Rome: Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, Piazza Navona, Castel Sant'Angelo and the Pope!

Castel Sant'Angelo

My stay in Rome was hectic and intense, but I was able to visit a few sights I'd neglected during previous visits. After getting settled in a guesthouse near Termini train station, I headed out on bus 64 to Torre Argentina, near the Pantheon. I know this area well, and headed directly to Piazza della Minerva, most noted for Bernini's statue of an elephant with an obelisk on its back.

Pulcino della Minerva

This time I wanted to visit the church behind the statue, Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, so called because it was built over a temple to the goddess Minerva. The church was built in a gothic style, and was modeled after Florence's Santa Maria Novella. One of the highlights here is Michelangelo's marble sculpture Cristo della Minerva, also known as Christ Carrying the Cross, made in 1521. The cloth covering his private parts was added later.

Cristo della Minerva

My next stop was Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, noted for its unique suite of private family apartments and its art gallery, with works by Caravaggio, Rafael, and Titian among the 550 in the family collection. An audio guide by Prince Jonathan Doria Pamphilj, the current heir,  provided an intimate family history that was an enjoyable addition.

Next, as I headed towards Piazza Navona, I noticed a crowd gathered on one of the streets. I couldn't see what was happening, so asked someone about it, and learned that the Pope was saying Mass at the Basilica di Sant'Agostino, celebrating the Feast of St. Augustine. Since it was impossible to see through the crowd, I continued on, only to find another crowd on the next street, lined up and waiting for the Pope to come by. I was able to get in the front line, and sure enough,  a normal black car with the Pope drove by, surrounded by security guards. I caught the event on video, with Pope Francis waving from his window.

This is one of the things that I love about being in Rome: you never know what might happen, just around the corner. I've witnessed some amazing events that I could never have planned for, just by being in the right place at the right time.

After that, I spent some time hanging out in Piazza Navona, enjoying the music and art that is a common event in this popular Roman spot.

Piazza Navona

My last stop on this LONG day, which had included a transatlantic flight from home, was visiting Castel Sant'Angelo, where they were giving night tours of the fortress, originally built by Hadrian as his family mauseleum. Later, it was used by the popes as a fortress, prison and castle, and it's now a museum.

View of St. Peter's Basilica from Castel Sant'Angelo

One of the most interesting parts of the tour was being able to enter a secret passageway that led from the fortress to the Vatican. You can see from the photo above that it's no short distance. Now read on:

"The Passetto di Borgo is an elevated passageway some 800 metres in length that passes evocatively above the bustle of the everyday world as it runs along the top of the walls that used to surround and protect the Leonine city, connecting the Castle to the palaces in the Vatican. The walkway was added to the wall so that the Popes could reach their private apartments in the Castle without descending to street level, but more importantly so that they could escape from the Vatican in case of impending danger." This info comes from the following site, which has more photos:

Notti d'estate a Castel Sant'Angelo

I walked part of the way along the passetto, then returned to the Castel for a free concert, which was another surprise. A lovely performance that included music by Puccini, Gershwin and Morricone, among others, was held in an open room atop the fortress. About 11 pm, I decided I'd had enough for one day and boarded a bus that took me across town and back to Termini. From there I had a short walk to my hotel, where I crashed, satisfied by the full day I had spent enjoying Rome.

Skies over the Bay of Naples

Sunset over the Bay of Naples, view from the terrace of my B&B in Ercolano

 Just a few words about my travels so far:

Rome was intense! Three days of basically non-stop activity, culminating in a loooong wedding feast in the Alban Hills. Today I arrived in Ercolano, and it's a much different scene here. I'm staying at a B&B on the slope leading to Mount Vesuvius, and there's an incredible view of the Bay of Naples from the terrace outside my door. I'm the only one using the guesthouse this weekend, so it's like having a large apartment to myself, complete with a full kitchen, a dining and living room area, and a huge terrace overlooking the owner's grapevines.

Tonight I witnessed the production of some 30 pizzas, as the owners of the B&B, Alessandra and Vincenzo, prepared a meal for me and a group of five families, with eight children among them. Earlier in the afternoon, I saw several women in the kitchen, preparing the pizza dough in small spheres and letting them rise. The father and son duo got the fire started in the outdoor oven, and as the pizzas were prepared, the son slid them into the waiting oven to bake.

Into the oven they go!

3 minutes for a simple margherita pizza, with slices of mozzarella, a handful of sliced cherry tomatoes, and a few leaves of basil. Add a sprinkling of homemade olive oil, and the pizza is ready to fire. It's not the pizza that Americans tend to eat, heavy with sauce, cheese and meat. But this is the pizza I enjoy: simple and incredibly tasty. YUM!

