ROME – WALK ‘TIL YOU DROP!

DAY 3

The weather forecast on our third day in Rome had changed dramatically overnight. Rather than sunny and warm, we got cool and cloudy with light showers in the early evening. So, after a yummy breakfast on the rooftop dining room of our hotel we started slowly walking toward the city center.

The plan was to walk the bike ride from the previous day in reverse order, and visit up close and personal as many of the major attractions we had ridden by on our bikes.

During most of our stay in Rome the weather sucked. Italy is experiencing the coldest and wettest spring on record. And they know it’s all part of climate change. Like everywhere else in the world, their weather is acting extremely weird and they are very worried. The temps should have been in the eighties, but it rarely climbed out of the sixties. To be honest, given how many miles we were walking, the weather was perfect. Keep in mind that most buildings in Rome, especially the old churches and museums, do not have air conditioning and are usually packed with tourists, so cool weather — even wet weather — can be a blessing in disguise. The rain tended to be sporadic and light. And we both had good rain gear and walking shoes. So, it was all good.

After walking all morning and being blown away by the endless wonders of Rome that seemed to popup wherever we went, we ate a late lunch of thin crust pizza at Caffe Nettuno Ristorante Pizzeria, overlooking the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Fountain of the Four Rivers), in my humble opinion, Rome’s most enchanting fountain in the sprawling Piaza Navona. The base of the fountain consists of a white marble basin from which travertine rocks rise to support four naked river gods. And towering out of the middle of the fountain is an Egyptian obelisk crowned with a dove holding an olive branch. Water blasts from each god who represent the four major rivers of the four continents through which papal authority had spread its slippery tentacles: the Nile, representing Africa; the Danube, representing Europe; the Ganges, representing Asia; and the Rio de la Plata, representing the Americas. There is a lengthy scene from “American Assassin” that was shot in this breathtaking plaza and there are outdoor restaurants galore. We sat at the same table (or damn near) occupied by Michael Keaton and Dylan O’Brien in the movie. It’s a great place to dine and people watch.

We basically walked the bike ride route from the previous day but added a few twists, starting with San Luis de los Franceses Catholic Church in the French Quarter across from the always bustling Madama Palace, a 16th Century building built over top of Emperor Nero’s baths. It was originally a castle for the Medici Family; and later it became the palace of Madama Margherita, the illegitimate daughter of Emperor Charles V. These days, it’s home to the Italian Senate. Mark Wind, our stellar bike guide, had alerted us to the little known fact that San Luis de los Franceses houses two very famous Carravajio paintings. Carravajio reminded me of Rembrandt and I probably liked his work the best of all the Italian painters. I will take up the whole Italian painting thing in a future blog, but let’s just say, that for the most part, it aint my cup of tea.

We headed west to the river and took a sweet stroll along the Tiber River and then walked out onto Tiber Island. The island stands defiantly in the middle of the murky river, rocked in and rimmed with small sycamores, protecting several spacious, brown stone religious buildings from the Middle Ages.

For me, the highlight of the day was St Bartholomew’s Church of the Martyrs on Tiber Island. Bartholomew was one of Jesus’ Disciples who was martyred by the Romans in a particularly gruesome manner; he was skinned alive.  A life size skinned version of the saint adorns the inside of the Duomo Cathedral in Milan. The tiny church in Rome that honors him today also pays tribute to modern day martyrs who have died at the hands of tyrants in countries all around the world. A group of elderly pilgrims from Spain came in while we were checking out the place and their solemn reverence knocked me back on my heels. Of all the churches we had seen — and would see during our travels, including St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican — this little nothing church on an island in the middle of the Tiber River moved me the most.  Inna, for some inexplicable reason, decided that my new nickname will be BARTO! I hope she isn’t planning on skinning me.

On our way back to our hotel we ended up finding a back door route along twisting narrow streets and alleys up onto the Pallentine Hill with a stunning view above the ancient Roman Forum.

The one thing that struck me over and over again as we walked around Rome were the size of the cars. We saw all sorts of tiny cars that I have never seen in the US — many made by the Japanese. Some are so cute and small they literally made me laugh. They looked like toys. But you could park them almost anywhere. And given the high price of gas, smaller is definitely better.

You don’t normally think of it, but Rome is quite near the Mediterranean Sea (15 miles). So, seagulls are everywhere and you hear them calling wildly day and night.  It sounds just like hysterical laughter. And they are totally fearless. Inna and I both got shit on prolifically from above during our walk. Supposedly it’s good luck. You could’ve fooled us. Most good luck usually comes with a price tag.  Ours came free.

Another thing I noticed, though Inna disagreed, was that Gays are very low key, probably because they are all Catholics and it’s a mortal sin.  But some are way over the top, like the tall guy wearing red high heels, passionately playing a violin in front of Castel Sant’Angelo near the Vatican.

Inna was tired and not feeling well after our taxing walk, so there was no sit down dinner with a splendid vista to crown our long, but wonderful, day. Inna returned to our hotel and I walked around some of the upscale neighborhoods on the north side of town in a light rain, stopping for a beer here and there and trying to process all the many mysteries we had discovered while exploring Rome.

I found that the longer I walked and the more ground I covered, the blurrier the picture of Rome became. Who were these former masters of the universe? And how could one small nation in southern Europe essentially pull the rest of the world from mud huts all the way to the Pantheon? Were they ancient astronauts? I’m being facetious, of course. But it really is astounding that one obscure group of people who essentially evolved from hunters and gatherers just like everyone else suddenly put it into cultural and military hyper-drive and transformed the world in their own image. And then, if that wasn’t crazy enough, the most powerful religion on earth, the Catholic Church, blossomed and grew out of the same capital city of Rome. What are the odds of these two things happening in the same place? It boggles the mind.

Walked 9.6 miles

Insider Tip — The Internet is sketchy at best in Rome, even when you are in a place offering WiFi. It’s slow and plodding and texting often doesn’t work if you block roaming on your phone (which you should!).  Phone service is terrible and expensive. And thunder and lightning can shut the whole system down. So, download What’s App onto your phone and you can text with ease. We used What’s App all the time and it never failed.

Insider Tip — Peroni beer is the favorite frosty beverage in Italy and can be found all over the world. But Theresianer Beer is also an outstanding Italian beer. Give it a try.

Insider Tip — If you see a restaurant and it’s empty, and many are, it’s because it sucks. Avoid such places and eat where the locals go.

Insider Tip — Rome and all of the big Italian cities have a very extensive Bike Share system similar to the ones in the larger cities around the world. There are bike racks filled with their signature yellow and orange bikes scattered throughout the city centers. And the bikes are sturdy and have big baskets to hold your gear. We have found that using a Bike Share bike is great if you are in a hurry and want to quickly get from, say, your hotel to a place of interest. But given the fact that you have a limited time before you have to reinsert the bike back in a rack (usually thirty minutes), it really isn’t practical to do an all day tour when you want to stop and go into a lot of attractions. You end up always worrying about getting the bike back on time and trying to find the closest bike share stations. As for renting a bike, yes, you can do that in Rome, but it can be expensive. Bicycling is very popular in Rome. And the locals are fearless and assertive. But after doing a bike tour we decided that it was too sketchy to ride, given the narrow streets and sidewalks, the impatient taxis and scooters, and especially because the streets are always teeming with tourists who have no idea where they are going and who will accidentally step right into your path while they are trying to snap a photo.