All of that having been said, I do not ever take for granted my privileged, comfy life, and all the advantages that come with it. Foremost among those is the opportunity to travel, for which I am always hugely grateful. In February, it was Rome (ahhhhhhhh), for a little sunshine and warmth. (We had three straight weeks in Zürich during which the temperature didn't get over freezing, which is rare here. And gray and miserable.)
Stayed in the fantastic Pantheon neighborhood, which is generally packed with tourists, but well located and full of charming little alleys. As well as the Pantheon itself, naturally. Never underwhelming.
Noticed for the first time that there's fine print underneath the big. I am slow.
We rendezvoused with a few members of Mike's rugby team, who were in town to catch a live Six Nations match, to catch a televised match before they headed back to Zürich (and then Scotland lost, boooooo)...
...then strolled past the relatively-recently-cleaned Trevi fountain. Zero wonder that this, too, is always packed.
The next morning, after coffee and a shared prosciutto/mozzarella panino at Giolitti (love!), we headed outside the Aurelian walls to explore some new-to-us stuff, only to find that most of it was, of course, closed on a Monday...so we had some insanely delicious pastries at Pasticceria Bompiani while we waited for the Catacombs of Domitilla to reopen after the lunchtime siesta. The catacombs are fascinating (multiple levels and styles of graves! inscriptions! 3rd-century pre-Christian frescoes supplemented with slightly later Christian ones! a well-preserved 4th-century fresco of the 12 apostles, painted inside an arch!), but considered a sacred space, so naturally, no photography allowed inside.
Instead, I present to you this photo of a tree on the catacomb grounds, which was in full, fluffy bloom. In February.
Then strolled around Piazza Navona, one of the prettiest piazzas of all time...
...before heading to an absolutely stunning dinner at Da Enzo al 29, in Trastevere. Make no mistake, this place is terribly tourist-friendly, and the ambiance not the coziest, but THE FOOD IS ABSOLUTELY, COMPLETELY WORTH IT. Holy smokes. The house bread is kinda like a wheat sourdough and they serve it with their own olive oil, which is quite nice. Then we shared a palla, a fried ball of potato, baccala, and mozzarella, and a carciofo alla giudia, a Roman-Jewish-style artichoke double fried in sunflower oil so as to be SUPER crispy (the only artichoke I've ever loved, frankly); Mike went for the pasta alla gricia (rigatoni with pork cheek, pecorino cheese, eggs, and black pepper), and I had the pasta al sugo di coda (rigatoni with tomato sauce, oxtail, celery, raisins [but not terribly sweet ones], pine nuts, and pecorino); and we decided spur-the-moment to split an order of their meatballs in tomato sauce. (Which was an excellent choice. I've seen Mike have what I call "holy experiences" over his food exactly twice, and once was over these meatballs. I thought he might actually weep as he ate his share.) As if there were still room left in our stomachs, we shared a tasty order of streusel ricotta cheesecake with cherry jam, although the savory dishes were clearly the winners here. Definitely the best food we've had in Rome, and probably some of the best food we've had anywhere in a long time. (And to cap the night off, we wandered into the fantastic little cocktail bar next door, Niji. The guy behind the bar is a downright artist.)
Day 3 began at Giolitti again (because it's the best), and then we strolled past the cat sanctuary (with bonus Roman ruins) at Largo di Teatro Argentina...
This guy was quite happy to groom himself just out of tourist reach.
He lives here. This entire place is a cat sanctuary. (Cats + Roman ruins = swoon.)
...on our way to check out the ruins at Teatro Marcello. Which we've ridden past about a jillion times, but never stopped to see.
There we found the Portico d'Ottavia, built in 27-ish BC on/from an older structure from the mid-2nd century BC; the brick arch was added for stability in either the 191 or 442 (...stupid unintelligible conflicting reports...) AD. This used to be one of three entrances to a massive temple/library/senate-meeting complex, and the portico itself was originally filled with art. (In the Middle Ages, it was used as a fish market. Oh, the indignity.)*
Here's a plaque from that time stating that all heads and fins from fish longer than this sign were to be given to the magistrates. Lucky.
Right next to the portico is the Teatro Marcello, basically a smaller version of the Colosseum. It's pretty impressive on its own.
Super tall, enclosed southwestern side of the theater, complete with random column buried in the wall.
Next stop, San Nicola in Carcere, which was built probably in the early 12th century and incorporates the remaining, really old columns of the temples of Spes (hope personified--the white columns on the front), Juno (left side), and Janus (seen here), which date to the third through first centuries BC. (Carcere means prison, a name which may indicate that the temple ruins underneath the church were used as a prison during Roman times, or possibly the early Dark Ages. So fascinating.)
Apparently, you can visit the bases of the temples underneath the church, but as we couldn't find the gatekeeper,** we had to settle for craning our necks up at the 19th-century ceiling. (I'm really into cobalt blue these days, so I was a fan.)
Inscription dating the dedication of the church to 1128.
Inscription, probably 9th century, describing an offering of livestock and various other items given to the church. On a column. Because what's easier to carve on than a round, fluted thing?
Columns from the Temple of Spes.
