Posted by: Debra Kolkka | November 3, 2012

Arrivederci Roma

I love Rome, so a stop there on the way home to Australia is a delightful necessity. I always stay at the Hotel Julia beside the Quirinale. They know me there and it is lovely to be greeted by familiar faces.

The hotel is very central, so I left my bags and headed off to pound the cobble stone streets of Rome….with an umbrella…..the rain followed me from Florence.

It was a public holiday and I have never seen so many people in the city. I thought it might have been quiet, but most of the shops were open and the streets were crowded with wet sightseers.

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I trudged on anyway, and the sun came out occasionally.

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These street performers were very amusing. They look as though they are just resting, but if you put money in their box, they rallied and performed just a little.

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There was a smaller group around the corner, doing the same thing.

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I was most impressed with this tie in the Etro window in Via Babuino.

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Have you seen the delightful Fountain of the Bees at the start of Via Veneto? It is gorgeous….I will go back in daylight next time I am in Rome for some better photos. It was originally built into the corner of Palazzo Soderini in 1643, but moved to its present position in 1915.

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The magnificent Triton fountain also has bees at its base…they were the symbol of the Barberini family.

The Piazza del Popolo is a good place to end my little visit to Rome.

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See you in January.

I have just spent the day in Helsinki…..take a look at my Beautiful Helsinki blog to see my cold, damp day there. ( There is a link on the right side of the page)


Responses

  1. Great travel photos!

  2. Lovely Have a great flight back to Aus Lyn

    • Thanks, see you back in Brisbane soon.

  3. beautiful. those street performers look like part of the wall…and then that tie. wow. have a really safe trip home!!

    • The performers were hilarious. When I put money in the hat they all came to life for about a minute and went back to just slouching.

  4. Ah, beautiful Roma! I am sure you can’t wait to return 🙂

    • I will be back in Jaunary for another brief visit.

  5. I love going sight seeing with you, Deb! The architecture is wonderful, but the street performers are the real standout this time! 🙂

    • I thought they were wonderful. I hope they made sone money.

  6. I don’t think I could ever get sick of Rome! Your photos have made me itch to get back there.

    • The fact that you are walking through places that are so old amazes me.

  7. The perfect cite to say Arrivederci
    Travel safe. See you in a few days.

  8. I can never get too much of Rome. Buon viaggio. How many hours to Australia???

    • It is 3 hours to Helsinki, 10 to Hong Kong then 8 to Brisbane….a long way.

  9. These images have the feel of a second home for me too Debra. How lucky that amongst all the old there’s always something new to come back for. The eternal city absolutely. Thanks for the beautiful images.

    • I love the mix of old and new in Rome.

  10. As always fab pictures Deb. A presto Roz

    • I’ll be home for a couple of months, see you soon.

  11. I can’t believe how many people there are in that photo! I think we went to Rome at a good time because it wasn’t nearly as crowded.

    • Normally at this time of year it isn’t too bad…it was the public holiday.

  12. The Triton fountain… magnificent indeed!
    Thanks for this walk around… 🙂

  13. Debra. simply beautiful Roma…love.love.love..i agree, i would love to follow you around. you always seem to know where to go. have a safe flight back. ciao. george m.

    • Rome is a great place to wand in. You will get there soon.

  14. It must be lovely to be know at a hotel and be greeted accordingly. Shame about the rain following you around.

    • I have been staying there regularly for 10 years, so I know all the staff….it’s great.

  15. Reblogged this on The Wanderer's Handbook.

  16. Have a safe trip back to Australia, Deb. Happy travels!
    Hugs,
    Kathy

  17. I love Rome too … great photos … love the fourth photo of the passionate looking fellow in the hooded cloak.

  18. Ah, I’m yet to go to Rome and it looks just so beautiful in your pictures. I’ve promised myself that I’ll spend some quality time in Italy next year. Have a good trip home 🙂

    • If you come to Italy next year I hope you will come to visit me in Bagni di Lucca.

      • Yes! Absolutely I will. After all I’ve read about it on your blog, I have to 🙂

  19. The weather has not been very nice for the past few days, and that was all over Europe. It stopped raining on Saturday and that allowed us to do some walking on our last day in Bagni. We went along Via Campiglia and had a look at the mill from the other bank of the river. I had not been there for at least a couple of years and I had not seen how much the ivy had grown. It looks lovely. Back in Spain as from tonight. Great photos of Rome. See you next year in Bagni.

  20. I just spent my 50th birthday in Rome and had a blast! Always enjoy reading your blog. Loved your favourite meal in Italy one…

    • What a great place to have your 50th birthday. On my 50th birthday I stood with Jim on the Ponte Serraglio and made the decision to buy a house there….the best decision we have ever made.

  21. That looks like very laid-back street performing. Even the human statues are making themselves comfortable.

    • They were great. Their “performance” consisted of sitting up straight and blowing a whistle, or something similar, before resuming the slump…..hilarious stuff.

  22. Wonderful photos Debra. I’ve only been to Rome once and that was to fly into one of the airports! Very Interesting to hear about the hotel you stayed in, as we are looking for somewhere in Rome for say 4/5 nights next summer.

    • Hotel Julia is in an excellent position….5 minutes from the Trevi fountain in one direction, 8 minutes walk to the Piazza di Spagna in another and walking distance from most of what you will want to see in Rome. I have found it to be the best value so close to the centre. Tell Rosa I sent you.

      • will do

  23. Never enough images to capture Rome’s essence!

    • My camera was misbehaving for the last few weeks I was in Italy and I missed lots of things I wanted to photograph. I am now trying to figure out how to use the new camera I bought in Hong Kong on the way home.

      • Congrats on the new camera!

      • I just need to learn how to use it.

  24. […] Rome is a place I never tire of. There is always something new to discover…day or night. […]


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