Category: Rome

A DAY AT THE POPE HOUSE. a HALF DAY. ok Everyone lasted about 45 minutes then we went and broke bread.
Bombs went off last night. Had I been any other place, I would have been scared, but I was living next to the Pope, and the Pope was the one lighting the fuse. The Vatican City was celebrating one of the many Saints. Which one. I do not know, but the fireworks went off for a while. The sounds were right outside our apartment on the first floor. Our apartment is a stones throw away from the Sistine Chapel. You can think of it another way … A Sistine Line away from the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museum. If the line for waiting to enter the Sistine Chapel went in the direction of our apartment, the line would extend past our apartment at go all the way to Cipro Metro station. The line for the Sistine Chapel has been the largest line I have seen in my life. There must be a FASTRAC. We laughed and walked on as we passed all the other tourists in line. No way we were going to stay in that line. When we started our walk this morning at 8:00, the line was just beginning to form. We walked to St Peters Piazza and Basilica. A wonderful big church that smells “not like Peace” as Ezra said. “Smells like Pee” he continued. I am not sure what Ezra has against the Pope and his church, but we did not last long inside. By far the biggest church we have ever seen or walked through. We were able to see the whole church, give our confessions and offerings in 15 minutes. How to tour the Vatican City in 15 minutes – look for it. We hung out and people watched from the Piazza. This will be our last stop of culture before Madrid. In the afternoon we went to a delicious gelateria and spotted a children’s amusement park. We have seen a bunch of these privatized pay as you play playground throughout the city. This one was conveniently located next to an elementary school. Off to bed. Let the fireworks commence. An ending. A beginning.

Our last day to roam around Rome. Viena and Ezra are some well-seasoned urban walkers by now. Ezra loved the little fountain in the end that we found near the KEYHOLE.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Our last day to roam around Rome. Viena and Ezra are some well-seasoned urban walkers by now. Ezra loved the little fountain in the end that we found near the KEYHOLE. No syrup. No ketchup. Yes problem. Viena wanted to walk to McDonalds for breakfast pancakes. The walk was early and took us once again by the Fountain of Trevi and some parliament building. However, the McDonalds did not have any syrup, so Viena did not eat her pancakes. They charge 50 cents for a little Ketchup packet so the fries were not enjoyed by Ezra either. In fact the entire morning was frustrating because who ever’s hand I was holding – and I was purposely walking slow – would not be looking where they were walking and they would BUMP into a pole or garbage can or person. I was walking with MR Bump and little Miss Bump. We had no other plans so we slowly made our way through the downtown streets and with careful navigation we arrived back at the playground at Nero’s home. A little more children were at the playground this time and no one was sleeping under the trees. We walked down and passed the hoards of people surrounding the Colosseum. Visiting the playground help Ezra and Viena with their energy level. After a good bit of walking past the Colosseum and Paletine Hill, we eventually arrived outside the Knights of Malta where we took a glimpse through the Keyhole – a glimpse of the Vatican from Roman Malta – a foreshadowing of things to come.There is a playground nearby and Ezra and Viena made bark boats to float in the fountain. Needless to say, the bark boats were way more interesting than looking through a keyhole and seeing the Vatican. Seemed to be some men hanging around the park wanting for night to fall so they could go to sleep. Great view. Later that night I packed up our Big Blue Bag and walked it over to what will be our new place near the Vatican City, for when we return from Vienna. Thank you to our new host. We are going to be travelling light to Vienna. I was able to spend some quiet time outside St Peter’s Basilica before running home in the night. Night is another story of Rome, one someone else will have to tell.

Viena has a sore throat and a small cold. Ezra and I walked to a hidden playground on the hill … slowly but surely.
Viena has a sore throat and a small cold. Ezra and I walked to a hidden playground on the hill … slowly but surely. Ezra and I went on our own adventure today to discover and explore another playground around Trastevere. First though, we had to visit the Basilica in Trastevere. Ezra of course goes straight to the candle offerings. The reason this was a guys day out was that Viena is not feeling well and so she is staying home from Romeschool today. Ezra and I had no trouble locating a store with a 75 cent popsicle or the church or the park. Ezra is a much stronger walking the farther he walks away from Dwana. I heard the playground was located somewhere in a park. I was about to head off when I heard Ezra scream “Playground!” and he started running. A real playground, with real toddlers, and real parents, and real slides. Ezra could not believe his eyes. Ezra played and played and played. He was so content on this Roman playground. He even wanted to go home with a Roman family. instead he ended up jumping in a Roman fountain. You know one of us had to do this. Ezra is becoming quite our little ambassador. Ezra was all wet, but mostly dry by the time we arrived home. We saw some clothes markets near the streets and we went back out with Viena and Dwana to see if we could find some warm clothes to pack for our trip to Vienna. Vienna is going to be a little chillier.

