2015.05.13 Imperial Forums and Trajan's Column (Rome, Italy)

I admit, I'm a stickler for well-planned travel.

But often, the unexpected encounters make the best experiences. We were heading towards the Capitoline Museum when we passed by these interesting-looking ruins.

Turns out, they are what remains of the Imperial Forums.

For some reason, I had thought the Imperial Forums to be located on the other side of the Roman Forum, so it was definitely a nice surprise.

Forum of Augustus

Something poetic about poppies growing in between the ruins.

Forum of Trajan

Trajan's Column

There was a great article about Trajan's Column in a recent issue of the National Geographic. The column depicts emperor Trajan's victory over the Dalcians. The series of reliefs forms one continuous strip spiraling upwards, almost like an ancient comic strip. The entire column would have been in colour as well. Think of the engineering and construction prowess needed for such a marvel. The column is hollow and once upon a time, people could climb the spiral staircase within, an innovation at the time, to the podium above. 

2015.05.12 Afternoon Walk in Rome

After the Vatican Museums, we headed to a nearby Tripadvisor-recommended gelateria - Hedera Gelateria (#14 ranking). I was in definite need of some great gelato to calm my nerves.

And... it was kind of just okay. Especially when compared with Wonderful Ice Cream gelateria near our hotel.

Castel Sant'Angelo viewed from the Ponte Sant'Angelo

The bridge was also known as Pons Aelius ("Hadrian's Bridge"). It shouldn't be too surprising since Castel Sant'Angelo used to be Hadrian's mausoleum.

The touch of Hadrian is everywhere in Rome.

Always fun to stroll the streets of Rome. 

A lot more gelaterias and Murano glass shops than before but still charming (and will remain so as long as they keep the old Italian men smoking and chatting on corners. Hire actors if necessary). I do miss seeing laundry hanging between the buildings.

Piazza Navona

A film crew passed by while we were sitting near the Fontana del Moro. So if you see a documentary/travel show on Rome with a handsome Spanish/Portuguese host, keep an eye out for me in the background.  

This is what happens when you try to juggle a notebook, camera, tablet, and sunglasses, especially if you've never demonstrated any juggling ability in the past. Thankfully the lens didn't fall too far away and popped back in with relative ease. 

 

The coffered dome ceiling of the Pantheon never ceases to amaze and astound. 

Something I missed the last time - The Tomb of Raphael

Another surprise encounter. I took a photo because the building looked interesting but was obviously not a museum. After searching on the internet, the colonnade and wall are what remains of Hadrian's Temple (Hadrian again!).

It is now part of a building occupied by a bank.
While I would feel infinitely better if the building was occupied by say, the cultural ministry of Italy, at least the bank will have enough money for maintenance and restorations.

Sad but true.

Trevi Fountain
Sadly, the fountain was in the midst of major restorations during our time in Rome, and will remain so until end of the year.

An elevated walkway has been erected so visitors got the rare opportunity to see some of the fountain statues up close.

Even though the basin has been drained of water, people still threw coins in, completely undeterred by the signs asking them not to do so. I sympathize with the workers. It can't be fun being hit by tiny metal objects, even if it is money.

Passed by this pair of statues/fountains at an intersection on our way back to the hotel. The details of the foliage... just incredible. 

2015.05.12 Vatican Museums (Vatican)

Taking a break before the Vatican Museums, a great lunch was enjoyed at the Tripadvisor-recommended Panino Divino, where a sandwich+drink combo will only set you back 5 euros (cheaper than McDonald's and tasted infinitely better).

I'm not a big fan of paninis, but their panino ciro (black pig cheek, caciotta mixed, sun-dried tomatoes, chilli jam) was absolutely delicious. This panini put all the other paninis I've tried before to shame. The bread had just the right amount of crispy and chewy, and combined with the perfect selection of cured meat, cheese, and sauce... my mouth is salivating.

Paying the extra online reservation fee instead of waiting in this massive line of people along the Vatican wall? Yes please.

Added bonus: a feeling of superiority as you breeze by these unprepared folks? Priceless.

We were more than half an hour early than the scheduled ticket time but the guards let us in anyways.

For no possible reason other than temporary insanity, we took the spiral ramp up instead of the escalator. Never do this unless the staircase is A) historical or B) beautiful. 

In this case, it was neither. And to make matters worse, it's a rectangular spiral which meant even more walking. And the faster you try to escape this spiral of death, the dizzier you got. 

Who designed this? Unless you're Michelangelo or equivalent reincarnate, spiral stairway is just not a good idea. Period.

We ended up both tired and dizzy. Not a great way to start a museum visit. 

Since I knew we would be visiting Hadrian's villa later in the trip, this display "Reconstruction of the Canopus of Hadrian's Villa" in the Gregorian Egyptian Museum was of particular interest. 

These are the original statues removed from the villa and have been displayed in the relative grouping and orientation as they would have been in the Serapeum and Canopus of Hadrian's Villa. 

Really beautiful.

The Gregorian Egyptian Museum

Assyrian Relief of Eagle-headed Genius(?) Worshiping Sacred Tree 

After the Louvre, it's starting to bother me more and more that Middle Eastern history and antiquities don't seem to get the same popular culture recognition as their Egyptian contemporaries. 

Most people are probably familiar with the names Tutakhamun, Ramses, Seti, Cleopatra, and Nefertiri. But how many can name an ancient king/queen from the middle east? I know I can't. 

And that's sad, because the ancient middle eastern artifacts are just as amazing and sophisticated, if not more so, as the ones from ancient Egypt. 

Especially now, with the destruction of ancient cities Mosul, Hatra and Nimrud, we'll never be able to experience those ruins in person, making these pieces even more precious. 

Sorry, back to our regularly-scheduled programming.

