italy 2009 part 2

ITALY 2009Part 2 Roma and Tivoli

Continuing from Firenze to RomaThe passing countryside

WE ARRIVE

The Ubiquitous Motor Scooter

The Crowds

Our Location

We stayed at the Visconti Palace Hotel. It is located just off of the “Flume Tevere” (Tiber River) and not far from the “Citadel Vaticono” (Vatican City).

On the next slide, a map of the area, you can identify our location by the red teardrop with the “A” inside.

Our Location

• On the day following our arrival, there was to be a ceremony elevating someone to sainthood. Consequently, on our arrival we found a large group of people from Hawaii staying at the Hotel. They were part of a choir that was going to participate in the ceremonies. They wore distinctive clothing identifying themselves as part of their group and seemed to change costumes several times a day. They departed by the end of our second day.

Our Itinerary

• We will take a tour of some of the famous places in Rome.

• Then we will visit Tivoli.• Lastly, we will wander around some of the

streets and sights of Rome before departing for home.

The Vatican

The Pope’s Residence

The Pope lives in an apartment on the right side of the building on the top two floors. He makes public appearances from one of

the four windows in that location.

Fountain in St. Peter’s Square

The ever present Obelisk

Panning around the Piazza

The Trevi Fountain

The Fountain at Trevi

• The day we arrived, they were cleaning the fountain so you will not see any water.

• You can get an idea of the size by looking at the workman in the pictures.

• The song “Three Coins in the Fountain” is from the movie showcasing the fountain.

• You will also see them scooping up all the coins.

Scooping up the money

Note the stones in the piazza around the fountain. The significance will be explained later.

Rochelle looks up to what the Guide is Describing

An Unusual Roman Church

Rochelle Prepares to Enter

Behind the traditional façade, it is round.

Note the statues on each side,

Some of the Art

See the “Roman” Centurians

The Obelisk

Our Guide in Roma

Smiling for the Camera

Another Piazza

Another Fountain with Statues

The other side of the Piazza

Some of the Art for Sale in the Piazza

Obelisk in Another Piazza

The carving on the obelisk is a helical spiral. It tells the story of great battles won. All of the obelisks have some kind of

decoration and some story to tell.

TIVOLI• We will visit two places in Tivoli.• First we will visit the “Villa D’Este”, the

Summer palace of the Pope for eight years. It is structurally standing but decayed in parts. The grounds are in reasonable shape. It has 300 fountains.

• Next we will visit the complex of the emperor Adrian. It is in ruins. It is much older than the Villa and stripped of all its marble.

Modern Day Tivoli

Our Transportation to Tivoli

Interior Mosaics and Frescos

Some Exterior Views of the Palace

This is steeper than it appears. One of our party fell and skinned her knees on descent.

The Fountains begin

Countryside from Villa D’Este

To help appreciates Adrian’s residence, let’s look at a model of what the original looked like.

Our Tivoli Guide

• We are going to look at a piece of that last slide again.

• When we do, note the square cut stones. This is the oldest and most primitive construction method used by the Romans. The stones were cut square using hand tools by stone masons.

• Next, the Romans learned how to bake bricks and this was easier than cutting stones.

• Lastly, they used concrete mining what we call Portland cement from the sides of Mt. Vesuvius.

See the stones, surmounted by brick which in turn supports masonry. All methods were used at this location over the time

span in which it was built.

On to the ruins

A local resident of the ruins

Partially surviving mosaic

Back to Rome

• That concludes our visit to Adrian’s palatial complex.

• We will conclude with a random walk through the streets of Rome

Walking along the Tiber near our Hotel

Also near our hotel

A Department Store

Ceiling of the Store

Arriverderci Roma

FINI