This morning’s walk through the Roman Empire took us past the Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, and the Fontana di Trevi … and many Basilicas along the way. We finished the urban walk with 2 Euro Tuesdays of Gelato.
This morning’s walk through the Roman Empire took us past the Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, and the Fontana di Trevi … and many Basilicas along the way. We finished the urban walk with 2 Euro Tuesdays of Gelato. The dy Viena lost her voice. Viena has been quite the trooper here in Rome – walking everywhere we ask her to walk without complaint, and she is usually the one that plays the most with Ezra in the afternoon after we walk all morning. Well, something caught up with her. Might have been walking in the rain a couple of days ago om Sunday. Today, we continued our walking tour around Rome by visiting the Piazza de Navona, the Pantheon, and the Fountain de Trevi. Plus, we encountered at least 5 other huge basilicas along the way. Ezra loves going to church. Ezra loves giving offerings. Ezra goes straight for the candle to light. Ezra even lights the electric candles with the switch. We had a picnic along the way with bread and jam and even found a McDonalds near the Fountain de Trevi. So far navigating around Rome has been very easy. The bridges help to give you a sense of location. I have yet to buy a map. My trick is to look for the masses of other tourists and I just follow them. I have never been in a city with so many walking tourists along the streets. The churches were magnificent. Ezra is even silenced in them. Viena seems to hum or carry some sort of tune while inside. So quiet. So quiet. Not too many other children walking around. I can tell Dwana is churched out – ruined out – colossemed out. So many things to see. Viena awoke this morning at 4AM and we were out the door by 6AM to come back after gelato at 1PM. I purchase some 1 EURO squeezy toys that broke. Ate lots of bread today.

We saw dragons at my dragon-school yesterday. A walk up Janiculum Hill past Acqua Paola fountain. Finally bought Dwana some Roman Coffee. Have not tasted coffee like that in a long while. We found the market at Campo de Fiori. Lots of water fountains but no bathrooms.

We saw dragons at my dragon-school yesterday. A walk up Janiculum Hill past Acqua Paola fountain. Finally bought Dwana some Roman Coffee. Have not tasted coffee like that in a long while. We found the market at Campo de Fiori. Lots of water fountains but no bathrooms. Today we had a late start of 9AM. All of the school children could be seen walking to school. Not too many children driving to school. Some were dropped off by scooter or car. We love hearing the violin and the Italian chatter below us from the cafes and restaurants. Today we walked up Janiculum hill in Trastevere. We passed the Aqcua Paulo and ate our breakfast. Lots of cars this morning. Sure is nice to walk earlier when there is less cars. We walked the ridge and had great views of the city below. One thick mass of buildings all the same height. Will this always be? Will Rome ever have change and build a tall skyscraper. I hope not. Even the immensity of the Colosseum fades away when you see from a distance. A kids area was and was thankfully closed since they charge 10 Euros for 20 minutes of playtime. That’s just for starters. I have been really good about trying ot spend our money frugally in this “not in our favor” Euro economy. So far. So good. I think. Every time I go to the market – at least $25. Not like SE ASIA. In SE ASIA we were living like kings. Now we are Roman peasants. But the Roman peasant lived a good life I am sure. I treated Dwana to here first cup of European coffee. Yum. We have been missing real coffee. We walked down and found the Campo de Fiori market area and purchased some more fruits and vegetables. At this point in our walk Dwana informed me of the urgent fact that Rome is lacking in the area of public bathrooms. We arrived home barely without anyone having an accident in their pants. Ezra and Viena played in our new place in the afternoon. I tried once again to find the playground next door, but ended up just walking around the block. All the walls are built up here, so a block is actually really a block. Hard to explain. You just have to walk the streets. Try this. Imagine if all your neighbors have 50 foot walls around their yard.

