Had to get up and get our own breakfast this morning –
shattered!!! Anyway, we coped. Got out at about 9 o’clock so we could get
the first Hop on – Hop off bus for a tour of the city. Bloody tourists everywhere. We sat down the bottom for the first half an
hour till we had a stop and managed to get a topside seat. Should have walked the circuit. We were on there for 2 hours (The whole
circuit is supposed to take 110 minutes) and we had only done three quarters of
the way – but we were heading back to the Colosseum so we were happy – then –
the guide announced, ‘We have trouble and are very late, we go straight to
Vatican’. Got back to the Vatican and had to get another
bus back to the Colosseum. Almost 4 hours
of sitting in a parked bus. The circuit
is about 15 kilometres – could have walked it with a coffee break in that time. The roads in Rome were like a car park – no-one
going anywhere fast.
Finally arrived at the Colosseum at 1pm and went in. What a magnificent place. We took too many photos – lucky we culled
them to a suitable number. Had some
lunch, went for a bit of a walk. It was
about 4.30 and no time to go anywhere so we thought we’d do a run on the Metro
so we knew what to do for the airport on Saturday. Got to the metro – locked?? Asked around – Metro strike today – no wonder
every Roman was in a car on the roads today.
The strike was over at 5 o’clock so we took the Metro to the main
station, checked that out then walked home.
Tea tonight (because over our very late lunch) biscuit, dip, cheese and
salami. Perhaps a beer and wine too.
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| Just to further confuse the Italian drivers. |
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| Bridge over the Tiber River. |
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| Monument to Victorio Emmanuel. |
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| Our first glimpse of the Vatican - St Peters Square. |
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| Castle on the River Tiber. |
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| Did I tell you we took a couple of photos of the Colosseum? |
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| Sure did...... |
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| One more perhaps? |
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| Nope - plenty more. |
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| The happy couple....or something. |
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| Waiting for the lions to appear. |
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| The gladiator. |
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| The selfy. |
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| From the verandah of the Colosseum. |
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| Another one from the verandah. |
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| Just in case you needed a reminder of where we went today....... |
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| Following in the footsteps of Saint Tony. |
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| Arches in the Palatine and the Roman Forum. |
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| There are ruins everywhere - just lying on the ground, you can sit on them, stand on them, amazing. |
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| Ruins almost everywhere!!! |
If you happen to get back to the monument to Victorio Emmanuel, it is worth making your way up to the cafe on the back verandah - good views to be had, and quite a decent cafe too; at least, the coffee and pastries were nice when we were there last. There is also a good cafe with a view at the Capitoline Museum http://en.museicapitolini.org/. That was an interesting museum - had a great exhibition of archives from the Vatican too, which was really interesting. Their permanent collection is pretty amazing too. The Castel St Angelo is also an interesting place to go, and again has great views; it was the place the popes escaped to from the Vatican through a special covered bridge, which is still there. You would have seen it, I'd reckon. And I don't know if you have time,but if you do and you can get a ticket, Palazzo Valentini is worth a visit - http://www.palazzovalentini.it/scavi.php?lang=eng There is, wait for it, a cafe there too - good coffee, very cheap, but no view of any sort at all, and it is not really what you would call glamorous. Wish I was in Rome again; it sort of gets under your skin.
ReplyDeleteHi Vernon
ReplyDeleteThe red and white ruin is a bit sad looking! You'd think they's clean ones up that look like that!
Love
Trish
Thanks Trish...all the renovations have been completed!!! You will notice the vast improvement in the following days. Love you too!!! Vernon xxxx
ReplyDelete