Rome
August was not a good time to visit the city of Rome, even the Romans fled in large numbers to spend the month in the mountains or by the sea. The effect of this mass exodus was that many of the small back street restaurants and suburban restaurants were closed for several weeks. Those restaurants that were open, particularly those in the tourist areas were quick to take advantage of the thousands of people who had flocked to Rome to enjoy it’s numerous ancient monuments. Prices for soft drinks including water were all around €5 to €6 each and made eating in a restaurant very expensive. When the bill arrived it would also include a cover charge and sometimes separate charges for bread and service! Costs could be reduced by carrying a plastic water bottle and filling it up at the ubiquitous fountains and munching on slabs of pizza bought from local take away shops.
Part of the holiday though was sitting in one of the many bustling squares to enjoy a leisurely meal while being entertained by the buskers. Piazza Navona was the ideal place for this, a beautiful piazza surrounding the fabulous Four Rivers Fountainand full of stalls where artists were selling their paintings to passers by.
Queues were a necessary evil at the height of the season and a chance for the gladiators to march up and down trying to persuade tourists to indulge in a photographic fantasy, at a price of course. Touts also roam up and down these lines of unsuspecting tourists over guided tours that include the entrance fee and a chance to jump the queue. Beware, they will try and gather together around forty people before commencing the tour so it may still involve a long wait in the open sun. Nevertheless it was all worthwhile, just to tread the steps where the Romans encouraged their heroes to triumph at the games. A better way to avoid the queues would be to start your visit to the Palatino where a joint ticket could be purchased for the Palatino, Colosseo and Foro Romano or just the Colosseo but a stroll up the hill was certainly worthwhile and chance to get away from the crowds while still experiencing the glory that was ancient Rome.
Everybody opted for an early morning tour of the Vatican museums including the Sistine Chapel and I accompanied them to meet their guide. He was nowhere to be seen at the appointed time and I ran around asking all the guides, who were waiting, where he might be. It was bizarre because in theory these early tours avoided the queues yet in practice generated lines of people waiting to go in! I called the agent who told me to wait at the bus stop by the entrance, I looked up, I was beneath the bus stop sign. As I scanned the crowds I saw a guide emerge from the Café Vaticana opposite and run across the road, mobile clamped to his ear. It was our guide but I should have realised that in Italy seven forty-five means eight o’clock.
I filled my free morning riding the buses and metro between the city centre and our hotel in the suburbs trying to find the most convenient routes and the most comfortable buses. Some were air-conditioned and some were not. When I tackled our agent about this he was unrepentant and responded that because the doors were always opening to let people on and off that was sufficient to cool the air.
I joined the throng heading to Saint Peter’s square to meet the group at the Basilica. I realised that I was going to be really lucky to find them. The queues to get in were incredible but I knew that they would have bypassed these. I made my way to the only exit and positioned myself where I could search the mass exodus for familiar faces. Engrossed in watching the Swiss Guard answering questions and posing for photographs I nearly missed them all but having spotted the last two coming out we were soon re-united and seated in a cool restaurant perusing what seemed to be a reasonably priced menu. Street wise by now I asked if we would be charged for the bread that had been placed on our table. I was told no, it would be a gift. However, they recouped any losses on the bread by charging €3.50 per person for service.
Cool and refreshed we then made our way to the Spanish Steps, a ‘must see’ according to the guide books but in reality a flight of steps built to link the church above with the Piazza Espagne and famous as a meeting place for the locals. I warned the group they should be prepared to be under-whelmed, and they were. The fountain at the base of the steps was cordoned off but even so, as was true of all the fountains in Rome it was ringed with people dangling their feet in the water to cool them off. At the Trevi Fountain people splashed around in the shallows and it was almost impossible to find space to toss three coins into the fountain over your left shoulder to ensure a return visit. But would I want to come back?
Certainly I would. Indeed my first visit to Rome was at New Year and it was wonderful. We walked straight up to the Bocca della Verità and within seconds had tested and proved our honesty before strolling back into the centre along the bank of the River Tiber. New Year’s Eve itself offered a variety of outdoor entertainment in different Piazzas. We eschewed the firework display for an open air concert in Piazza Cavour. It was wonderful. We were entertained by a full orchestra that accompanied some well known opera singers. At midnight greetings rang through the air as strangers and friends embraced and kissed. Fire crackers were going off everywhere and we could still hear the dull thuds when we finally made our way back to our hotel. A memorable start to another year.
