Roman Grab Bag

We had one planned activity today—the Galleria Borghese—but other than that, we were catching sights as we came across them. And, since this is Rome, we caught a lot of them.

First, here’s the interior of the Pantheon, as promised. Look closely at the architecture of this perfect dome, and then remember that it was built nearly 2,000 years ago. Astonishing!

As we fumbled our way toward the Borghese, we stumbled upon the Trevi Fountain. Carol has been talking about coming back to Italy, and now that she tossed a coin into the fountain, I guess her future itinerary has to include Rome.

We finally found a taxi and made it to the Borghese, a treasure trove of sculpture and paintings. And, as museums go, it’s the perfect size to consume in under two hours.

The highlight is a series of sculptures by Bernini, who also designed the colonnade in front of St. Peter’s Basilica (tune in tomorrow to see that one).

The detail in these sculptures is simply mind-blowing. Look at how he rendered the hand squeezing flesh, as if it’s a real human body, not marble.

The ceiling in every room is also a work of art, and I found more Caravaggios.

The Galleria Borghese sits within the larger Villa Borghese, which today is basically Rome’s Central Park. Today we enjoyed what Accuweather would describe as “sunny and delightful,” so we rented a four-person bike carriage for an hour.

The one unique sight in Rome that I always recommend is a visit to the Capuchin Crypts. When the friars ran out of room in the cemetery hundreds of years ago, they removed all the mortal remains and used the bones to create works of art. So I couldn’t help but take everyone to see it.

Molly used sign language to share her opinion.

From there, we kept reaching into the Roman grab bag:

The Spanish Steps

Molly quenches her thirst at (from) the Fontana della Barcaccia

The Mausoleum of Augustus Caesar

The Tiber

Tomorrow morning, we’re off to see the Pope!