Rome 3
ITALY, GREECE & MONTENEGRO Diary : Day 15 - 16th May 2018
(Continued from ROME 2 ) Lying on the Capitoline hill, initially built and designed by Michelangelo himself, the CAMPIDOGLIO square is quite modern looking that offers central access to all the renowned museums around it, therefore making it an important place of visit all the year round. The access to it from the ROMAN FORUM felt like a secret passage and definitely took us back in time. It consists of a central structure with two similar looking palaces on its either side. What is more notable is the floral design on its central floor. The entire set up is on a terrace overlooking the road below, with a few notable sculptures decorating the enclosure. It is said that the southern cliff of this hill (referred to as the TARPEIAN rock) was utilised to carry out executions. Michelangelo wanted to actually build this square opposite to St. Peters Basilica , Vatican. This square is relatively empty and gives one more of a university campus type feeling. We took a stroll around admiring the architecture and sculpture before moving ahead.
Running down right from the Campidoglio square is the CORDONATA stairway. This is a monumental stairway known for its gradually ascending structure and picturesque landscaping. It is more like a wide, upward sloping ramp connecting the Campidoglio to the road leading to St. Marks Square and Piazza venezia. We were awestruck by its sheer size. Beautiful potted flowers adorn the sides of the stairway and make a perfect spot for “ instagrammable “ pictures. The stairway was initially built for the Kings and Knights to ascend to the hilltop , without getting off their horses. Each set of stairs is separated from the other with a mere elevation of 8-10 cm. We were fortunate to find it relatively less crowded, so were able to capture a few moments here.
We descended from the Campidoglio using the stairway to get to the adjacent church once again running upward from the Piazza di ARACOELI. Half way through it got tedious and we gave up the idea of visiting its interiors. Again, another beautiful stairway leads to the Church. The Basilica di SANTA MARIA in Aracoeli is famous for its internal frescoes. The external views of the Basilica is typically simple Italian in style. It is the last of the pictures in this particular gallery.
Overlooking the Basilica at a height, to its left, is the ALTAR OF THE FATHERLAND referred to as the ALTARE DELLA PATRIA. This imposing white marble structure is almost synonymous to the city, especially during all the celebrations of the state. It lies in the junction that is flooded by 3 famous squares, the St. Marks square, the Piazza Venezia and the Piazza di ARACOELI.
The 3 roads which root from each of these squares run in a circle and culminate to reach the foothill of this massive central piece of art. It is one of the most tastefully built, giant sized, marble structures displayed in the open. The structure sits atop a hill and is placed at a height that could be almost midway to the Basilica / Cordonata. A high risen gate blocks free access to its wide stairway. There is, however, a single point of access to it which comes in the form of a small opening in this gate. We walked up the stairs and were blown by the magnificence of the sculpted art flooding the entire exterior. The structure is split into 3 levels, each of them interconnected by stairways. The second tier has a centrally sculpted structure of a goddess , referred to as the GODDESS of ROME.
She stands overlooking the city, flanked on either side by intricately designed procession of soldiers, slaves, horses , which may be mostly depicting the erstwhile life in ROME. Above this central piece are intricately etched human figures, much of which couldn't be captured on my camera due to the height it stood at. Above all that was a black statue of an unknown soldier on a horse. This symbolises the sacrifice made by many soldiers and knights. These are not the only sculptures. The entire Altar is filled with such masterpieces, by looking into the eyes of which you can get lost in History.
We moved around quickly as the crowd began to increase. There were soldiers in their uniforms, guarding the Altar. After taking pictures to our heart’s content, we walked around the square in front of the Altar, which, like I mentioned earlier, is a culmination of 3 squares - the PIAZZA ARACOELI, PIAZZA VENEZIA and PIAZZA SAN MARCO. The place is so wide open and busy people, vehicles and buses criss-crossing their ways to get to their destinations. Surrounded by many important government buildings , this place is generally the arena for all important festivities of the city. We found a batch of men dressed in Roman soldier attires talking to normal pedestrians. We enjoyed the moments before taking a bus to reach the Trevi fountain.
A short bus ride of 15 minutes or so from piazza Venezia OR piazza Aracoeli takes you to the Corso stop, from where it just a short walk to the Trevi fountain. That's the idea of a Roma Pass - Super convenient. As we approached the fountain, I nowhere expected it to be situated on a small lane. The earlier square was big enough to hold a few thousand people, so something as renowned as TREVI FOUNTAIN in my imagination , was placed centrally in a huge square. To the contrary, it was decorating a wall on a small lane and flocked with millions of its fans. The Sculpted masterpiece of a fountain just made me numb. There is absolutely no limit to ROMAN architecture.
What a massive piece which absolutely holds one's attention. The green colour of the water was magical. People faced their back to the fountain and threw coins into it. It is believed that you tend to return to ROME someday if you do so. Wow, we didn't mind parting with a few coins ourselves. We definitely want to go back.
At almost 180 degrees to the Trevi fountain is the famous PANTHEON temple. We walked for a few minutes to get there. On our way we witnessed some of the street artists who spray painted beautiful sceneries at the drop of a hat.
As we approached the temple square, there was live music at the doorstep. There were people from the crowd who went gaga over the tunes of the violin and danced away.It was more crowded as the musician displayed his talent while the entire crowd tapped, with a few of them bursting into a dance. The environment turned electrifying . The performer had a lot of his CDs sold so quickly. Do not miss a short video of this towards the end of the Gallery. (you need to double click on the video for sound). The crowd slowly dispersed after this wonderful performance.
The inside of the temple fascinated us and so did its history. The Pantheon was built to commemorate all the Roman Gods and Godesses. Some famous painters , writers and architects are also burried under this. It is said to be completed between the 118 and 125 AD. It is widely known for its Oculus - the 27 foot hole atop the dome of the temple, which is never closed. It is built in circular, Greek style, with concrete and bricks. When it rains, the water does pour into the temple through the Oculus, but there is a special drain right under the Oculus on the temple floor, from where the rain water escapes into ground and keeps the temple premises clean. The structure itself is around 2000 years old. Although the initial reason for building it is unknown, it later turned into a temple gradually. Housing many tombs of eminent personalities of the era, its walls still boast of holding some of the original inscriptions of its time. All we did was admire the sculpted structures of Gods and Goddesses with some of them being really unique.
After a fruitful day in Rome city, we returned to our accommodation after walking the entire length of the street to get our bus. It was time to leave to Naples the next day. (for further story read Naples & others)