km 7300
Italy. Top place. It’s difficult to know where to start with it. It so packed full with old old history, the ancient and religious, the anarchistic and artistic. And then there’s the Mediterranean lifestyle, the superb food and most important of all the people, only way to describe them is as wonderfully Italian!
My week here has taken me from the high alps, down past Lake Como and Lombardy, to Verona, home of Romeo and Juliet. Then Florence, with it’s amazing array of Renaissance buildings, through the beautiful Tuscany countryside, rolling forested hills and vineyards, to finally return to the Mediterranean Sea at Follonica, on the west coast.
Then, with the ‘Gladiator’ soundtrack playing loud on the stereo it was time to head for Rome. I was lucky enough to be able to stay with an old friend from my Aussie travels, who lived right in the centre of the city. He’s Roma through and through, was great to get a local viewpoint on the city.
Ancient Rome was breathtaking. All these old old ruins, some over 2000 years old, still sitting there, an echo of the glory of the Roman Empire. Walking up to the statue of Marcus Aurelius and a few moments later seeing the Colosseum beyond was cool, (I know it’s a bit ‘Hollywood’, but whatever!). Despite being heavily ruined, the Colosseum still has a mythical grandeur about it. It’s really big, the top tier must sit at least 40 metres from ground level. The first time I saw it was at nighttime, lit up from inside. Going up to touch the pillars was a special moment, something so ancient that it’s almost myth, yet it’s there in honest stone and rock. Inside the arches and tiers rise high above the arena floor. This is now uncovered to show the walls and pits where the slaves and animals were kept. A little imagination and you can almost see the arena full with a roman crowd as gladiators fought out the games.
Then amongst all the other historical gems around, there is the other big ‘jewel’. The Vatican. Which is in fact another country! I only managed to see the St Peters Square and Basilica, unfortunately the Sistine Chapel was closed the day I went. The grand oval of St Peters Square is enclosed by four rows of stone pillars with a needle shaped column rising from the middle. Above the pillars are dozens of statues of what I guess are Popes and Saints. At the far end stands the monumental Basilica of St Peter, the rock of the Catholic church. Everything about it is a grand statement of the power and authority of the Vatican and the church. Inside the sensation continues, with decadent adornments all over the church, monuments, statues and frescoes from countless artistic masters. Michaelangelos’s statue ‘La Pietra’ was particularly special, it as an almost otherworldly glow to it. It was all pretty overwhelming, i guess that’s the effect that’s intended.
Rome is a fantastic city. Aside from all the historical stuff, it has a great atmosphere, the Romans are full of life and spirit. It’s also surprisingly green, with lots of trees and parks. I thought it had quite a similar feel to Barcelona in many ways. The only downside was that it was so damn hot that it just wasn’t worth trying to see too much. Next time round I’ll see more !
Oh yeh, forgot to mention about my run in with the Italian Carabinieri (local police)! I was driving down a country road and overtook a tractor. As I passed it I saw a couple of Carabinieri ahead, and sure enough they flagged me down. They were classic Italian cops, with the smart uniform and dark glasses. Communicating in a mix of Italian, Spanish, English and sign language, i managed to convince them I wasn’t a crook, and after they checked out all my documents I was on my way again. Was a bit nervewracking for a while though!
And then the day before I arrived in Rome i finally had a bit of trouble with the car. I misjudged whilst trying to pull a U-turn and clipped the kerb and … BANG! Bronny’s front tire had burst. Shit, i thought, really don’t need this. But amazingly enough I had all the correct stuff in the car to change the wheel (and the Haynes manual!), and after 15 minutes the spare was on and we were on the road again. The first problem in 7000km, not bad going!
Thanks to Tatiana, Giuseppe and Alessia for being perfect hosts for me during my Italian excursion !
And from here I head to Civitavecchia, 100 km up the coast to pick up the ferry, head across the Mediterranean and back home to Barcelona. Seven weeks and seven thousand kilometres down the road, this is the last lap now.
