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  • Day 33

    Rome in 35,000 steps

    September 21, 2017 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    So the day didn't start well when I woke up to find my my computer had completely died... aaarrrg.. bloody thing, nothing I tried could revive it and the damn thing is not that old! Sigh!!!!
    Breakfast is far more simple here... but none the less satisfying, then it was off to the station for the train into Rome which costs 2.60 Euro each and takes about 35 minutes.
    Arriving at Roma Terminale we were soon heading out to explore.... our aim today was NOT to pay to look at old things! Our first stop was the Colosseum... amazing, historic, but unbearably packed and tourist infested.. we walked around the outside, took some photos and then wandered on to the Circus Maximus and from there to the Piazza Porta san Paulo, where, just behind the museum which is in the centre of the roundabout, we discovered a random Pyramid (Pyramide Cestius, which was built in 12 BC in only 330 days as the tomb for Gias Cestius). Interesting but apparently only open on random Sundays and as it was a Thursday..... We continued on to the Aventine keyhole.. literally a keyhole you look through which perfectly frames the dome of St Peter's Basilica. Amazing!
    From there we continued on to locate the Mouth of Truth... Bocca della Veritas which is an ancient sculpture of a face, the mouth of which one is supposed to place one's hand into to test truthfulness... again we declined to pay and queue, but took a photo and moved on.
    Our next stop was Torre Argentina which is a cat sanctuary located in the ruins of a temple complex believed to be the site where Julius Ceaser was murdered... it is currently home to 640 stray cats... I felt guilty and bought the t-shirt to help support their work caring for the cats. Moving on again we had a quick visit to the street market at Piazza Campo de Fiori (uninspiring) before heading for the Pantheon... which I was amazed to discover is free.
    We ended up going via Piazza Nuova which has a famous fountain and also many tourists. The Pantheon also has a stupid number of tourists but it was well with seeing.. it is a gorgeous building!!
    Becoming slightly lost we were relieved to finally find the Trevi Fountain... again stupidly packed with tourists... and whistle blowing police... however I tossed in a coin as per tradition and we continued on to the Spanish Steps. Again they were stupid with tourists but I did the requisite walk up and down and then we headed to La Romana... a famous Gelatria which has been in operation for over 70 years... here we enjoyed the most amazing Gelati .. 2.70Euro for a choc filled cone and 3 delicious flavours....mmmmmmm.
    Well and truly full it was time to say goodbye to Rome. Back to the station we quickly sorted out a train to Zagarolo and were there by about 10 to 7. We grabbed a few bits and pieces from the supermarket for tea and while Kirstin headed back to the hostel I had a bit of a wander via the old town before returning to the hostel for tea and some local red wine... aahhhh Roma
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