At The Mouth of The Tiber

Today we did a total of one thing, guys. One thing. We usually try to get in at least to sights or activities. Event if one of those activities is just wandering around, we try to do at least two. Sometimes on our more masochistic days three. Anyway, like I said, one thing. That one thing? Ostia Antica! Whaaaaaaa? What in the pantheon of Roman dieties is Ostia Antica?! Is that like osteoarthritis?! No, my friends. Ostia Antica is not a degenerative disease. That would be a horrible thing to fly thousands of miles to visit.

We took the metro to the urban train that very slowly got us to the stop Ostia Antica was closest to. This stupid thing was really slow despite being on normal tracks and not going into cities without any kind of clear demarcation between train line and rest-of-town.

(Ignore if you don't care about to read a very brief history of the town)

Ostia Antica is the site of the remains of the ancient Roman sea port of Ostia (plural for the word "Mouth" in Latin). It was likely Rome's first colony, and was initially used as a defensive port to protect against raids on Rome coming from up the Tiber river that runs through Rome. There is Castrum (Roman fortification) from the the third century B.C.E. After seeing some action during the civil wars that proceeded the fall of the Republic, Julius Caesar decided to improve the flow of grain from Ostia to Rome. Subsequent emperors added on to the city, and at one point it became a thriving metropolis of over 100,000 inhabitants in the second and third centuries C.E. St. Augustine visited Ostia and his mother, Monica, actually died and was buried there. The town eventually was abandoned in the ninth century C.E. as Rome slowly fell.

When you arrive in Ostia Antica you're met by the town's necropolis (city of the dead). So it's like going to Lynden from Meridian really. :-)  The necropolis is fairly large as you can imagine and there are a number of rooms with niches where they would put the ashes of dead family members, and there are some sarcophagi. We saw a theater that held around four thousand people, and is used today. Behind it was a square with a series of business stalls and mosaics that describe what each shop did in some way with some latin inscription in mosaic. It was really neat to see mosaics in such great shape that are exposed to the elements.

The theater

Mosaic of Neptune in one of the baths

We saw the Castrum (military camp) that still has the original wall consisting of Tufa stone. Within are a number of houses and a place Ostians would eat. There's the original bar with marble top, and a fresco describing generally what one could get there with a series of steps where food could be set out and picked before being purchased. In a lot of ways Romans were very modern.

Behind the bar/counter

The menu

After the Castrum area we grabbed some overly priced food to provide some calories to keep the hanger at bay. We found the Temple of Jupiter and wandered the Forum baths. Emperors really liked to keep people happy with games, food, and baths. If you were fed and entertained it was easy for an emperor to do what they wanted. The Forum baths were great. One of the fun things about Ostia Antica compared to Pompeii is the degree to which you could wander around them. There is much greater access to the ruins of Ostia Antica than Pompeii. In the case of the Forum Baths we could even clime down where the slaves would go to stoke the fires to eat the rooms and water in the baths.

We found a number of bathrooms which was fun, and I found what I think was a well, or water source for a fountain/pond in a peristylum (interior home garden) in a large home. After I went in the narrow passage way a couple of German kids followed. I think their dad later went in. In some ways I liked Ostia a lot more than Pompeii. You could get away form people and have a whole section of the site to yourself despite the amount of school groups, and they were not as restrictive regarding where you could go.

Bathroom with plenty of toilets

Tomorrow is a day that I don't think Libby is looking forward to. We're going to the Vatican museum and the Sistine Chapel/St. Peter's basilica. Libby would like to add that she is looking forward to the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's.

Plebs had power too

Today was a warm one. Maria might say it was warm-ish. The temperature plus all the walking we did made it feel down right hot. Today we had our guided tour with a handful of others of the Roman Forum where much of the legal and economic activity took place during much of Rome's history, the Palatine hill where we saw the residences of Octavian (the first Augustus) and Livia, and finally through the Colosseum. When we were done there we headed to our accommodation, grabbed a bite to eat and headed up to the Pantheon. After going inside the Pantheon, and getting some very-much-over-priced gelato, we met half of Rome at the Trevi Fountain. They all said to say hi. We came home, melted a bit, and got some food. After dinner we capped our evening in the shadow of the Colosseum and Constantine's triumphal arch and headed home.

