Rome part I: We don't mind standing here telling people your tour sucks

Before our trip, whenever I told a French person that I was going to Rome, their response was always along the lines of: "Roma! You will love it!  It is like Paris... lots to see.  But it's all old stuff unlike here where it is all new stuff."  (I had to remind them that my country was discovered a couple of centuries after the Louvre started construction.)  The other thing is, as prideful as the French are about their wine, cheese, coffee, and food, they are willing to admit that Italian wine, cheese, coffee, and food are just as good (and the really really humble French will even admit they are better).

Despite these high expectations of Rome, it still became one of my favorite cities.  I am not sure if it was because of the beautiful scenery, the delicious food, or just the sparkling conversations with my awesome travel mates.  There is so much to see and do, but I have truncated it down to my top ten favorite sights in Rome (and discuss the first 5 in this post):

1. Roman Forum/Palantine Hill and the Colosseum
2. The Vatican/St Peter’s Basilica/Sistine Chapel
3. Piazza Navona/St Agnes Church
4. Pantheon
5. Trevi Fountain
6. Baths of Pompey/Largo Argentina/Cat sanctuary
7. Trastevere 
8. Campo dei Fiori
9. Piazza della Repubblica
10. Jewish Quarter

1.  Roman Forum/Palantine Hill and the Colosseum (one ticket gives you access to all)

Marisa, Priya, and I overlooking the Roman Forum and Colosseum.

These usually top the lists of most people who visit Rome, and I have to admit, it is pretty great.  The Roman Forum used to be the center of Roman life: politics, markets, court proceedings, etc.  Now it's a collection of the ruins from these old buildings.  We went there in the evening: less crowded and less hot (double bonus!)  The only thing that would've made wandering around the ruins a better experience for us was if we had a tour guide.  The Forum is not very well labelled and contains very sparse information.  So we decided we would hire one for the Colosseum the next day...

As we were leaving the Forum, we heard a couple of people rave about their tour guide, David.  After talking to him, he told us to go in front of the Colosseum the next day and look for one of his "girls" (minions?): Tatya, Anka, Cristina, Dopey, or Doc.  When we arrived, there were HUNDREDS of people in front of the Colosseum trying to recruit people for their tour.  Unsuccessful at finding one in David's harem, we decided to take another tour (16€ since we already had a ticket).  Big mistake: the person lied to us about the size of the group, our tour guide would start speaking before the group caught up to her, and often times we couldn't even find her at all.  But it didn't matter because Marisa became a much better tour guide just by reading things posted on the wall.  Unlike the Forum, the Colosseum is very well labelled.  The rage of Priya (partially fueled by her Indian instincts to negotiate), brought us back to the tour "manager" to demand for our money back.  "We don't mind standing here telling people your tour sucks" asserted Priya's rage.  It totally worked: they refunded 60% of our cost.

I suppose the moral of the story is: don't trust last minute tour groups.  Also don't piss off little Indian girls.  Also, the Colosseum was still awesome despite bad tour guides, hordes of people, and not being as loud as an SEC football game.  Definitely worth the trip.

2.  The Vatican/St Peter’s Basilica/Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel in Vatican Museum

Inside St. Peter's Basilica

The Raphael Rooms and the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican Museum are definitely beautiful.  But is it worth the long wait in the hot sun for an hour (luckily we brought our sun umbrellas!)?  Maybe.  To avoid the lines, either take a tour (expensive and probably not worth it) or go later in the day.  By the time we left around 1pm, there was barely a line at all.

St. Peter's Basilica will not disappoint.  Very beautiful and extravagant... a lot of the work in the basilica was done by Bernini and Michelangelo.  See this church last or else all other Basilicas around Rome will seem so plain in comparison.  It also houses Michelangelo's statue Pieta.  No bare knees or bare shoulders allowed here!  But pictures of naked women are okay.

3.  Piazza Navona/St Agnes Church

Piazza Navona: Fontana del Moro (near), Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi
(far, with obelisk), and Sant'Agnese in Agone (building)

My absolute favorite thing to do in Rome was walking around until you found a nice piazza to rest your aching feet.  Piazza Navona was definitely my favorite... oval shaped and filled with 3 fountains and a couple of churches, including Sant'Agnese in Agone.  Legend has it that Agnes, a virgin, was to be publicly humiliated (for refusing to give up her faith or refusing to marry a man) by being placed naked in the square.  But through prayer, her hair grew long and her shame was covered.  The inside of the church is magnificent, but no pictures are allowed.

The fountain immediately in front of Sant'Agnese is the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (fountain of the four rivers), designed by Bernini to represent the Danube, the Nile, the Ganges, and the Plate.

4.  Pantheon

A sign of peace?

The Pantheon is interesting because it is the only Pagan temple still standing... mostly because it was converted to a church in the 600s.  Inside the church, the only source of light comes from a circular hole in the top of the dome.  The tombs of the 1st king of Italy, the 2nd king of Italy, and Raphael are housed here.  The inscription on Raphael's tomb translates to: "Here lies Raphael, by whom Nature feared to be outdone while he lived, and when he died, feared that she herself would die."

Priya and Rissy in front of the Pantheon

Light coming in from the Pantheon hole

5.  Trevi Fountain

This was especially nice for me because we were walking the windy roads of Italy, when all of a sudden, boom, here is the largest fountain in Rome in the middle of these cobblestoned alleys.  It is also relatively young (constructed in the 1700's).  It is quite a sight to behold!  But it is ALWAYS crowded.

For places parts 6 - 10, or a couple of places to eat in Rome, go to my next post.