Liberation Day! Today is a major public holiday in Rome, so we planned a light schedule with only one timed requirement and the rest away from the city center.
We started the day with a breakfast buffet at the hotel that included choices of pastries, breads you can slice yourself, yogurts, cereals, jams, eggs, omelets, meats, fruits, and more. And, of course, coffee including espresso, “americana”, or cappuccino. There is even fresh honeycomb, suspended with delicious honey slooooowly draining down into a dish below.
Late morning we returned to Trevi Fountain for a relatively new underground tour. There were even more people than the day before. We slowly made our way through the crowds being ever mindful of pockets, phones, and bags.
With over 90% of ancient Rome still buried 30 feet below the surface, every dig unearths ruins and artifacts. In this case, a major company had planned a cinema complex expansion but upon beginning excavations, unearthed artifacts including figurines, pottery, and a cache of over 800 small gold coins. The cinema project was never completed, but they did build one section that holds about 90 participants that is used for smaller events such as corporate meetings or trainings, with windows overlooking the excavations.
What they found were layers of former dwellings. On the bottom was what had been housing for poor people that had been hastily and cheaply constructed called “Insula”. Built on the ruins of that was a dwelling or “Domus” for a wealthy family. It had large rooms, mosaic floors, and even a room for the servants in which to bathe and use the bathroom indoors. Most importantly, the owner had been wealthy enough to bring water through pipes directly to the house where it ran into a large pool that supplied the rest of the house. The pool was sealed around the edges with a type of sealant made from mixing clay and figs that remains 70% effective to this day as long as it stays moist. Crazy!
The Romans were master engineers who brought water into the city through a series of gravity fed aqueducts and purification systems. You can see them in other countries throughout the former empire as well. In Rome, they bored through over 260 miles of rock and built over 30 miles of above ground bridges, some with arches and ornamentation.
The water ran into cisterns from where it was carried into various parts of the city through mostly lead pipes. This particular aqueduct, called the “Aqueduct Virgin” supplied water with only a five meter (15 feet) drop over 22 kilometers (13.6 miles) and ends at Trevi Fountain. The water is still good to drink. Many of the aqueducts were destroyed by enemies of Rome and some were repaired during the Renaissance, but this one has continued to flow for over 2000 years.
it was hard to get good descriptive pictures so I am including a link to one of the websites that tells about it. https://www.romeactually.com/vicus-caprarius-in-rome/
After popping back up from underground, we rambled past shops and restaurants until we were convinced to pause for lunch by a tall, handsome, middle-aged Roman man who was hawking for his cafe. He particularly fell for Genny, leaning over to whisper, “I love you” in her ear as he guided us through the tables that are always set very close together. They chatted as he seated us and he again said, “I love you” to which she replied, “I fell in love with you the moment I saw you”. They chuckled conspiratorially as I rolled my eyes and said, “I’m right here”. We shared a salad and a barbecue chicken pizza without lover-boy and were on our way back to the hotel.
Just a few blocks from us is the Porta Pinciano, an opening in the Roman wall built in 275 AD and enlarged in 402. Walking through to the other side led us to the Villa Borghese Gardens, the third largest public park in Rome. It covers over 200 acres and you could easily spend a half day there. It includes the Borghese Villa, Gallery (of art), a zoo, and lots of things for kids.
We also found a drinking fountain there, one of more than 100 artistic fountains and over 2500 known as Nasoni or “nose” that have become a symbol of Rome. Free, pure drinking water is carried throughout the city and can be accessed by anyone from these fountains. On the back of this fountain is a pipe from which water flows as well as the front. As many of the Nasoni, you can cover the end with your finger, and it will enable water to squirt out of a hole in the top for drinking.
We found a typical nasoni on our first night’s walk to Piazza di Spagna.
We walked through the gardens, saw the Villa in the distance, watched a woman having her picture taken way too many times at the “Temple of Diana” – built in 1789, and watched kids play and ride carts and ponies.
I am particularly enamored with the tall, thin pine trees with small, flat tops known as Umbrella Pines or Stone Pines. They are all over Rome and were plentiful in the park. It was a relaxing and wonderful way to end the Liberation Day.
The park closed at dusk which is about 8ish, so we walked back toward the hotel and had a light dinner along the way.
Tomorrow we will travel to the end of the Metro line south to visit the location of the death of Paul the Apostle, and tomorrow night – we’ll you won’t believe it until you see the pictures. I’ll try to get the post done quickly.
Thanks for the comments and emails to let us know you are enjoying going with us and for your prayers for health and strength.
Love to you all.
enjoying your adventures and photos
stay safe