La bella città - part 4

Day 5 - Saturday - The Botanical Gardens and the Gianicolo

A lateish start, with a coffee at the Antico Caffè Doria on the Via Andrea Doria -  a 16th Century Genovese Admiral, and also the name of a ship which sank off Nantucket in 1956 after a collision , and several other earlier ships.

Postcards . . .

We called in at the market for some lunch supplies, and food for tomorrow, since the market is closed on Sunday.

In the Mercato Trionfale

 We walked alongside the blond Tiber, seeking the Orto Botanico.

  and back along the river

That looks more promising . . . 

For a 30 acre garden, this was hard to find! It's between Via della Lungara and Colle de Gianicolo and is a Museum of the Department of Environmental Biology of the Sapienza University of Rome.  €4 each for ancients is a price well worth paying. Palm trees and a fountain with ducks and a gull . . .

enormous bamboos . 

From the highest areas there are glimpses of the city . 

There's a Japanese garden complete with fish . . .

 and waterfalls . . .

 a cactus house . . .

 a café . . 

and a children's play area, where lots of the local parents met to enjoy the late afternoon . . and more - this was a real discovery. 

After the gardens we made our way to the Gianicolo (Janiculum Hill - not one of the seven, but the site of a temple to Janus) to the Piazza Giuseppe Garibaldi - there was a welcome breeze after the hot day, and fantastic views over the city, to the surrounding hills.

 Traditional Italian songs

volare . . .cantare . . .

It grew darker so we made our way down passing several busts and statues.

Filippo Zamboni

I didn't think this sinister looking character was the inventor of the ice smoothing machines at Peterborough - turns out he was a 19th century poet  . He looks friendlier on the wikipedia page, but did have interests in spiritualism and hypnotism . . .

Back to base for a much appreciated meal!

La bella città - Part 3

Day 4 - Friday - Open top bus, Villa Borghese Gardens, Piazzale Napoleone and Piazza del Popolo.

Getting on the tour bus near the Vatican was perhaps not the best move, and for the first part of the ride we were squashed into the downstairs section. A couple of stops later we were able to clamber upstairs and breathe.

Hats for sale!

Orange trees

We went round one and a bit times, and got off at Barberini to walk up to the Villa Borghese Park, a wonderful public park with trees, water , a replica of the Globe Theatre, bikes of various kinds for hire, more trees, statues, places to sit.

 Fontana dei cavalli marini

We hired a couple of mountain bikes for an hour - there were also the four-wheeled multi person pedal-powered vehicles and Segways too.

Byron - all the way from Notts!

Goethe was torn between north and south

 Going towards the Pincio (Pincian Hill) we came across the Water Clock - Orologio ad Acqua.

This section of the park looks (to me) more like 'Italian style' with more formal avenues.  As we walked towards the Piazzale Napoleone, we caught sight of the silhouetted skyline, as though someone had drawn it on the sky.

There's a terrific view over the city, and down into the Piazza del Popolo.

More giant bubbles

 I had to snap this poster by the metro station, advertising learning language that is really useful!  Alas poor cat!

La bella città Part 2 - The Forum and the Palatine Hill and Museum -

Day 3 - Thursday - Forum Romanum, Palatine Hill and museum.

By metro to the Colosseo stop, and over the road to the Forum. 

The Arch of Titus -

SPQR 

Much the same in Roman times, bar the cameras and backpacks!

The glorious scent of rosemary and other herbs.

Modern workers among the ruins

Inside the Temple of Romulus, described as probably dedicated to Romulus, son of Maxentius.

Goddess of the sewers?

The belly button of Rome

Lovely blue flowers

One thing missing from the forum was a cafe! Oh to be transported back to Ancient Rome for a few minutes.

The Palatine Museum was well worth a wander, with its many statues and exhibits.  The remains of the palaces with their views over the Circus Maximus are striking and memorable - and then there were the lizards and a swallowtail butterfly.
Too much to take in at one go . . .

La bella città di Roma - Tuesday and Wednesday

A week in Rome proved to be even more enjoyable than I'd expected, from the apartment near the Mercato Trionfale to the miles we walked during the week.

Day 1 - St Peter's Square, the Castel Sant'Angelo and the quais du Tibre (!)

St Peter's Square

Flavus Tiber - the "blonde" Tiber?

Castel Sant'Angelo or Hadrian's mausoleum

Lungotevere Castello, with entertainers, buskers, stalls and invisible men

Rome not Paris!

Buon appetito!

Day 2 - The colosseum

The Flavian amphitheatre, where such delights as gladiatorial combats and executions by fighting wild animals took place, in front of as many as 50 000 spectators. It's huge.

 This head of the cyclops, Polyphemus, is part of the Terra Antica exhibition, part of the Milan Expo 2015. The exhibition explores humanity's relationship with the earth, and contains photographs of places unchanged by us, alongside sculptures and artefacts representing legends and belief systems, including the need to appease the gods after earthquakes and floods - sent to punish us for our destruction of the earth.

 We decided to leave the Roman forum area for another day, and made our way gradually back via the Trevi Fountain - no water today as it's being repaired!

La Fontana di Trevi

 Throwing a coin in should ensure a return to Rome - we'll have to return if only to see the fountain as it should be!

Small park on the Quirinal Hill, the garden of Carlo Alberto with its equestrian statue. Another small oasis of green in the city.

Column of Marcus Aurelius

Pantheon

Via del orso

A pedestrian bridge over the Tiber

Esther and the Vitruvian

Just a note that Esther and the kids were here for the weekend of the Vitruvian middle distance triathlon at Rutland Water.  29 August 2015.


A few highlights -

Meeting Sarah and the kids at the playground and seeing them all playing.

Taking Joseph and Hazel out to meet Esther as she finished the race, knackered, she said, but she did pretty well.

Spending time at the local playground.

Seeing Joseph and Hazel watching Singing in the Rain on TV.

Helping Joseph build a Lego house.