Roaming Through Rome - Italy

Finally! Our last and most awaited stop on our Mediterranean cruise. Rome, Italy. 

Rome is a little inland from the ocean so we ported at a town called Civitavecchia. There isn't a whole lot to do in this town. Cruise ships stop here because of its proximity to Rome. So if you book a Western Mediterranean cruise on it and it says Civitavecchia, that is your Rome stop and you should make every effort to make it there.

Why? Because of this shot right here. This is just a bus stop on any old street in Rome. Nothing really stands out and makes it special. Only the 2,000 year old columns from an ancient building next to 500 year old house on the right with a 50 year old street light illuminating the street that has probably been used for traffic in some form for over 2,500 years. This is Rome. Thousands and thousands of years of history and different eras and time periods crowded and mashed together forming this hodgepodge of architectural chaos that is seemingly alive and beautiful. 

Our path in Rome took us by Capitoline Hill, one of the seven hills in Rome. It's also where we get our word for capitol. 

There is evidence, like this ancient oven and brick structure, that Capitoline Hill has been settled for over 4,000 years. This here has been dated to over 3,000 years old and it just is on the street where you walk by on the sidewalk, plain as day.

This monstrosity is the Altare della Patria, a monument completed in 1925 to the first king of Italy after its unification. This building has caused major controversy due to the fact that to make room for it many ancient and medieval buildings were destroyed. It is the biggest structure in Rome and its white marble facade makes it stick out like a sore thumb.

Rome has all its major tourist attractions, but when you wander the streets, off the beaten track, you can find things like this - buildings with your name on it and ancient excavations in the middle of regular Roman neighborhoods.

This is the Pantheon. It is the most well preserved building from ancient Rome. Built between 27 BC and 14 AD, it has been in continuous use since it was constructed 2,000 years ago. 

Here I am with the kidlets inside. It is breathtaking! All the marble and the columns just amaze me. 

Here is the real marvel though. This geometrically perfect semi-circle roof that reaches a point in the center for light to come in. This roof is completely self-supporting. It has no columns at all. I wonder how many of our concrete buildings will be standing in 2,000 years.

Rome is famous for its fountains and the fresh water they bring into the city. While they are no longer the main source of water for drinking and bathing for Rome's citizens, they have come to epitomize Rome and are guarded as national treasures. This is the Fontana die Quattro Fiumi fountain situated in the Piazza Navona. 

It is a pretty nice place to hang out and to have a snack. Obviously.

Next we ran over to the Colosseum, the iconic symbol of Italy and Rome. 

The Colosseum is the largest amphitheater in the world. It is truly amazing. I feel like I say that a lot. That something is truly amazing, but that is really how I feel. These places just blow me away and sometimes all I am left with is, "Amazing!"

The Colosseum was built in 80 AD and had many uses. I am sure you have heard about the gladiators and chariot races and lion fighting, like I have. Ancient Rome seems like a pretty violent place.

The Colosseum was currently being cleaned and stabilized. The south wall collapsed back in 1349 when a great earthquake struck Rome. Scavengers took the fallen stone to build other structures through out Rome.

Across from the Colosseum and built into the side of a hill is the impressive and large Forum. The Forum was the center of Roman life.

The Forum originally started as an open air marketplace, but it quickly outgrew that need as political speeches and government service took up more and more room. It eventually became the center for all political and judicial life in the the city.

The Forum was used from the 7th century BC until the 13th century AD, when the buildings, which had mostly been abandoned, were dismantled for their stone and the site became a dumping place and cattle pen.

Excavation of the Forum began in the late 1700's with the current excavation ending in the 20th century. Ruins from different centuries are shown together due to the Romans tendency to build on former building sites.

We saw the ruins for the Temple of the Vestal Virgins.

And ruins for other temples and court houses.

And the ruins for the Temple of Caesar, a temple built for Julius Caesar after he was murdered nearby on the steps of the senate.

We saw the 2,000 year old Roman Senate building which was largely left intact due to the fact it was turned into a church. 

We saw so much history packed into one area the size of a basic city block. It was mind-blowing to think of all the things that had happened in that area in the last 2,700 years since it was used. 

The sun was beginning to set on an absolutely perfect day. I stood in the middle of the ancient Roman Forum feeling so small. So insignificant. But yet so lucky to have seen this place. To read about the people who lived and worked here. 

And of course, I continued to take pictures.

The golden, winter sun warming the roofs of Rome. I can see why my good friend Rick Steves calls this place Bella Roma, or beautiful Rome.

And in such a beautiful place, what does one do? Take pictures of the ones you love in a beautiful place, of course.

All my peeps.

More people I love. Mr. and Mrs. Point with their kidlets.

I had one last look around the Forum. The fact that the sun was setting right as I took one last glance around the Forum added a kind of finishing effect to the day. I stood quietly in the practically deserted Forum and thought one last time about all the people who had lived here, worked here, and died here. Could I hear them still? Did their voices echo here after all these years? Did they walk the ancient streets? Would people know in 100 years that I stood here once? Probably not. I did not leave a mark on Rome to let people of the future know that "I was here." But Rome left its mark on me. I think it is one of my favorite, if not my favorite city we have visited here in Europe. Make sure you get out and see it.

