Bongiorno Italy! Part 3. The Eternal City of Rome... (Day 2, continued)
The Eternal City of Rome… Day two. Antique.
Today we finally got enough sleep, and in the morning in a great mood, we headed from the hotel to the metro. Along the way, we inhaled the aroma of beautiful unknown flowers growing on the bushes. An alley of bushes stretched all the way to the subway.
Yesterday we bought one-time tickets, but today we bought a 24-hour pass for 7 euros for all types of transport.
When I talked about the convenience of the subway, I meant the presence of markings and signs. The subway itself is ugly and shabby.
Today we have Antique Rome on our program. We go to the metro station of branch A Circo Massimo, get off and go, but not to the Colosseum, but to Palatine Hill to buy tickets without a queue. Here it is easiest and fastest to buy a single ticket for the Palatine, Forums and the Colosseum. You see, the queue is quite small.
We buy a ticket for 12 euros, which indicates the entry time to the Colosseum - 11.35. So we still have plenty of time to explore the famous hill and the Roman forums.
Palatine is the largest of the seven hills of Rome, from which, in general, the whole history of the Eternal City began. It was here, according to legend, that the she-wolf found and nurtured two brothers - Romulus and Remus, who later began to build a city on this hill. And then Romulus killed Remus and in 753 BC. e. founded the city - Rome, which later began to be called eternal.
During the time of the empire, only the highest stratum of society, the entire Roman nobility, lived here. Therefore, all the buildings were huge. Well, approximately like ours - the higher the title, the more planes, factories, newspapers, steamships. Only the rich and emperors could afford to build their villas and palaces on the Palatine Hill. And each new palace was built larger and larger than the previous one. And, in the end, these buildings became so huge that they had no analogues in the whole world. I just don't understand why? ? However, I never understand human greed. Such hulks began to be called Domusy. And each emperor, having ascended the throne, built his own domus.
The most famous and preserved domusi are the residences of Domitian, Tiberius and Augustus.
House of Augustus
Lodges at the Stadium of Domitian
We rise higher and higher, and study history, but simply look at palm trees and stones.
The main thing is that the husband is satisfied, looks at the ruins, like God knows what beauty. To be honest, I'm not very good with antiquity, no, well, it's impressive, of course, in size and scope. In general, powerful!
Let's go even higher. Beautiful!
Only nothing lasts forever. The Goths attacked Rome and destroyed everything, only ruins remained. So they stood until the 17th century. And then the hill fell into the possession of the Farnese family, which began to conduct archaeological excavations. With the support of Napoleon III, already in the 19th century, the work was completed and the Roman authorities took ownership of this archaeological reserve.
What I really like here is that compared to the very noisy Rome, it is quiet here. Such an island of silence... And you can take a walk in the gardens, which are called the Farnese Gardens. I like to wander here, enjoy the silence and breathe in the scent of orange trees.
The husband offers to go down to the Forums. But I convince him that the view from above is much more beautiful and the view is wonderful. I open the prepared manual "Roman Forum" and read to him about the Sacred Road, along which the Roman soldiers returned with victory, about the temple of Romulus, which later turned into the church of Cosmas and Damian, about the temple of Vesta, with my eyes I try to find the most impressive buildings of the Arch of Septimius and the Temple of Saturn .
Under my monotonous mumbling, my husband begins to slowly fall asleep, I see that he, too, was lulled by the ruins. Although you know, it is here that you begin to understand why Rome is called eternal. In it, all eras merge into one, and looking at the Roman Forums, you rush through all the centuries in a time machine.
In general, having examined the Roman Forums from above, we hasten to the biggest symbol of Rome, and indeed of all of Italy - the majestic Coliseum.
Since the time is indicated on our tickets, we queue up to enter.
At first glance, the queue is impressive, but it moves quickly, and in 15 minutes we come to the frame. You know, if before the Chinese everywhere I was slightly annoyed, after Italy I began to dislike the Americans. Americans in their ignorance are Chinese cubed. They just climb everywhere and take pictures with everything and from different angles. The Americans, on the other hand, are very loudly proving something to everyone, knocking you down with their dimensions along the way, climbing everywhere through the red line and hugging all the exhibits, while completely ignoring that they are not alone here. In line at the Colosseum, the American also began to swing his license and shout at the guard that he should let their group go ahead, since they had tickets. The guard explained that everyone in this queue had tickets, but their reservation had not been paid. The American did not let up, continuing to yell and wave his arms. In general, in 15 minutes I got more tired of him than of the Roman heat. Well, the frame has been passed, and having let the aggressive Americans go ahead, we find ourselves in the "Flavian Amphitheater" or the Colosseum, which is more than two thousand years old.
