Papal Visit, Sort Of

Cute Swiss Guard at the Vatican in full pajamas

Laocoon and his Sons
in the Vatican collection

Modern Art in the Vatican Gardens

Our eleven day Italian trip was coming to an end. Our tour mates had become buddies, and , in some cases, friends. We had bonded through our shared experiences of climbing treacherous mountain trails, learning how to taste olive oil, eating plates of amazing Italian cuisine, and drinking slightly more than our share of wonderful Italian wine. It was fitting, then, with all these experiences together, that our last full day in Italy was spent making a spiritual pilgrimage of sorts.
Our penultimate day in Roma was spent touring the Vatican, the home of Pope Benedict as well as one of the largest collections of art in the world. That was part of the payoff of being Pope back in the day—all the best artists wanted to have their work in your house.
We took one of Rome’s two subway lines to get to Vatican City. Yeah, get this. The big city of Rome has two, count ‘em, two subway lines. One goes north-south, the other east-west. The problem with digging more lines is that every time you dig a hole in Rome, you find some kind of archeological artifact! That stops the digging in a quick hurry, while the government sends in the archeologists with their teaspoons and toothbrushes to unearth more historic treasures, which is definitely going to put a crimp in the subway digging schedule.
Our guide Karin told us that you see some pretty weird stuff in some Roman homes. A family might decide to renovate their basement and do some digging, which unearths some Roman detritus from an earlier century. If you tell the government, your home is overrun by you-know-who, those teaspoon and toothbrush people. So you keep your mouth shut, renovate your basement and put that ancient bust of Plutarch on a pedestal in your living room. Finders, keepers, and all that.

Clean, TV equipped Roman subway

So we took the beautiful, clean, television-equipped Roman subway to Vatican City, where we got in the long line (even for tour groups) for the Vatican.
Karin took us into the Vatican Gardens, where they have cleverly set up a series of large posters with the highlights of the Sistine Chapel paintings by Michelangelo. There she could explain the work to us, since speaking in the Sistine Chapel is forbidden ( a rule that is ignored by most of the tourists there, which necessitates the loud “Silencio” at regular intervals).

Karin shows us the Sistine treasures

Then she wound us through the maze of rooms that make up the papal palace, stopping at certain spots to show us particular works, than plowing ahead to reach the Sistine Chapel.
It was at once bigger and more intimate than I expected. And involves a lot of neck craning. But it is breathtaking and moving and it is hard to believe that this was painted by someone who considered himself more of a sculptor than a painter, for it is masterful. That Michelangelo had serious skills.
Our last evening together was spent at a restaurant near the Spanish Steps. We each had a chance to tell what we loved about the trip and the folks we had met. There were a lot of laughs and even some tears.
Ciao, ciao, Italia!

Roman Miracle

The last city we visited in our eleven day Italian odyssey was the Eternal City, Rome. Visiting Rome is like visiting New York City. There is absolutely no way you could possibly see everything worth seeing, even if you had two months to spend there, much less only two days. We knew that going in, and we content to make the most of the two main tours planned, one of ancient Rome and the other of Vatican City.

Our first day in Rome was spent looking at ancient Roman ruins, most notably the Colosseum and the Forum. Our tour guide, the lovely Francesca, was absolutely spellbinding as she explained that this history of Rome belongs to all of us. With her masterful and poetic language, she helped us to see that the civilization that began in Rome echoes through all our histories and cultures. Our day’s walk ended at the Pantheon, the remarkable architectural triumph built in 124 BC as a temple for all the gods. It is well preserved, and has served as a Catholic church since the 600’s.

As a side note, it was shortly after our tour of the Pantheon that a minor miracle occurred. You see, this tour was not without its victims, and I was one of them. I left some of my belongings in almost every hotel we visited. It really wasn’t easy to get everything packed and unpacked every two days! The most grievous loss for me happened as we left Siena. We were on the bus and just leaving the city limits, when I had a blinding flash of realization that I had left the battery for my camera still plugged into the charger in the wall socket right next to my bed. These are the moments when you realize that the group cannot be inconvenienced for your forgetfulness. Sigh.

I took a deep breath and dealt with it, but the photos of the breathtaking agriturismo were all kindly sent to me by our delightful Canadian tour mate Dorothy. She also sent me pictures of the Colosseum and the Forum.

So anyway, back to the miracle. We stopped for a libation after our hot, dusty trip through ancient Rome, and what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a shop selling sunglasses and camera batteries! Who am I to question the logic? I went inside and, sure enough, there must be lots of dopey tourists like me who lose their batteries or forget to bring along a charger, because they had fully charged batteries on sale! Mirabile dictu, as Caesar himself might say.

From the Pantheon, our tour guide Karin turned us loose for dinner and we took off to find the famous Trattoria der Pallaro run by the famous Italian mama Paola Fazi. There is no menu here—you just sit down and dinner is served. Eight of us gathered around the table for the 22-euro meal which included a table filled with appetizers, including Genoa salami, fresh mozzarella, olives, caprese salad, bread, and more, followed by a rich penne carbonara, followed by pork roast, followed by peach tarts and fresh peaches. We washed all this down with pitcher after pitcher of red wine. It was quite a show, with Mama Paola bustling in and out of the kitchen, shouting orders to all her cooks and waiters non-stop.