Cortile Ottagano ("Octogonal Court")

Sadly, my favourite rooms with all the creature marbles - Sala degli Animali - were closed for reasons unknown. I was hoping to see Mr. Crab again. 

Something new - The Belvedere Torso. Reminds me of The Thinker by Rodin. Shouldn't be too surprising, since according to the description plaque, this statue has served as inspirations for many an artist.

Thought to be of Ajax.

We might have a Venus di Milo situation here, where a statue looks better minus limbs.

Sala Rotunda ("Round Room")

Sala della Biga ("Room of the Chariot") - alas, still closed

Hall of Tapestries

Hall of Maps

Apologies for the lackluster photos. By this point, I got separated from my travel companions and in my slightly frantic search, wasn't really in the mood to admire or take photos. 

We were supposed to meet up beforehand to enter the long, crowded hallways leading to the Sistine Chapel together (so we could utilize the secret exit). Well, you know what they say about plans. Thinking the two of them might have been swept up by the crowd and hoping against hope that the two of them did not get separated, I jumped into the river of people and started the arduous trek to the Michelangelo's masterpiece.

Raphael's School of Athens

Armory Cupboards

After a very difficult loop around the Sistine Chapel (gah, the crowds - how could anyone enjoy the ceiling with so much noise?) and not finding my travel companions, I headed back towards our designated meeting place -  The Courtyard of the Pine Cone, praying that they were smart enough not to follow the crowd out the museum exit.

I had a near panic attack when I saw only one of them sitting by our designated meeting place - the golden "Sphere Within a Sphere."

Scenarios started to run rampant through my head.

And then the other person - sitting on a bench farther away because it was shaded - popped into view and finally, a breath of relief.

So lesson? Always ALWAYS designate a just-in-case meeting point. And make sure everyone has a map.

Though we didn't get to take advantage of the "not-so-secret" shortcut, we did get to walk down the famous spiral staircase this time. Everything worked out, kind of.

While making my way down the stairs, I kept fantasizing about a giant pinball appearing and rolling down, a la Indiana Jones. Weird right?

Post-script: 
The funny (but not haha-funny) thing is that my travel companions didn't even see the famous ceiling. They were ushered right through the chapel without looking up, although they did see a lot of people looking up. 

Life lesson: when you see other people stopping and looking up, LOOK UP.  

I've made them promise to tell everyone who ask that they did, in fact, see the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Because otherwise, it'd just be too ridiculous.

2015.05.12 St Peter's Basilica (Vatican)

Unlike the Vatican Museums, there is no timed entrance for St Peter's Basilica and by most accounts, the line up for the security check can be horrendous. And because St Peter's Square is closed every Wednesday morning for the papal audience, our options were fairly limited.

To avoid the crowd, we headed out bright and early. I'm very thankful to my travel companions for agreeing to skip the hotel breakfast because I know how important breakfast, especially free breakfast, is to them.

We managed to arrive just as a small line was starting to form. Ten minutes and one security check later, we were in St Peter's Basilica.

The Dome

It was only after my last visit to the Vatican that a friend told me about climbing the basilica dome, and I kicked myself hard for not knowing about it earlier. And ever since then, it's been on my list.

We paid a little extra to take the elevator to the roof, saving our legs for the challenging climb to the top.

The elevator building

View from the roof

Inside the Dome

The dome was designed by Michelangelo so going in, you already had high expectations.

And the maestro blew them to smithereens. I mean, look at that ceiling.

The mosaic angels on the dome walls. The subtle shading of the facial contours using mosaic is beyond amazing.

And only from above, could I truly appreciate the intricate tile designs of the basilica marble floor.

The entryway to the top of the dome was temporarily closed and the Vatican guard would not tell us why except that it would be reopened in twenty minutes. After what seemed more like forty minutes, we saw paramedics carry down a middle-aged women in a canvas hammock, followed by her very worried family.

I started getting a little worried too, since I wasn't sure if my travel companions were fit enough to make it to the top and back. But they seemed confident enough so up we went.

It started simple enough... and then the stairs started getting more and more narrow. We were climbing inbetween the inner and outer shells of the dome. And after a while, it really did feel like the walls were closing in. Definitely not recommended for those suffering from claustrophobia.

And the final flight of stairs was so narrow that rope was needed.

But the climb was so worth it. The view at the top was absolutely amazing.

The Vatican Museums

You can just about make out the golden "Sphere within a Sphere" in the Courtyard of the Pinecone.

The Vatican Gardens

There's even a faux waterfall.

It's difficult to see, hindered by the shadow of the dome, but the papal seal has been recreated in the flower bed. 

Is this the papal way of saying "Leo XIII was here"?

I can only imagine the hook is for the window cleaners?

And more stairs going down...

The camera is not tilted. The walls really were that slanted. No wonder the paramedic had to use a hammock instead of a regular stretcher.

The rest of the roof was fenced off, sadly. Given the number of guards there, I'd guess it's for security purposes. 

We were just about behind St Matthews on the left.

And did you know that there is a souvenir shop and a cafe on the basilica roof? Operated by nuns? Because it certainly came as a surprise to me.

St Peter's Basilica

Another revisit so please just enjoy the photos.

Statue of St Peter Enthroned, whose right foot is pretty much gone from centuries of kisses and touches.

And now people are starting to go after his other foot.

What I can only assume to be the entry to the crypt. Check out the zoomed-in photo on the right - The skeleton (Death? Time?) holding an hourglass looming over the doorway. Really macabre.

Air vent grate over the crypts. I could actually see people moving down there. 

By the time we came out of the basilica, the line outside had extended all the way along the colonnade and was growing. Coming early was definitely the right decision.

Dinner: Carrefour supermarket