Stories And Histories: More Days In Rome
On our previous travels we have visited the Jewish quarter of Kazimierz in Krakow and walked through the chilling and horrific histories at Auschwitz and Birkenau, wandered through the former ghettoes of Venice, Thessaloniki and others, visited Jewish museums in several cities as well as Ann Frank’s House in Amsterdam, learning again and again of the bigoted persecution of people of that faith.
Even so, there is a different element to Rome’s equivalent, the former ghetto now known as Communita Ebraico, knowing that creation of this particular ghetto took place under the watchful eye and direct personal instruction of the Pope, who ensured that, as with all other ghettoes, the Jews were confined within impenetrable walls and given appallingly small measures of both living space and food rations.
After over 300 years of life in the ghetto, the 20th century brought with it fascism and holocaust. A plaque on the wall here bears the date of October 16th 1943, when 1,023 Jews were herded on to a train from Rome to Auschwitz: only 16 of them survived.
I suppose we should say at this point that we are not of the Jewish faith, or any other faith for that matter, neither of us having had a religious upbringing, so open minded learning about different faiths has been a continuing theme of our travels.
The Jewish quarter is now a lively and attractive district, restaurants lining the cobbled streets, thankfully with little evidence of the previously cramped living conditions. Like in Kazimierz, Jewish and kosher restaurants endure, celebrating rather than persecuting a particular race, though there is a different slant to the food: gone are the fruity elements of the meat dishes of Kazimierz, replaced by liberal usage of herbs such as garlic and rosemary. Oh, and there’s crispy fried artichoke – a delightful appetiser and a new one on us!
Close by here is the strange looking Teatro Marcello, a smaller version of the Colosseum which once housed up to 20,000 spectators. Beginning in the 16th century, the ruins of this grand theatre were progressively adapted to form the living quarters of a succession of wealthy families, resulting in the curious half-theatre, half-housing appearance the theatre has today. The upper parts are now private apartments – what an unusual place to live.
And so to the Vatican, where thankfully we’ve pre-booked “skip the line” tickets for a timed arrival – we say thankfully because the ticket queues are already stretching way down the street. We tour the once hidden Vatican gardens before entering the buildings themselves, where we find ourselves in the same place as what feels like a considerable percentage of the world’s population.
It’s slow going, to say the least, shuffling in this giant herd of people from room to room, gallery to gallery, nose to tail human traffic inching forward. By the time we reach a decision point between “long tour” and “shorter tour”, both of which end up at the Sistine Chapel, it’s become clear that if we take the longer option we may well lose the will to live long before we reach Michaelangelo’s masterpiece.
Even on the shorter route, it’s a long time before the shuffling herd squeezes through the corridors into the Sistine Chapel, where, necks craned, everybody absorbs the wonder of the most famous ceiling in the world. In doing so we feel a little underwhelmed. Maybe it’s the tortuous approach, but we’ve been to many other great places that have more of a wow factor than here. Sorry, Michaelangelo, sorry everyone, but for us this is one place where the reality falls a bit short of the hype.
That’s not the case with St Peters Basilica though, where the sheer splendour of the interior more than matches the imposing and glorious exterior. Reaching out like welcoming arms, Bernini’s beautiful colonnades create the wide open spaces in front of the basilica which fill to capacity during papal sermons. The whole of the square, the colonnades and the basilica itself, when approaching from Mussolini’s sweeping Via della Conciliazione, is surely one of Europe’s most stirring views.
A short hike along this wide street brings us to Castel Sant’Angelo, originally constructed as Hadrian’s tomb then later fortified and incorporated into the city walls by an embattled Vatican. In fact, a covered and fortified walkway, some of which still remains, provided an escape route directly from the Vatican to the castle for Popes under siege. There’s something vaguely amusing about imagining the papal entourage scuttling for their lives down a corridor. Isn’t there?
Climbing to the highest point of the castle ramparts affords us wonderful 360-degree views of the whole of Rome and the surrounding hills, the many domes of this glorious city pushing above the rooftops. The absence of any ”new” part of town is also noticeable: unlike most cities there is no obvious area of high rise, no Canary Wharf, no ”financial district”. No, this city retains, and fiercely hangs on to, its heritage.
Our time here is not quite done, there is still more to see before we leave the eternal city.
30 Comments
Toonsarah
The Jewish quarter in any city gives us pause for reflection but you make an important point about the then-Pope’s role here. I’m glad the area is notable for much better reasons now, like its food, but also that it doesn’t seem to have forgotten its past.
And yes, I was underwhelmed by the Sistine Chapel too, like you probably because of the crowds and also the difficulty of properly appreciating art so high up! As to St Peter’s, yes, definitely impressive but my main memory is of mistakenly finding ourselves on a one way staircase to the top of the dome – mistakenly because we had my arthritic mother in law with us! She survived, just 🙂
Phil & Michaela
Oh no! Actually we had intended to “do” the dome but couldn’t face another long queue, and opted for the castle ramparts instead. Good choice because we then got the views of St Peters itself which of course you wouldn’t get from the dome.
Toonsarah
The best thing about the views from St Peter’s was seeing those huge statues of saints along the front from behind, looking out over the city 🙂
Phil & Michaela
Wonderful, aren’t they – 140 of them I think. Those colonnades are truly breathtaking.
