Day Fifty-Four - Rome

Today was a day of walking. We walked from one end of Rome to the other setting out at nine thirty and arriving back at the apartment at four thirty. We eeked out the remaining time on our twenty-four hour “hop-on hop-off” bus ticket and caught the bus near the Vatican and getting off at Piazza San Silvestro close to the Trevi Fountain.
Our first destination was the Campo dei Fiori to see the large market. We walked passed a quiet Trevi Fountain and Pantheon to get to the square which was filled with many different stalls selling fruit and vegetables as well as the usual stalls with the Roman souvenirs. We sat at one of the many cafes surrounding the square and “people-watched’ for quite a while. The Italian women have a particular style with their ankle-length trousers, flat leather shoes, stylish coat and leather strapped bag hanging across their body and all this on a bike at the markets.
I was particularly keen to see Bernini’s sculpture of ‘The Ecstasy St Teresa” at Santa Maria Della Vittoria which I had seen in 1989 on a one-day trip to Rome. It was at the other end of the city and we walked for about an hour through lovely side streets and sometimes very busy roads to get there. We are getting very good at negotiating the traffic on the busy roads. A crossing does not mean a car will stop but it will stop if you force the issue!
On the way we walked through the beautiful Pizza Navona with its large Fountain of the Four Rivers designed by Bernini in 1651. Interestingly the four main rivers were those known at the time - the Danube in Europe, the Nile in Africa, the Ganges in Asia and the Rio del la Plata in the New World!
When we finally arrived at the church it was closed. I then I checked the guide book which said it was closed between noon and three-thirty and it was one o’clock. Henk said he could cheerfully strangle me! We sat on the steps and ate the Italian-style sandwich and drink we bought and moved on to nearby Villa Borghese where we spent a very pleasant couple of hours walking around the parkland. It’s an oasis in a very big, busy city. We had afternoon tea before returning to the church.
A small throng of people had collected outside the church just before three thirty. They had obviously read their guide books! A monk dutifully opened up and we all walked in and stood silently as we gazed at the exquisite sculpture. It would have to be my favourite piece of sculpture. It represents the moment of ecstasy when St Teresa’s heart was pierced again and again by an cherub’s flaming arrow, a symbol of true union with God. Henk thought in modern day terms she was probably having a coronary or heartburn!
In the evening as we had only eaten lightly during the day we were eager to find a restaurant for a good filling pasta. We left our apartment at six thirty and strolled around the nearby very large and very busy Piazzi Mazzini round-about which has about eight roads and many lanes coming off it. For fifty minutes we walked around the entire ring and we could only find one restaurant which wasn’t opening until seven thirty. The rest of the places were side-walk bars filled with Italians eating and drinking lovely nibbles of mini pizzas and olives amongst other delicacies. Henk was nearly out of his tree with hunger and we returned to the restaurant and waited until they turned on their lights. Suddenly Italians came from everywhere all dressed in their stylish winter clothes. It was a mild evening and we sat outside on one of the many tables watching a storm come across whilst the majority of Italians sat inside. The meal was delicious. I had stuffed zucchini flowers for entrée and saltimbocca for mains. Henk had melon and ham and a spaghetti which he ate slowly and savoured. I think we might have to go back there before we leave.
Photos: Fruit and vegetables at the markets; The Nile River, part of the Fountain of the Four Rivers, Piazza Navona; ‘Ecstasy of St Teresa’, Santa Maria della Vittoria; Sandwiches Italian style!