Rome - July 7, 2011: Borghese Galleria, The Spanish Steps, back to Trevi Fountain and boys!

All of us woke up a little late, around 10AM, but it wasn’t too much of a problem, because it looked like we had plenty of time to catch the bus to the Borghese Gardens and Galleria. The night before I had mapped-out our route by going online and figuring out the buses. It seemed so simple at the time. We walked the 5 minutes to the stop, then waited. And waited. And waited. Then Sarah and I had questioned if we were at the correct stop. Sarah suggested going across the street and checking the bus stop signs. When we read them, it didn’t clear anything up. So we went to the next street, having seen buses go by. Indeed we found the correct stop (the signs posted tell you the routes).

After three full days of riding the bus, and not having any real problems, we finally encountered an inspector that asked to see our bus passes. People who ride the buses either have bus tickets or bus passes. If a rider doesn't have his or her bus ticket or pas VALIDATED on the bus, then the rider can expect to be fined 50 euro. We were legit, as we had our Roma Passes, which count as bus passes for 3 days.

We were got off at our connecting stop to wait for the mysterious "M" bus. At this second bus stop, we waited about half an hour in the direct sun light, and it seemed pretty much like no bus was coming. So we looked for a Taxi stand. No luck. I asked a hotel reception clerk and he said, “go to the station.” We weren’t going to do that, as it was too much of a walk for us, and we had reservations for the Borghese Galleria. So then, we ended up walking to the Borghese. It took us about 45 minutes or so. Total time from our apartment to the Borghese was 2 hours, 20 minutes. Ugh! We were hot, exhausted, dehydrated and irritated. Of course we missed our appointment, but luckily we were allowed into the next wave – which was 3PM (or 15:00). So we waited outside on benches and ate from our large fresh bread, peaches and clean, crisp Rome water from the nearby fountains. It was a nice relief.

The Borghese Galleria contains a blow-away collection of masterpieces including Bernini sculptures and oil paintings by Caravaggio, Raphael, Pieter Paul Rubens, Titian, to name a few. There was a partial sculpture by Michelangelo, too. It was a small but impressive gallery. We were allowed to be there for 2 full hours, then we were shuttled out. Later we walked through the gardens and rented electric two-seater bikes. We had a total blast with those crazy bikes. When you peddle, the bikes speed up and somewhat charge-up, so that you have to almost immediately brake to slow down. Going uphill is a challenge if you didn’t have enough power to start out with. Though only 18 year olds and above were allowed to operate the bikes, we allowed Catalina and Gaby to operate the bikes for a little while. That was chancy. The crazy bikes take a little getting used to. It cost 10 euro (about $15) to rent for an hour. We rent two and peddled all around the gardens, seeing flowers, plants, lots of people milling about, a lake with boaters, beautiful buildings, a café and lots of other bikers. It really was a hoot and is highly recommended to do if you want to see the Borghese property. It’s a huge place.

Do not buy Gelatto from this stand in the Borghese as the man gave Sarah a cone that immediately broke and then he charged her for it. He was near the pillars.

Then we headed out, on foot toward the Spanish Steps – La Spagna. We stopped along the way and found a small leather shop where we purchased 3 Italian leather pocketbooks (29 euro each) and a multi-color pocketbook/wallet (35 euro). Just a short walk from there and we found ourselves at the top of the steps! What I didn’t realize, that at the top of the Spanish steps you can see a lot of the Italian skyline. It was almost too much to behold – the beautiful skyline, the sun just beginning to set, the masses of people sitting on the steps, vendors selling COLD beer, water and coke from plastic bags (again, I think the vendors were Indian, but I am not sure). There were vendors selling cheap colored thread bracelets and leather bracelets, and odd plastic cheap toys as well. Oh yes, and knock-off designer handbags.

Shopping! Where we bought handbags.

Looking up from Spanish Steps.

Top of the Spanish Steps.

Looking down from the Spanish Steps.

Looking up the Spanish Steps.

There's all kinds of action at the bottom, musicians, dancers, tourists, vendors, carriages, etc.

Below there were some dancers and later we heard a chorus of folks singing on the steps. The steps themselves are marble and quite worn. They slant downward and are rather slippery, so one must walk cautiously down the steps. After sitting there for some time, we walked down and took photos of the last place where the poet John Keats died and where Lord Byron lived. A short way from there we visited (and please don’t yell at us) – ate at – the largest McDonald’s in the world. The servers were NOT NICE, obviously have a dislike for Americanos, but there was air conditioning and plenty of seating. The food was adequate, as we were especially hungry by then. If you watch ketchup, you have to pay 20-cents (about 30 cents U.S.D.) for each small packet, and heaven help you if you ask for salt. They do not have pepper. I had asked for salt, but the server said, “just a minute,” and then pretty much ignored me for about 5 minutes. Even though he had a bit of down time between orders, he chose to ignore me, and not get the salt. I gave up in disgust. Incidentally, when Catalina asked where the restrooms were located (signage is very poor inside McDonald’s and outside), the employee never looked up at her and simply pointed behind her. So no, we would not recommend McDonald’s no matter how much you want good ‘ol fashioned French fries. It’s not worth it for taste or atmosphere.

McDonald's - the largest in the world. But we don't recommend it, no matter how much you want French fries.

Window shopping was awesome. We were sad the stores were closed by the time we walked down the shopper’s row – it was about 9PM (21:00). We saw lots of gorgeous shoes, pocketbooks, dresses, jackets, slacks, and more. Our tongues were hanging out! But no. Closed. Only things opened were the tourist trap shops. Ugh. Off to the Trevi Fountain to see the masses at night – and the water fountain, of course. 

Aw shucks, the shops are closed. But the window shopping was great.

Shopping at night, without the buying (sad face).

We stayed at Fontana di Trevi for nearly 2 hours, people watching. Two Italian men came up to Sarah and started a conversation. Later, I found Catalina and Gaby talking to two (Spanish) boys. The boys invited the girls to a party. I wasn’t having any of that. Back to our apartment by midnight.

Making a wish.

Three sisters making nice smiles.

Me, happy to be at the coolness of the fountain.

Two of the sisters making friends at Fontana di Trevi.