La pizza margherita

Before coming to Ercolano, I had to change trains in Naples, and decided to take the time to leave the train station so I could buy some sfogliatelle....the many layered pastry that Naples is famous for. I bought two kinds: one that has a limoncello filling, and another with a pear and ricotta filling. I've saved them all day for dessert, but now I'm too full to eat them! A domani!

Sfogliatelle Napolitane

There was also an incredible feast at the wedding last night, but I managed to eat lightly, even though there were many courses and the food was delectable. Tonight, the B&B owners prepared two kinds of pizza for me, and I felt as if I couldn't refuse....but it was too much!

Dinner under the pergola

It's 11 pm and the families are still going strong, under the pergola of grapevines. But it's time for me to hit the hay. Tomorrow I'll spend the day visiting ruins in Ercolano and Pompeii....hopefully I can walk some of the pasta off. Let's hope so! And sometime soon, I'll post stories about my time in Rome.

A bit of Rome in Kansas City

Fauno rosso, Roman, 2nd century C.E. Red marble, 66 inches (167.5 cm).

During my recent visit to the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum in Kansas City to see an exhibit of Frida Kahlo's work, there were several other exhibitions that we went to see. The most impressive was the statue of the Fauno Rosso (Red Faun), on loan from the Capitoline Museum in Rome. It was created in the 2nd century B.C. and it's the first time the statue has crossed the Atlantic Ocean. The statue, sculpted from red marble, was originally found in 1736 at Villa Adriana (Hadrian's Villa) in Tivoli, Italy. There were only a few pieces of it at the time, and shortly after its discovery, two Roman sculptors were hired at the newly opened Capitoline Museum to fashion a sculpture out of the found pieces. Since I've been to both places, Villa Adriana and the Capitoline Museum, it was a pleasant surprise to be reminded of those visits by the presence of the Fauno Rosso in a place of honor at the Nelson.

Fauno Rosso

Another exhibit that I was eager to see was this:

Rodin: Sculptures from the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation

It seems as if they have a different Rodin exhibit every year at the Nelson, and I've seen quite a few. But now I'm spoiled! After visiting the Rodin Museum in Paris last fall, the bronze casts simply pale in comparison to the original marble works that I was able to view in Paris. Many of the sculptures at the Nelson were small, bronze casts from replicas of Rodin's originals, so the real majesty of Rodin's work is lost. It made me realize how fortunate I was to have had the chance to see Rodin's original works in Paris, and that I'm eager to see them again! Sigh: now only the real thing will do!

All roads lead to Rome!

photo by Greenery

Summer is winding down, you say? Well, here the heat has returned in brute force, pushing the thermometer steadily towards the 100's. Students have returned, adding 20,000 + to the population of our city. The streets are crowded with young adults and their inattentive, aggressive driving habits. Ugh! The garden is waning, the outdoor pool is closing, and schools are in session. A good time to head for Italy!

My first stop is Rome, and I've been looking at options for what to do during my three day stay. I often stay with friends, but they'll be out of town this time, so I'm on my own for most of my stay. On the final day, however, I'll be attending a wedding, and will spend the afternoon and evening at that event, visiting with my friends from Modena. Their son, Tiziano, is marrying a Roman woman, and she also happens to be a famous rock singer (in Europe and South America), so it could really be interesting. As for what to do the other days, I have a few options:

Doria Pamphili Gallery, one of the larger and better art galleries in Rome that I've not yet visited.  It has an immense gallery of art from a family collection, and is housed in the palazzo where a member of the family still lives. The ornately decorated rooms are beautifully maintained and many are recently restored.

museo doria pamphili

Castel Sant'Angelo is giving night tours, which could be interesting, and there's an English language tour at 10:30 pm the day I arrive. Though I've spent a lot of time in Rome before, I've rarely been out at night, and never on my own. So this could be an interesting course to follow. And there's a great view from the terrace! The fortress was built as a mausoleum for the Emperor Hadrian (AD130-139), but it has also been a prison and a papal residence. Some Popes even hid there for protection in times of danger. There is a covered passageway which still connects Castel Sant'Angelo to the Vatican, and this would be on the evening tour! Castel Sant'Angelo now houses a museum with a variety of exhibits, including Renaissance paintings and pottery.

Castel Sant'Angelo, 2012

Cinecittà, the famous Italian movie studio, is giving tours of their facilities south of the city, and it'd be fun to see where Fellini and other famous Italian directors made their movies. Many American and British productions have also been filmed there, including Ben Hur and Scorsese's Gangs of New York. Unlike Universal Studios in the U.S., it's NOT a theme park.

