Veni, Vidi, Vici....

...Well Caesar we tried.

I think we succeeded with the first two but did not manage the third.

Today we returned to the Campo dei Fiori to have a look at the open air market. The literal translation of Campo dei Fiori is "Field of Flowers" and along with the usual food related stalls there are some flower stalls.

Perhaps the market was a little less spectacular than seen elsewhere but it is reputed to be the longest surviving open air market in the centre of Rome.

Special price! Marked up from 6 euro to 10!

The prices of some of the items were more than the those at the local market near our apartment but there was a nice vibrant atmosphere.

We then walked over a bridge to the other side of the Tiber to an area known as Trastevere which in truth was a little disappointing so after a cafe style roadside lunch we took a tram back to one of the main shoppinmg strips near to the Trevi Fountain.

I left Sherry to potter around these shops while I walked to the Vatican area to a shop where we had seen something yesterday but had not bought but which on reflection we wanted.

An hour and half later I arrived back with feet a little sorer than when I had left but with the parcel firmly in the backpack.

After an afternoon tea we walked back to our apartment arriving in around 5pm.

There were 2 transport mishaps today - catching the bus to Campo we arrived at the terminal to see the 175 ready to leave so jumped on however this bus did not have the cash box machine on board so we couldn't buy tickets so we traveled in trepidation of the inspector getting on and bellowing "All tickets please".

Not making the same mistake twice before we got on the tram I bought 2 tickets at the tobacconist - along comes the tram, on we get, into the machine goes the ticket "REJECT INVALID TICKET" (it was in Italian but the meaning was very obvious). 

I had bought 2 bus/metro tickets not tram tickets - thankfully no conductor got on that tram either!

Impressions of Rome

• Hectic traffic
• Chaos
• Lots of people of all races and nationality
• Generally friendly people
• Narrow cobblestone streets in places
• Easy to get around
• Nice restaurants
• Amazing sights

Are the streets clean and tidy?
Some are, some aren't

Where do Romans park their cars?
Wherever it takes their fancy

How do you tell a tourist in Rome?
They are all carrying a tourist guide or looking at a map

 Tomorrow we move out of Rome and start our driving tour around Italy and places beyond and we leave behind what must be the largest open air museum in the World.


Whether our postings will be as frequent will depend upon internet access.


Arrivederci Roma, grazie

Viva il Papa...

...Well I would have yelled that out if I had seen him but he didn't show for our appointment so we did the 2nd best thing - we toured the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, St Peter's Square and the Basilica.

The day started with a trip on the Metro from the Termini to the station by the Vatican - it was not a pleasant experience for those of us who are not sardines!

Arrived at the Museum entrance and after sighting the length of the queue was rather glad that we had pre-purchased our entrance tickets - so in we went smiling broadly at those who must have had a 2-3 hour wait in the sun!

Went to take the first photo of the day, that of a Maori waka replica and found that I had failed to insert the memory card into the camera last night and realised it was still in the laptop - thanks to the efficiency of daughter there were another two memory cards in the camera bag so after raising a quick sweat my temperature returned to normal.

The next 3 or so hours were spent wandering around the Museums which have some of the best examples of everything that museums have from times past and not all of a religious nature.

The displays are in room after incredibly decorative room - murals on high ceilings above, ornate work around archways etc.

Around lunch time the crowds became very large and the officials implemented a one way system around the museums so you just got into the shoulder to shoulder crowd (some very pushy people one has to say) and went with the flow, a flow that ended up in the Sistine Chapel - for those that have seen it you will understand when I use the word spectacular, for those of you yet to come to Rome put it on your bucket list!  


As you know you are not allowed to take photos in the Sistine Chapel but ain't the ceiling beautiful!

Having been on site for well over 5 hours it was time to move onto St Peter's Square and the Basilica.

We joined a queue for the Basilica that must have been 400 metres long but which moved at such a speed that within 20 minutes we were inside the Basilica.

Words cannot describe the inside of the Basilica - I overheard one lady on her way out say "that was the most amazing thing I have seen in my life" and she might have been right though Stacey Jones' try in the 2002 NRL Grand Final wasn't too shabby!

Back out onto St Peter's Square which one can only imagine the sight it would present when it is crowded and a walk down to Castel Saint 'Angelo beside the River Tiber brought an end (after a more enjoyable Metro ride) to our sightseeing for the day.

We retired to the apartment battered and bruised but not beaten ready to do something similar tomorrow.

Viva il Papa....viva