Buon giromo...

So what do you do when you have under 6 hours in Rome? First be glad you have been before and don't feel the need to try "to see Rome" or to stand in any lines. In the end we visited old favourites and watched people. So Dan I did bring along all your suggestions, but the only church we stopped at was San Marcello as we walked between the Pantheon and Piazza Navona.

Rome is Rome when it comes to tourists...just like in Paris the locals are always tripping over us tourists. But today was a Monday and it seemed to us just a few less tourists than we remembered, even though there were 7 cruise ships tied up in the port of Civitavecchia.

So the bus dropped us off in front of St. Peter's Square where we briefly joined a line just to walk through the Basilica...because it is so impressive and when in Rome...but decided...nope, it might be 30 minutes or so...too long when we have already walked through the Basilica before ...so on we went to the Trevi Fountain area...to just walk the town and hang out.
 
 
 
Did you ever wonder what happened to the all the coins that folks throw over their shoulders into the fountain to guarantee they will return to the Eternal City? Probably a burning question that you haven't looked up on Dr. Google. This morning we arrived early enough to find the minders of the fountain out with their vacuum cleaner vacuuming up the weekend haul. And a good one it looked like.

The crowd milled around talking selfies and muttering to themselves. They really didn't want to pitch coins that would be just vacuumed up...really spoils the legend...the minders needed to get done so the coin toss could continue uninhibited without the vacuuming image in mind. Plus some were worried they might hit the minders with their wild tosses.

Anyhow the restoration is all completed, the fence is down, Trevi Fountain looks its magnificent self again and one is no longer charged to view and throw a coin. The largest and most famous Baroque fountain in Rome once again takes its place in the top ten sites for tourists.

Our next stop was to the bottle shop we had visited before and we bought wine. Wine aboard Emerald Princess starts at $35 US a bottle....which we think is steep for very ordinary wine...or for that matter any dinner wines. And given we have many sea days after we leave Italy we decided...it is back to the water bottles filled with wine. The rules are that passengers are not allowed to bring bottles of wine onboard. But today we just had a bottle in the backpack...and it seems if there are hundreds of passengers all returning it is not something they are going to really make a fuss about...I mean really after you pay $$$ for the cruise in the first place. Anyhow it was nice to sit on the deck and have a glass of wine after traipsing around Rome.

Of course I have to admit it was a bit awkward when the waiter in the restaurant where we had a bite to eat came running after us with the bag containing our two empty bottles of wine, still finely wrapped by the bottle store. No we hadn't forgotten them...the wine was already in our water bottles. Of course it did occur to us that if we got thirsty for water in the afternoon all we had was wine.

When you are strolling back south east to St Peter's Square from the Spanish Steps/Trevi Fountain area of Rome you suddenly turn a corner and in the midst of all the 4 story buildings is the magnificent Pantheon. It was the same as the first time we visited...walking the twisting cobblestone streets in this area of Rome with churches, courtyard fountains and statues...and then coming upon the Pantheon...is the closest I have felt like I was stepping backward in time. And this is despite the crazy traffic, the hoards of tourists and all the souvenir stalls.
 
  
 
The Pantheon was first built 2,000 years ago and reconstructed by Hadrian in 80 A.D. in the form we saw today. If you have been there you know how impressive the dome is...with a diameter and height the same...142 ft. Today we stood under the portico beside one of the 16 massive columns supporting it to get some shade.

We visited it at the right time...around 11:00 am when the sun was high enough in the sky. The vault's only light comes through an opening in the dome. In one of my photos I caught the halo of light that illuminates the interior of the Pantheon. They say you can see the Pantheon in 15 minutes, but will remember it for a lifetime. I agree...this was our fourth visit...and perhaps not our last.

Onward we went down narrow streets until we came to Piazza Navona which is our favourite in Rome...as it is with most travellers. The restoration of the three intricate Baroque fountains is complete, the pigeons are back (can't understand why people feel them, get into the midst of the flock and take photos) and everything seemed to be in full swing. The outdoor cafe surrounding the Piazza were doing a good business. We had a bite to eat, checked our email and watched the world go by. But we didn't indulge in much beer...twice as expensive as anywhere else in Rome. As Gary says...the cafes rent space to you for sitting and it comes with with a high overhead. I have posted several photos from there. Oh yes I was bench sitting and struck up a conversation with a chap from Boston...and of course asked him if he had voted before he left home...nope because his vote wasn't needed because his state always votes Democratic. My poll will continue....

I like to take photos of people taking selfies for some reason...and today when I looked at my photos I found a group of three nuns were busy in several of the same spots we were in...taking selfies. They had started at St. Peter's Square and worked their way over to the Piazza Navona when it was time for us to get ourselves back to the Vatican to pick up our bussy back to the ship.. Not sure where they were from but they were having a wonderful time. I expect Rome and the Vatican must be pretty high on their personal travel destinations.

Arrived back at St Peter's Square, over the Tiber River, in time to watch several groups of pilgrims make their way up the street toward the Basilica. Interesting one group chanting their way along the route was from China. We have bike lanes, the Vatican has pilgrim lanes. The sun had come out and the dome of the Basilica magnificently dominated the scene...a place worth the pilgrimage, however you go about it.
 
Arrivederci Rome. We are now cruising south-east parallel to the Italian coastline through the Tyrrhenian Sea towards Naples.

Ciao for tonight
Doreen