Exploring the Eternal City

Our second day in Rome, we had a leisurely morning at the apartment and then headed out to start exploring the heart of the city.  After about twenty minutes on the metro, we arrived at Piazza di Spagna for a view of the famous Spanish Steps.  This area is named for the Spanish Embassy to the Vatican that has been located here for over 300 years.  As you can tell it was packed with tourists, we took turns climbing the steps so we didn't have to carry the stroller to the top.

In the middle of the piazza was this great water fountain that the children were able to walk on with Jason's help. 

Following the Spanish Steps, we made our way to the famed Trevi Fountain.  You can hear the rushing water from the fountain more than a block away.  It is relatively "new", built in 1762, but is powered by an ancient Roman aqueduct as are all fountains in Rome!

The kids enjoyed throwing a coin over their shoulder into the foutain and splashing around a bit.

Rome is obviously the heartbeat of the Catholic faith, so it is full of churches.  We visited a few in the afternoon after lunch.  

 The first was St. Ignazio.  The ceiling was covered with a vibrant mural and the church was filled with marble and gold covered columns. 

However, this cathedral's "claim to fame" is the painted false dome in the center.  Basically, the city ran out of money to build a real dome, so they hired an artist to paint an optical illusion where it looks like you are looking up into a dome.  It is shown in the photo below.

  

Just a few blocks over, we stopped in at the Pantheon.  This once pagan temple became a church dedicated to martys of the Christian faith just after the fall of Rome.  As such, it was spared from barbarian attacks and plundering from the locals. 

The dome is absolutely magnificent, it is actually three feet wider than the dome at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.   

And as you can tell from the photo below it was packed with other tourists!

After a mid-afternoon stop for coffee and treats for the kids, we made our way to Piazza Navona which contains the famous Bernini fountain, the Four Rivers Fountain. 

Following the advice in our trusty Rick Steve's travel book, we made a bee-line to the gelato shop for tartufo, known in English as "death by chocolate" ice cream. 

We wandered through the small, Italian streets for a while before heading back on the metro to prepare dinner at the apartment. 

Another thing we LOVED about Rome was there was water everywhere!  In Europe, it is nearly impossible to find free drinking water.  In Rome, the piazzas are filled with beautiful fountains and the streets are lined with these very clever hydrant looking fountains they are perfectly safe for drinking.  There is a small metal tube that sticks out.  If you cover the bottom of the tube with your hand (as Jenna is doing below), then the water shoots out of a small hole drilled in the tube to make the perfect water frountain to drink from. 

Every time we saw one, the children had to stop and grab a quick drink.  I think we were the most hydrated we have been in a while!

For our final two days in Rome, we were looking foward to exploring some of the ancient Roman sites, and of course, enjoying more delicious Italian coffee and gelato!