About a block away is what's left of the Casa dei Crescenzi, one of the best (and fanciest) examples of Medieval Roman architecture in existence. (There's not much left, thanks to Mussolini-and-friends' penchant for excavating imperial Rome at the expense of everything on top.)
Built during the 11th century by Nicola Crescenzi (or so the lengthy inscription over the door would have us believe)...
...this thing has some utterly insane details on it. It's incredible.
Next, we entirely skipped the stupid-ridiculous line at the Mouth of Truth (I can see it from here, thanks!)...
...and instead ducked into Santa Maria in Cosmedin, the ancient church whose front wall it adorns. It was in here, on Valentine's Day, that we discovered an actual reliquary of St. Valentine. Who knew?? And also, how hilarious is that?? Best Valentine's Day discovery ever. (He's a little fuzzy, yes, but he was far away, and it was quite dark in that chapel.)
There is so much going on in this building, historically, I can't even tell you. A decent amount of this place was built by Pope Hadrian I in the late 8th century...on the remnants of a Roman temple, of course (...and later, a 6th-century welfare center for the poor). Externally, there are 4th-century columns and arcades, 7th-century wall remnants, a 12th-century bell tower, and the 18th-century facade; inside, there are more reused 4th-century columns (some topped with even older Roman capitals), 11th-century frescoes, and the 13th-century stone floor and marble furnishings. It's a treasure trove, and we didn't even get to go in the crypt 'cause it was closed that day. Next time there will be no stopping me.
See??
Thirteenth-century marble pulpit, with bonus 11th-century frescoes (top) and a revealed patch of the 6th-century building predating Hadrian's church in the background (that little cross-shaped bit on the left).
Exquisite marble floors.
Next, we tromped up the Aventine hill for a look at Santa Sabina, a 5th-century church that has more-or-less survived intact, with the exception of its mosaics, for which it was renowned in olden tymes. To my everlasting shame, I somehow missed in its entirety the giant, ancient mosaic inscription declaring the founder of the church. I blame the lighting. (Bright afternoon light streaming into a cavernous space via very small windows, making some things dark as night and placing some under a spotlight. But really, it was that I was totally fascinated by this stupid plaster replica of an early Christian altar screen, when what I should have been looking at was in the shadows behind me. Note to self: if you return to this church, go in the morning. Ugh.)
Anyway.
Obligatory nave shot. That fresco at the far end is from a redecoration occurring the 16th century, and it was the only one preserved after the re-remodeling of the church to its earlier form in the 1930s.
They did have some pretty amazing medieval tombstones in the floor. This one's from 1375.
This one's also from the 13th century, and is covered in tiny mosaic.
Immediately outside Santa Sabina is this gorgeous little orange garden, which is surrounded by this positively ancient wall and is pretty and peaceful enough on its own...
...but it's got a view, too. Sheesh.
Strolled back down the hill towards the Forum, past the Circus Maximus...
...and past this, of course.
Took a little detour to explore some new territory by walking behind Trajan's forum, where the views are also quite excellent.
Trajan's forum from the 13th-century Casa dei Cavalieri di Rodi. (Yeah, that's knights.)
Have I mentioned that I love this city?
Also ducked into the Roman ruins under the Trevi fountain, which, I'll be honest, aren't as exciting as they'd have you believe. But there's a small collection of coins and ceramics found in the area, as well as this Roman reservoir from the second century, still covered in its original plaster and still holding water.
Heading back to our B&B, we stumbled across the lovely, late-19th-century Galleria Sciarra, which was also new to us.
Dinner that night was at Osteria il Sostegno, a cozy little place just around the corner from the Pantheon, with surprisingly good food for being in such a heavily-touristed area. I started with a divine salad of radicchio, avocado, Parmiggiano, walnuts, and balsamico, then had a plate of eggplant pasta all'arrabbiata; and Mike started with the carbonara (best we've had, I think, 'cause the bacon is crispy!!), then had the veal saltimbocca. We shared sides of white beans with onion and celery, and chickpeas with rosemary and chile, then split a tiramisu for dessert. Excellent.
The next morning, Mike left early and flew to the US, and I had a cappuccino and a couple of castagnoli--essentially, donut holes that make their appearance before Easter/during Carnevale. I had one filled with ricotta and one made with rum, although why that made it pink, I have no idea. (It didn't taste boozy at all, and was definitely the tastier of the two, although if someone offered me free ricotta castagnoli for life, I wouldn't say no...)
Yes, please.
And then, it was back to Zürich for me. A la prossima, Roma.
Yeah, that's right. Rome forever.
Up next: Fasnacht in Lucerne. Amazing.
*The Portico also happens to be located in the former Jewish ghetto, which was created in 1555 and lasted until 1870, and resulted in the inevitable crushing poverty and unlivable conditions that generally arise when one walls off a portion of the population in a floodplain and then essentially strips them of human and civic rights (and that's not even mentioning what the Nazis did here). It was nearby that the Jewish residents were rounded up and required to listen to Christian sermons, but stuffed their ears with cotton or wax so as to resist (excellent). Nowadays it's a beautiful and trendy part of town, but filled with reminders of yet another example of man's cruelty to those different from himself.
**OR the keymaster, or whatever you want to call the person who lets you into the locked crypt. DANGIT.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.