I think this sign summs up the morning for Tiff and I (that or the Italians really like the X-Men... They have a comic called Rat-Man that seems pretty popular). We finished blogging at around 1:30 am, and we told each other that if we slept in today, it would be okay, after all we've had a pretty long few days, and haven't been sleeping well due to excitement and jetlag. Well, we slept in until 1pm, and were out the door by 2. 
So we started off the afternoon with some breakfast. I had a Strawberry cream little cake thingie that was drenched in I think Grand Marnier. Tiffany had a Cannoli pictured above, and we split a marzipan pear. I'm really digging the cappucino in Italy, and Tiff likes the Cafe Lattes & Cafe Americanos.
This was our first stop, the Spanish steps. At the top of the steps used to be the Spanish embassy, and the steps were built by the Spanish. It's pretty impressive, but not much to do at the steps besides look at them. There's shopping all around though.
So we went for a walk, window shopping, and thought long and hard about buying this. This is the Altar of Peace, partially restored. Augustus Caesar built it, and had his family carved into the sides of it, like James Tiberious Kirk, and Gaius Baltar. I mean Gaius Caesar and Tiberious Caesar.
This is Marcus Aurealis' stone pillar. Umm... He liked it. Alot. It depicts the rise of Rome, and their conquering of the the barbarians. It used to have Augustus Caesar at the top, but now it has St. Peter. (Thank you Rick Steves!)
When we saw the Marcus Auraelis' pillar, we saw a steady stream of people with gelato. This is Gelato Antiquia.
When you see this many people lining up for gelato (and there is about 5 gelato stores per block at least mandated by law I think), it has to be good. I had Coffee and White Chocolate, Tiffany had Chocolate Chip and Zabione (a liqour-ish flavor). It was definately worth the line.
Our first man destination for the day, the Pantheon. Build by the Romans to worship all gods (Pan (all) theos(religion)) but replaced with all christian iconography after the rise of Christianity, it is one of the only churches that has been actively attended for millenia. When we got there, the church was closed for mass. So we had some lunch, at a little pizza place near by, where we met a charming african couple from the UK, and chatted about politics, Rome sightseeing, and London sightseeing.
The top of the Pantheon is a giant dome. The building itself is circular, and something like a 764 foot tall perfect sphere could fit inside it. The very top is a skylight. Its not actually that dark in the pantheon, but I liked how this picture turned out. Speaking of which, the Nikkon D60 takes pretty great pictures.
The Pantheon is also a tomb for some of Rome's greatest people. This is the tomb of none other than Raphael. He painted the School of Athens scene that we saw at the Vatican. Also entombed in the Pantheon is one of the former rulers of Rome whose wife Margherita has been enjoyed by myself in pizza form. Thats right, they named a pizza after her!
This is the bronze bust of Raphael next to his tomb. To the left of him is a tower speaker that they use to conduct mass with, and other events. People get married in the Pantheon still!
This is the Four Rivers Fountain, by Bernini. It played a prominent role in Angels & Demons by Dan Brown. Each corner represented a river and a part of the known world. The fountain is in Piazza Navonna, which is apparently the place to go for night life. Restruants surround the plaza, and in the center is this fountain. It used to be a race track for Nero, so at the far ends of the oval are two more fountains. In one end artists send up tents to sell art and wares, in the other end, street performers entertain the Romans and tourists.
This is Ciuffo (I think thats how you spell it). He was a pretty funny clown act. Check out his socks (click to make it bigger).
At one point, he even got me into the act!! Here I am sitting, and very confused as a clown directed me in italian and in whistles to sit and stare forward.
Eventually he took the seat out from underneathe all of us, and we made a human table... at least for awhile until we couldn't hold ourselves up anymore. I'm proud to say, I was not the weak link in the table, it was the bearded guy on the left who was the first to drop.
Afterwards, we treated ourselves to more gelato. Tiffany had Death by Chocolate, which was a ball of dark chocolate gelato covered in chocolate flakes, and brandied cherries in the center. I had another tiramisu gelato. Mmmm! Are you jealous yet?
When we saw the Marcus Auraelis' pillar, we saw a steady stream of people with gelato. This is Gelato Antiquia.
When you see this many people lining up for gelato (and there is about 5 gelato stores per block at least mandated by law I think), it has to be good. I had Coffee and White Chocolate, Tiffany had Chocolate Chip and Zabione (a liqour-ish flavor). It was definately worth the line.
Our first man destination for the day, the Pantheon. Build by the Romans to worship all gods (Pan (all) theos(religion)) but replaced with all christian iconography after the rise of Christianity, it is one of the only churches that has been actively attended for millenia. When we got there, the church was closed for mass. So we had some lunch, at a little pizza place near by, where we met a charming african couple from the UK, and chatted about politics, Rome sightseeing, and London sightseeing.
The top of the Pantheon is a giant dome. The building itself is circular, and something like a 764 foot tall perfect sphere could fit inside it. The very top is a skylight. Its not actually that dark in the pantheon, but I liked how this picture turned out. Speaking of which, the Nikkon D60 takes pretty great pictures.
The Pantheon is also a tomb for some of Rome's greatest people. This is the tomb of none other than Raphael. He painted the School of Athens scene that we saw at the Vatican. Also entombed in the Pantheon is one of the former rulers of Rome whose wife Margherita has been enjoyed by myself in pizza form. Thats right, they named a pizza after her!
This is the bronze bust of Raphael next to his tomb. To the left of him is a tower speaker that they use to conduct mass with, and other events. People get married in the Pantheon still!
This is the Four Rivers Fountain, by Bernini. It played a prominent role in Angels & Demons by Dan Brown. Each corner represented a river and a part of the known world. The fountain is in Piazza Navonna, which is apparently the place to go for night life. Restruants surround the plaza, and in the center is this fountain. It used to be a race track for Nero, so at the far ends of the oval are two more fountains. In one end artists send up tents to sell art and wares, in the other end, street performers entertain the Romans and tourists.
This is Ciuffo (I think thats how you spell it). He was a pretty funny clown act. Check out his socks (click to make it bigger).
At one point, he even got me into the act!! Here I am sitting, and very confused as a clown directed me in italian and in whistles to sit and stare forward.
Eventually he took the seat out from underneathe all of us, and we made a human table... at least for awhile until we couldn't hold ourselves up anymore. I'm proud to say, I was not the weak link in the table, it was the bearded guy on the left who was the first to drop.
Afterwards, we treated ourselves to more gelato. Tiffany had Death by Chocolate, which was a ball of dark chocolate gelato covered in chocolate flakes, and brandied cherries in the center. I had another tiramisu gelato. Mmmm! Are you jealous yet?Our last stop was Trevi Fountain. This fountain represents the ocean, with Trident at the top center there. It was built in the 1700s to celebrate the re-opening of the aquaducts that power the many many many fountains in Rome. Water is in abudance here, with drinking fountains (literally fountains you drink from) everywhere. Sometimes when you're just walking down the street you'll see a small spigot sticking out of the ground with water running out of it.
Thats if for today! Tomorrow the Colosseum and the Forum. Ciao!
Wayne and Tiffany
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