Sorry In Bari - Italy

Our first stop on our Eastern Mediterranean cruise was Bari, Italy. Bari is a town on the east side of the boot of Italy, down where the "heel" starts. The first thing you see in Bari is the Swabian Castle, or Castello Svevo, built in 1132 by a Norman king named Roger II. How many King Rogers have you ever heard of? 

The King Roger that we are talking about built this fortified castle right on the banks of the blue Adriatic sea in Bari.

Here are the kiddos outside the wall of the castle. Side note - Alexander, my oldest son, is wearing a large, floppy hat in most of the pictures. Why? Because he was in the middle of a round of antibiotics for Lyme Disease that he got from a tick in Heidelberg. The antibiotics made his skin more sensitive to the sun. A fact we found out in Venice when he burned after putting on SPF 30 twice. No worries on the Lyme Disease though. We caught it super early and the antibiotics completely rid him of the bacteria.

Swabian Castle has passed through numerous royal hands. From the Norman King Roger II to William of Sicily to an emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (Germany) then to some Angevins (people from the area of Anjou, France) to Ferdinand of Aragon (Spain) who gave it to the Queen of Poland. That's some castle flipping for you. After all this changing hands it finally became a prison.

After taking a rather dull tour of the inside (they were showcasing an Italian photographer who thought it was interesting to take up close shots of mundane things like radiators, stop signs, and house plants) we walked around beautiful Bari.

Bari has a sleepy feel as you walk around. Doors that open into small alley ways are propped open with nothing but a sheer curtain hung up to shield their homes from prying eyes.

Trays of homemade pasta were left drying in doorways and window sills.

You had to be careful waking around old Bari. Their streets weren't closed to traffic. If you could fit down it, you could drive it. Luckily, it still meant that most cars weren't able to go around these alleyways. But scooters and motorcycles could. We had to jump out of the way of some speedy Italians more than once.

This is the world famous Basilica di San Nicola, or the St. Nicholas Basilica. As in, Jolly Old St. Nicholas. This basilica holds the remains of St. Nicholas of Lycia, which is in what is now modern-day Turkey, who died in 343 AD. This St. Nicholas had a penchant for secret gift giving (sound familiar?) and he liked to put coins in people's shoes who left them outside their door. He is the real-life model for our modern version of Santa Claus. There are stories of his providing poor girls with dowries so they won't be forced into a life of prostitution. That's quite a Christmas present. Sure beats the Cabbage Patch Kid and slippers I got for Christmas. If you ever want to give your kids a hard, cold dose of reality, tell them Santa is buried in an old gray church in Bari, Italy. I've been there. I can prove it.

Italians are so different from Germans. Where as most Germans really aren't that interested in talking to you, you can't get Italians to shut up. They want to know who you are, where you are from, where you are going, why you are there, and then they want to tell you all the same things about themselves. They sit on these little corners talking to everyone who passes by. It was great. Europeans who are actually interested in us!

We headed down to the water to get a look at the coastline of Bari. One of us got a little too close of a look.

Andre had been jumping from rock to rock when he lost his footing and took a bit of a bath in the Mediterranean. He was soaked from head to toe so we took off his shirt and wrapped him in Matt's jacket. Being only seven, this completely ruined the day for him. So much so that he said, "I'm sorry I ever even came to Bari!" 

Oh. That's so sad. Blame Bari for dashing your hopes about Santa, but not for getting you wet.

Here's hoping that if you ever come to Bari, you stay nice and dry.

Ciào,

Kelly

Venice By Boat, Because Is There Really Any Other Way? - Italy

For our trip to Venice we rented an apartment just outside of Venice on the mainland in a town called Mestre. From there it was a quick 10 minute bus ride into the heart of Venice. Venice is easily reachable from the mainland by bus, train, or car via the two mile causeway that takes you through the marshy lagoon and out into open sea, and then eventually to Venice. Upon arrival in Venice by bus, we quickly scooted over to the vaporetti station to board. What's the vaporetti? Vaporetti are canal filled Venice's public transit system. But instead of tires and bus stops, you have boats and docks. You never have to worry about a flat, but you do worry a little about sinking. 

Here is our first view from the front of our vaporetto. Look at that blue sky! Look at those turquoise waters! 

The building with the green dome is San Simeon Piccolo.

We boarded the vaporetto at Piazzale Roma, or the closest dock to where the bus drops you off. Here we were the first ones on board and got to sit up front for great views.

Venice was crowded for early April. This is the Grand Canal, basically the main street of Venice. There were so many boats on here we were a little surprised that there weren't any accidents. Those buildings to the left with the yellow trim are the vaporetti docks. We found it a convenient way to get around.

The Church of the Scalzi or church of the barefoot. Scalzi has a nicer ring to it, don't you think?

