Our first real day in Rome begins with breakfast, of course: eggs, cold cuts, cheese, and strong coffee in our hotel’s basement restaurant. Walter and I immediately spot the Nutella and proceed to make toast what it ought to be: a breakfast version of chocolate cake.
Soon, we’re all taking the five minute walk to the Villa Borghese, an exclusive museum that normally requires reservations in advance. (I tried to get ’em using the museum’s quirky on-line reservation system, but never got a confirmation … or a response of any kind.) Because we’re here during the off-season, there are no lines; we walk up, buy tickets, and walk in.
Villa Borgese
Everyone enjoys the self-guided tour — especially Walter, who wants to know the story behind every jaw-dropping sculpture. Why is that woman turning into a tree? Is the guy with the slingshot David? Why is that king riding on the back of a dolphin? He soaks it all up.
Meantime, we all get cricks in our necks from staring up at the ceilings, which are literally aglow with technicolor putti (baby angels or cherubs), fauns (spry creatures, half-goat and half-male — if you’ve seen Narnia, then you know what I’m talking about), and re-enactments of every myth you can think of.
Outside, we make our way to a street market, where everyone finds something.
Fractal Cauliflower (?!?) from the Street Market
I walk away with a fake watch or two; the ever-practical Clyde finds a five Euro replacement for the cell phone charger he left back home. We grab lunch at a local pizza parlor, where the friendly owner treats us to spicy lentils and lamb’s liver appetizers before bringing us our pies (cracker thin crusts!) and calzones (stuffed, not only with cheese, but with scrambled eggs!).
Our afternoon provides us with our first real taste of what touring with a company like Gate 1 is like. Frankly? Given how independently Clyde and I usually travel, I dreaded being herded along, cattle-style, through the great sights of Rome. In reality, though, the experience is very pleasant, and offers a group like ours several advantages:
– The bus makes transportation a snap. The driver drops us off just outside each historic site, then drives to the other side to pick us up when we exit. This is especially nice when a bizarre and unexpected storm blew up out of nowhere and pelted us with hail (!) just outside the Coliseum. It’s also much better than trying to direct nine people, ages eleven to seventy-five, through Metro stations and into several taxis, as I’ve done on past excursions.
– The company gives everyone earbuds and radio receivers to wear during excursions. The guide, then, is free to speak in normal tones over his lapel mike … and everyone — including those of us who like to lag behind the larger group — can hear every word he says with perfect clarity.
– The guide is very, very good. I used to train people to give engaging presentations, and our guide, Paulo, earns high marks for his comfortable blending of witticisms and facts. Even though we’re on a group tour, we don’t feel rushed. Paulo gives us plenty of time to explore the sights on our own, and helps us make the best of our free time by telling us, in advance, where all the great photo spots can be found.
Impressions: nothing I’ve seen has prepared me for the sheer size of ancient Roman sites. The Coliseum is a huge, oval space (even though the outermost ring has long been carried off and converted into marble flagstones for the floor of the Vatican) that swallows people up exactly the way a modern facility does. Photos can’t capture the dimensions of the place. It stuns me when Paulo tells us the Romans built it in eight years (a testimony, I suppose, to what you can get done with a lot of tax money and slave labor).
The Coliseum
After a quick rest stop at the hotel, we’re now waiting to head out for dinner and the “Illuminations Tour” of Roman monuments. Given the chilly weather, I’m frankly happy to know that all our upcoming evening adventures are just a warm bus ride away…
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