Via Appia Antica

I've yet to visit the Baths of Caracalla or Palatino Hill, so they add a few more options. Another trek I'd like to take would be riding a bike on the Appian Way, which I attempted  walking in 2012, but only made it through the first few miles of a 20 mile round-trip journey to the Aqueduct Park outside of Rome. When I have more time and someone to do it with, I'd like spend a day riding the cobbled road. But  this time I may take the metro to the park, and see the other end of the road. Here's more information on this ancient road, which was built in 312 B.C. and originally extended from Rome to Brindisi (on the Adriatic coast), a length of 350 miles.

Via Appia Antica

Aqueduct Park

As always, I'll probably spend time wandering around favorite spots in Rome: the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Pincio Park, the Spanish Steps and Trastevere. While I was housesitting for several years near Rome, I had the chance to spend many days hanging out in the eternal city, but they were mostly day trips. I'm looking forward to being there in the evenings and at night for a change. Should be an adventure!

Frida Feast

Frida Kahlo, self-portrait

One of the highlights of the summer was going to an exhibit featuring the works of  Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and other modern Mexican artists at the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum in Kansas City with my son Jesse. I've long been interested in Frida's work, tortured soul that she was. She painted 60 self-portraits during her lifetime, most of them with a surrealistic flair and powerful iconic images. Her obsession with painting herself was one way to assuage a sense of loneliness and fears of being forgotten. She suffered from polio as a child, and later, was in a horrific accident that broke her back, pelvis and legs. She started painting during long bouts of lying flat in bed, due to body casts and recovery from more than thirty surgeries. Many of her paintings are painful to view, but impressive at the same time, as they give some insight into her difficult experience of life.

Nude with lilies, Diego Rivera

During the next week, we borrowed the DVD Frida from the public library, and made a Mexican feast to enjoy before watching the movie. I made tacos and guacamole, while Jesse was more inventive, creating Stuffed Nopales (cactus) with Black Beans, Cheese, and Roasted Red Peppers (supposedly a favorite of Frida's) and Limones Rellenos de Coco (Coconut-stuffed limes) for dessert. YUM!!!

a Mexican feast

"Feasting" on Frida was a nice way to round out the summer with images and food from Mexico before I head off to Italy again. I'm taking some condiments to make Mexican food while staying with my Italian friends, a unique treat that is often hard to come by in Italy.

Autumn Adventure Agenda: It's a Trade-off

Porta San Niccolo, Firenze

Many people say they envy my travels in Italy, or perhaps it's the freedom to be able to travel that they wish for. I wonder if they would feel the same if they understood how complicated it can be at times to travel on my own by public transport when it involves working online during my journey. For several years, I was able to housesit for several months, which made things much simpler. I had a place to leave my luggage while I visited friends, and reliable internet access. But this year, I don't have that option and had to figure out another way to manage working while I travel.

Case in point: I'm currently planning a two-month stay in Italy this fall. Seems simple enough. My main focus this trip is to spend a week in Ischia, a small island off the coast of Naples. A Roman friend went there last year and reported that it was very inexpensive during the month of September. Since it's near the ruins of Ercolano (Herculaneum) and Pompeii, I also want to spend a few days exploring those sites, where in 79 AD the two cities were buried by a catastrophic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius.

As it turns out, the low season in Ischia doesn't start until after the 10th of September, and I'll be there from Sept. 2-9, wouldn't you know? I'd had my eye on an inexpensive B&B, with a view of the sea, but waited too long to book it, and missed out. Instead, I'll be staying at a more costly hotel, which is much less inviting. But I'll have time to explore Ischia and Procida, a smaller island nearby. Ischia is relatively unknown to American travelers, but Italians and Germans often vacation there to enjoy the beaches and thermal spas. 

The trick is that I will have to work online for nearly three weeks, starting the third week in September, so I need a place to stay in Italy with secure, reliable internet access during that time. Or I could take a 3-week trip to Italy, and come home in time to work. After looking at the cost of airfare, I decided to opt for the longer stay, to make it worth my while. I found a good deal on a spacious apartment in Florence in the San Niccolo quartiere, an area with many lovely parks, and booked it for a month. That left me with three weeks to travel and visit friends, but which ones, and where?