We met our tour guide at 9am outside the Colosseo metro (aka tube aka underground aka subway) stop. He was a fellow on the verge of elder status who seems to have been well travelled as he interjected his experiences elsewhere into the tour. We began our time on the way to the Roman forum where he talked about Constantine's triumphal arch, and we moved our way into the forum. The Roman forum was the heart of Rome. It was where everything from money changing to worshiping Apollo went on. You could buy some cabbage after you signed a legal document, and later hear what was going on (get the news) in the republic (or empire) in the same general location.  

After the Roman Forum we were afforded the opportunity to see something even ticket holders to the Forum don't get to see--Octavian and Livia's living accommodations on the Palatine hill. These are brightly (Libby may use other adjectives) colored frescoes that show how elaborately decorated the wealthy's homes were during the time period. Our guide pointed out that some statues in areas of the world that fell under Roman control that are less humid have been found with color still on them. He even mentioned that before the war in Syria he had an opportunity to go there and saw a Roman-Era statue with blonde colored hair on the sculpture. He also mentioned that he thinks Livia's residence will be closed soon due to the extra humidity there that is destroying the art on the walls. 

After our time kicking it in the first Roman emperor's digs we walked to the Colosseum where we met the unwashed masses. There were thousands in and around the Colosseum. We were in a group and still waited a good 15 minutes to get through THE GROUP LINE! The guide took us floor by floor to the highest point we were allowed in the tour and talked about the details of the actual building like how the slaves got people and animals from under the floor to the floor (elevators), and how most gladiators didn't die because: A. Gladiators were popular with the people that watched them. They were the athletes of the time, and were revered. And B. The emperor would have to pay the gladiator's "representation" (agent's!? am I right?) if the gladiator died in the games as that was one less source of income for said representation. They would make money off bets regarding who would win. There were rules of engagement in the colosseum that even changed depending on the weaponry used. The whole system around the games is quite fascinating. That's where the tour ended. 

We went home, grabbed some grub, and went to the Pantheon. I had a "Caesar salad" that had a very small portion of the most garlicky dressing I've ever tasted. It was chicken, croutons, hard-boiled egg, lettuce, and tomato. I didn't' expect it to be like Caesar salad at home, but I would have liked more dressing despite the high level of vampire-deterrent within. I ended up using some oil and vinegar to finish it. Libby had pizza. 

We walked up to the Pantheon where another 1/4 of Rome seemed to be. It's free to get it in which is nice, and it could have been more crowded I suppose, but it would have been great to get it with like half the people there. I think a lot of Italy would be great that way. Anyway, the Pantheon was a temple to multiple Roman gods. It has since then been changed into a Catholic church, and is the longest, continuously used building from Rome. What's amazing about it is the design of the dome. The dome is as wide as it is tall, and the Dome is enormous for being a free standing structure (no extra support like columns towards the middle) made at the time. The Florentine duomo's dome (over a thousand years later) was modeled after it to a certain degree. 

After overpaying for gelato in the piazza we then met the final 1/4 of Rome at the Trevi Fountain! It's a cool big fountain. It's the width of a whole building practically and has some great details, but the people---ohhhh, the people. I can't believe how many people there were. It seems like everyone (I say everyone but I mean all the youngish girls) think they are models and pose for pictures accordingly. Anyway, we left there in a hurry, went home, ate, visited a much quieter colosseum, and came home again. 

It was a good day. We're tired though. Tomorrow is Ostia Antica and a mystery location/activity that has yet to be agreed upon. 

Back to Civilization

Hello! Sorry for the break in posts, the Air B&B we stayed at in Sorrento had terrible internet. Like, horrible. I barely had a connection in the kitchen, then when I walked 3 steps into the bedroom, there was no signal at all. The strongest WiFi signal we got for that place was in the cafe below... needless to say it was irritating. But now we're in Rome and we have reliable WiFi again!

We had two full days in Sorrento and we used the first day to go to Naples to visit the Archaeological Museum and the second day we went to Pompeii. We didn't really see anything of Naples, we took the metro from the train station right to the museum, then right back again when we were done at the museum. They had windows open in the museum so the entire time we could hear all the traffic and honking horns, it sounded very chaotic and busy.

