Rome Italy: A First Tour
of Rome and a Visit of Ostia
My European trip was going very well. After about
10 days in Spain and another week in Austria I was
embarking on the last leg of my trip: 4 days in
Rome. Last night at 7:30 pm I had boarded the overnight
sleeper train in Vienna and had paid a little extra
to be in a 3-person compartment with two other ladies.
One of the ladies was 85 years old and traveling
to Rome for a pilgrimage. I could not help but admire
her stamina and determination. I had looked forward
to lying in my bunk and watching the towns go by
in the middle of the night in my train to Rome.
Train trips are always fabulous because they really
give you this feeling of moving from place to place.
Roma Termini - a real nut-house
Unfortunately my co-travellers had pulled the shades
so there was not going to be any night-time sightseeing,
so I stayed in the train’s hallway until almost
midnight to chat with a senior government official
who was heading to Rome for an important meeting.
After maybe five hours of sleep in my bunk I woke
up to a beautiful day in Italy as we were chugging
past Florence through the regions of Tuscany, Umbria
and Lazio. We slowly started rolling into the suburbs
of Rome, and I was amazed was the huge amount of
graffiti that decorated various concrete structures,
buildings and train cars. I had not known that graffiti
was such a huge issue in Rome.
Graffiti is almost everywhere in Rome
Right on time, at 9:05 in the morning, we arrived
at Roma Termini, Rome's main railway station and
an absolute nuthouse. More than 25 platforms service
long-distance and local trains and people were buzzing
about, arriving or looking for their train connections.
I helped the 85-year old lady wheel her heavy suitcase
down the long walkway to the main terminal, and
then we said goodbye and wished each other good
luck for our respective holidays in Rome.
Making my way from the train station to the hotel
There was no doubt I had to do Rome on a budget,
so weeks ago I had booked my hotel in Rome on the
Internet for only 35 Euros a night. Guesthouse Fanti
was just minutes away from the Roma Termini train
station, and I wheeled my suitcase past a number
of shops and restaurants with outdoor patios. Unfortunately,
when I got to my destination, the receptionist said
that all the rooms were fully booked. This meant
that all of a sudden I was without a hotel room
in Rome!
First impressions of Rome
Thank God he volunteered to help me find an alternate
room and sure enough, he placed me five minutes
away into a place called 1st Bed and Breakfast,
which was actually a private apartment on the fifth
floor of a Roman apartment building. But low and
behold, this bed and breakfast in Rome came with
a higher price: 50 Euros a night! I figured beggars
can’t be choosers, so I accepted the room
and settled in for the next four days. I had a spacious
room with a private bathroom. The owner offered
a simple breakfast with prepackaged pastries, yoghurt
and bottled orange juice that I could eat in my
room since there was no common sitting room. But
I figured it was convenient and affordable enough
for me to stay put in this location.
My first view of the Colosseum from the sightseeing
bus
Close to noon time I was ready for my first tour
of Rome: I went into the local office of a sightseeing
company and for 20 Euros I bought a 24-hour ticket
for one of the hop-on hop-off double-decker sightseeing
buses. Sitting on the upper deck, I got my first
introduction to Rome’s major sights: the opulent
church Santa Maria Maggiore, Piazza Venezia, the
Colosseum, the Circus Maximus, Isola Tiberina –
the island in the middle of the Tiber River, Saint
Peter’s Basilica, Castel Santangelo, the Trevi
Fountain, the Piazza Barberini and the Piazza della
Repubblica.
The monument to Vittorio Emmanuele
The narration gave me an overview of all the major
sights and one thing struck me right away: Rome’s
truly unique mixture of antiquity and modernity.
I had never been in a destination before where there
are so many ancient monuments mixed in with more
recent buildings. Rome’s antique monuments
are truly impressive and downright overwhelming.
The 2000 year old Castel Sant' Angelo
Traffic, of course, was insane. Horns were blaring,
Vespa and Piaggio scooters were everywhere, sirens
were going off in frequent intervals, and it seemed
pedestrians were used to taking their lives in their
hands while crossing the street. Once I had covered
the entire sightseeing tour of Rome, I started walking
and admired the church Santa Maria dei Angeli, a
basilica with phenomenal mosaic floors and wall
frescoes whose construction was started in 1562.
Then I walked all the way past Via Veneto to the
gardens of the Villa Borghese. Many upscale hotels
and restaurants line the streets in this district.
Santa Maria dei Angeli - one of Rome's many gorgeous
churches
I then inquired with a bus driver how to get a
full day ticket and he explained that for 4 Euros
you can purchase a day ticket for the whole public
transit system with unlimited rides. Rome has a
subway system with only two major lines that cross
at the Roma Termini train station. They are working
on a third railway line, but every time the construction
crews dig, they actually hit some ancient ruins,
which adds even more delays to the construction
schedule.
One of Rome's many palatial homes
One of the destinations I wanted to explore was
Ostia: the ancient port of Rome. I took a subway,
a commuter train and a bus to the beach of Ostia
where locals were basking in the sand, enjoying
the warm weather in Rome. Ostia Antica, a large
archeological site, is close by and it was Rome’s
seaport at the mouth of the Tiber River. Today,
Ostia Antica is about 3 kilometres from the sea
as a result of silting and a drop in sea level.
The beachfront in Ostia
It was now early evening and I had to get back
into the city. On the commuter train back I talked
to a nice couple from a Swedish town near the Arctic
Circle who were enjoying a long weekend in Rome.
Europe with its cheap charter flight connections
is always great for travel. It’s just so easy
for people to hop on a plane and spend a weekend
in another country. I wish it was that easy from
Canada….
The Colosseum
Finally back in the centre of the city I exited
at the Colosseum (sometimes also referred to as
the Coliseum), the ancient elliptical amphitheatre
that was built in the first century AD. This ancient
arena was capable of seating 50,000 spectators and
was the location of the famous gladiator fights,
mock sea battles, battle reenactments and even executions.
Despite the fact that the Colosseum has suffered
some earthquake damage over the centuries and much
of its stone-cladding was stolen, it is still one
of the most impressive sights on the planet.
The Arch of Constantine
The Arch of Constantine is located on the west
side of the Colosseum and was completed in 315 AD
to celebrate Emperor Constantine’s victory
over his co-emperor Maxentius. Further west is the
Roman Forum, the center of ancient Rome’s
political, commercial and judicial life. With this
high concentration of ancient monuments, Rome’s
history and significance becomes tangible for any
visitor, particularly in this area.
The Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore
Duly overwhelmed by Rome’s antique treasures,
yet extremely hungry I started walking up the Esquiline
Hill back towards my hotel. On the way there I stopped
in a small restaurant on the Via Cavour for a quick
pasta dinner. Not all Rome restaurants are expensive:
I ended up spending less than seven Euros for very
tasty Penne Arrabiata and a drink. At the top of
the hill I had another look at the impressive papal
basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. The church was
closed by then, but the exterior of this structure
is monumental. The colonnaded nave of this church
dates back to the 5th century as well as the biblical
scenes in the nave and the outstanding mosaics on
the triumphal arch.
Flowers on the Piazza Vittorio Emmanuele II
To cap off an exciting day I settled in for an
ice cream on the Piazza Vittoria Emanuele II before
I headed back to the hotel to rest up for another
action packed day of sightseeing in Rome.
