Days Three and Four - October 13th & 14th: In which I destroy everyone's feet.

Hiking through a city like Rome isn't just thirsty work, it's a tough foot and ankle workout. The uneven pavement and cobblestones really beat you up. We started out with a tough enough day, walking from Trastevere all the way back across the city. However, when we got to the Galleria Corsini we found out that they had loaned their Caravaggio to another museum across town, and the Palazzo Farnesina was closed for a private affair. My plans lay in ruins! I quickly devised a route that could take us to sites I had planned for other days, with the full intention of coming back for the Farnesina and its Raphael frescoes. You'll have to stay tuned to see how that goes.



A quick walk up Via Giulia, with a quick panini, got us back on track. Panini are inexpensive and easy to get all over Italy. Better yet, you never need to worry about mayo, even in a tuna sandwich! The interesting looking one was an egg omelet with arugula and tomato.



Our new course took us through a dozen churches, the Pantheon and up to the Capitoline Museum. I love museums, but there is no substitute for seeing a work in the situation that it was intended for. With Caravaggio this is particularly true. In a dark setting his figures seem to loom out at you. By the end of the day everyone was complaining about the foot pain. Their reward was. . .



. . .Another day of foot pain! This time an open to close trip to the Vatican Museum and Saint Peter's Basilica. It's all stone floors and a whole lot of steps. Just what the doctor ordered. The collection of the Museum is beyond belief, from the finest Renaissance painting such as the Sistine Chapel, to the best collection of Etruscan Art, to a really kick-ass modern collection. It can't all be done in a day, but that doesn't mean you can't try! At the end of the day Sarah was visibly limping, my mom had had a spill on one of the thousands of steps, and my dad was nursing a sprained ankle from the previous day. I let them off easy by leaving Castle Sant'Angelo for later in the week. The next day was a trip to Naples, and I can't carry them all.

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