Pompeii was a lot of fun but it was also hot and tiring. We didn't expect Pompeii to be as big as it was. It's estimated that there were 20,000 residents in the city! We learned that the stepping stones in the streets let pedestrians cross without getting their feet wet because every day the streets were flooded in order to clean them. The direction traffic was to go was denoted by the amount of stepping stones across a road: A single stepping stone meant that the street was a one-way; two stepping stones meant an ordinary two-way; three stepping stones meant the road was a major thoroughfare.

Crossing a major thoroughfare

Crossing a one-way

Chariot ruts

 We saw public baths, fast-food places, bakeries and grand houses. It was amazing to see original frescos still on the walls today.

Original frescos

Flour mills

Fast-food joint, they kept jugs of food or drinks in those holes

A house with original mosaic floors

Mt. Vesuvius in the background

We are now in Rome! Our Air B&B is one block from the Colosseum (we don't have a view though)! We spent the afternoon walking around the outside of the Colosseum (we scouted out the meeting place for our Walks of Italy tour tomorrow), we saw the Arch of Constantine and we walked up by Trajan's Column and saw the backside of the Roman Forum.

Arch of Constantine

View from the Monument of Victor Emmanuel II

The traffic here is crazy too. Tomorrow our tour will take us inside the palace of the first Emperor of Rome (Augustus) and to the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

Dinner

We were foiled!

We woke up early this morning so we could catch the 7:50 bus to Civita di Bagnoregio. We bought the bus tickets on the way to the bus stop (they're cheaper if you buy from a tobacco shop instead of the bus driver) then found the bus stop and waited. And waited. We waited until about 15 minutes past when the bus should have been there and we decided that something was up. Tommy decided to turn data on his phone and we googled the bus schedule and guess what we found out?? There was a 24 hour bus strike today! Blerg! So we went to find coffee and a pastry and decide what to do.

We ended up having a fun day anyway. We started at the National Archaeological Museum of Orvieto which is a small museum that has a lot of Etruscan terra-cotta objects and ceramics that were found in the necropolis at the base of Orvieto, some of them from 500 BC! The Etruscans occupied this area before being conquered by the Romans.

After we were done at that museum (it's small) we headed over to the Underground Orvieto Tour office to take a tour of underground Orvieto. There is a vast system of caves under the city that were built by the Etruscans. The cave tour was really cool, we saw the remains of an old olive press, a 130 foot deep Etruscan well shaft, a cement quarry and a pigeon coop! The Etruscans dug out the caves and used the material to build their houses, then used the caves a shops and work spaces.

Olive press for making olive oil

Pigeon coops

After lunch we visited the Church of Sant'Agostino which holds the statues that used to be in the duomo. We just happened to run into the guy that owns the apartment that we are renting here, and he offered to show us the cave under his house! He lives right by Sant'Agostino. It's amazing that these ancient caves exist right under people's houses and businesses, such a cool piece of history to be living on.

Then we walked along the ramparts for a little bit, the views were amazing. As we were finishing our walk, it started thundering and raining again, so we made haste to our apartment because we hadn't taken our raincoats with us when we left in the morning. We then headed to the Etruscan Museum which had more artifacts found in the area.

Rain and thunder

We decided we deserved a break after all that so we headed back to the apartment to wait until dinner. Most restaurants don't open for dinner until 7 or 7:30. People eat dinner late here, which is hard to get used to because we are usually tired and hungry by 6. Oh well, when in Rome :) We ended up having a fun day even though it didn't go as planned! Tomorrow we are heading to Sorrento!

I had carbonara with fava beans in the sauce and Tommy had steak with gorgonzola and chocolate, he really liked it! 

Creme brule for dessert

Hello, Orvieto!

This morning we left Firenze and rode the train for a couple hours to Orvieto. After we got settled and found lunch, we decided to explore.

We headed first over to Pozzo di San Patrizio, St--Patrick's Well. The well is 175 feet deep and 45 feet wide. There are two spiral stairways so that traffic only flows one way. Makes sense for back in the day when people were using donkeys to haul water up. The well was started in 1527 and was finished about 10 years later. There are a total of 496 steps.

