September 23
Our group went out in the morning to tour Vatican; the
Pantheon; Trevi Fountain etc. We had visited Rome on a previous tour and had
spent considerable time including attending an opera. We took a break.
These are some of the pictures taken by our tour members
From Raymond Austin’s collection on his share:
The famous Pieta by Michael Angelo
Baldacchino and Bernini’s Cattedra Altar (in the center)
The Cupola of the Cathedral
Looking at Bernini’s Baldacchino from under the Cupola
Vatican military, the Swiss Guards.
Recruits are unmarried Swiss Catholic males between 19 and
30 years of age. Oh!
They must have served in Swiss armed forces.
Fig.10
The Façade of the Cathedral (made of travertine). St. Peter’s
Square with statue of St. Peter on the left. The central window is where the Pope extends his blessings
during Easter and Christmas.
Scenes from the Interior of Pantheon (above).
Our group in the Interior of Pantheon
From Al Kehew’s collection on Pinterest.
Raphael’s Fresco: Expulsion of Heliodorus from the temple
(1511-1513)
Center is the priest and he is looking at the Menorah. The
man on the horse is driving out Heliodorus.
‘The School of Athens’ FRESCO by Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino
(Rafael (1483-1520))
Michael Angelo’s Pieta at St. Peter’s Basilica (in Carrara
marble). It has Michael Angelo’s signature.
Read the incident related to its dis-figuration
by an Australian of Hungarian descent (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pietà_(Michelangelo).
St. Peter’s Square
The Pantheon (for all gods), a former Roman temple commissioned
by Agrippa (original one 27 BC-14 AD). Presently re-purposed as a church and
used in weddings.
The central OCULUS brings in the light to the inside. It is
made of unreinforced concrete and one of its kind. Our group in front of the
Pantheon in the Piazza della Rotunda.
There is a side street near Pantheon where I had the best
coffee and gelato shop close by which your find in most guide books.
Fig.25
In the interior of the Pantheon.
Fig.26
In the interior of the Pantheon.
Fig.27
Close-up of Trevi Fountain
Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) Oceanus at the Trevi
Fountain
As We did not join the group and went on our own and visited
the nearby Spanish Steps (circa 1723) made famous by the ‘Holiday in Rome’
movie. We did visit Spanish Steps on our previous trip but decided to spend
some time there today and looking to eat the highly recommended artichoke dish
famous in Rome called the ‘Carciofi alla Guidia’ aka Jewish artichoke. Unfortunately,
they were out of season.
Here is a picture of the dish from this site (https://www.thespruce.com/carciofi-alla-giudia-roman-jewish-artichoke-recipe-2017775)
As expected there was a huge crowd at the Spanish Steps and the morning sun was
very strong. The last time we were there we had approached it from the bottom
of the steps (Piazza di Spagna) and this time the route from our hotel brought us
to the top of the steps near the Trinita dei Monti (French, Gothic) church at the
top. The church predates the 137 famous steps. The Obelisk in front of the
church is a Roman construction which was re-erected here from its previous location
in Gardens of Sallust.
We had our lunch at Numbs Piazza Di Spagna as
there were only few restaurants that served early lunch. The food was mediocre.
We returned and took rest as I was not feeling too well with my throat stuffed
up. In the evening we had dinner at La Pentolaccia in via Flavia 38. The dinner
was good and price reasonable. The server by mistake charged twice for the same
dish which he later corrected with an apology. The Tiramisu was superb
according to my wife.
Tomorrow we all go and visit the Colosseum and the Roman
Forum.
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