It was in this area of Venice where the original Jewish ghetto was located. It became quite crowded after it was set aside for Venice's Jewish residents back in 1516. It gave us our word ghetto for densely populated areas. Ghetto doesn't mean poor though, its from the word geto which has to do the copper foundry close to here. 

You are always on a hunt for a bridge to cross to the other side.

Upon arriving in Venice, my kids asked if it was built out in the ocean. Although Venice does look like it rises right out the waves all by itself, it is actually built on swampy islands. Here is some proof (trees growing) that there is some land here and there in Venice.

The original Venetians drained the swamps into canals that ran along side their properties and then those canals drained into the Grand Canal which was an ancient river from the lagoon that Venice is situated in.

Ah, the classic gondola ride. Made even more special when they bump into each other.

You may be thinking something like I did, what made people go out in the lagoon and settle on some marshy islands when they are surrounded by the beautiful landscape of northern Italy? One guess. Barbarians. I guess early Venetians were tired of being plundered, pillaged, and raped and so they eyed the sea as their escape. Apparently early barbarians were lacking something. A boat.

As Venice grew so did its wealth. And in the 15th century it became The Place to have a palace to to strut your Italian stuff.

Venice became so luxurious and wealth filled it became known as The City of Palaces. How did Venice become so rich? Trade. And the fact that the barbarians couldn't reach them anymore. Remember? No boats.

We were going to come to Venice last fall but heard that it was flooded so we went to Tuscany instead. Read about that here and here. Venice is very susceptible to flooding due to its proximity to water (duh). And because it is sinking. Yep. Right into the ocean. I read that the sediment that they built on is continuing to compact with all the weight of the buildings. And Italy pumped ground water out of the rock underneath the lagoon for 50 years causing the island to sink before they realized what was happening. By that point, Venice had sunk 9 inches. Now when they get a storm or a really high tide, water bubbles up through the grates in the plazas from the lagoon instead of draining down into it. Definitely invest in some galoshes.

There were many buildings under construction. I guess sitting in a lagoon for 500 years battering high tide is hard on a place. This is toward the end of the Grand Canal where it opens up into the sea. Here is the domes of St. Mark's Basilica or Basilica di San Marco.

The Grand Canal emptying into the sea.

I guess this is the equivalent of riding a bike in Venice. For when you just need to get somewhere quick and don't want to wait for the boat.

We got off the boat and headed to Piazza San Marco.

Here is the Doge's Palace. The place the duke or doge of Venice would rule from.

Right next to it is St. Mark's Basilica, circa 1063 AD, which was under construction, like many other places in Venice. Why is it called St. Mark's? Because it would seem some down-right dirty Venetians stole his body in 828 AD from it's resting place in Alexandria and hid it under pork and cabbage leaves for the ride home to Venice. Now that Venice could claim St. Mark, as in Matthew-Mark-Luke-And-John Mark, it lifted their status to that almost equal to Rome. It would seem Venetians had gone from being plundered, pillaged, and raped to doing to the plundering, pillaging, and raping. 

Scenes depicting different events in the history of Christianity decorate the outside of the basilica. I wonder if they have a scene showing the Venetians swiping poor ol' St. Mark's bones?

So much gold was used in the building of the church is that is is called the Chiesa d'Oro, or church of gold.

Here is the 'Bridge of Sighs' where condemned men would be led from the Doge's Palace to a prison. They would sigh here at their one last look of Venice. I prefer to call this bridge the Bridge of "When are we going to be done looking at Venice" questions. 

Here are my four children actually contemplating if they could steal this speed boat and take off back to Mestre on their own. Good luck, kids.

After our Grand Canal vaporetto ride, we struck out on our own into the streets, alleyways, small paths between houses. After a few random turns we found ourselves in a part of town the tour books didn't describe. Garbage lined the sides of the path, boats that were half sunk drifted in the grey canals. Uh oh. Where did we wander too? One of my kids started to get nervous that we would be forever lost in the dark corners of Venice and kept asking me, "Where does Rick Steves' say we should go?"

Oh! So now you want to listen to Rick Steves? I can just here good old Rick saying, "How you like me now?" 

We made it back on the tourist path and narrowly escaped the stray dogs and shady knock-off purse vendors of the dark side of Venice.

As beautiful as the canals of Venice are, the small streets and pathways have their own unique charm.

Here is our final stop, the Rialto Bridge. One of the few ways to cross the Grand Canal on foot. It's so wide that they have shops on it. It is where most of the goods for the interior of Venice are unloaded.

That was our day in Venice. Although it is in the top four of the most expensive cities in Europe (along with Paris, Oslo, and Zurich) it is such a treat to experience. I thought it was great. Matt thought it was pricey. I tried to get a picture of the face Matt would make when he heard the price of everything. But he wouldn't do it.

So here is Ashlenne giving her best imitation of her dad's "That Is Freakin' Expensive" face. Does Venice look expensive to you?

Ciào,

Kelly*