Well, at least some flights do and I catch one of them to celebrate my birthday in Italy's capital (several years ago that is, post COVID you'll get fresh stuff from me I promise 🙂 )
Half way the sun sets generously spreading its colourful grace in the sky:
I arrive at night in Rome and the first thing that impresses me is the dirty metro. I didn't expect it to be as clean as Athens's is but speaking of Athens the traffic around Rome definitely feels like these cities should be twins. To be precise it's the behaviour of the drivers to blame. They like to horn and express themselves with their hands. Do you know the famous joke about the Italian who doesn't speak cause it's too cold to take his hands out of his pockets? The exact same goes for his East neighbours.
I meat my AirBnb host downtown and she leads me to my room. Funny to see my room's decoration which looks as if she knew my biker background:
Next morning I can't wait to walk around the city and see Rome under it's own sun for the first time. It's doesn't take long to reach the first of the numerous (or should I say countless) highlights of the city, the area in front of the renaissance church of Trinita dei Monti:
The famous "scalinata" (stairs) in front is lovely but too crowded for pictures. Here's a couple of the church itself:
I walk down the stairs of "scalinata" to see Piazza di Spagna from close. Road works don't allow much to picture but I manage to capture the carriages queuing there:
A few steps away walking South is the "Colonna dell'Immacolata Concezione" (Column of immaculate conception), a beautiful and tall 19th century monument:
As I walk around those cobblestone streets the following detail is too cute and too Italian to pass:
I turn and walk back North till I stop amazed at the view of Piazza del Popolo with the oldest obelisk of Rome and the North gate of the old city:
As I have Tiber river only two blocks away to the West I decide to have a look. The bridge "Regina Margherita" offers me the following views:
I continue walking South, this time on the West side of the river but the beauty of "Chiesa Sacro Cuore del Suffragio" (Sacred Heart Church of the Intercession) built a century ago forces me to stop again:
Only a few steps to the West is the building of the Supreme Court. I struggle to find the proper words in a language that is not my mother tongue for a massive construction like this which puts new standards for "impressive":
Or at least that's what I thought till I walked a few more steps to the West and experienced the amazing Adrian's park with the cylindrical Castel Sant' Angelo and its bridge:
Look how much driftwood the center column has accumulated:
Lovely statue on the bridge:
Thank the bridge Sant' Angelo for the next ones too:
I walk back East to the other side of the river in search for some food and I almost decide to have lunch at this lovely spot but everything feels too touristic for my taste:
I must say at this point that Rome surprised me in a bad way food wise. Contrary to (almost) all the rest of the places I've been around Italy over the years where I could almost go blind folded and still effortlessly find great food, here in the capital you have to know where to go otherwise it can be rather mediocre.
There's nothing mediocre about Piazza Navona though (almost 2000 years old!) with it's lovely fountains and obelisks plus the great "Sant'Agnese in Agone" church:
A few blocks to the East is the slightly younger "Pantheon":
While you are around you probably won't miss "Basilica di Santa Maria Sopra Minerva" with the cute obelisc in front:
I walk South to the river again where I capture the view from Garibaldi bridge:
As I continue East I reach the wonderful hill of Cambidoglio. The square on its top is a Michelangelo's creation:
The hill offers nice view to the Roman Agora:
While Michelangelo took care of the naughtier of the visitors:
I find a spot cramped in the crowd for some more images of the Agora:
Since I am in the heart of Rome's history you won't be surprised by the following images, you all know what it is:
Pity they had repair works when I was around but still beyond impressive without any doubt. Those who have been there know why. To those who haven't yet, I'll tell you one thing: You've heard it's big, you've seen in pictures that it's big but you have no idea how big it feels in real till you go there. It's similar to the leaning tower of Pisa. You can't imagine how off balance it feels till you visit it yourself.
I am simple person, I see horses I picture horses:
It starts raining as I try to capture the colossal Colosseum a few more times:
Sorry but I didn't enter it. I hate queues. Especially when it rains and they are longer than a mountain's life. I leave the place behind and later picture "Circo Massimo" from the outside:
Massimo indeed considering that back in the day it could host a whole overpopulated contemporary suburb of Athens.
As I continue East I meet the beauty of Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano, a temple from the 1700s with statues of Apostles:
It's lovely enough to revisit it the next day as I continue exploring the city:
On the opposite side I spot the much smaller Santissimo Sacramento al Laterano:
Minutes later I get the chance to picture Colosseum from different angles as I walk through the park:
Contradictions of big cities: Behind the Colosseum a homeless man sleeps on a bench while pigeons gather to eat the leftovers of his lunch:
A few blocks North of Colosseum I find another nice spot of the city, Scalinata dei Borgia o Vicus scelleratus. Look how nature beautifully decorates the buildings around the entrance to this stairway:
At night I meet a friend willing to show me a bit of the city by night plus restore my opinion on food. Not that I had any doubts about how good it can be but she takes me to a tiny take away pizza place where we take a dozen slices of different pizzas which we consume at no time. They are so delicious that in a more desperate moment I would eat the package too.
The sun is down but the beauty of Rome stays up:
Next noon is time to board for my flight and leave this lovely city behind. Fancy some view of Fumicino from above?
Next two include the airport itself:
And here's the awesome shades of blue delivered by the Tyrrhenian Sea:
Some pure white clouds later:
Entering Greece, still over white clouds:
Hope you enjoyed my short visit in Rome,
