Rome Day 3

We started with an outstanding breakfast in the dining room of La Residenza, then we headed down to catch the Hop On Hop Off bus. We decided to try to keep off our feet as much as possible given the miles we covered yesterday, so the bus looked a good option. We purchased a day pass and hopped on making our way up to the open top upper deck where we could catch the breeze on what was going to be another hot day. The commentary was helpful as there are endless amazing sights in his city, covering the thousands of years of its history and it really is beyond remembering, even with the expert in your ear the whole time.

We hopped off at the Colosseum. You catch your breath when you enter this section of the city with the ruins of the Forum stretching out before you and the great monolith of the Colosseum towering over the square. 

We took an age to find the ticket window and having made one complete circuit of the stadium then wandering into the Metro station dazed and confused and saying "non" to a thousand scalpers ended up right where we started from. We gathered ourselves and walked straight ahead for 20 metres and presto there was the ticket queue....a long one. Finally we were in and with the help of the video/audio guide we began our tour. It was fabulous. Doing it at our own pace helped ,with well orchestrated stops and photo ops taken when we felt like it, you could really appreciate this marvel of the ancient world. The stadium held 60 000 people at its height, had corporate boxes, refreshment stands, gambling a la Tom Waterhouse...so it was very reminiscent of the modern footy arena; apart from the fact that the entertainment was in the main watching people getting slaughtered. Very different from the modern sporting contest, unless, of course, you are a Parramatta fan.There were a million ingenious methods, but at the end of the day most of the entertainers were dragged out and buried. The Romans were brilliant, but they were also brutal. The Colosseum is a fascinating place and we enjoyed our visit very much.

We continued hopping on and off for the rest of the day. It was a great way to see the city minus the blisters. 

(The pic above is the location of the final scene in Dan Brown's 'Angels and Demons'.)

We finally came home, rested up and then went out for a sunset stroll to the Piazza Di Popolo where we caught mass in a beautiful old church. 

It is amazing that these magnificent huge old churches are almost empty, such a clear indication that practising Catholics are as rare on the ground here as back home.

A nice meal at our favourite restaurant opposite the hotel and then bed.

Rome is brilliant. Exciting, busy and full of history. Love it.

Istanbul to Rome

We said farewell to Istanbul this morning after a fabulous 11 days touring Turkey. What a wonderful place it was.

Arriving at the airport three hours early was a good thing as we spent just about all of that time queuing. After an uneventful flight we arrived in Rome where we said farewell to Anne, David, Maria and Cath who were continuing on to Venice. Jim and I are now on our own. We were a little apprehensive leaving the airport but we had an extraordinarily easy transition from the airport to the hotel. 

We are staying at a hotel recommended to us by a golfing friend of Jim- a great boutique hotel not far from the Trevi fountain and Spanish Steps which we visited after settling in to our room.

Love the concierge in his tails!

See if you can find me (Michele) amongst the crowd below.

We had a lovely dinner at the restaurant across the road and retired for the night, ready for a big day at the Vatican.

Today we used the metro system for the first time to head to the australian embassy to vote. A bit of a walk to find it but we have proudly done our civic duty and cast our vote.

Having advanced booked a 1pm time to visit the Vatican museum, we headed there next. We were warned that the ticket line could take up to four hours- would you believe there was absolutely NO queue. We walked straight in and began what must have been about 20km of walking.

Some highlights follow-

I thought these garden gnomes were quite cute, but too heavy to carry home so I didn't bother asking the price!

The Sistine chapel was beautiful but photos no longer allowed. So much to take in.

Although quite exhausted from this marathon, we pushed on the St Peter's as we had worn "appropriate" dress for the visit and did not want to have to put on " modest " clothes again tomorrow- it's still hot.

It has been a long time since we have been to St Peter's and so had totally forgotten how impressive this building is.

Once again, there were a few people here but not a massive crowd as we expected. The tour guide in Turkey told us that St Sophia was the biggest Christian cathedral in the world- he must have forgotten about this cathedral - it is definitely bigger and probably more beautiful than either of the impressive churches/mosques in Turkey.

Here is a glimpse:

We found a little flight of steps in the corner which looked to be out of bounds but decided to head down anyway- what a surprise. It was the crypt where the tombs of past popes are located. It was really beautiful and there were only about four other people down there. Photos not allowed due to the sacredness of the place. It was amazing to be reminded of past great popes and their achievements.

After a very busy and tiring day, we got back to our hotel and ten minutes later joined the other guests for the Friday cocktail party- compliments of the manager. We spent most of our time chatting to a lovely couple from Argentina. Just before we parted ways, we found out that they would be visiting the Pope next week - uncle George to them!!!! He is a close family friend and had blessed their grand daughter on the day she was born- He was heading off to vote for the new pope the next day and never came home. It was wonderful to hear about him from people who were so close to him.

