Joe
19-09-2010, 09:08
(... well nine really, as the first day was mostly spent travelling.)
Caroline and I have just had an amazing holiday in Rome. She's fortunate enough to have another few days of holiday left and has gone on to Florence (where it's now pouring with rain). The weather in Rome was perfect; temperature in the mid-80s every day but with a pleasant breeze most of the time.
We crammed in more churches, museums, and Roman ruins than you could shake a stick at. Unfortunately, Caroline's digital camera decided to stop working the day we arrived, and I hadn't brought mine, so we'll have to rely on our memories, which aren't what they were!
Rome is incredibly noisy (the noisiest in Europe, apparently), and no mercy is shown to pedestrians; even on Pelican-type crossings the car and motorbike drivers just carry on driving at top speed. We learned to cross only when a bunch of other people were stepping out!
The highlights for me were:
The Forum, particularly a medieval church, built inside the shell of a Roman temple, which has been stranded in mid-air as the rubble which surrounded it has been removed
Ostia Antica, a Roman harbour town now miles from the sea, which is remarkably intact
The Villa d'Este, at Tivoli, which has a fantastic terraced garden with numerous water features
The church of San Clemente, which is built on top of an earlier church, underneath which is a Mithraic temple.
I was less impressed with St Peter's, a vast, almost empty space, with much indifferent Baroque art, and the Colosseum, which is spectacular from the outside, but not IMO worth paying to go inside.
The Vatican Museums are huge, and have thousands of incredible works of art, but on the day we went the place was jam-packed, and we were hustled along by the security guards.
Anyway, if any of you are contemplating shelling out on an upgrade to your hifi, I'd recommend a trip to Rome instead. But make sure your camera's working, and/or take a spare!
Caroline and I have just had an amazing holiday in Rome. She's fortunate enough to have another few days of holiday left and has gone on to Florence (where it's now pouring with rain). The weather in Rome was perfect; temperature in the mid-80s every day but with a pleasant breeze most of the time.
We crammed in more churches, museums, and Roman ruins than you could shake a stick at. Unfortunately, Caroline's digital camera decided to stop working the day we arrived, and I hadn't brought mine, so we'll have to rely on our memories, which aren't what they were!
Rome is incredibly noisy (the noisiest in Europe, apparently), and no mercy is shown to pedestrians; even on Pelican-type crossings the car and motorbike drivers just carry on driving at top speed. We learned to cross only when a bunch of other people were stepping out!
The highlights for me were:
The Forum, particularly a medieval church, built inside the shell of a Roman temple, which has been stranded in mid-air as the rubble which surrounded it has been removed
Ostia Antica, a Roman harbour town now miles from the sea, which is remarkably intact
The Villa d'Este, at Tivoli, which has a fantastic terraced garden with numerous water features
The church of San Clemente, which is built on top of an earlier church, underneath which is a Mithraic temple.
I was less impressed with St Peter's, a vast, almost empty space, with much indifferent Baroque art, and the Colosseum, which is spectacular from the outside, but not IMO worth paying to go inside.
The Vatican Museums are huge, and have thousands of incredible works of art, but on the day we went the place was jam-packed, and we were hustled along by the security guards.
Anyway, if any of you are contemplating shelling out on an upgrade to your hifi, I'd recommend a trip to Rome instead. But make sure your camera's working, and/or take a spare!