Rome

May 31, 2016

We make the 2 1/2-hour drive south to Rome. We are staying at the Boscolo Excedra Roma, which is part of Marriott's Autograph Collection and was the first five-star luxury hotel in Rome. The beautiful building housing the hotel, redesigned for the Boscolo by architect Maurizio Papiri and designer Adam D. Tihany, was built in the 19th Century, when Gaetano Koch constructed two twin buildings in the neoclassical style, one of which became the Boscolo Exedra today (page 144). Our plan is for me to check in, Gary to ditch the rental car, then for both of us to unpack and take it easy this afternoon.

May 31, 2016 (Continued)

Oh well, the best laid plans...

I go inside and check in, then go up to the room. I begin unpacking and hear a knock at the door. It is someone from the concierge staff bringing us a fruit plate as a welcome gift! After about an hour and no word from Gary, I start to get worried and send him a text. He replies, "I'm looking for the car rental agency". Another hour or so goes by, and just as I am about to send him another text, he bursts through the door saying, "I need a shower and a drink!" I have never seen him like this! After he calms down, he recounts the following unfortunate saga: as he was attempting to unload the luggage from the car, one of the suitcases started rolling into him and he tripped over it, falling on his side and scraping his arm. Then he gets back into the car and, with directions from the concierge, sets out in search of the AutoEurope agency, which he knows is located somewhere near the Termini, or train station. After driving around and around without success, he finally parks the car and asks a pedestrian for directions, only to be directed to a part of the train station for pedestrians only. After driving around the train station several more times, he finally finds the rental car return located in a parking deck behind the train station. This entire episode takes about 2 1/2 hours, and Gary is not only exasperated, but starving as well! The fruit plate really comes in handy at this point. I think he would prefer to take it easy this evening, but I have booked a Viator tour for tonight: "Illuminated Rome Night Tour with Aperitivo".
May 31, 2016 (Continued)

We find a place for a quick bite, as we are supposed to rendevous at the Piazza di Spagna (Spanish Steps) at 7:15. We meet our tour guide Luca (top right picture on page 147), who is pursuing his doctorate in philosophy, along with the other nine members of the group (top left picture on page 149), and begin the tour at the Spanish Steps (which are unfortunately roped off for renovations - top left picture on page 147). We walk over to the iconic Trevi Fountain (middle and bottom pictures on page 148), where I throw a coin in the water to make sure we will return to Rome someday (as legend has it). I wasn't able to do this on my first trip to Rome in 1970 because the water had been drained from the fountain and workmen were cleaning it out. I am so happy that despite not being able toss in a coin then, I have had the good fortune to be able to return to Rome! We continue to Piazza Colonna, a square that gets its name from the marble Column of Marcus Aurelius (bottom right picture on page 149), followed by a stop in front of the Pantheon, the stately temple that dates back to 118 A.D. (middle picture on page 149). Luca takes the group to an enotca for an aperitivo, served with traditional Italian appetizers (cheese, bread, olives and cured meats).

May 31, 2016 (Continued)

If we had known that this much food was part of the tour, we wouldn't have bought dinner! We continue our walking tour to Piazza Navona, where we end up with a gorgeous nighttime view of Bernini's "Four Rivers" fountain (bottom left picture on page 149). We say goodbye to Luca and the other tour members and head back to the hotel.

June 1, 2016

We are once again relying on our tried and true "Hop-On Hop-Off" bus tour to give us an overview of Rome today. The pictures on page 151 show the Coliseum (top picture); Palatine Hill (middle picture) and the beautiful all-marble Victor Emmanuel Monument (bottom picture). Victor Emmanuel, who is buried in the Pantheon, was the first king of Italy. To the right is the Fontana dell'Acqua Felice, also called the Fountain of Moses. Begun in 1585, it was designed by Domenico Fontana. At the top left of page 152 is Bernini's Triton Fountain, which is planted in the center of a busy traffic circle.

June 1, 2016 (Continued)

We hop off the bus to have an al fresco lunch at Taverna Flavia (top right picture above). We go back to the hotel before having dinner at Target, a restaurant recommended by the concierge.

June 2, 2016

Today we are going to the "Caravaggio Experience" (top left picture on page 153), a multimedia exploration of the works of Caravaggio at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni. Although I'm a big fan of Caravaggio, neither Gary nor I thought this exhibit was very interesting. There was an exhibit of Gianni Berengo Gardin's black and white photographs, however, that made the price of the entrance ticket worthwhile. We go back to the hotel, which is located in the Piazza della Repubblica right across from the Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri (see the rest of the pictures to the right,

June 2, 2016 (Continued)

top right plus the next two rows of pictures on page 154, and the picture to the left), which is not just your basic "church". It has the usual vaulted ceilings, gorgeous frescoes, huge pipe organ and adorned domes, but part of this church was designed by no other than Michelangelo! What's more, he had it built into an already existing ancient Roman bathhouse. Another interesting facet of the church is that Pope Clement XI commissioned a meridian line to be constructed here in the 18th century. Running down one side of the Basilica, the line was created to check the accuracy of the new Gregorian calendar. After spending quite some time in this remarkable sanctuary, we walk across the street to the hotel and have so-so pizza for dinner at a restaurant called Eataly.

June 3, 2016

Today we're going back to the Pantheon (top row plus bottom left pictures on page 156) for a tour. It is really a breathtaking sight!

June 3, 2016 (Continued)

This afternoon we meet one of Gary's business acquaintances, Maria Quintero, who is vacationing in Rome with her family this week. Her company has provided services to Coats and she has been wanting to meet Gary, so they just happened to be in Rome at the same time. We spend a couple of hours with Maria then walk back to the hotel. We think that we'll find a place for dinner on the way, but we don't, so we (reluctantly) go back to

June 3, 2016 (Continued)

Eataly. This time, though, we go inside and discover a really upscale restaurant/wine bar/grocery store featuring Italian products, where I have (for a second time) cacio e pepe, and it is even better than the first time! If we had known Eataly was this good, we would have eaten here (not pizza) every night! We go back to the hotel for a good night's sleep before our train ride to Venice tomorrow.