Day 19 Rome: west of the river Tiber, the Castel Sant'Angelo

 

Today, we decided to cross the river and explore the area around Via Cola di Rienzo and the Via Crescenzio. 

 

 

This area is a lot less overrun with tourists, even though it is near to Vatican city, has quite a few street markets, and has the charming Piazza Cavour in front of the Supreme Court.  We found the Mercato dell' Unita, with its colourful display of fruit and vegetables, its delicatessen areas and its butcher and fish shops.  I always am intrigued at the different ways that each country prepares and presents meat.  Here, the chickens were leaner and more yellow than in Australia, the cuts of beef quite different, the amount of offal more prevalent.

 

 

We also discovered the wonderful gourmet store, Castroni. Not only does it have wonderful ingredients for the Italian cuisine - sweets, pastas, sauces, spices included - and a stand up cafe, but it also stocks foreign food.  We even found Jamaican Ackees there!

 

 

Bob had been wanting to visit the Castel Sant'Angelo, originally commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a Mausoleum for himself, but later used as a fort, papal fortress, a residence, a prison and then a museum. 

 

 

At first, I wasn't very impressed as we climbed round and round the alleys and corridors ever upwards as all I could see were locked room, the occasional cannon and the impression of stolid and solid stone.

 

 

 



  It isn't until we came to the statue of Saint Michael by Raffaello de Montelupe that I began to feel there was more to offer. 

 

 

 After that, we were given access to some of the apartments with their frescoes, many of them pagan or sexual,

 

 

 

ornamentations,

 

 

 

 

works of art

 

 

 and furnishings, spaces for executions and an armory.

 

 

  I always am a bit bewildered by the way the church manages to combine a religion of peace with so much violence. There is also a bar and a café and a vine covered patio to enjoy your purchases while taking in the view. At the very top, we discovered one of the greatest views of the city. 

 

 

 

 

 

We could also hear bands playing, people cheering, the sounds of Rome.

 

Descending to the city below, we discovered that the Ponte Sant'Angelo was popular spot for bridal photos.

 

 

 

 

How I love the infinite variety of experiences in this city!