Et Cetera

On this page I've displayed a few pictures of various places in Rome that we visited. No real connection between any of them other than they are in Rome and so was I. A few of them were so touristy that I rapidly lost interest and left.

The Castel Sant'Angelo at night viewed from the Victor Immanuel III Bridge. It was built as a mausoleum by the Emperor Hadrian in 135-139 AD for his ashes and those of his wife after their death. It was converted into a military fortress and incorporated into the Aurelian Wall in 401 AD. Later it was taken over by the Christian church and used as a refuge for the Pope during the recurring invasions of Rome. Today it is a museum for the Vatican. The current name for the structure is connected with the legend that the Archangel Michael was observed above the building sheathing his sword in 590 AD. This was considered an announcement from heaven that the plague decimating Rome had come to an end.

The Fontana di Trevi (Trevi Fountain) has starred in all too many syrupy movies about lovers in Rome. It's located at the terminal point of one of the ancient aqueducts bringing fresh water to Rome from the countryside. The present fountain, measuring 85 feet high by 65 feet wide is the largest Baroque fountain in Rome. It dates back to 1762 when it's construction was ordered by Pope Clement XII. The tiny piazza surrounding it was absolutely overflowing with tourists on our visit, making it difficult to get any kind of picture. A sizable quantity of coins get tossed in this fountain because the average tourist knows little more about Rome than that. An estimated 3000 Euro is scraped out of the fountain by city workers daily. The money funds a free supermarket for the poor in Rome.

A lot of times, tourists miss the most interesting things. If the people hanging around the Trevi Fountain would turn around and look behind them, they'd see this interesting old church, the Chiesa dei Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio. In 2002, Pope John Paul II made a gift of this church to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. It now serves as the parish church for all members of the Bulgarian Orthodox faith in Rome. It was renamed St. Cyril e Methodius. I found some pictures of the interior on the internet and regret not entering it. Next time......

The acronym SPQR is frequently encountered on public buildings in Rome and in old Cecil B. DeMille movies. It stands for "Senatus Populusque Romanus" (The Senate and People of Rome). Some visitors disagree and insist that it stands for "Sono pazzi questi Romani" (These Romans are Crazy.)

The Scalinata della Trinità dei Monti (The Spanish Steps) were built in 1723 to connect the Spanish embassy (still located at the piazza below) to the church Trinità dei Monti. Its 138 steps make up the longest widest staircase in Europe. No, I did not go up it. The fountain in the foreground is the Fontana della Barcaccia (Fountain of the Old Boat) from 1627. The throng of tourists at this site guaranteed my short visit. It was predominately raucous young people.

After you get through having your picture made with a Roman soldier, you can go for a ride in a horse-drawn carriage. There were a couple of dozen of them waiting.

At the right end of Piazza di Spagna stands the Colonna dell'Immacolata. This ancient column was placed here in 1800 by Pope Pius IX to mark the promulgation of the Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception. The original statue at the top was replaced by one of the Virgin Mary.

Base of the column. At the annual celebration of this monument every December 8, a Roman fireman climbs the column to place a wreath on the statue at the top. The person doing it is emulating Pope Pius IX who personally climbed the column to place the wreath.

All that remains of Hadrian's Temple are eleven of the original fifteen columns which measure 49 feet high. It was erected in 145 AD by his son and successor as emperor Antoninus Pius when the latter realized that his father had become a god. In the 17th century, the row of columns was incorporated into a building of that era (wall on right). More recently, the monument was used to anchor the building on the left, which is occupied by the Italian Stock Exchange and the Roman Chamber of Commerce. A typical recycling act in Rome.

The footings of the columns are exposed. This landmark is located in Piazza Pietra (the plaza of stones) which was paved with stones taken from the original temple.

One of the most ubiquitous sites in Rome are these street fountains which dribble out water constantly. Some people wash their feet in them, some drink the water, and some of the better mannered dogs roaming the streets use them as latrines.

The Colonna di Marco Aurelio (Column of Marcus Aurelius) is located appropriately in Piazza di Colonna. It was erected around 176 AD to celebrate that emperor's life-long struggle and victories against the barbaric tribes around the Danube. The construction is similar to that of Trajan's Column shown on the Imperial Forums page.

At one end of Piazza Colonna stands the Wedekind Palace built in 1852 on the site of the demolished Temple of Marcus Aurelius. It was used by Mussolini's Fascist Party during the 1920s. Today it houses Il Tempo, the largest Italian newspaper.

This is Via dell'Umilta, a street of little consequence except that I had an appointment at an address on this street and had to spend a good deal of time finding it.

Then behind a very plain facade on the small street, I found a doorway with a telephone next to it which I used to gain entry to the Pontifical North American College housed at Casa Santa Maria. This seminary provides courses and residence for American seminary students nearing completion of their studies and being ordained into the priesthood. The College also runs the Bishop's Office for U.S. Visitors to the Vatican. That was my destination to pick up our tickets to the Papal Audience scheduled the following day. We had an enjoyable visit with Sister Maria, the current administrator, and I was able to guzzle down a few bottles of iced mineral water to offset the effects of the 95+ degree day. This is the central patio of Casa Santa Maria.

Considering the current state of the American economy and my personal finances, we figure we'll have to make some alterations in our living style if we ever get enough shrinking American dollars together for another trip.


Open air accommodations can be reasonably comfortable during the summer in Rome. There's always those street fountains for tidying up.	If I can talk Christa into doing a modest amount of work like this, we can probably collect enough each day for a decent restaurant meal. If not, there's always that free supermarket for the poor financed by the Trevi Fountain.