ROME - a splendid contradiction

Christmas time in the Eternal City is especially chaotic as families from all parts of Italy and the world converge at the spiritual home of Christianity. I don’t think I was prepared for the sheer numbers of people on the streets, in the restaurants and at the major sites. However, being one of them I soon had no choice but to adjust, relax and enjoy what some have called “Bella chaos.” Rome is a bustling city to be savored and I soon realized that with a sense of humor and cool optimism, all would be fine.

This was a mother-daughter vacation planned several months prior as a belated birthday gift to me. My daughter, a radio personality and writer, could only get away over Christmas and New Year’s. So we left the husbands, her dog, my cat and…
Buon Giorno Roma.

After an 8 hour overnight flight on Alitalia, we landed early morning at Fiumicino Airport in a light rain, spent an extra hour running back and forth between two carousels to corral our luggage and were off with car and driver to our lovely small boutique hotel off the Via Veneto. Let me be sure to mention that our driver did not get off his cell phone for even a minute while driving at top speed.

Hotel Villa Pinciana is located in a statuesque palazzo dating back to the start of the 1900's. This luxurious 25 room hotel was inaugurated in June 2009. Rooms are spacious for Italian hotels, bathrooms are marble and there’s free internet service in each room. The staff is friendly and courteous giving much attention to service and breakfast (included), is served in a small tastefully decorated setting. For those seeking small luxury hotels, I would highly recommend Villa Pinciana.

After unpacking and a short nap, we were out walking, making our way to a restaurant that had been reserved in advance for an early Christmas Eve dinner. Much to our amazement, the restaurant on via Ripetta was closed! No problem since, as we winded our way through the small cobblestoned streets, we had noticed several restaurants open and serving. We enjoyed a lovely dinner at a small ristorante/wine bar, Ad Hoc, and were asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillows.

My usual method when traveling is to get an overview of where I am and the Hop-On Hop Off bus is perfect. It was 15 years since I had last been in Rome and my daughter never. This turned out to be a smart idea, giving us the orientation we needed. In addition, I had pre-booked a series of walks and tours, another really smart idea.

The Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica had the usual lines but even more at holiday time. However, I circumvented by going to the Vatican site online prior to the trip where I had booked reservation entry time in advance, including a guided tour. Upon arriving, we by-passed the miles of people waiting for what would be hours, walked right up to the front, showed our reservations and were ushered into the building to pick up our tickets and tour through the various rooms and Sistine Chapel. The last time I was there, much of the glorious art in the Chapel had not yet been cleaned. This was an eye opener of bright color with some of the old dirt left in place in order to see the difference. Aside from the crowds of people, this turned out to be a splendid tour.

We had hired a private guide for a walking tour of the Colosseum, Forum and Palantine Hill, the House of the Vestal Virgins, Circus Maximus (remember Ben Hur?) for more creative and in depth information of the Ancient City. We couldn’t have been happier as we got to know our guide, Inga, a transplanted American gal from Michigan living in Rome for the past 10 years, fluent in Italian and having majored in Italian art and history. The spectator sport of killing became major entertainment necessitating the building of the Colosseum in A.D. 80, where 50,000 people could watch the Gladiators, lions and others fight to the death in the name of fun. Just close your eyes and suddenly it’s all very real.

The following day, we continued with Inga to the other side of the Tiber River for a tour through the Jewish Ghetto, the forced home of Rome’s Jewish population for 300 years in an area known as Trastevere. It reminded me of our East Village just not as ancient.

It was unique seeing Kosher Italian restaurants, a Jewish Bakery and men wearing traditional Yarmulkes. A visit to the Synagogue and Museum built in the early 1900’s, where Pope John Paul III’s historic visit took place, provided additional insights. Hearing the stories of Jewish persecution through the ages tears at the soul.

