The Eternal City

I think a few days in the gritty urban sprawl of Naples really primed us to appreciate the classic elegance that is Rome. While Naples has its churches and castles, this is a city that reflects the conscious design of emperors, popes and leading artists intent in conveying power and grandeur. Our first time of business was a circuitous walking tour past all the major attractions in central Rome. The sidewalks are wide, clean and exceptionally well lit and it's refreshing not to be harassed by scooters. You hear about the labyrinth of streets the taxi drivers have to master but it is not nearly as bad as I expected. We walked for hours with nothing but a cheap tourist map and didn't get turned around once. It helps that the streets here are actually labeled- on the map and with signs. We waded through tourists at the Piazza del Popolo and Piazza di Spagna, cruised past the Spanish steps, made a wish at the Trevi Fountain, gapped at Ill Vittorio, puzzled over the scattered stone ruins at the Roman Forum and admired the imposing fascade of the Colosseum. The graffiti of Naples made me appreciate how exceptionally well maintained the Roman sites are, although the Colosseum could use a power wash. And the Trevi Fountian is one of those rare sites that is more impressive in person than I had imagined. For dinner we crossed the Isola Tiberina, the oldest bridge in Rome.The strings of blue and white lights hung across the roads in a series of inverted arches made the city seem inviting at night. This restaurant district called the Trastevere is a series of family-run trattorias and pizzerias spilling out into densely packed streets. We rested our exhausted feet while sampling the gnocchi and then crossed back over the Tiber to find desert near the Piazza Navona.  The elongated plaza had been concerted into a holiday carnival complete with rides, fried food and ornament vendors. But we found some traditional Italian gellato to round out a successful introduction to Rome.

Sunday started with a nice run through the Villa Borghese  followed by a hearty breakfast at the Beehive Cafe- a classy American establishment located in our hostel. Then we were off to the Vatican for mass at St. Peter's Basillica. The church is awesome in the most literal sense of the word- the cavernous space, imposing dome and incredible attention to artistic detail are more than I can comprehend. Sistine Chapel was closed (should have guessed that The Creation of Adam would be given a respite from viewing on God's day or rest) but the trek to the Vatican Museums wasn't wholly unproductive- it's not everyday you walk half way around a state.

By the time we walked back to central Rome our feet were revolting and a sudden downpour provided an excuse to duck into the nearest restaurant. Unbenounced to us,  we should have tarried outside because the Pizzeria la Montecarlo doesn't provide menus other than the one posted outside the door. Suddey the waiter demanded our order. I figured when in doubt order pizza. Ladies beside us (European style seating- our tables were literally touching and my chair was abutting that of the person behind me) insisted that we order the fried appetiser platter. When we asked what was in it she replied (perhaps for lack of English vocabulary) "Roman stuff." Well, when in Rome... The bowl had an assortment of items that were indistinguishable apart from the varying shapes. When ours finally arrived we took turns cutting into each one and sampling the contents- one was definitely stuffed olives and another was mozzarella. The other two were tasty but we had to wait until we got back outside and got a look at the menu before we knew what they were- fried zucchini flowers and suppli- balls of rice, mozzarella and marinara sauce. To my taste, even frying can't make olives palatable but everything else was quite good. The pizza was enormous but I'm not yet a fan of the incredibly thin crust of Roman style  pizza. But experimenting was all part of the culinary adventure and after all this journey seems to be first and foremost about the food.

For dinner we consulted the Oracle yet again (our nickname for the Lonely Planet guidebook- much more convenient to pull it out of my bag every five minutes than doing as the Romans did and travelling to Delphi and making a sacrifice each time we have a question.) We decided on Insalata Ricca, known for hearty pasta and meal- sized salads. I figured the Californians have the upper hand in the salad department so I stuck with pasta and ordered Orecchiette (disk-shaped pasta) with broccoli and garlic. The broccoli florets has disintegrated giving it a creamy texture and the stalks were in cubes. Dinner of course was followed by gelato from a back alley gelateria. After pouring over the recommendations from the Oracle we settled on the estaishment  favored by Pope John Paul II. Allegedly he used to have tubs of his favourite flavor, marrons glacé (glacé chestnuts) flown out to his summer residence.

In between eating we did manage to do some sight seeing. We walked up Michelangelo's ramped steps at the Campidoglio- the grade is so steep that it's no wonder this invention didn't take off. Maybe it would have enabled a carriage to be pulled up to the steps of the palaces. Ht only if you had a very strong horse and didn't mind dislodging all the occupants of the carriage. Then we swung back by the Colosseum and spent a few minutes laughing at some camera-ready Roman legionarres (not to be confused with gladiators) goofing off in front of the entrance. One kept thumping his sword against breast plate and lining up camera angles like he was the next Steven Spielberg. But eventually we broke down and got a picture of our own. I think I will get it framed side by side with a similar picture from my trip to Rome- a symbol of my maturation and the enduring nature of the Eternal City.

"Et tu, Brute?"