A Day to Play

Santa Maria in Trastevere

Santa Sabina

The park beside Santa Sabina

Amazing view from the Park at the top of the Aventine Hill

Santa Cecilia

I ponder (OK, worry) a lot about how I will spend my days when my kids are all grown and I am home all alone-because, let's face it, my husband is never going to retire.  I haven't had much chance to practice this skill of filling time and just being alone. Today, I had just that opportunity.  A totally free day to fill however I wanted.  WOW!!  I knew what to do.  Armed with my favorite book to lug around Rome, The Pilgrims Guide to Rome's Principal Churches, I set out on the metro to Testaccio.  Unbelieveably, I went with no intention of eating! Once there, I walked up the Aventine Hill's cobbled street to the top, stopped by the Benedictine's shop, peeped through the keyhole at the Knights of Malta door to see the Vatican and 2 other countries, and walked down the street to one of my favorite places in all of Rome.  Santa Sabina.  Want to see how a church looked in the 5th century?  This is it.  Beside the   Church is an incredible park with pines and long, open expanses.  It is the perfect place for a picnic (Oh well.  I'd come unprepared.)  The view from here is spectacular-all of Rome spreads out before you.  But this is a different angle than the view from the Capitoline Hill which I also find breathtaking.

After I hung out there for about an hour, I walk to Trastevere and to Santa Cecilia.  I literally had the Church to myself for a good portion of the time.  Where are the tourists?  Not that I want to be surrounded by the hoards, but people need to see this jewel!!  It was so quiet that I had an opportunity to pray a rosary there, the only sound was the water tinkling in the fountain outside and then the peeling of the bells at 12.  Beautiful.

I walked from there to Santa Maria in Trastevere.  I never get tired of going here.  I guess this is about the 7th time this visit to Rome.  I am a total freak over mosaics.  Outside of the incredible ones in Istanbul, these are my very favorite!!!  I can sit for hours staring.  Good thing this was my day alone, since I did a lot of reading and staring at art---not the favorite activity of most of my normal companions. Ahem.

By now I was getting hungry.  I started walking over to the Fiori di Campo and then to the Piazza Navona and on toward home.  Vacillating-restaurant or walking, restaurant or Zozzone??  Guess which won?  Zozzone-fig and prosciutto to walk home eating.  So yummy.  Down my favorite little street, Via dei Coronari, to the bridge at Castel San Angelo and home.  I saved up so that I'd have more energy for  adventuring with G.  Later, we headed out to the Spanish Steps and walking all over, then to Mass, then dinner, then a walk through the Centro Storico and the summertime crowds eating at all the restaurants, to Old Bridge (just G ordering a banana, coco and pesca cono-a fruity night since he wanted a "big cone" not special little scoops at Fatamorgana-we have to switch it up!).  All in all-one perfect day!!!!