Rome
June 2011

Our first stop was St Peter's Basilica
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St Peter's Square
A Swiss Guard in traditional uniform
St Peter's at night where an outdoor Mass was in progress
Below you can see the lights in the Pope's study
The Castel de Angelo which is connected to the Vatican by a passageway
Great views from the top of the Castle
That's the Pantheon on the left with the gold colored dome
A cannon was fired at noon from a nearby hill
Military artifacts attest to its original defensive purpose

Above we're beginning our tour of the Vatican Museum.
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the paintings, sculpture, ceilings, mosaics, tapestries, ancient maps etc.

Here we are at the Plaza Navonna



The Pantheon - over 2000 years old
with original door still intact.
an oculus open to the sky.
And an incredibly preserved interior and mosaic floor.

The Pantheon is now known as the Church of St Mary of the Martyrs
Recreating 'Three Coins in the Trevi Fountain'
The Victor Emmanuel Monument
Santa Maria in Ara Coeli, originally built by Augustus for "God's Son"
A view of the Forum from the Capitoline Hill
The statue representing the Romulus and Remus legend
The Colosseum:
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The Aqueduct at the start of our Forum Tour
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The Church of San Pietro in Vincoli

houses The Chains that bound St Peter

both in Rome and in Jerusalem.




To travel outside the city we needed both buses and metro
The pyramid tomb of Gaius Cestius just outside the city wall was prime real estate back in 15 BC
Walking on the Ancient Wall of Rome.
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Walking the Appian Way in the footsteps of the early Romans
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St John Lateran, the "Pope's Church" ...
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...is located at the "Latin Gate" entrance to the city.
The chapel across the street houses the "Holy Steps" - the steps from Pilate's Palace in Jerusalem that Jesus ascended.
Pilgrims now ascend these stairs on their knees while praying.

The Church of San Giaccomo (Joachim)
where we attended Mass on Saturday night in our neighborhood



Visiting the vendors and strolling along the Tiber


 
Seeking a restaurant along the river and we found one. Lovely setting, but
we will remember this as the dinner of the lost order and "scary" seafood
Outside our Apartment.
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Goodbye to Rome on our way to the port of Civitavecchia