I've been invited to a wedding in Rome during the last week of August, which set my departure time. My friend Marco's son  is getting married to a Roman lass, and it will be a festive occasion to visit with his family again. I've visited Marco and his wife Marvi several times at their home in Modena, and they stayed with me in Zagarolo in 2011. I can also visit my Roman friends Lidia and Carlo. A few days in Rome seems sufficient, so from there I plan to go by train to Ercolano for the weekend, which will also serve as a base to visit Pompeii. I've booked an inexpensive B&B in Mt. Vesuvius National Park. It's too far from the train station to walk, so I'm hoping the owners can provide transportation. After Ercolano, I travel by train back to Naples, and then by ferry to Ischia. During that first week, I'll have some online work to complete, so made sure to book lodging with internet access, which is not always a given in Italy.

The main hassle is that I need to haul two computers (one for backup) with me on my travels, and clothes for several seasons, which means more luggage than is easy to manage when going by train, bus and ferry. I'm in my 60's now, and even though I'm in good shape, it's a hassle to haul around several suitcases, not to mention the worry of traveling with several computers. Sometimes I've been able to leave one of my bags with friends while I travel, but I'm not sure it's possible this time. I try my best to minimize as much as possible, but I'll still end up with one 26" suitcase, a 13"computer case, and a small backpack. At least the suitcases are on wheels, but that's no help when you have to haul them up and down long staircases at the train stations.

After Ischia, I've been invited to visit my friend Lucia in Trentino-Alto Adige. She's recently moved to a different village, and I'm eager to see her again, in the mountains of northern Italy. I've visited Lucia and her daughter Marta several times in the past, and am hoping they can visit me in Florence this year.

Trentino-Alto Adige, 2011

After Trento, I'll stop in Bologna for a few days to visit Massimo, Sofia and Erika. They visited me in Zagarolo last year and now it's my turn to visit them again. Parma will be the next stop, to visit friends Renata and Pietro. I stayed with them for a few days last year and they took me to the city of Lerici, on the Ligurian coast, while I was there. After Parma, I head to Firenze for a month.

Lerici, Liguria, 2012

Another option that's presented itself is the chance to visit Piran, Slovenia. My friend Gianluigi and his wife Hilda have offered me the use of their vacation apartment in Piran, if I would like to go there during my stay in Italy. And by a strange coincidence, another Italian friend just returned from Piran and told me how wonderful the town is! It's on the Adriatic coast, across the sea from Venice. I'd need to go to Padova to get the key from Gianluigi, then travel by train to Trieste, and by bus from Trieste to Piran. I'd like to go, but it will be a hassle with my luggage, and I'm not sure I'm up to it. We'll see.

Here's a map of the areas I'll be going to (the route to Piran is added for fun):

Before I leave home, I'll arrange my train travels and buy my tickets online. It saves so much hassle in Italy! In the past, I'd go to the train stations to buy tickets, which inevitably involves waiting in a long line. Online, I can get cheaper tickets, and can have them sent by SMS to my Italian cell phone. So much simpler!

Traveling around Italy can be exciting and rewarding, especially when visiting friends, but it's also wearisome at times. If I could travel with one small bag, and didn't have to worry about working or internet access, I'd be much freer to explore options like traveling to Piran. So for those who might envy me, just keep in mind that there's always a trade-off. If I don't work, I can't afford to travel, so I'm thankful for the online jobs. And working online gives me the freedom to travel for months at a time. Overall, it's been worth it to deal with the hassles so I can enjoy the many rewards of traveling in Italy.

Lazy Summer Days

flowers and homemade mosaics in my backyard

Well, basically, I'm being lazy this summer. My busy spring work season starts in February and ends the last week of June. Working two online jobs at once is often stressful and leaves little time for play. But I get so much done when I'm busy! After that, things start winding down, and won't pick up again until late September. During July and August, I have a light work load, and once I start enjoying my free time, I find myself avoiding the computer. Instead, I swim laps at the outdoor pool, read a stack of novels, watch DVDs from the library, hang out with my son and my friends, water the flower and vegetable gardens and ride my bike every evening. It's glorious!

a view of the back patio

In contrast to last year, which was so hot that we had no tomatoes, and I wasn't around to plant flowers, this year my yard is lush with beauty and produce. We had a cool, wet June, for a change. I've been making pesto every week for a month, and have also given away bags of basil leaves to my friends from my prolific plants. Cherry tomatoes are ready to eat, and romas are getting plump on the vine. Zucchine flowers have been blooming for weeks, so we'll soon have fresh squash to eat.

orchids in full bloom

I'm happy to have time to enjoy the nearby parks, well-maintained with eye-catching flower displays.

artistic entrance to South Park

downtown flowers with my bike in the background

I'm enjoying these lazy summer days and making plans for my upcoming trip to Italy. I'll be there for two months, and will travel to some new and interesting sights. More on that soon. A presto!

a bouquet of larkspur and yarrow from a friend