Rome, Italy

We arrived at Rome’s terminal on time (at 6.15am) after some sketchy periods of sleep. While we were reading about accommodation on the platform, we were given information about a camps site, where it would cost 23,800 lire per night. We decided we needed a cheap place, and for AU$24 a night for the two of us, we couldn’t go wrong.

We caught two buses (the 36 and 337) and an hour later we arrived at our small camp site not far from the north-east part of Rome’s ring road. We put up the tent and opted for a quick snooze before tackling Rome.

We went back into town at about noon and decided to orientate ourselves with Lonely Planet’s suggested walking tour, like we did in Madrid. We started at the train station and walked to Piazza del Quirinale. Along the way we went past the Palace, now used as the Italian president’s residence. In the Piazza, I got my first look at St. Peters in the Vatican, but only the dome.

We walked back along this street to Via delle Quattro Fontane, through Piazza Baberini and on to the Spanish Steps. These steps were built in 1725 by the French but were named because they lead up to a Spanish church – Trinitia del Monti.

Roberta, Spanish Steps, Rome, Italy

At the bottom of the steps is Barcaccia – a famous boat-shaped fountain.

To get to our next stop we had to walk down Via Condotti, which is a famous Italian shopping street, with shops such as Gucci, Swatch and Versace lining the road.

Our next monument was the Trevi Fountain. This 1732 fountain is the work of Nicola Salvi and has its water supplied by one of Rome’s first aqueducts. Both of us threw a coin in over our shoulder which, as legend has it, ensures your return to Rome at a later date.

Me, Trevi Fountain, Rome, Italy

After walking through a couple of more piazzas we made our way to the Pantheon. The original temple was built in 27AD, but rebuilt in 120AD. Its main attraction today is the tomb of the Italian artist, Raphael.

Pantheon, Rome, Italy

Pantheon, Rome, Italy

This was the last of the monuments on this tour. Though we did go through a couple more piazzas (Navona, Campo de Fiori, and Farnese) before ending up at the Tiber River. From here we caught the bus back to Barberini, where we caught the train to the terminus and then our two buses back to the camp site. We had a cook tent meal of spaghetti pomodoro and ended up in bed at around nine pm.

It had been a big day!