A very good day


We are running a bit behind on our updates so this blog is for Sept 16, 2023.

On this day, we were not run over by a car, or a motorcycle, or a delivery van, or a city bus.  We were not run over by a train, or a tram, or a tourist on an e-scooter, or a taxi.  Nor were we run over by a hop-on hop-off bus, or a horse and carriage, or an emergency vehicle, or a Vespa with a side car.

   It was a very good day!


We’ve learned that being a pedestrian in Rome means that you’re engaged perpetually in a real-life game of Frogger.  The little green man on the crosswalk control sign is an encouraging symbol, but the reality is that there is not necessarily a corresponding red light for the motorists.  As tourists are so numerous in Rome, this seems like an effective way of culling the herd.


While we were not being run over today, we put about 20km on our sneakers as we visited the Pantheon, Castel Sant’Angelo, and Piazza Navona with its three amazing fountains.  We even made it as far as the Vatican, although we will be exploring that more thoroughly when we return to Rome in about a week.  We walked past several gelato stores, but not all of them.


We also learned that Italians can sing! A street performer with an AMAZING voice had a crowd of many gathered to listen to him. Later, as we enjoyed our gelato, a cabbie drove by with his window down singing another operatic aria with gusto and a smile.


We topped the day off with a tasty seafood spaghetti dinner at a streetside restaurant where we met a lovely couple from Lincolnshire (UK) who have invited us to stay at their house.


Tomorrow ends our first stint in Rome as we are taking a fast train to Levanto for our tour of Cinque Terre.


Wish us luck.


Piazza Navona: The Fontana del Moro (1575)

Piazza Navona: Fountain of Neptune (1574)



The cherub hosts a resting pigeon 

Castel Sant'Angelo (Tomb of Emperor Hadrian)
Ancient escape tunnel connects the Castel to the Vatican for Papal Escapes

Castel Sant'Angelo

Just another beautiful bridge on the Tiber River

Sneak peak at the Vatican

Looking up at the Pantheon dome 

Inside the Pantheon, 2 Italian kings and the painter Raphael rest here

Pantheon




When in Rome...



Examples of things we weren't run over by!








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