I woke up around 8:15 am but Samia was tired so she slept for another half an hour. Then we packed our suitcases and went down for breakfast at 9:30 am after getting ready. After breakfast, we checked out of our Florence hotel and noticed that it had rained in the morning. It started raining again while we were walking to the train station so we had to rush. We caught our 10:38 am train and after a high-speed train ride of about one and a half hours, we had reached Rome's main train station Roma Termini. We took a cab to our hotel and thanks to the instructions and fare estimate from our hotel's very helpful reception, we had a much better experience this time as compared to our experience of taking a cab from Roma Termini on our last visit to Rome a couple of years ago. The hotel even let us check-in before the regular check-in time. Having a comfortable and helpful hotel makes your first impression of a city so much better!
We have seen the major attractions of Rome - Colosseum, Pantheon, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain, Sistine Chapel - on our last trip so our schedule is going to be very laid back this time. After resting for about an hour, we freshened up and headed out on foot towards the Spanish Steps. On our way, we stopped at a pizzeria for lunch. We had bruschetta for appetizer and then shared a cheese pizza and a margherita pizza. The food was decent but given that it wasn't based on any recommendation, that's the most we could've expected. After lunch, we continued walking towards the Spanish Steps. We found out that the steps themselves are closed for repairs but the fountain in front of them is open now. It was the other way round the last time we came here. The fountain was made by Bernini and is in the shape of a sinking boat. We stopped at a cafe to have dessert. I had tiramisu and Samia had ice cream. After that, we took a cab to Galleria Borghese.
The gallery is actually a palace that was used as a residence by the noble Borghese family. Now it serves as Rome's premier art gallery after having gone many redesigns of its layout. The current layout is closest to the original one with certain exceptions to bring thematic unity to all the rooms. We entered into a giant hall with all the walls lined with statues but the most impressive feature is the painted ceiling that took 3 years to paint. We had a shortlist of the most significant art pieces so we focused on those during our two hour tour. The most impressive works that we saw were all statues carved by Bernini. It's hard to decide if his Apollo & Daphne is the best (the execution of depicting the moment when Daphne is turning into a tree is dazzling) or if his best work is the Rape of Persephone (the strong hands pressing into the soft flesh seem absolutely real despite being etched in marble). His version of David is also very interesting and captures the moment when David is just about to release the stone from his sling with his brow furrowed and his lips tightened. We saw some of Bernini's earlier work as well where his genius had started to shine through. There are many other statues and paintings in the gallery but the most outstanding work, in our non-artsy opinion, was all by Bernini.
After visiting the gallery, we were tired so we boarded a kiddy train that took us through the entire Villa Borghese or the gardens. It was a very refreshing ride through the huge green space and we were dropped off near Piazza del Popolo. We saw the Piazza from a high vantage point before climbing down the stairs to the Piazza. We sat there for a little while reminiscing about our last visit to the Piazza and made dinner plans. Most of the recommended options in our guidebook were closed because it was a Sunday so we chose a cafe on the way to the Spanish Steps but couldn't find it. We then walked into a decent looking restaurant which had a clean and modern decor but the food turned out to be average. Our appetizer was fried Napoli items - the fillings were cheese, rice, more cheese and potatoes. I ordered a margherita pizza and Samia ordered pasta with cheese. The pizza was decent but the cheese in the pasta was too strong.
After our first semi-disappointing meal in Italy, we walked back to the Spanish Steps and got gelato. The gelato was really good and somewhat made up for the sub-par quality of dinner. We tried chocolate and yogurt flavors and both hit the spot perfectly. Then we took a cab back to our hotel and called it a night. The highlights of another hot day were Bernini's statues and we'll probably see a few more on our second day in Rome. Our main plan is to visit Saint Peter's Basilica that we were unable to see on our last trip because of the Pope's special address meant only for children. Till the update from the center of Christendom, take care!
We have seen the major attractions of Rome - Colosseum, Pantheon, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain, Sistine Chapel - on our last trip so our schedule is going to be very laid back this time. After resting for about an hour, we freshened up and headed out on foot towards the Spanish Steps. On our way, we stopped at a pizzeria for lunch. We had bruschetta for appetizer and then shared a cheese pizza and a margherita pizza. The food was decent but given that it wasn't based on any recommendation, that's the most we could've expected. After lunch, we continued walking towards the Spanish Steps. We found out that the steps themselves are closed for repairs but the fountain in front of them is open now. It was the other way round the last time we came here. The fountain was made by Bernini and is in the shape of a sinking boat. We stopped at a cafe to have dessert. I had tiramisu and Samia had ice cream. After that, we took a cab to Galleria Borghese.
The gallery is actually a palace that was used as a residence by the noble Borghese family. Now it serves as Rome's premier art gallery after having gone many redesigns of its layout. The current layout is closest to the original one with certain exceptions to bring thematic unity to all the rooms. We entered into a giant hall with all the walls lined with statues but the most impressive feature is the painted ceiling that took 3 years to paint. We had a shortlist of the most significant art pieces so we focused on those during our two hour tour. The most impressive works that we saw were all statues carved by Bernini. It's hard to decide if his Apollo & Daphne is the best (the execution of depicting the moment when Daphne is turning into a tree is dazzling) or if his best work is the Rape of Persephone (the strong hands pressing into the soft flesh seem absolutely real despite being etched in marble). His version of David is also very interesting and captures the moment when David is just about to release the stone from his sling with his brow furrowed and his lips tightened. We saw some of Bernini's earlier work as well where his genius had started to shine through. There are many other statues and paintings in the gallery but the most outstanding work, in our non-artsy opinion, was all by Bernini.
After visiting the gallery, we were tired so we boarded a kiddy train that took us through the entire Villa Borghese or the gardens. It was a very refreshing ride through the huge green space and we were dropped off near Piazza del Popolo. We saw the Piazza from a high vantage point before climbing down the stairs to the Piazza. We sat there for a little while reminiscing about our last visit to the Piazza and made dinner plans. Most of the recommended options in our guidebook were closed because it was a Sunday so we chose a cafe on the way to the Spanish Steps but couldn't find it. We then walked into a decent looking restaurant which had a clean and modern decor but the food turned out to be average. Our appetizer was fried Napoli items - the fillings were cheese, rice, more cheese and potatoes. I ordered a margherita pizza and Samia ordered pasta with cheese. The pizza was decent but the cheese in the pasta was too strong.
After our first semi-disappointing meal in Italy, we walked back to the Spanish Steps and got gelato. The gelato was really good and somewhat made up for the sub-par quality of dinner. We tried chocolate and yogurt flavors and both hit the spot perfectly. Then we took a cab back to our hotel and called it a night. The highlights of another hot day were Bernini's statues and we'll probably see a few more on our second day in Rome. Our main plan is to visit Saint Peter's Basilica that we were unable to see on our last trip because of the Pope's special address meant only for children. Till the update from the center of Christendom, take care!
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