As long as the Colosseum stands firm,
Great Rome stands firm
But if the Colosseum collapses, Rome will collapse,
And the world will collapse when there is no Rome.
(George Gordon Byron)
These words say it all. We recall from history that the current name of the Colosseum was due to the emperor Nero, whose statue, installed next to the amphitheater, was of gigantic size and was called "colossus". Hence the name - Colosseo.
A little later, under Emperor Vespasian, an amphitheater was built for the social life of the Romans. The amphitheater has the shape of an ellipse, in the center of which there was an arena, which was surrounded by stands. The Colosseum is huge - 48 meters high and 520 meters long ellipse. These ancient walls still remember gladiator fights. But, despite its gigantic power, the Colosseum was also destroyed during the collapse of the Roman Empire. And already in the middle of the 18th century, the amphitheater began to be restored.
Next to the Colosseum is one of the largest arches in the history of Rome - The Arch of Constantine. It was built in honor of the victory of Constantine over Maxentius in the battle of the Milvian Bridge. Made of marble blocks more than 20 meters high, the Arch looks monumental.
The decor of the Arch is no less interesting than its scope.
I shoot my husband "face" and "profile" against the background of the story.
And zigel, zigel - at 13.00 you need to be at the entrance to the Vatican Museums. We booked tickets on the official website of the museums, they clearly indicate the time and we were warned that it was impossible to be late, although this may not be the case, but it’s better to overdo it than not do it, otherwise it would be a shame if they didn’t miss it. The cost of one ticket is 17 euros, and 4 euros per booking. We quickly take the metro line A Colosseo and go to the Cipro station, from there a little closer to the Vatican Museum wall. Phew! We did it! We do not stand in line, but after showing the tickets at the entrance to the guard, we go inside, go up to the 2nd floor, where we change the reservation for tickets at a special box office. And we find ourselves in the inner courtyard of museums.
The Vatican Museums is one of the greatest treasures in the world, represented by many halls and galleries. We were advised to set aside a whole day for this, but I think that hundreds of thousands of famous masterpieces of art cannot be viewed in one day or two. Therefore, based on the time at our disposal for exploring Rome, we set aside half a day - from 13.00 to the evening. And I think that was enough for us. In art, we are more amateurs than art historians, so we stare more than professionally evaluate the exhibits. But the fact that it is undeniably beautiful and masterpiece, we realize. We are also aware that the Catholic Church, headed by the pontiffs, placed in its palaces unique treasures, which were created by all the famous artists and sculptors of the world - Michelangelo, Raphael, Bramante, Bernini... This collection is not just impressive, near each exhibit you want see everything down to the smallest detail. There are so many people here that the human flow simply carries you through the halls, there is no way to look back. Therefore, we simply take pictures in order to consider the nuances in the photo already at home.
We still won’t be able to see all the works of art, but you can get lost and confused among all these museums, and there are already 29 of them! And the dizzying 7 km route will just make us dizzy. Therefore, we decide and look at what was advised on travel sites.
First, we get to the Chiaramonti Museum. Historical note: Pope Pius VII, with the support of Antonio Canova, created a museum dedicated to sculpture at the beginning of the 19th century and named it Chiaromonti to perpetuate the name of the ancient family to which he belonged.
The museum is located in a vaulted gallery that connects the Belvedere with the Apostolic Palace. The gallery is called - Corridor, which is decorated with statues and busts.
The new part of the museum is located in the new wing, in the halls of which art objects of Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire are collected.
Under the direction of the architect Bramante, the Belvedere Courtyard.
In the inner courtyard of the Belvedere is the Museum of Pius - Clement, which includes 8 rooms.
Here are all examples of the Renaissance - Perseus by Canova, the statue of Aphrodite of Kyndus and the magnificent sculptural composition "Laokon and Sons".
The sculpture depicts the mortal struggle of Laokon and his sons with snakes. This marble copy dates from the 1st century BC. e. works of Agesander of Rhodes and his sons. The original was made in bronze in 200 BC. e. and was not preserved.
Borgia Apartments
Very interesting exhibits at the Gregorian Egyptian Museum.
And this is the so-called "Marble Zoo", where animal sculptures are displayed.
Let's go to Pinecone Yard.