Andrew Petcher
So, did you never have RE lessons at school? I am not religious but I consider it a shame that our English Christian values are now subsumed by multi-nationalist faith and no first thing morning assembly. Regardless of whether I believe or not I think those life lessons were good.
Phil & Michaela
Ah Andrew, in terms of that first question, I’m probably one of the worst people to ask. From the age of about 13 I really detested school and was very happy when I walked away at 16. I have no memories of RE and what it involved other than it seeming (to a disenchanted teenager) completely pointless, especially as there wasn’t even an O-level at the end of it. I certainly wouldn’t say I had anything approaching a “life lesson” from them, I’m afraid. Like I say, wrong person to ask, I fear!
Andrew Petcher
That is a shame. RE taught some good life lessons.
Phil & Michaela
I think it’s true to say that my life lessons started after I left school, Andrew
wetanddustyroads
No shortage of domes in Rome, hey! I like both ceilings (Sistine Chapel & inside the Basilica) … probably because I have not seen something similar before and therefor cannot make a comparison). But we do not like long lines … and in the process, probably missed out on a couple of extraordinary sights!
Phil & Michaela
Nobody likes them, do they, but I guess sometimes it’s an occupational hazard when visiting the big sights.
Mike and Kellye Hefner
The Teatro Marcello appears to be a Roman ruin. I find it interesting and terrifying to hear that people actually live in it. I bet it is expensive to live there too! Your review of having to be herded through the Vatican and Sistine Chapel makes me cringe, and I imagine that visiting is also expensive to be put through such torture, but when in Rome… I thoroughly enjoyed the post, and as someone who loves art and art history, I enjoyed seeing the ceilings. Your photos from the top of the Castel Sant’Angelo are stunning! Thank you for sharing your candid views on visiting the Vatican.
Phil & Michaela
It’s definitely a weird looking set up, half ruin and half living quarters. Rome has been wonderful and remains one of our favourite cities on Earth.
Monkey's Tale
Interesting to read your reaction to the Sistine Chapel ceiling. I’ve never been but had assumed I’d be in awe. Now I’ll know to keep my expectations low and maybe I’ll be pleased.😊 Maggie
Phil & Michaela
Good call!
Linda K
Kinda funny because I have heard the same thing from friends that went to Rome and saw the Sistine Chapel and St.Peter’s Basilica. They were underwhelmed by the first and blown away by the second. I think you are right about the crowds and the hype…sometimes it just doesn’t live up to what the expectations are.
Phil & Michaela
Yes indeed, yet so many people visit every day
WanderingCanadians
It’s always good to plan ahead and to book those skip the line tickets, even if you do have to sometimes pay a bit extra for it. We visited the Vatican nearly a decade ago and had a similar reaction to the Sistine Chapel, but that could have been because of the crowds and that we felt very rushed. I love the views from Castel Sant’Angelo.
normareadtalktalknet
Actually Val and I were so lucky to visit Rome just as Covid restrictions were lifted and almost had private viewing to everything and everywhere we wanted to see and so were very privileged which gave us the most wonderful experience and memories probably never to have again … so for this reason we have avidly enjoyed every day of your visit to Rome .. thank you for the memories 🥰
Phil & Michaela
Yes it’s very different now, back to being very busy!
leightontravels
There’s a lot to absorb here. Like you I have always been fascinated and appalled by this grisly chapter of history and have also visited the various sites you mentioned. Communita Ebraico looks so peaceful and quaint, but good to know that they haven’t forgotten what once went down here. The Pope… no words. Elsewhere the food look great of course and I’m trying to imagine what it would be like to live in Teatro Marcello. How I would love to see The Vatican one day (Sladja has been), though the scenes you describe sound like my idea of hell. Do you think you may have felt differently about the ceiling had the whole vibe been different and say you’d had the place to yourselves?
Phil & Michaela
Errr…possibly not. The crowds didn’t help but …not saying it’s not splendid, indeed it is, but there’s a lot of other more splendid places that don’t get anywhere near as much attention. Seems a mismatch between hype and reality! Nobody really likes the big crowds but sometimes you have to go with it to see these major sights. And Rome is well worth the effort.
grandmisadventures
This is somewhere that I feel sure would cause the greatest neckache ever as I would spend all of my time gazing up in wonder. Absolutely worth it though to get to see these incredible places. 🙂
Phil & Michaela
Without doubt!
Latitude Adjustment: A Tale of Two Wanderers
Thats interesting even this time of year with all the crowds. Too bad they have to heard people in like cattle. We will be prepared to be underwhelmed by the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Just like the Mona Lisa in the Louvre.
Phil & Michaela
Exactly what Michaela said about the Mona Lisa too, as it happens!!
Discover and Explore
Thank you for sharing your wonderful pictures and lovely writing about Rome. It is like we were on vacation with you. We have been fortunate to have visited Rome twice (2011, 2017), and this November!
Discover and Explore
I tried to write something before, but it must have gotten lost in cyberspace! Anyway, I enjoyed your lovely pictures and words about Rome. We are going next weekend. We visited in 2011/2017 and enjoyed it all immensely. We love the Sistene Chapel, and believe it is a must see, despite the hassle. And St. Peter’s Basilica is a show-stopper! Thank you so much.
Phil & Michaela
Thank you so much for commenting guys, glad you enjoyed!
Discover and Explore
🙏
Discover and Explore
Also, we had a podcast from Rick Steves about the Sistene Chapel explaining to us what we were seeing. Very helpful.