Before I end this post I must let our readers know that Jim and I take turns posting on the blog. Jim is the one who writes the really interesting posts- I basically just tell the facts! 

So, you will know Jim's posts if you look at the alternating ones back and forward from this one. I wanted to make sure that you didn't think it was all my work.

We are glad we have four nights in Rome as the Turkey trip was so hectic. So, more from Rome in the next post.

Canakkale to Istanbul.

Another early start, another excellent breakfast (although I have started just having the scrambled eggs and toast to keep my system in the loop) and we were set for the morning most of us  had been waiting for. 

The tour group has 31 Aussies out of 39 travellers so the excursion to Galipoli was always going to be highly anticipated and the morning was beautiful. The car ferry over the Dardanelles cruised through still blue water and I imagined how the troop carriers would have crossed this water in 1915. The entrance to the Sea of Marmara is really narrow and reminded me of the Hawkesbury River, only a little wider. You can see why this strip of land has seen so much warfare as it is the entrance to the Bosphorus, the Black Sea beyond and thereby the East. Throughout history it has been the key to the passage of trade and the wealth of many empires relied on its control, therefore it has always been a military target. Aran gave a really great talk as we approached Gallipoli and explained the importance of the Galipoli campaign from both the Allied and Turkish point of view, in particular highlighting why the battle is so important to Australians. We drove past a low flat section of the coast that Aran explained as the actual spot the Anzacs were meant to land at. It was about a mile and a half from the spot they mistakenly hit due to the currents. We then drove into B Point and disembarked.

This is the spot the Anzacs hit on April 25 and you could see immediately why they were in a completely hopeless situation. On this beautiful morning, with the water so crystal clear, the place absolutely silent and the graves of the diggers spread out on the lawn, you could not help but be deeply moved. The reality of seeing the terrain - the narrow beach, the sheer hills and the water behind really emphasises how brutally they would have been slaughtered. Their task was impossible.

The tour he gave was superb. He covered every part of the territory in the order of the campaign engagements. Anzac Cove, where the supplies were landed, Shrapnel Valley, from where the Anzacs dug their tunnels to attempt to take the hills above, Lone Pine, named by the Grandson of Eureka Stockade hero Peter Lalor, the only high point the Aussies gained during the campaign and then the view out to Suvla Bay where the reinforcements landed and the spot from which the withdrawal began.

All in all an unforgettable morning. Amongst so many emotional experiences, reading the wonderful words of Ataturk engraved on a stone monument commemorating the Anzacs at Anzac Cove, a spot that is reminiscent of Port Stephens, was particularly special. 

We drove on afterwards, a long haul back into Istanbul.

In the late afternoon we cruised the Bosphorus for the second time. It is a stunning waterway, the shoreline lined with castles, multi million dollar mansions, palaces and clubs, whilst freighters and cargo vessels motor up the centre on their way to Russia and the Caucuses.

We went into the city for dinner at a roof top restaurant overlooking the Blue Mosque. The food was excellent and once more we were struck by the friendly, relaxed waiters and helpful locals. Our experience of the Turks has been really positive...in fact we all have commented on how much some of our xenophobic countrymen back home could learn from them. 

Our final tour day began with many warnings from Aran about how hard the day would be. It was the big tourist day, the Blue Mosque, St Sophia and Topkapi Palace and Aran was doing the big gee up:

"You haf to perform today lazen jenman....."

It was very very hot from the get go, and huge crowds were all over the Hippodrome area. Long queues into the Blue Mosque meant we had a long wait to see this extraordinary building from the inside for the first time. We sought out the shade like a herd of cows, but finally got inside. It was really impressive but were were shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip, heads down bum up all the way. 

Michele looked stunning in her veil...very mystical East. One of our tour group broke free and started taking pics with his high end camera in the middle of the floor, clearly reserved for the Muslim worshippers. He had done this throughout the tour and many secretly wished for a sniper to finally take him out....but no, he got his shots and there were no shots, unfortunately.

We were herded into Topkapi Palace and although this is clearly an amazing, intricate, exotic place it was a little lost in the mayhem. It was so overcrowded you could not really appreciate it.

Ditto St Sophia. This is the biggest Christian Church ever built. It became a mosque and then finally Ataturk (what a bloody great bloke) turned it into a museum to establish it as neutral ground for all to enjoy. It was the most impressive in my opinion, an amazing feat of engineering for the 7th C. AD and an incredible vast space. 

We wandered around after wards, while the tour group took in the Grand Bazaar...there was no need for us to go back there again...and we then had a late lunch. 

The tour celebration dinner took place in a seafood restaurant that night and it was farewell to our companions of the Turkish Delights insight Tour. 

It was really great. It gave us a whirlwind sample of a country we had never seen before, the tour leader was fantastic and we were attached to an eclectic group, who supplied us with no end of comedy material. Even the lady who Michele nearly came to blows with over seat rotation..... I knew seat rotation would end up with someone in tears.