To say I was excited about Rome would be a huge understatement. I’m fascinated by Ancient Rome and the Roman Empire and Roman Catholic Church, while not part of my belief system, has always intrigued me. That said I couldn’t list more than one Pope or Emperor. My traveling companions and I booked an 8-hour driving tour of the city which included the major sites including the Vatican and Spanish steps and Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon. Our tour guide, Ivano was spectacular, knowing history and sharing stories and tips for approaching the sites. For instance, the line to get into the Coliseum for self guided exploration, but through Ivano we had passes to bypass the line and walk right past the line of hundreds to wander the ruins. The whole city is paydirt for a photographer. Statues and monuments, and tons of interesting people, truly an international city. At some point early on, Ivano took us to a small coffee shop for some cappucino, he mentioned that he visited the shop often and always drank his coffee standing up, because, as he said, “it’s only 5 minutes to check in with the staff for tips, and “when has 5 minutes made a difference in anyone’s life?!” And there’s my cross-cultural lesson for the trip. When one of the baristas found out we were from Austin, he proudly shared that he sold his chocolate covered espresso beans to Central Market, a Central Texas grocery store, that was a largish grocery chain’s response to Whole Foods’ upscale groceries, and less expensive. Others along the way who learned we were from Texas had different reactions, as most people in America have opinions of the state, politically, culturally or otherwise. At the top of the Spanish Steps, while looking at one of the obelisks, Ivano said something that flipped my perspective on the city, explaining that Ancient Rome awas polytheistic and Catholic Rome is Monotheistic. so many of the ancient statues and monuments were altered as a way of sanctifying them for the new age. One ancient roman site has remained unaltered for thousands of years, that’s the Pantheon, whose name means across gods , and is a temple with shrines to both the Roman gods of myth, and the Biblical gods of Western Civilization. Below are a few pictures from our 8-hour Roman Holiday
My selfie game needs work, but when I saw my reflection in this brass globe tucked away in a Vatican courtyard, I couldn’t resist theself portrait perspective.
“Ivano talking through a column modern excavators found while paving a modern Roman Road.”