We wandered on our own through Churches filled with beautiful paintings (Caravaggio, Michelangelo, Raphael) mosaic tile work, sculpture and statuary - Santa Maria Maggiore, Santa Maria del Poppolo, Church of St. Cecilia, Church of San Luigi del Francesi, Church of San Ignazio, San Clemente, Cappuccin Crypt (artistically arranged bones); the Pantheone, its dome a model for Michelangelo’s dome of St. Peter’s, with Bernini sculpture appearing at every turn throughout the ancient city streets.

For a day trip out of the City, albeit 13 hours total, we settled on a tour bus to Naples, a city of commerce and the birthplace of pizza, and after one short off-the bus photo op, continued to the real destination, Pompeii. Founded in 600 B.C. it was eliminated from the face of the earth in A.D. 79 by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. Pompeii holds an eeriness of life 2000 years ago as hot volcanic ash brought this thriving City to an end on August 24th. Archaeologists are still at work uncovering more ruins of Roman life where excavations began in the 1700’s. So much has been unearthed giving insight into everyday life: rich and poor lived on the same streets; the rich just had fancier houses. See the fish and produce market, the bakery, the brothel, the baths, theater and temple; Houses of the Tragic Poet, the Faun, the Vetti and the ash outline of bodies at the moment they died. It’s all a remarkable experience not to be missed and well worth the long day.

We enjoyed some very special time with a gracious and wonderful theater couple we met at a party during the summer here in New York and through the efforts of a dear friend of mine, I was put in touch with them. They arranged to take us to see a musical comedy at the Il Sistina Theater called “Aggiungi un posto a tavola” (“Add a place at the table”) which continues to be revived in major cities in Italy since the 1970’s. With a little insight on the theme from Viviana and Aldo, our new Italian friends, we were soon laughing along with the audience. After the show we went backstage to meet the star, Gianluca Guidi, who is not only a very fine actor but sings and sounds like Sinatra and Bennett wrapped into one. I’m already thinking of ways to bring him to New York to appear at one of our upscale night spots. We all went to a local Steak and Hamburger restaurant (they don’t eat pizza and pasta every night) where some of the cast and friends joined in for food, wine and beer, telling stories, giving more insights into theater, its politics and culture. We talked and laughed until 3:30 a.m.

Our last day, with pre-arranged mandatory reservation time, we went to the Borghese Gallery to see a fine exhibit of Caravaggio and Francis Bacon paintings, creatively hung, in the beautiful Borghese family villa which stands amongst the surrounding gardens. Each room is a masterpiece of art, furnishings and beauty.

Since our viewing time was between 5 – 7 pm, we had made dinner reservations in Trastevere at a recommended restaurant, “Spirito diVino.” The building in which it is located is an ancient medieval house with Hebrew character carvings still visible. It has a famous history where an ancient bronze statue by Greek sculptor Lisippo (4th Cent. B.C.) was discovered in the cellar and can now be seen in the Vatican. The house was used as a synagogue, a convent, a foundry and private residence. Twelve years ago a retired Italian couple opened this little gourmet gem. He was a business man, his wife a very good cook and a scientist. They give attention to each table explaining the history, discussing the menu options and inviting their guests to walk down the stairs to partake in the history and antiquity of the cellar, now filled with an extensive wine selection.

Suddenly it was New Year’s Eve, the evening before our departure. We opted for an early dinner near the Campo de’ Fiori area where we could also do some last minute shopping in some posh boutiques, returning to our hotel early just before the pouring rain began. While we packed, we watched TV and the New Year festivities worldwide ushering in 2010, and listened to nearby firecrackers coming from the Spanish Steps.

Up at 5:30 a.m. January 1st, we arrived at the airport around 2 ½ hours prior to our morning flight back to the U.S. With new tightened security, our flight did not leave on schedule but almost 2 hours later but somehow we arrived almost on time.

It was a wonderful, insightful trip with some unique experiences but as I always say when I’m back on American soil and especially in New York- - - there’s no place like home.

January 4, 2010