We greeted the morning again with an early walk through Rome. A little more cloudy this morning. We walked around until we found a playground near the Golden House of Nero. Thanks Nero your Ezra’s hero. Viena was so excited to find a playground. The playground is near the coliseum. They were having a Greenpeace event to Save the Arctic so lots of bicycles everywhere. we entered the Forum and saw the many many ruins. Incredible how strong the Romans built things 2000 years ago. The sky darkened and rain fell. We were soaked by the time we exited and made our way to the farmer’s market. Cheese, bread, honey, and fruits. Viena loved trying to shoe splash me with the many puddles were passed on our walk. A nice rain.

We greeted the morning again with an early walk through Rome. A little more cloudy this morning. We walked around until we found a playground near the Golden House of Nero. Thanks Nero your Ezra’s hero. Viena was so excited to find a playground. The playground is near the coliseum. They were having a Greenpeace event to Save the Arctic so lots of bicycles everywhere. we entered the Forum and saw the many many ruins. Incredible how strong the Romans built things 2000 years ago. The sky darkened and rain fell. We were soaked by the time we exited and made our way to the farmer’s market. Cheese, bread, honey, and fruits. Viena loved trying to shoe splash me with the many puddles were passed on our walk. A nice rain. Yesterday we survived the Colosseum. Today we survived the Forum and Palatine Hill. When you buy a ticket into the Colosseum, entrance into the Forum is included and you have two days on the ticket. So one day you can visit the Colosseum and the following day you can go visit the Forum. Glad for this, because we were really tired yesterday evening after our colossal day. Today the weather was a bit cloudy. We found the playground near the Colosseum on Nero’s Golden Home or Oppia Hill. Ezra and Viena were super excited to see a playground. Unfortunately, some of the guys still asleep in the park were not so excited. Rome’s climate allows for easy sleeping on park benches and beneath trees. By the time we walked around the Colosseum the tourists were out in force. You have to see it to believe it. So many tourists. They even had a GreenPeace organized bike ride to SAVE the Arctic. This was the weekend. What was interesting was the actual lack of paid park personnel that are around. You see guides, but not like a museum or National Park Ranger. We were almost finished walking through the Forum on our way to Palatine Hill when the rains started. No umbrellas. No poncho. No problem. Oh well. The rains actually felt pretty good. We were soaked when we arrived at the museum for shelter. We tried waiting out the weather at the museum, but the rains just seemed to rain harder when we ventured out again. Ezra’s energy was fading. Viena was going strong. Not quite sure what their favorite part of the forum was. They trying to find a statue that looked like me but could not. The rains continued to fall as we made our way to the farmers Market. Glad we stumbled upon this place yesterday. At home we made a nice Italian pasta meal and I even took a nap. Another time I shall mention the Roman Dreams I have been having. In the evening I tried to find the playground in front of St Cecilia Basilica next door, but all we found was a beautiful wedding taking place. I think a lot of people are married in Rome. This is our honeymoon of honeymoons. Amazing to see a wedding in one of these big churches.

An early morning walk around the Roman Coliseum and Forum. Violins can be heard playing from our second story apartment window here in Trastevere. Dwana has a case of the sneezes.

A colossal day. An early morning adventure to explore around the Colosseum. Everywhere I looked a new picture was waiting to be taken. A city like San Francisco. Very few children walking around. Lots of young people walking around. Good to see couples walking hand in hand again after so long. People running around the Colosseum or walking on their way to work. Too early for the tour buses and the masses, but they would arrive. You can count on it. 24 Euros for admission into the Colosseum. Kids were free. Worth it. 12 Euros each. So huge a place. Preserved. Here in Rome. A city built around the ruins. Ezra and Viena are more interested in wedding rice, race cars, and baby statues – but who can blame them. We came back home and Dwana made a wonderful Roman pasta meal. We found a farmers market. Need to go back there tomorrow. We took another walk in the afternoon. Now more people were out. We heard the bells of the big church. The biggest church we have ever been in. We saw the bells. The bells have replaced the prayer calls of the mosque and Buddhist loudspeaker chants. At the end of the day we ran into some streets blocked off for Yom Kippur. We walked around the narrow cobblestone streets winding our way back home through the neighborhood maze – Ezra begging for shoulder rides. Violins can be heard playing from our second story apartment window here in Trastevere. Dwana has a case of the sneezes.