My Italy Trip...Rome 2

To: Friends

Subject: My Italy trip - Rome 2

Dear all,

Since my first serie of Italy pictures got warm welcome from you guys HA HA HA, here's the second serie...

Most places in Rome I visited were inspired by "Angels & Demons" novel by Dan Brown which Pui recommended me to finish reading it before I travel Rome. 

The scenes from the book I had a chance to visit are:-

 

- Obelisk of Santa Maria sopra Minerva:

 

Bernini’s Egyptian obelisk and marble elephant. Actually, the elephant was sculpted by another artist to Bernini’s design.

 

- Pantheon: where tomb of Raphael located inside.

 

- Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi

 

Fountain of 4 great rivers - Ganges, Niles, Danube, and River Plate - supporting an Egyptian obelisk, designed by Bernini. However, it's under renovation during the time I visited. So, couldn't take a good picture.  

 

- Spanish Steps and The Fontana della Barcaccia at the foot of the Spanish Steps.

 

I don't think this place was mentioned in the novel but it's a must tourist spot.

 

From here, we went to have a cup of coffee at Cafe Greco.

 

According to a Rome guidebook, this cafe was opened by a Greek (=Greco) in 1760 (almost 250 years ago!!!), and throughout the 18th century it was a favorite meeting place for foreign artists. Goethe, Wagner (a composer), Casanova, King Ludwig of Bavaria drank here. It's expensive though, 6 Euro a cup! Cheesecake was not impressive.

 

- Fontana del Tritone (sea god), by Bernini again.

 

Look at dolphins, they did yoga - head stand pose hahaha.

 

The dolphin twisting their tails together to support a scallop shell on which the sea god Triton kneels, blowing a spindly column of water up into the air through a conch shell.

- Baroque church "Santa Maria della Vittoria" where Bernini’s sculpture of "the Ectasy of St.Teresa" inside.

 

ตึกข้างหลังจ้ะ

(We walked a long distance from Trevi fountain to this church. P'Juay & Joe was so tired that they didn't enter this church but sitting waited for me at the pedestrian.) This sculpture was criticized because of sexual meaning hidden. The story was like St.Teresa slept one night and dreamt that God came to her in a form of angel and pierced to her body which made her hurt but so happy at the same time, something like that (like having sex!).

 

Here are explanation of the sculpture from the guidebook:

"She lies on a cloud, her mouth half open and her eyelids closed, with rippling drapery covering her body. Looking over her with a smile, which from different angles can appear either tender or cruel, is a curly-haired angel holding an arrow with which he is about to pierce the saint’s body for a second time. The marble figures are framed and illuminated by rays of divine light materialized in bronze."

So, my second day in Rome was a very fun though tired day.

 

Apologise guys for a very longggg mail hahaha.

Since P'Kai is going to travel Italy, I must give as much info as I can to P'Kai!!

After checking with the Italy guidebook, I just realised that I missed several interesting places. There are several museums in Rome u shouldn't miss. I will give u name and its don't-miss collections later.

Be careful, Venice pictures are coming!

Joy

MY ITALY TRIP SERIES:
My Italy Trip...Rome I
My Italy Trip...Venice