We had one more day in Roma and we were off to see the Pope…

Down on the (Italian) Farm

Our fourth stop of our Italian tour was at the Agriturismo La Rocca Orvieto. Permit me to translate. An agriturismo is a farm which also takes in tourists. La Rocca was the name of both the agriturismo and the vineyard surrounding it. And Orvieto is the name of the town at the top of a steep hill nearby.
Put them all together and you have one of the most beautiful, relaxing places in all of Italy. This agriturismo sits near the very top of a hill and is reached by one of the most windy roads it has ever been my pleasure to ride on a bus. In fact, the last switchback is so tight that the road had to be widened for our bus to make the turn. Our driver Fausto was a genius when it came to navigating those interesting Italian country highways.
We arrived at the agriturismo after a very full day of sightseeing, and we were ready for some relaxation. Emiliano, Sabrina, and Serena have created a first class retreat for those seeking a respite in the gorgeous Umbrian countryside.
La Rocca Orvieto overlooks Umbria for miles in every direction. Both evenings that we stayed there we had dinner al fresco at their Ristorante La Rocca, where we could sip the delicious local white and red wines and watch the sun set over breathtaking views.
And did I mention the rooms? They were wonderful! Brand new, up to date, each with its own outdoor patio, huge windows to capture the incredible views, marble floors (what else?) and lovely bathrooms.
We never wanted to leave this oasis of serenity. And I mean never.
But somehow our guide Karin talked us into a day trip to Orvieto. Orvieto is another one of those Italian movie-set villages with the medieval church, quaint shops and cobblestone streets. It also had a street fair/flea market going on. The highlight of this for me was the porchetta (aka porketta) booth. Behind the glass in this wheeled booth is proudly displayed an entire roast pig. From said pig are carved slices of a most delicious pork roast, which is then put between a crusty Italian roll for a walk-away sandwich that you will never forget. The porchetta wagon is a fairly common sight in Italy, and with good reason. Give me a porchetta sandwich and a glass of vino, and I’d pretty much be set for the day.
Orvieto is famous for its striped Duomo (church), as well as its Etruscan ancestors, whose tombs have been studied extensively and are on display in a small museum. The Etruscans made, among other things, very lovely gold jewelry. This mysterious race predated the Romans.
After our sojourn to Orvieto, memorable for its food and wine, as well as the trip up the funicular to reach this city built on a butte, we returned to our beloved agriturismo for a well deserved dip in their spectacular pool, another glass or two of vino, some local cheese and salami, followed by another spectacular meal overlooking the landscape of heaven. Ah, La Rocca, I miss you still!

Siena is ready for its close-up!

The thing about Italy, or at least all the small cities and towns that we visited, is that it feels like you’re on a movie set. Most of these towns were built in the Middle Ages, and you somehow get the feeling that no one has felt the need to change much since then.
Not that that’s all bad. It certainly makes for some picturesque sightseeing and great photos. But Italians like their buildings old and their towns quaint, and maybe it’s all for the tourists, but it sometimes seems impossible that anyone actually lives in these places.
Having said that, we traveled by bus from the beautiful towns of the Cinque Terre to the celebrated town of Siena, which is home to the Palio. The Palio is a horse race which, in its “modern” form, has been going on in Siena since 1650. Twice a year, on July 2 and August 16, the city of Siena holds the Palio. Ten of Siena’s seventeen Contrade, or neighborhoods, are represented in each race. As you might imagine, there is a great deal of competition between these neighborhoods and emotions run high.
Each contrade has its own chapel wherein their horse is blessed before the race. Next door is the neighborhood’s Palio museum where they keep the medieval uniforms worn during the Palio and its accompanying parade, as well as any banners won by that Contrade. The Palio is actually the silk banner, which is the only prize of the race, which is run in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
There are great artistic competitions to design these banners, which are quite beautiful.
The horses of the Palio are revered; the jockeys are basically hired hands who can bet on the race, join forces against each other, and during the race are allowed to whip their own horse as well as their human competitors, though they cannot whip another man’s horse. Oh, and as a side note, a riderless horse can win the Palio. Thus you can see the esteem in which jockeys are held.
We had tried to watch the Palio on the TV in the restaurant in Monterosso al Mare, but since the Siennese line up the horses with ropes, this is a process that can take hours, and so we gave up and ate our dinner.
We discovered that the Caterpillar neighborhood had won (the other Contrade have symbols such as the Eagle, the Little Owl, the Dragon, etc.). What this means is that the inhabitants of that neighborhood have bragging rights till the next Palio and usually parade around Siena, beating drums and celebrating in the Piazza del Campo, which is the central square of the city, the perimeter of which is covered in dirt for the horses, while thousands of people stand in the center to watch the race.
When we arrived on August 18, they were still removing the dirt from the Campo, but the party was on. The Caterpillar kids were out in their Caterpillar neckerchiefs, which they tie around their necks with a pacifier to symbolize the “new life” their victory has brought.
Walking the cobbled, almost traffic free streets of Siena and hearing the colorful history of the Palio only reinforced my belief that Italy is a land frozen in time, tradition-laden and totally camera ready.