The outside of the well

Looking down

Looking up from the bottom

After we made climbed back out of the well, we headed over to the duomo. Construction on this duomo began in 1290 and took about 300 years to complete. It has two chapels in it covered in beautiful frescos.

While we were inside the duomo museum, we thought we heard rumbling. When we got back outside, it was thundering and lightening! Again! That's two thunder and lightening storms this week. There were also a ton of swallows flying around the duomo and some popping we think might have been metal on the duomo conducting electricity in the air. We are hoping it clears up for tomorrow, we are going to be heading to Civita di Bagnoregio in the morning.

Dinner

Let's All Feel Bad for Libby Day

Libby endured a lot today. Two museums (The Accademia and Uffizi) broken up by a bite to eat, and a hike up the top of Brunelleschi's dome.

Today was an early 6am one because we wanted to get to The Accademia as it opened to beat the crowds. Yeah--right. We probably beat a good amount of crowds we would have seen later in the day, but there were probably a few hundred people outside wanting to get in. We bought a Firenzi card which was expensive but allows us to skip lines for a number of places, so that came in handy.

The Accademia is primarily known for housing Michelangelo's "Prisoners" and David. There are some medieval pantings that are always there, but there was an exhibit of musical instruments where there were some interesting instruments including some Stradavarians from the late 17th century, a weird wind instrument that was bent at an angle, the first stand-up piano, and a few other piano-like instruments.

Said to be the first upright piano

We left "The Prisoners" and David for last. I'm glad we did. Michelangelo didn't name what are now referred to as "The Prisoners," but that is what scholars dubbed them.  They are unfinished marble statues that, in their current state, seem to be attempting to pull themselves from the existing rough marble they were hewn from. It's really awesome to imagine that Michelangelo left them as is on purpose. He didn't work the same way his contemporaries did where they would mark the stone before staring on it. He worked on the stone freestyle from front to back. They are a great prologue to David. Michelangelo's David is a fourteen foot tall marble masterpiece. Stupid, lazy expression aside, words can't describe David. Saying it's amazing doesn't do it justice. It's awe inspiring and eye opening. I've I try to do something approaching justice I'll be here too long and still fail and Libby will be annoyed so I'll leave it at that.

We grabbed a bite to eat in the Duomo Piazza within eyesight of the door to the entrance for the Cupola climb. (See what I did there?) Libby was apprehensive about the 467 steps, since it's been a while since we've climbed a tower but it was fine. Part of the architectural achievement of the dome is the double-wall method that is important to achieving the structure itself, and you actually get to climb up between the walls. You have to hunch over to the right at times, and climb up steps at a steep and obviously rounded angle. The climb is well worth it. Nearly all the way up you get to walk on the inside of the dome and get a great view of the fresco. Finally you reach the top and get the best view of Florence in the city. The view is stunning. The duomo is in the center of city so you can see every bit of Florence, the Arno River, and into the surrounding Tuscan hills.

Going up

See the building with the green roof? The Air B&B we rented is overlooking the square on the right hand side of that building. It's about a 5 minute walk from the apartment to the Duomo

Down we climbed and headed to the Uffizi Gallery. The Uffizi is a giant C-shaped building near the Palazzo Vecchio. They make you hike up to the second floor first, and are faced with a hall way that stretches the length of the building with sculptures, and painted ceilings with adjacent rooms full of artwork. Libby's time in the Uffizi felt like a literal eternity. :-)

We went home and sat for a few minutes then headed downstairs for some food. Libby had  spaghetti carbonara and I had....rabbit. Yup. I saw it on the menu and wanted to try it. Yesterday I had wide spaghetti and wild boar, and liked that so I rolled the dice again. It was described in the menu as cutlets with Tuscan herbs. It seemed like a meatloaf with herbs. It came with sauted spinach, and I got a side of rosemary potatoes in case I didn't like it....or at least didn't like the spinach. Turns out I liked the rabbit. It didn't taste "gamey," but I think the herbs had something to do with that. I did run across a small bone I'm sure glad I caught. Anyway, the spinach was ok. The flavor was good but it was cooked in oil and was pretty soggy. Not the best texture in my opinion. After a doppio espresso for me and single espresso for Libby we came home.

Tomorrow we are off to Orvieto where we will side-trip to Civita de Bagnoregio.