal value to make weapons...Rome was destroyed by the Romans themselves..
posted by Ash | 7:20 AM
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