Here we can observe unusual exhibits in the open air: a giant pine cone decorating the fountain. . .
. . . and a large bronze sculpture "Sphere within a sphere".
A fountain decorated with a cone is an ancient symbol of life. And the Sphere is already a symbol of modern life. My husband closed the whole sphere for me, already just like the Chinese, at all the sights - front, profile : )
Everyone really wants to see the work of Raphael. Well, we, too, following the herd instinct, are heading to Raphael's Stations.
The stanzas are four small rooms in the papal palace of the Vatican, decorated with frescoes painted by Raphael Santi.
The first and most famous of the four stanzas is called the Stanza della Senyatura. When the artist began to paint it, he was barely 25 years old, but his youth did not prevent him from creating a true masterpiece.
At the farthest end of the museum is the Sistine Chapel. This is a former house church in the Vatican. It was built in the 15th century by order of Pope Sixtus IV by the architect George di Dolce. The chapel is an outstanding masterpiece of the Renaissance. There is also a conclave at which a new pope is elected. The walls and ceiling of the Chapel are painted by the greatest famous artists: Michelangelo, Botticelli, Perugino.
Well, what I want to say, to be honest and frank, I liked the Uffizi Gallery in Florence much more. No, museums are also great, of course, but something of the most important is missing. The Uffizi Gallery is wow, oh and ah! And museums are expensive and bohat, but there is no shock, that's all there is!
From the museums we follow to the most beautiful cathedral in the world - St. Peter's Basilica. From the Chapel, exit through the right door (not the left! ), as you will have to go around the museums along the Vatican wall from the outside, and you will lose time. And from the right door of the Chapel you get directly to St. Peter's Basilica.
Here it is, the most beautiful Cathedral in the world and the main temple of the Vatican!
The cathedral is a cross with one elongated side, each part of which is a nave. And at the intersection of two naves is a dome. And the dome is supported by four huge pylons. All pylons are created in the form of an octahedron, and in each face there is a niche - a reliquary where sacred artifacts are stored. And in each niche you can see truly unique sacred relics.
Contemplating the interior of the Cathedral, you feel a little dizzy, everything is very expensive and rich, especially the faint of heart can faint. Such an abundance of immaculately patterned colored marble, gilding, statues, niches and sparkling mosaics creates a feeling of splendor, but it is tastefully done, and despite the variety of colors, it does not look gaudy. I would say that the Cathedral is a masterpiece of perfection, style and beauty! Not without reason, in the Middle Ages, pilgrims, having traveled a long way, and pilgrims for years walked to this shrine, entering the Cathedral simply lost their minds when they saw such untold riches.
A very beautiful central altar, which is located directly above the tomb of the Apostle Peter, is decorated with a bronze canopy supported by four columns. This is a sculptural composition by Bernini, who worked on it for 50 years, almost his entire life.
There is a saying in Italy: "What the barbarians did not do, Bernini and Barberini did. " One was a great sculptor, the other had a lot of money, and now we have the opportunity to admire all this beauty. I am not just delighted with the Cathedral, I probably also lost my mind, here on every square meter, without exaggeration, masterpieces of creativity and perfection.
Tomb of Alexander VII
The cathedral is open for visitors until 19:00, so it's time for us to leave. We leave - and get to St. Peter's Square, the entrance to which was closed yesterday due to the holiday.
The Cathedral is located on the Vatican Hill, on the very spot where the Apostle Peter was crucified.
Not only I was impressed, my husband also groaned, gasped and admired. Well, thank God, I finally got involved in the beauty and history of Christianity, and both of us, under the impression of the Italian Renaissance, Baroque and Renaissance, go to carefour to buy ourselves something for dinner. Tourist tip: Dining in tourist spots is very expensive, although if you order lunch or a snack at the counter, the price will be much lower than you sit down at a table. At lunchtime we went to a pizzeria and ordered salmon pizza. So, at the counter it cost 6 euros, and at the table - 12 euros, in fact, a double tariff. And carefours are everywhere in Rome - delicious yoghurts, prosciutto, cheeses, olives, wine. In general, you can buy for dinner for only 10-12 euros.
We walked a little more in the vicinity of the Vatican and went to the hotel, since it is dangerous to return to the hotel very late, the area of our residence was of increased criminal danger, so it was not possible to wander until night. But our program was already very rich, and in principle, we don’t need more, otherwise there is a great risk of getting satiety, threatening poisoning.
To be continued. . .
