The family, lined up in front of the Borghese Gallery. No, that is not the Disneyland tram in the background.
The kids at the entrance to the gallery. You can see the lovely setting behind--a multi acre park--in which the gallery sits.
I had it planned correctly but with zero margin for error: zero margin for missing the first metro by 30 seconds; zero margin for getting on the right bus (just in the wrong direction). We did all of those things, and ended up arriving at ten minutes prior to our reservation. To top it off, there was an abnormally long line just to hand in one's reservation (according to a tour guide I met in line). I was sure we were going to miss it. Thankfully, we got in. They didn't seem to strict on the 30-minute policy. However, our tardiness did cut into our allotted two hour visit. The museum only lets 350 people in a time, and kicks everyone out every two hours to make room for the next group. That's probably a good thing. The museum is not the Louvre (i.e which is bigger than the Mall of America), so with the quality of its works, it would be an absolute zoo if they didn't regulate its visitors.
After the Borghese, we were to meet our local guide, Francesca. Again, I miscalculated the time it would take to arrive at our meeting spot. We were about 45 minutes late. That was on top of the hour that we were late for our first appointment. My iPhone map on that day had the Basilical of San Clemente in the wrong spot (on a different street about 600 meters away from the actual location), and so Lisa, I and the kids walked in circles for a while until Francesca tracked us down. Somehow, Francesca seemed to not be as annoyed as I would be if I were her. She's either really good at faking it, or just very patient.
Speaking of cell phone maps, I have switched to Google maps, which seems to function much better. Their app is great for navigation, giving you possible metro, bus, and car routes to your destination. We've also used TripAdvisor's mobile site for recommendations on places to eat. On that site, you hit the "Near me now" link which displays all restaurants within a few blocks of you. In Rome, there must be 1,000 restaurants per block, many of which have salesman on the sidewalk in front, trying to lure you in. As a general rule, you should avoid such places (although we did luck out once so far with such a proposition with a fairly decent meal). The TripAdvisor mobile app has ratings, reviews, and prices for all of the restaurants in your area. We followed a recommendation for tonight and had a pleasant meal at a nice back-street place at a good price (note: most of the other patrons didn't speak English--another good sign).
Back to our day: Francesca took us on a walking tour of Rome. It was fabulous. We started by taking a lift to the best views of Rome from atop the Victor Emmanuel Monument, a gigantic structure that, according to Francesca, most Romans feel is over-the-top, and too "huge."
The monument, which was built to honor the first king of a unified Italy (which didn't happen till 1870), allows one to get spectacular, 360-degree views of Rome. Images atop the monument are below.
Our walk also included a stroll up Michaelangelo's steps to the Piazza del Campidoglio that he designed. I believe that the Piazza is where the city hall has been since the Renaissance through today.
Abby decided to check out of this photo-op on Michaelangelo's steps.
Francesca point out how appropriate it was that this city hall, built in the Renaissance, stands next to a medieval church, which stands next to a 20th century building built in honor of unified Italy. Within 100 yards three times periods are represented. Below is panaroma shot of the three structures:
Our walk also took us through some back streets of Rome, where Lisa commented how quiet it was. That, of course, is quintessential Rome: on one hand it's a bustling metropolis with hordes of tourists and Romans, and yet on the other hand it is lined with hundreds of quiet, narrow, winding back streets that promote peace and stillness. Here are a few examples:
Daphne decides to work on some ballet moves in front of this back-street fountain, one of hundreds of such fountains (both grand and simple) in this city, whose founders were masters at bringing water to its million-plus citizens at its peak. And, no, I am not pregnant. That thing, protruding from my mid-section is my money pouch (more on that later).
Our walk also included a tour of Rome's Jewish "ghetto," a section of town that--at the ultimatum of one of the Pope's in the 1500's--had to be walled to keep those "dangerous" Jews at bay. The Jews, who have made Rome a home for 2,000 years, were not allowed to leave those walls after a certain time in the day--even though they were as "Roman" as the people who wanted to shove them into a corner. Thousands of victims of the Holocaust also came from this ghetto, where family members would arrive home from work to find their loved-ones mysteriously gone, rounded up and shipped off to Dachau or some other camp of death.
This area, which was once a slum for people imprisoned from the rest of Rome, has become trendy and booming real estate.
Our walk was a great way to get a glimpse of Rome, and we couldn't have done with a better tour guide in Francesca. I am now a huge fan of hiring local guides--something to which previously I'd had an aversion--probably for the same reason that I have resisted going on "tours" to anywhere, as I thought I preferred independent travel. While I think I still prefer independent travel (after all, so much of the things that the tour-group guys say are negatives of independent travel--getting lost, staying in dumpy places, stressing about where to sleep on given nights, endless planning--are exactly what make it so fun for me), I have been converted on this trip (primarily because of Francesca) to the value of having local guides, who can give you a depth of understanding and perspective that you might otherwise miss. Not only can they recommend the best gelato in town, they can pass on a passion and sense for a city that not even the best Rick Steves video or guidebook could properly convey. My kids mentioned on a few occasions how they wished we had Francesca for the entire trip (something tells me she'd do a pretty good job with Paris as well :)).
Occasionally, we've "tour-bombed" on this trip. Tour-bombing, like its companion "photo-bombing"--where one jumps (undetected) into the picture of a complete stranger--is a term we've come up with to describe the following: we're at a site, and we come across a guide who is saying something particularly interesting, and so we just sort latch onto the group for as long as we want. Then, if and when we get bored, we just leave (something the members of the tour group don't have the pleasure of doing as easily).
Our day finished with a trip to the Trevi Fountain. While this place is overrun with tourists, it is nevertheless spectacular (particularly at night). Photos below:
Our day ended with, well, McDonald's. Sometimes you just need fuel, and you don't want to take the time or spend the money for anything else. The funny thing is--as embarrassed as I am to admit it, and as much as we try to go local as much as possible when we travel--for some reason, we seem to go to McDonald's more in Europe than we do in America. We probably go to McDonald's a few times a year in the States, but when we were in France two years ago for ten days, we ate their three times. We've been in Rome 4 days, and we've eaten their once. Now, to put that into perspective, we've eaten out exactly 11 times on this trip so far, and only one of those have been at McDonald's, and it likely won't happen for another few weeks (particularly after the way I wanted to vomit after leaving McDonald's last night).
I suppose the other reason why McDonald's might be a choice more often over here is because sometimes you've had enough adventure for a given day, and you want a known commodity. Travel, as spectacular as it is, can be a taxing exercise--mentally, emotionally, and physically. And sometimes a traveler needs to curl up with his figurative "Linus" blanket--a brief reprieve before going back, head-long into his adventure.
Good night.
As a parting shot, I'll share this photo of Abby, who, always full of personality, pulls a "funny face" at lunch.
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