Rome

We left Florence on Sunday, the 15th of August, otherwise known as Ferragosto, an important holiday (the Assumption of Mary) in Italy. Which means that when we got to Rome, most things were closed, and all the Italians were at the beach. After checking in and eating lunch, Ruth really didn't want to do anything, and it's not surprising considering how hard we'd driven her the day before (and in the rain yet). So we left her resting and went to see the Spanish Steps (not that exciting, and overrun with tourists), then the Trevi Fountain. Now THAT is something else. It looks like a giant chunk of marble was carved in place to create all these fantastic figures and an ornate building behind. Of course, it wasn't really how it happened, but it's a terrific illusion.
Dina had friends in Rome, one of whom works right at the Trevi Fountain, so we hooked up with her, her mother Naomi and her father. We walked to a nearby church, where they said there was something interesting to see, but they wanted it to be a surprise. It was turned out to be an ossuary, which was closed, but we were able to see the church briefly before they threw us out so they could close that as well. After much discussion about what we should see in the following two days, we parted from Dina's friends and headed back to check on Ruth. She didn't want to eat (slightly upset stomach), so we left her again and ate at an Ethiopian restaurant.
The following day, Ruth was fully recovered, so we went to the market at Campo de' Fiori, including the Forno Antiche, reputed by Jeffrey Steingarten (It Must Have Been Something I Ate) to have the best pizza bianca in Rome. It was pretty good, as were the cookies we got there, too. Actually, it was all a stroke of luck, as I had left my notes at the hotel, and didn't even know it was the right place until later. Consequently, we didn't also go to the other bakery close by, reputed to have the best some other kind of bread (don't have my notes again). I'm pretty sure we walked by it, though. We again met up with Naomi and another daughter. This time, they took us by the "French" church with several paintings of the life of Saint Matthew by Caravaggio. And then on to the Pantheon. That place blew me away 40 years ago and still does. Built in 27 BC and rebuilt in 126 AD after being twice destroyed by fire, it was converted into a Christian church in 609, and still stands intact. It has a central oculus, open to the sky, which provides all of the abundant light. If you ever get to Rome and have not seen this, then this, in my opinion, should be your number one stop.
We went to the Vatican and ran into yet another of the family of Dina's friends, one of Naomi's sons-in-law, who ran over to his cart and brought back two booklets of pictures of the ancient Roman monuments, with overlays showing what they think they looked like originally. The line to get into the Sistine Chapel was really long, so we just took pictures of the cute Swiss guards and left. Ruth was getting pretty tired by then, so we rested up, and then walked to a nearby restaurant (Ristorante la Famiglia, which seems to be one of two or three of the same name in the same neighborhood). The food was great, with an amazing antepasto bar, and a very cute waiter.
Our last day in Rome was devoted to the antiquities. Starting with the Colosseum, continuing with the Palatine hill with remains of several palaces, and finishing with the Forum. The tourist book really came in handy, as there was a map, but no signage to help you figure out what you were looking at. The Romans really knew how to build things. And it's great how some have been partially reconstructed enough to figure out what they must have looked at (e.g., a piece of aquaduct). Speaking of aquaducts, one of the really charming things about Rome is the plethora of public fountains, fed by the Roman aquaducts, that provide abundant fresh water to fill your bottles with. And it was HOT, making these a real lifesaver.
Leaving Ruth at the hotel again to rest and pack, we ran a few errands, then came back for dinner, this time at the little restaurant right next to our hotel. The Calo family had wanted us to meet them for pizza, but it is even harder to get them organized than it is to get Lipskys organized, so we finally all agreed it was better for them to come to us after dinner (when they would all be off work) and meet us for coffee. Which meant we were drinking coffee and eating dessert until after 10:00. Not much sleep that night, as Ruth and Dina had an 8:22 train to the airport to catch, and we had our train to Padova, and then on to the Italian Cycling Center in Borso del Grappa.