I flew out of Barcelona and into Rome, more out of necessity than any real desire to see the place, for me it was the easiest connection for Belgrade and hence I found myself staying there two nights. From the outset there was nothing appealing or particularly interesting about Rome - in my mind, meaning essentially that I'd never romanticised the place, never felt the desire to go and check things out. Not that I particularly dislike Italians, I don't at all, they can be melodramatic but eh, I can take that or leave it.
Flying on a late nighter out of Girona I had a group of twenty or so young twenty-somethings or late teens, flying back in I assume from a 'boys' outing in Barcelona. They were boisterous, slightly obnoxious and admittedly got under my skin. For some reason I wasn't in the mood at all and had any of those dimwits sparked something with me I would have appreciated the value behind taking a swing.
Strolling through customers and out into the Rome evening my driver was frantically waving a sign, 'Mr Elisher', 'Why yes, that would be me'. I threw my bags into the back of the car and we were off, driving into the night. Strangely and unexpectedly this is where my perception of Rome started to shift. We had been driving for a little while and I assume had made up some ground to the city centre, motoring down a relatively small road, tree lined, it kind of reminded me of a late night country road sojourn. I momentarily had an uneasy feeling that this dude was taking me somewhere completely foreign until we made a right hander and drove directly under what looked like an ancient town wall, Aurelian walls perhaps, I can't be sure. From the moment we drove under those walls the scenery changed and snapped into an urban landscape was absolutely fascinating, a mixture of Renaissance and Baroque. Very unlike a typical European capital city and I imagine the reasoning being that it escaped relatively unscathed from World War II.
As we drove in the driver did his darndest to point out the sites even though his English was extremely patchy but that was cool also, he was doing his absolute best to show off his town and I was loving it. I can't remember everything that he showed me but as we took a spin around the Colloseum I gasped, it was truly a magnificent site. Then he mentioned something that totally spun me out, we were 'effectively' in the centre of Rome and whilst saying that he pointed to an area on his left and said something about the ruins of 'Ancient Rome'....dude, are you kidding me ? This all looks like Ancient Rome to me, where is the city !! LOL. That as I was to discover IS ROME, the Ancient is preserved as best as it could be done and it had me in awe almost immediately. I've got to add it here, but if Paris is a city of museums then Rome itself is a museum and I guess that's the best I can describe the difference between them.
Shortly we past some enormous structure, the Vittoriano I believe, although colloquially known as the Wedding Cake or Typewriter due to its gaudy look and overwhelming size, totally blocking out the view of Ancient Rome. In the day I recognised why many people thought this but on first site it was impressive under lights. A few turns later we were running down cobblestone streets and pulling up in front of the Trevi B&B. It didn't take long, just the short drive from the airport to my accommodation but I had fallen for Rome already.
I walked into a beautifully decorated 17th century building simply buzzing. This place was unbelievable and now I was kicking myself that I only had a day to spin around the city and take in the sites the next day. Although with that said, it was only 1am and hey, I had all morning if I wanted it. I dropped my bags off and took a walk down to Fontana de Trevi, not more that 50 metres away from the front door of where I was staying.
The moment I saw the fountain was one that I'll always remember. I guess not knowing an awful lot about a place and being surprised is the way to go.
Trevi fountain at night
It was brilliant, a small little square, an incredible design and such atmosphere. To provide a short background, in 1629 the then Pope, Urban VIII, requested that a new fountain be designed so as to replace the old fountain in the area. The fountain marks the terminal point for of the modern Acqua Vergine, the revivified Aqua Virgo, one of the ancient aqueducts that supplied water to ancient Rome. It was not until 1762 that the structure was actually completed. Of course, along with the fountain goes the Two coin toss tradition - one for a speedy return to Rome and the other to find the 'one true love', and so it is, my coins were cast with those hopes firmly given to the fountain to take under consideration.
Making the most of the night I made my way a little distance to the Spanish Steps or in Italian, Scalinata della Trinità dei Monti. I've got to say, I know nothing about the background of the stairs, why they were built or what they represent but hey, I've seen them in movies a few times and the idea of 'lovers meeting' by the steps or on them is very, very true. It was a kiss-a-thon all round, lol.
The Spanish Steps
Walking back to Trevi B&B I felt the compulsion to just keep moving, it was approximately 2am but I thought what better time to have the city to myself and see some of the sites without a crowd. My next stop was in fact the Wedding Cake, and as I mentioned earlier, under lights it was truly a spectacular structure. Knowing now the view it blocks is an absolute shame but I guess beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.
My walk continued down the main road after this, basically retracing my drive from much earlier in the night. Like Paris with the Eiffel Tower, Sydney with the Opera House or New York with the Statue of Liberty, the Colloseum is synonymous with Rome and at 3am, with not a soul on the streets, it was about as majestic as it could get. I'm not sure if the pictures do it justice but it's definitely a memory I'll always treasure.
What an awe inspiring place, to be in the presence of such history, to realise the time that this structure had endured was remarkable. I mean I'm not usually taken aback my such places but the Colloseum and Angkor Wat just leave you speechless.
With great difficulty I made it back to the Trevi B&B, don't know how I managed that (another story in itself) but lets just say that at the point of 'relief' I was a second or two away from a near fatal disaster. Still feeling the thrill of being captured by the impressions that this city had already given up, I walked back down to the fountain and took a few more shots. The one below is from the back of the fountain looking out onto the square. From memory it was pretty close to 4am but it's one place in the city where in Summer you'll always find someone strolling around. I guess Rome is just that type of place.
