We went back to Rome to prepare for the nightmare flight home and were driven to the train station by an extremely taciturn bloke who was probably grim because he had to drive around Naples for a living! The traffic’s pretty insane and it seems to be a free-for-all so Net was slightly nervous.
I went to the toilet at Napoli Centrali and was worried that it might be some hellish scenario with Camorra-like figures lurking but it was all gleaming and shiny with staff everywhere and piped music; cost 1 Euro (a Euro to urinate!).
The train trip back to Rome was uneventful. At the Galileo hotel the staff remembered us and seemed happy to see us again. Our room was much smaller this time but it was only for one night.
We decided another walk was in order so set off and dropped in to Santa Maria Della Vittoria once again and then checked out the Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri church, which we’d walked past many times but never gone inside before. As we entered, one of the priests was shooing a Gypsy woman away from the front door. Maybe she’d been trying to beg inside the church; there’s usually at least one Gypsy outside every church door but I’ve never seen one inside before, even though they’re probably mainly Christians (most of the Gypsies in Italy are originally from Romania).
The church is amazing and Net was really captivated by its quietness and capaciousness. It was very calming after the chaos and disorder of Naples. The marble floors are fantastically elaborate and the dome is impressive. There’s also a roof that was designed by Michelangelo. The church had an impressive exhibition on Galileo seeking to prove that science and religion can coexist and stressing that Galileo was no atheist. However, it was very light of detail concerning the great man’s persecution by the church. There is a very interesting part of the church, a meridian line set into the marble floor, that was installed in 1702 to tell the time accurately. A small beam of light comes through the roof of the church and shines onto the line, at different times of the year it marks different events like equinoxes and solstices. Fascinating!
Net at Santa Maria degli Angel
There was a preparation for a funeral going on, with huge bouquets of flowers being brought in and a priest getting ready. They were laying out purple robes for him so it must have been a big deal.
We had a late lunch at the restaurant we’d dined at on our first day in Rome and the same one-clawed pigeon turned up again for scraps. We watched a gypsy girl set herself up for begging on the street corner: she got herself comfortable first, with plenty of back support and then she leaned forward with her head on the ground and arms raised up with cupped hands.
We walked back to the church to see if the funeral had happened and saw hearses drive away, laden with flowers. We found out later from the concierge that it was for a TV journalist who’d been killed in a motorbike crash.
Church interior - those green 'marble' columns are actually trompe-l'oeil paintings
I decided I wanted to check out the Rome Museum attached to the church, mainly to see the Baths of Diocletian, so I took Net back to the hotel and then rushed off to see as much as possible before the museum closed. I was slightly disappointed that the baths bit was much smaller than I’d imagined. The museum is very interesting though, with tons of Roman sculptures and some good exhibits inside.
Baths of Diocletian
Sculpture in the Baths of Diocletian
Hardly any Roman heads survived the Dark Ages!
Cat in the grounds of the museum
Back to the hotel to prepare for trip home; the hotel manager guy was very nice: shaking our hands and being quite warm in his farewell to us. The shuttle driver was very curt and drove fast with radio blaring, never once attempting any conversation. We had one last look at the streets and a good look at Rome beyond the tourist spots as the airport is a long way out of the city.
Flying over Rome, we saw the Colosseum and all the other marvels, then over mountains with snow and before we knew it we’d reached the other side of Italy! Then Greek Islands, Serbia, Iran, Pakistan, India and finally Thailand and Bangkok. The 20 hour flight was gruelling and ghastly but we survived with no sleep for 32 hours.
Now we have to get back to reality after 6 weeks of exciting adventures!
I went to the toilet at Napoli Centrali and was worried that it might be some hellish scenario with Camorra-like figures lurking but it was all gleaming and shiny with staff everywhere and piped music; cost 1 Euro (a Euro to urinate!).
The train trip back to Rome was uneventful. At the Galileo hotel the staff remembered us and seemed happy to see us again. Our room was much smaller this time but it was only for one night.
We decided another walk was in order so set off and dropped in to Santa Maria Della Vittoria once again and then checked out the Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri church, which we’d walked past many times but never gone inside before. As we entered, one of the priests was shooing a Gypsy woman away from the front door. Maybe she’d been trying to beg inside the church; there’s usually at least one Gypsy outside every church door but I’ve never seen one inside before, even though they’re probably mainly Christians (most of the Gypsies in Italy are originally from Romania).
The church is amazing and Net was really captivated by its quietness and capaciousness. It was very calming after the chaos and disorder of Naples. The marble floors are fantastically elaborate and the dome is impressive. There’s also a roof that was designed by Michelangelo. The church had an impressive exhibition on Galileo seeking to prove that science and religion can coexist and stressing that Galileo was no atheist. However, it was very light of detail concerning the great man’s persecution by the church. There is a very interesting part of the church, a meridian line set into the marble floor, that was installed in 1702 to tell the time accurately. A small beam of light comes through the roof of the church and shines onto the line, at different times of the year it marks different events like equinoxes and solstices. Fascinating!
Net at Santa Maria degli Angel
There was a preparation for a funeral going on, with huge bouquets of flowers being brought in and a priest getting ready. They were laying out purple robes for him so it must have been a big deal.
We had a late lunch at the restaurant we’d dined at on our first day in Rome and the same one-clawed pigeon turned up again for scraps. We watched a gypsy girl set herself up for begging on the street corner: she got herself comfortable first, with plenty of back support and then she leaned forward with her head on the ground and arms raised up with cupped hands.
We walked back to the church to see if the funeral had happened and saw hearses drive away, laden with flowers. We found out later from the concierge that it was for a TV journalist who’d been killed in a motorbike crash.
Church interior - those green 'marble' columns are actually trompe-l'oeil paintings
I decided I wanted to check out the Rome Museum attached to the church, mainly to see the Baths of Diocletian, so I took Net back to the hotel and then rushed off to see as much as possible before the museum closed. I was slightly disappointed that the baths bit was much smaller than I’d imagined. The museum is very interesting though, with tons of Roman sculptures and some good exhibits inside.
Baths of Diocletian
Sculpture in the Baths of Diocletian
Hardly any Roman heads survived the Dark Ages!
Cat in the grounds of the museum
The next day we had breakfast and said goodbye to the nice waitress who gave us hugs and kisses. Then we went back to yesterday’s church to take some photos.
Sculpture of Galileo - gifted to the church by the Chinese government
Sculpture of Galileo - gifted to the church by the Chinese government
Flying over Rome, we saw the Colosseum and all the other marvels, then over mountains with snow and before we knew it we’d reached the other side of Italy! Then Greek Islands, Serbia, Iran, Pakistan, India and finally Thailand and Bangkok. The 20 hour flight was gruelling and ghastly but we survived with no sleep for 32 hours.
Now we have to get back to reality after 6 weeks of exciting adventures!
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